GLOBAL DIARY

“We will carry out a full review and investigation into the events that took place at Wembley Stadium before and during the UEFA EURO 2020 final” ~

ALEKSANDER CEFERIN, PRESIDENT OF UEFA

FRENCH PROTESTS AGAINST VACCINE

More than a hundred thousand people marched across France on July 16th to protest against President Emmanuel Macron’s plans to force vaccination of health workers and require a COVID-19 free certificate to enter places such as restaurants and cinemas. Macron announced sweeping measures to fight a rapid surge in coronavirus infections, which protesters say infringe the freedom of choice of those who do not want the vaccination. The interior ministry said 137 marches took place across the country, gathering nearly 114,000 people, of which 18,000 were in Paris. The measures had already prompted smaller demonstrations earlier this week, forcing police to use tear gas to disperse protesters.

HAITIAN PRESIDENT JOVENEL MOISE ASSASSINATED IN HIS HOME

The president of Haiti, Jovenel Moise, 53, was shot and killed in his private residence, the interim Prime Minister Claude Joseph announced. The president’s residence said in a statement that the attack occurred on July 7th around 1 a.m. and that his wife Martine Moise was also wounded and taken to hospital. Acting Prime Minister Claude Joseph, who is now leading the country, declared a state of siege in Haiti and closed the Port au Prince international airport. The assassination was carried out by a “well-coordinated” commando group with “foreign elements,” AFP news agency reported, citing interim Prime Minister Joseph.

RICHARD BRANSON SOARS TO SPACE ABOARD VIRGIN GALACTIC FLIGHT

British billionaire Richard Branson soared more than 80 kilometres above the New Mexico desert aboard his Virgin Galactic rocket plane and safely returned in the vehicle’s first fully crewed test flight to space, a symbolic milestone for a venture he started 17 years ago. Branson, one of six Virgin Galactic Holding Inc (SPCE.N) employees strapped in for the ride, has touted the mission as a precursor to a new era of space tourism, with the company he founded in 2004 poised to begin commercial operations next year. “We’re here to make space more accessible to all,” an exuberant Branson, 70, said shortly after embracing his grandchildren following the flight. “Welcome to the dawn of a new space age.”

“When you represent your country at the Olympic Games, it is an indescribable feeling. I’m inspired to play my best tennis” ~ NOVAK

ĐOKOVIĆ, SERBIAN TENNIS PLAYER AND WORLD NO. 1 RANKED PLAYER

TOKYO OLYMPIC GAMES FINALLY OPENED

EXIT FESTIVAL VISITED BY 180,000 PEOPLE

At the National Stadium in Tokyo, spectacular fireworks and an energetic introduction marked the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games. After a year of delays and uncertainties due to Covid-19, the 2021 Summer Olympics (still officially referred to as the “2020 Olympics”) kicked off on July 23rd evening with a dazzling though at times subdued Opening Ceremony in Japan. Athletes from more than 200 countries, including Serbia’s 86 athletes, marched into Tokyo’s Olympic Stadium for the traditional kick-off to the two-week-long event, though delegations were considerably smaller this time around, with many choosing to remain at the Athlete’s Village rather than congregate with their peers at the national stadium.

INZKO IMPOSES BAN ON GENOCIDE DENIAL

Valentin Inzko has set jail terms for anyone who ‘publicly condones, denies, grossly trivialises or tries to justify’ the genocide in Srebrenica or war crimes committed in Bosnia. Inzko has banned denial of genocide in the Balkan country to counter attempts by Bosnia’s Serbs to deny the scope of the 1995 massacre in Srebrenica, Europe’s only post-World War II genocide. The killings of more than 8,000 Bosniaks by Bosnian Serb forces in Srebrenica was declared a genocide by the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court for the Former Yugoslavia. But Bosnian Serb officials and neighbouring Serbia have refused to accept this.

Held every July in and around Novi Sad’s sprawling Petrovaradin Fortress, Exit Festival drew around 180,000 people spread across four nights (the event wrapped up in the early morning hours on Monday, July 13th), according to organizers. And while the event, which celebrated its 20th anniversary this year, has long been a magnet for music fans from neighboring Balkan countries, new festival aficionados from countries such as France, Germany and Spain flocked to Exit over the weekend as most major music festivals in Europe were forced to cancel events for a second successive year due to continuing coronavirus concerns.

EU APPROVES FIRST STAGE OF COVID RESCUE PLAN

EU finance ministers approved a coronavirus recovery plan for 12 of its members that would provide grants and loans for countries including Germany, France and Italy. Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Greece, Latvia, Spain, Luxembourg, Portugal and Slovakia will also benefit from the national recovery programs presented by finance ministers. The €672.5 billion (roughly $800 billion) Recovery and Resilience Facility aims to “power the European economic recovery by supporting member states’ reforms and investment projects,” the European Council said in a statement.