Rorisang Modiba brings you daily global updates.
Peru – Former Peruvian president Alejandro Toledo has been sentenced to 20 years and six months in prison for corruption and money laundering. He is accused of taking $35 million in bribes from the Brazilian company Odebrecht in exchange for a road construction contract. Toledo, who was president from 2001 to 2006, was sent back to Peru from the US in 2023 after being arrested in California. He denies the accusations. Odebrecht, now called Novonor, has been involved in many bribery cases across Latin America, including with other former Peruvian presidents.
Egypt – The World Health Organization (WHO) has officially announced that Egypt is free of malaria, a massive achievement for the country. There has been no local transmission of the disease for over three years, meeting the WHO’s standards for elimination. Egypt started working on controlling malaria in the 1920s and is now the third country, after the UAE and Morocco, in the WHO’s Eastern Mediterranean Region to wipe it out. Malaria continues to kill over 600,000 people a year, mostly in Africa.
Hong Kong – A bacterial infection called melioidosis has killed 11 monkeys at Hong Kong’s oldest zoo. The animals, including De Brazza monkeys, a squirrel monkey, cotton-top tamarins and white-faced sakis, died from sepsis caused by the bacteria, likely from contaminated soil near their habitat. The zoo’s mammal section has been closed since 14 October when the first deaths were reported. It is believed workers accidentally brought the infected soil into the monkeys’ enclosures.
US – Kim Kardashian is reportedly raising her four children—North, Saint, Chicago and Psalm, aged between five and 11—mostly on her own. Although she has some help, sources say it’s still a big challenge for her. Her ex-husband Kanye West is “sadly not around much,” despite their divorce agreement giving him equal access to the kids. West, who finalised the divorce with Kardashian in November 2022, is required to pay $200,000 a month in child support and share the cost of their children’s education and security.
UK – Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have reportedly bought a holiday home in Portugal, near a property owned by Harry’s cousin, Princess Eugenie. This comes after King Charles III evicted them from Frogmore Cottage in Windsor in January 2023, just before Harry’s book Spare was released. The couple, who stepped down from royal duties in 2020 and now live in California, officially moved out of Frogmore in June. Meghan is expected to apply for a golden visa, which will allow her to travel to 26 European countries.
Pictured above: Alejandro Toledo.
Source: X
