Briefly

UNITED KINGDOM

Virus puts economy into recession

The British economy has fallen into recession after official figures on Wednesday showed it contracting by a record 20.4 percent in the second quarter as a result of lockdown measures put in place to counter the coronavirus pandemic. The slump recorded by the Office for National Statistics follows a 2.2 percent quarter-on-quarter contraction in the first three months of the year. It was toward the end of that period－on March 23－that the UK joined other countries in Europe in locking down its economy. As such, the UK economy is in recession－commonly defined as two quarters of contraction. Britain's recession is deeper than those recorded by comparable economies in Europe, notably Germany and France.

UNITED NATIONS

Washington reworks draft on Iran ban

The United States on Tuesday circulated a revised resolution that would extend indefinitely a UN arms embargo on Iran, in a move at gaining more support in the 15-member Security Council. US Ambassador to the UN Kelly Craft said the new draft "takes council views into account and simply does what everyone knows should be done－extend the arms embargo to prevent Iran from freely buying and selling conventional weapons". She added in a statement that "It is only common sense that the world's No 1 state sponsor of terror not be given the means of unleashing even greater harm on the world". Council diplomats said the revised draft could be put in a final form on Thursday and put to a vote on Friday. Iran's UN Ambassador Majid Takht Ravanchi said on Twitter that the new draft is similar to the previous one, and that he is confident that the council will again reject this move.

NIGERIA

8m seen at risk if floods hit Lagos

Nigeria's commercial hub Lagos is at risk of heavy flooding this year and at least 8 million people might be affected by such a disaster, the National Emergency Management Agency said on Tuesday. Ibrahim Farinloye, coordinator of the agency's Lagos office, said there are forecasts for flooding in some areas of Lagos State. Millions of residents are already being advised of how to cope if the flooding eventuates. The state is one of the country's high-risk areas for floods, which has become a perennial occurrence in many states across Nigeria, Farinloye said. The flood risk in Lagos might be increased by the uncontrolled release of excess water in parts of the state. Four local government areas have been identified as highly flood-prone areas, and about 13 are said to be probable risks, said Farinloye in commenting on earlier forecasts made by the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency. Farinloye noted that six of areas rated as probable risks have already experienced devastating flooding this year.

JAPAN

Order on 'black rain' victims contested

Japan's government and the city of Hiroshima have appealed a court ruling ordering them to certify dozens of people who were exposed to radioactive "black rain" in the aftermath of the 1945 US atomic bomb attack. The appeal comes after the Hiroshima District Court for the first time on July 30 recognized the "black rain" victims outside of a government-set physical boundary used as a basis for deciding survivors' eligibility for medical benefits. Both the city and the prefectural government joined the appeal. Health Minister Katsunobu Kato said on Wednesday that the government appealed because the ruling was "not based on sufficient scientific evidence".

Xinhua - Agencies