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The 2024 US election  

Trump may be allowed to testify about Stormy - impeachment may be near 

Former US President Donald Trump may testify before a grand jury in New York. According to The New York Times, it signals that an indictment against Trump is pending, which would be the first time a former US president has been charged with a crime.  

The investigation concerns suspicions that Trump illegally paid porn star Stormy Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Cliffords, $130,000 to conceal that the two had a relationship.  

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Sergei Bobylev / AP  

People's Congress of China  

Putin congratulates Xi: "Strengthens fruitful cooperation"  

Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulates Xi Jinping on another five years as president of China, writes Reuters. 

The Russian president writes to Xi that the two leaders can now strengthen their cooperation in the "most important regional and international issues". 

"I am convinced that together we will ensure the expansion of fruitful Russian-Chinese cooperation in various fields," writes Putin.  

During his ten years as President of China, Xi Jinping has continuously expanded his power. Previously, a Chinese president could only serve two terms, but that provision was recently removed from the Chinese constitution. After that, there has been speculation about whether Xi plans to remain in power for life. 

 

Investigators on site. Markus Schreiber / AP 

The shooting in Hamburg  

Pregnant woman among the dead - 50 people were in the room  

The police in Hamburg confirm that the suspected mass shooter was a 35-year-old man and former Jehovah's Witness. That's what the German police say at a press conference. Among the eight dead is a pregnant woman. 

- This is the worst crime in our city's modern history, says Andy Grote, top local politician in Hamburg. 

Furthermore, the police say that they have found 15 loaded magazines with the suspected shooter, who is said to have left Jehova's 18 months ago. The motive is still unclear. According to the police, it is possible that the perpetrator was mentally ill. 

50 people are said to have been in the premises during the evening and according to the police, the police operation went "as well as could be wished for". 

 

Hospital in Malawi. Thoko Chikondi / AP  

The floods in East Africa  

"Cholera could be a death sentence for thousands of children in Malawi"  

Over 1,500 people, including almost 200 children, have died in the ongoing cholera outbreak in Malawi, writes The Guardian. According to the UN, the outbreak is the deadliest in the country's history and the situation has been worsened by the tropical storms that hit the region.  

In the coming days, heavy downpours are expected as Cyclone Freddy moves across the country, something that could further worsen the situation. Almost a quarter of a million children in the country are said to be acutely malnourished. 

- Since a severely malnourished child is eleven times more likely to die from cholera than a well-nourished child, cholera can be a death sentence for thousands of children in Malawi, says Rudolf Schwenk, at the UN agency Unicef.  

Young boys carry water in Kenya. Brian Inganga / AP  

The floods in East Africa  

East Africa is plagued by severe drought – and floods 

- We pray for rain, says farmer Daniel Lepaine in southern Kenya.  

Surrounded by kilometers upon kilometers of drought, he tells AP that soon he will no longer be able to put food on the table.  

- If this drought continues, I will have no livelihood or anything for my family.  

The drought that has hit the Horn of Africa in recent years is the worst in many years. At the same time, people are facing a reverse disaster further south in East Africa. Tropical cyclone Freddy, which has caused major floods and already claimed around twenty lives, is expected to return to Mozambique at the end of the week.  

According to meteorologists, the uneven distribution of water has partly natural causes, but it is exacerbated by climate change. 

- The trend has always been two contrasting weather systems. Intensified cyclones in southern Africa lead to drought on the eastern side including the Horn of Africa, said Evans Mukolwe, former head of Kenya's meteorological department.