The White House flatly rejected a House proposal for $622 million in Zika funding, suggesting it would veto the proposal. Meanwhile, the Senate approved a measure, but its fate in bicameral negotiations is unclear. “The Senate on Tuesday approved a bipartisan deal to partially fund the Obama administration’s request for emergency funding to fight Zika, but the bill is still too large for conservatives in the House and far from getting to the president’s desk. The Senate advanced the $1.1 billion bill on a procedural vote and nixed two related measures — one to fully fund the administration’s $1.9 billion request and another smaller package that would have been paid for by cutting Obamacare. Republicans in the House support about half of the Senate funding, which House Appropriations Chairman Hal Rogers called a “bridge too far at this point.” (Politico http://politi.co/23WsGbh )
Stats of the Day...For the International Day against homophobia, biphobia and transphobia “In some countries, 85 per cent of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) students experience homophobic and transphobic violence in school, 45 per cent of transgender students drop out. Homophobic violence also targets 33 per cent of students who are wrongly perceived to be LGBT because they do not appear to conform to gender norms.” (UNESCO http://bit.ly/23Wrdlt)
Book of the Day… Co-authored by By DAWNSer Michael Bear, Expat Etiquette: How to look Good in Bad Places is a is a guide for all those who want to travel to far-away and sometimes dangerous lands - for the best or worst of reasons - while retaining a modicum of style. Style defined as "appearing to know what you're doing, even when you have no idea what's happening around you." http://amzn.to/1Wnsfr7
White House Announcement...USAID Chief Gayle Smith will be leading the US delegation to the World Humanitarian Summit next week.
Africa
The World Health Organization will hold an emergency meeting Thursday on the yellow fever outbreak that has hit hardest in Angola but risks spreading further if vaccinations are not ramped up. (AFP http://yhoo.it/1NxhZdg)
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) has announced a four year initiative to support National Red Cross Societies respond to the drought that is affecting millions of people across southern Africa. (ReliefWeb http://bit.ly/202RKwo)
The Nigerian Senate has withdrawn an anti-social media bill, believed to have been aimed at restricting freedom of expression, which sparked widespread outrage across the country. (Premium Times http://bit.ly/202Reyv)
Self-injectable contraceptives, which are being trialled in Uganda and Senegal, could revolutionize women's lives in rural Africa and dramatically cut maternal and newborn deaths. (Reuters http://yhoo.it/1NxhX5d)
The battle lines in South Africa's politics have been drawn afresh after security guards forcibly removed members of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party when they tried to prevent an address by President Jacob Zuma in parliament. (Al Jazeera http://bit.ly/1W16pd9)
MENA
A bill that would let the families of those killed in the Sept. 11 attacks sue Saudi Arabia for any role in the terrorist plot passed the Senate unanimously on Tuesday, bringing Congress closer to a showdown with the White House, which has threatened to veto the legislation. (NYT http://nyti.ms/23WsHvU)
An official from the IMF on Tuesday told Iran that it faces a crucial opportunity to rebuild its economy and rejoin the global economy. (AFP http://yhoo.it/1NxhH6b)
"Bachelor bans" that bar lone men from entering malls and parks in Qatar are excluding the country's vast South Asian workforce, mostly young migrant men, and cutting them off from society. (Reuters http://yhoo.it/1NxipjT)
Activists say Syrian rebels have swapped prisoners and dead fighters with government forces outside the northern city of Aleppo. (AP http://yhoo.it/1NxhIHi)
The director of U.N. humanitarian operations is warning that 7.6 million people in conflict-torn Yemen face severe food shortages and are "one step" from famine. (AP http://yhoo.it/1NxhJeq)
Asia
MSF, which suffered massive losses when helicopter gunships mistakenly struck its clinic in Kunduz is criticizing the US for failing to pay compensation to the wounded and families of the Afghans killed in the assault. (AP http://yhoo.it/1Nxknke)
The United States eased some sanctions on Myanmar on Tuesday to support ongoing political reforms. (Reuters http://yhoo.it/1NxjU1r)
A landslide in Sri Lanka, triggered by more than three days of rain, buried three villages in a central district and the death toll is yet to be determined. (Reuters http://yhoo.it/1NxkegI)
To reignite its growth, Apple Inc. is looking to India to be its next China. But the formula that worked so well in China won’t be easy to duplicate. (WSJ http://on.wsj.com/1W16rll)
The Americas
Mexico's president has proposed allowing same sex marriage nationally. (Reuters http://yhoo.it/202Sgdy)
Scientists and doctors say that the best way to tackle the US opioid epidemic is to get more people on medications that have been proven to reduce relapses and overdoses. (NPR http://n.pr/202RTjs)
In the grumbling of Venezuela's pre-dawn lines for basic necessities, there is disillusionment with Chavez's "Beautiful Revolution" and undisguised anger at his successor Nicolas Maduro. (Reuters http://yhoo.it/1NxjoAI)
...and the rest
At next week’s World Humanitarian Summit, more than 100 of the world’s leading countries, companies and philanthropists will join forces to create a “major breakthrough” in the effort to assist millions of children who’s education has been disrupted by conflicts and natural disasters, the United Nations envoy for education announced today. The new Education Cannot Wait fund is being launched next week at the two-day Summit in Istanbul, Turkey. (UN News Center http://bit.ly/1W16wp4)
The suffering of migrants in Greece is the result of a complete absence of long-term vision and the clear lack of political will of the European Union, UN human rights expert François Crépeau said. (ReliefWeb http://bit.ly/1NxhNL7)
Canada formally unveiled a bill shielding transgender people from discrimination and hate speech Tuesday. (Yahoo! http://yhoo.it/1Nxi4hc)
An Italian prosecutor on Tuesday requested an 18-year prison term for the alleged captain of a migrant boat which sank off Libya in April 2015. (AFP http://yhoo.it/1Nxi7JX)
Opinion
As Kabila Eyes Another Term, the AU Must Speak Up (ISS http://bit.ly/1NxjYhQ)
‘Human Suffering Has Reached Staggering Levels’ (IPS http://bit.ly/1Nxk6hi)
Rising Sea Levels Made This Republican Mayor A Climate Change Believer (NPR http://n.pr/202Rz40 )
‘Is Bangladesh turning fundamentalist?’ – and other questions I no longer wish to answer (Guardian http://bit.ly/202Rygq)
Cuban Schools' Focus On 'Good Values' Holds Global Lessons (The Conversation http://bit.ly/1NxhWOC)
Rousseff Is (kind of) Gone. What Now? (IPS http://bit.ly/1NxjzMl)
Making Sustainable Development the Key Focus of the BRICS New Development Bank (SAIIA http://bit.ly/1NxjEzs)
The Business of Stability (ISS http://bit.ly/1NxjHeP)