DR CONGO –  The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) says it no longer expects to receive its first delivery of mpox vaccines this week as global health authorities say the spread of the disease can still be contained.

Asked whether the DRC would begin receiving the doses this week, Cris Kacita, the head of the country’s response team, told the Reuters news agency on Monday: “No. There are still several processes to follow.”

He said the Congolese pharmaceutical regulatory agency would first need to be in touch with Danish drugmaker Bavarian Nordic for guidance before the vaccines arrive.  “So we’re waiting,” Kacita said.

The World Health Organization (WHO) said in a statement on Monday that the virus can still be prevented from spreading further but doing so requires a coordinated response. “The mpox outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and neighboring countries can be controlled, and can be stopped,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a statement. The announcement came as health authorities struggle to roll back the virus, which the WHO this month declared a global public health emergency for the second time in as many years. While the vast majority of cases are concentrated in the DRC, other nations in Asia and Europe have reported cases.

On August 19, the DRC health minister had expressed optimism that the country could start receiving vaccine deliveries as early as this week after promises of assistance from Japan and the United States. German government spokesperson Steffen Hebestreit said on Monday that the country would donate 100,000 vaccine doses as the DRC reported more than 1,000 new mpox cases last week.

The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention reported that, as of Thursday, more than 21,300 suspected or confirmed cases and 590 deaths have been reported this year across 12 African nations.  The WHO said it was “significantly” increasing its staffing in impacted countries, part of a six-month plan announced on Monday with the aim of ensuring greater access to vaccines and improving prevention and response. (Al Jazeera)…[+]

GAZA – The waters on parts Gaza’s Mediterranean coastline have started turning brown as health experts warn of the spread of open sewage and diseases across the territory. Satellite images, analysed by BBC Arabic, show what appears to be a large discharge of sewage spill off the coast of Deir al-Balah. A local official told BBC Arabic displaced people in nearby camps are sending their sewage straight to sea.

“It is because of the increase in the number of displaced people and many are connecting their own pipes to the rainwater drainage system,” said Abu Yazan Ismael Sarsour, head of the Deir al-Balah emergency committee. Wim Zwijnenburg, an environmental expert from the Pax for Peace organisation, confirmed that wastewater appeared to be heading into the sea from nearby crowded camps, after examining the satellite pictures.

The sewage discharge in the images, captured on 2 August, covered an area of over 2 sq km (0.8 sq miles). Satellite images show the discharge first started appearing in June and that it grew steadily over the next two months. It is not clear if the coastal pollution is still growing as more recent satellite image are not available. Intensive Israeli bombardment has led to the collapse of Gaza’s waste water management infrastructure, a UN environmental report concluded in June.

The Israeli defence ministry body overseeing policy for the Palestinian territories, Cogat, told BBC Arabic a dedicated humanitarian taskforce had taken action to improve the sewage system in Gaza. In recent months, Cogat co-ordinated the restoration of water wells and desalination facilities, as well as the extension of water pipes in Gaza, according to its statement.

The BBC is not able to independently verify specific improvements to Gaza’s sewage infrastructure. Israel, alongside Egypt, does not allow independent journalists into Gaza except on controlled and brief visits with the Israeli military. Health experts, though, are sounding the alarm about the spread of waterborne diseases, after a 10-month-old baby was partially paralysed after contracting polio – the first registered case in Gaza for 25 years. UN and World Health Organization (WHO) officials also called for a two one-week ceasefires so they can vaccinate 600,000 children in Gaza. (BBC)

Photo: A boy at the Sheikh Radwan lagoon. (Getty Images) …[+]

WASHINGTON – Vice President Kamala Harris has raised $540million in little more than a month since she began her race for United States president, with a surge of donations during the Democratic National Convention last week, her campaign said.

A memo released by Harris’s campaign manager, Jen O’Malley Dillon, said the $540m raised included $82m that came in during convention week and was a sign of Democratic enthusiasm for her candidacy. “Just before Vice President Harris’ acceptance speech Thursday night, we officially crossed the $500 million mark,” O’Malley Dillon wrote in a memo released by the campaign on Sunday. “Immediately after her speech, we saw our best fundraising hour since launch day.”

“This is the most ever for any presidential campaign in this time span,” she added.

O’Malley Dillon said that nearly a third of contributions during convention week came from first-time contributors. About one-fifth of those first-time contributors were young voters and two-thirds were women, groups the campaign sees as critical constituencies that Harris needs to turn out to win in November. The Harris campaign says it has also seen a surge in volunteer support for the vice president. During convention week, supporters signed up for nearly 200,000 volunteer shifts to help the campaign.

Harris became candidate for president on July 21 when President Joe Biden stepped aside under pressure from fellow Democrats concerned about his age after he stumbled during a June 27 debate against Republican rival Donald Trump. The Harris candidacy has generated momentum that has put Trump on the defensive and left him struggling to maintain media attention.

Trump has also proven a formidable fundraiser, but at the moment appears to be outpaced by Harris’s month-old campaign. Trump’s campaign and its related affiliates announced earlier this month that they had raised $138.7million in July – less than what Harris took in during her White House bid’s opening week. Trump’s campaign reported $327million in cash on hand at the start of August.

Harris and her vice presidential running mate, Tim Walz, take their campaign for the White House on a bus tour through Georgia this week, looking to build support in a state looming large in the November 5 election. (Al Jazeera) …[+]