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Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday granted a $1.5 billion loan to Belarus as a show of support for its embattled leader, Alexander Lukashenko, after weeks of street demonstrations that have accused him of rigging last month's election to retain power in Minsk.

The World Bank Board of Directors approved $300 million in additional financing to the Uganda Intergovernmental Fiscal Transfers Program for Results (UgIFT) to boost local governments (LGs) service delivery in education, health, water and environment, and micro irrigation, including in areas hosting large populations of refugees on September 14. The financing includes a credit of $240 million and a grant of US$60 million, of which US$50 million will be from the IDA Refugee Support Window (RSW). The additional financing builds on the initial success of the original UgIFT, amounting to US$200 million to support service delivery in health and education sectors.

The 100th anniversary of Afghanistan’s Independence was celebrated in Kandahar and across the country in August 2019 with hundreds of people taking to the streets with Afghan flags.

At least 100,000 Belarusians took to the streets in the capital of Minsk on Sunday in one of the biggest protests yet against President Alexander Lukashenko after he claimed victory in a disputed election last month that his opponents say was rigged.

The operator of a Japanese-owned bulk carrier that crashed into a reef in late July, causing a widespread oil spill in Mauritius, will pay at least $9.4 million over several years to fund environmental projects and support local fishing communities.

International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists.

French Prime Minister Jean Castex said Friday the government was not planning a new, nationwide lockdown in response to a dramatic spike in COVID-19 cases this week.

Details are emerging about how two privates in the Myanmar army who confessed on video to committing atrocity crimes ended up in the Netherlands.

The World Bank has reallocated $56 million from ongoing projects in Sri Lanka to protect the most vulnerable in the agriculture sector, improve COVID-19 protection measures on public transport, facilitate tele-education for school children, and provide digital solutions to improve delivery of public services. This new financing complements the $128.6 million Sri Lanka COVID-19 Emergency Response and Health System Preparedness Project, which was approved on April 2.

India and Honduras have been working together on boosting the use of sustainable energy sources.