News and Prophecy Staff

In the last five months, the deadly diarrheal disease known as cholera has infected over half a million people and killed about 2,000 so far—mostly children and the elderly (Deutsche Welle, August 14, 2017). The disease results from water and food supplies that are contaminated by dirty, sewage-laden water. Sadly, there is not enough clean water to improve conditions that are causing the epidemic, and there are not enough doctors or hospitals to treat the sick.

Although defense spending has dropped in some nations—mainly in Africa and oil-producing countries—many nations are building up their defense capabilities. Iran’s leadership recently voted to boost missile and other defense spending by over $500 million (BBC, August 13, 2017).

Due to an unusually hot and dry summer, Portugal has requested help from Europe to combat forest fires on a scale not seen in recent memory. Thousands of firefighters are battling hundreds of blazes around the nation (Reuters, August 13, 2017).

U.S. public health officials have discovered fleas infected with the bubonic plague—sometimes called the “Black Death”—in the state of Arizona. This is the same bacterium that killed millions of people in Europe in the fourteenth century.

On September 24, Germans will participate in a federal election to select their chancellor. Many wonder if Chancellor Angela Merkel will be able to retain the office she has held since 2005. Her critics abound.