Good morning, it's Friday, July 22. Here's what you need to get going today.
One thing to know right now: Joe Biden has tested positive for COVID-19
Here's the lowdown:
-
The US President tested positive on Thursday but first had mild symptoms on Wednesday.
-
Doctor Kevin O'Connor said the President was experiencing a runny nose, fatigue and an occasional dry cough
-
This is the first time the 79-year-old has had COVID
-
Mr Biden has had two booster vaccines doses and is treating symptoms using the anti-viral drug Paxlovid
-
Paxlovid, produced by Pfizer, has been shown to reduce the risk of severe disease by nearly 90 per cent in high-risk patients, if given within the first five days of infection
-
But Paxlovid has been associated with rebound infections, where patients improve quickly and test negative after a five-day course of the drug, only to have symptoms return days later
-
For now, Mr Biden will isolate and work from the White House and he says he is "doing great"
One thing you’ll be hearing about today: The January 6 hearing hits the prime time
Here's what we can expect to come from that:
- The hearing will focus on the three-plus hours during the insurrection when Donald Trump failed to act to stop the violence
- Live testimony is expected from two former White House aides: former deputy national security adviser Matt Pottinger, and press aide Sarah Matthews. Both resigned on January 6 after what they saw that day
- New video from January 7, in which White House aides plead for Mr Trump to issue a message of national healing for the country, is expected to be shown
Back home, a women's safety summit will be held in Adelaide
It's the first face-to-face meeting of women's safety ministers since Labor formed government.
Here are the details from political reporter Nour Haydar:
- The federal government is trying to finalise a new 10-year national plan designed to coordinate state and territory action to end violence against women and children
- The meeting will be hosted by Federal Minister for Women Katy Gallagher and Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth
- Frontline organisations and advocacy groups say the plan needs to be backed by $1 billion in funding each year
News while you snoozed: Russia-Ukraine edition
Let's get you up to speed.
- The Kremlin says Vladimir Putin is in good health, dismissing what it calls false reports that the Russian President is unwell
- Scrutiny of the 69-year-old's health has intensified over recent months
- Mr Putin coughed during a recent public appearance, which was explained as being due to a cold he picked up on a trip to Tehran
- A Kremlin spokesman blamed Ukraine, the US and Britain for the "fake" information
- Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he was also well after what he said was a fake news report about his health by Russian hackers
- In a post on Instagram, Mr Zelenskyy said he had "never felt as good as now" and, in an apparent dig at Mr Putin's age, said: "And with all due respect to old age, 44 is not [almost] 70."
Meanwhile, Ukraine is set to sign a grain export deal with Turkey, Russia and the UN on Friday.
"In summary, a document may be signed which will bind the sides to [ensure] safe functioning of export routes in the Black sea," Ukraine's foreign ministry spokesperson Oleg Nikolenko said.
It's important because Ukraine has been one of the world's leading grain exporters and the war has threatened food supplies for millions of people around the world.
One more thing: Would you eat prawns grown 100km from the nearest coast?
Martin Zhang has set up a prawn farm in the small Queensland town of Esk, 100 kilometres away from the nearest ocean.
The entrepreneur, who made his fortune in aquarium filters, is determined to prove he can successfully farm seafood anywhere in the world.
He has spent three years setting up the facility and has just produced his first batch of prawns.
That's it for now
We'll be back later on with more.
ABC/wires
