Reuters: Two health scares at U.S. airports tied to Mecca pilgrims: U.S. officials “Two major health scares at U.S. airports involving inbound flights are related to pilgrims returning from the Hajj, the Muslim pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, which ended in late August, U.S. health officials…

Associated Press: U.N. rights chief: Vowed U.S. cuts wouldn’t be ‘fatal’ to office (Keaten, 8/29). Agence France-Presse/SABC News: U.N. summit on TB seeks to put spotlight on killer disease (8/24). Borgen Magazine: The Future of U.S. Foreign Aid: Moving Forward (Hallum, 9/2). Deutsche Welle: President Trump’s Global Gag Rule endangers…

Friends of the Global Fight Against AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria: Faith-based coalition sends letters to Congress to champion the Global Fund “136 members of the faith-based coalition Hope Through Healing Hands, founded and chaired by former Senator Bill Frist (R-Tenn.), sent letters to the chair and ranking member of the…

U.S. Department of State’s “DipNote”: Charting a New Path to Promote Global Human Rights Kevin E. Moley, assistant secretary of state in the Bureau of International Organization Affairs at the State Department, discusses the U.S. stance on human rights, writing, “[T]hese past weeks have marked an important point of departure…

Washington Post: The Senate in Argentina must vote to decriminalize abortion Mariela Belski, executive director of Amnesty International Argentina “Argentina is only days away from becoming a role model in Latin America and the world in the cause of advancing the human rights of women and girls. For that to…

Foreign Affairs: Climate Extremes and Global Health Veerabhadran Ramanathan, professor of Atmospheric and Climate Sciences at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California at San Diego and council member of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, and colleagues “…[T]oday there is an opportunity to shift the politics around…

Global Polio Eradication Initiative: Strengthening Vaccine Trust in Pakistan This article discusses the efforts of the Islamic Advisory Group for Polio Eradication (IAG) and similar groups to educate religious leaders about the benefits of polio vaccination. The article states, “By educating religious leaders and scholars about the poliovirus, and explaining religious…

Devex: AIDS 2018 “Each year, more than 15,000 global health professionals, advocates, and policymakers come together for the International AIDS Conference to connect and inform the future of AIDS and HIV prevention, management, and cure through the lens of innovation, science, and advocacy. Follow our coverage to learn what the…

Devex: PEPFAR chief wants 70 percent ‘indigenous’ funding in 30 months “…Deborah Birx, the U.S. global AIDS coordinator, has directed U.S. agencies involved in the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief to reach a benchmark of directing 40 percent of their PEPFAR funding to ‘indigenous’ organizations — those based in…

Washington Post: Under pressure from Pence, U.S. aid is directed to Christian, Yazidi communities in Iraq “The premier U.S. aid agency is poised to send millions of dollars directly to Christian and Yazidi communities in Iraq under a rarely used, streamlined funding arrangement after coming under pressure from Vice President…