September 9: Iran Ship Attacks and Bangladesh Measles Outbreak

At the Strait of Hormuz Iran says it attacked 10 ships near the Strait of Hormuz after U.S. strikes sank five Iranian tankers, escalating the six-month U.S.-Iran war around a route that once carried up to a fifth of global oil and gas supplies. Brent crude rose above $100 a barrel, while UK fuel and household energy costs are expected to climb as wholesale prices feed through. In Bangladesh Bangladesh’s measles outbreak has killed more than 1,000 children and infected nearly 190,000 people since March. Vaccination efforts have not contained the surge, leaving the country facing its worst recorded outbreak. In U.S. diplomacy CIA Director John Ratcliffe is expected to take a larger role in U.S. negotiations involving Russia and Ukraine, according to officials who briefed European counterparts. The White House is also weighing a reduced role for special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who have led talks with Moscow and Kyiv. In public health The United States recorded 48,824 suicide deaths in 2024, a rate of roughly 13.7 per 100,000 people. The figures are renewing calls for broader prevention measures across health care, community support, and crisis intervention. European health experts are also urging coordinated EU funding to confront antimicrobial resistance, which kills thousands across the continent while development of new antibiotics remains weak. They want shared national contributions and incentives tied to successful treatments. In Gaza Students in Gaza who have secured overseas university places and scholarships remain unable to leave as the academic term begins. Immigration rules are preventing their departure, leaving offers of study abroad unusable for now. In Ethiopia Ethiopia is considering constitutional changes that could replace its current system with a presidential model. The proposal could significantly consolidate power around Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed by giving the office a stronger mandate.