Massive Saharan dust plume is heading for Florida
Dust is forecast to hit south and central Florida on Saturday and stay for at least several days, according to CBS Miami's NEXT Weather radar.
Computer models show that after an initial dust wave, a larger and denser plume could be seen in Florida by the middle of next week, CBS Orlando affiliate WKMG reports.
Radar also shows dust over south Texas on Monday.
Saharan dust was already seen in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands this week, the National Weather Service in San Juan reported on Tuesday. It noted dust impacts included reduced visibility and hazy skies, and said more dust is forecast to move in Saturday and linger through at least Tuesday.
Satellite imagery showed dust above most of the Atlantic's tropical waters on Thursday — spanning all the way from Africa's coast to the Gulf, the National Hurricane Center's Tropical Analysis and Forecast Branch said in a post on X. It noted that the dry air suppresses the development of storms. Hurricane season officially starts on Sunday.
It is typical for dust to move across the Atlantic every year in early summer, WKMG reports. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says it is called the Saharan Air Layer, which is "a mass of very dry, dusty air that forms over the Sahara Desert during the late spring, summer and early fall."
Its activity usually "ramps up" in the middle of June before peaking from late in the month to the middle of August, meteorologist Jason Dunion told NOAA's National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service back in 2020. New "outbreaks" — formed when "ripples" in the atmosphere along the edge of the Sahara Desert kick up dust — can occur every few days and reach as far west as Florida and Texas. Dust sometimes covers areas over the Atlantic as large as the continental United States, Dunion said.
The National Weather service said the dust can impact allergies and lead to eye irritation.
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Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Palestinians are ‘walking corpses' says UN as Starmer calls starvation ‘unspeakable and indefensible'
Palestinians are beginning to resemble 'walking corpses', a United Nations official said on Thursday as Sir Keir Starmer called the starvation unfolding there 'unspeakable and indefensible. ' Humanitarian workers in the enclave are seeing children who are 'emaciated, weak and at high risk of dying' without urgent treatment, said Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UNRWA relief agency. The prime minister is to hold an emergency called with France and Germany on Friday to push for aid – and a ceasefire. 'We are witnessing a humanitarian catastrophe,' he said. 'The suffering and starvation unfolding in Gaza is unspeakable and indefensible. While the situation has been grave for some time, it has reached new depths and continues to worsen. ' Starvation in Gaza is reported to have dramatically increased in recent days; most of the 113 hunger-related deaths recorded there have come in recent weeks, and 82 were children, according to Palestinian health officials. Israel has imposed heavy restrictions on the amount of food and aid allowed to enter Gaza, limiting aid to a handful of trucks each day following a total 11-week blockade earlier this year. UN officials say the aid delivered into the strip is a drop in the ocean of what is needed. 'We all agree on the pressing need for Israel to change course and allow the aid that is desperately needed to enter Gaza without delay,' Sir Keir said. Mr Lazzarini said a UNRWA worker had described people in Gaza as 'neither dead or alive, they are walking corpses'. He said the agency has the equivalent of 6,000 loaded trucks of food and medical supplies in Jordan and Egypt, which have not yet been allowed into the enclave. 'Families are no longer coping, they are breaking down, unable to survive. Their existence is threatened,' he said. Israeli forces have killed hundreds of Palestinians attempting to secure food from a limited number of aid trucks, drawing widespread condemnation, including from many of Israel's own allies. As more than 100 human rights groups and charities demanded more aid in a letter on Wednesday, Palestinians living in the enclave said they had been forced to trade personal items such as gold jewellery to pay flour. 'We are living in hunger and daily suffering, as prices have risen in an insane way that no Gazan citizen, whether employed or unemployed, can bear, in a way that is beyond comprehension,' said Wajih Al-Najjar, 70, from Gaza City, the breadwinner for a family of 13. 'People are forced to go to death in search of some aid,' he told The Independent, lamenting the 'insane' price spiral of flour, which he says has shot up from 35 shekels (£7.74) to up to 180 shekels (£39.80) per kilo. Mr Najjar, who has lost one quarter of his bodyweight - dropping from 85kg to 62kg - says he can not get a full meal for himself. 'So what about children who need food more than three times a day?' he said. Meanwhile, major broadcasters and news agencies, including the BBC and Reuters, issued a joint statement to say their journalists on the ground in Gaza also faced the 'threat of starvation'. 'We are desperately concerned for our journalists in Gaza, who are increasingly unable to feed themselves and their families,' it read. 'For many months, these independent journalists have been the world's eyes and ears on the ground in Gaza. They are now facing the same dire circumstances as those they are covering. "Journalists endure many deprivations and hardships in warzones. We are deeply alarmed that the threat of starvation is now one of them.' Prices continue to rise beyond control and food scarcity has soared to an unprecedented level in the Gaza Strip, in the 21st month of a destructive Israeli invasion and bombardment which Palestinian health officials say has killed more than 60,000 people. The war and invasion began on October 7, 2023 in response to attacks on Israel by the Hamas militants that killed 1,200 people and captured at least 250 hostages. Ihab Abdullah, a 43-year-old university lecturer who is the breadwinner for nine family members, said every night before he goes to sleep, he asks: 'How will I provide for my children today? I can bear the hunger, but what about my children?' 'We have become unable to buy or find food in the markets. We live in daily hunger because the most needed commodity, flour, is not available in sufficient quantities. We are in a situation where we can not buy food even if we have money. Those who have money and those who do not have money are the same. Purchasing value has disappeared.' Younis Abu Odeh, a 32-year-old who is displaced in Gaza, says he feels as if Gazans have been 'put on a chicken farm and starved'. 'We are living through a war of extermination, famine, and psychological warfare," Mr Odeh told The Independent. 'A war of displacement, a war of tents, a war of heat and sun.' The Israeli government insists it is not causing a famine, and that the 'man-made shortage' of food has been 'engineered by Hamas', according to spokesman David Mencer. Mr Mencer said on Wednesday that more than 4,400 aid trucks entered Gaza from 19 July until Tuesday, containing food, flour and baby food. The deepening crisis came as Israel brought its delegation home from Gaza ceasefire talks for consultations on Thursday, after Hamas delivered a new response to a proposal for a truce and hostages deal. The Israeli Prime Minister's office thanked mediators for their efforts and said the negotiators were returning home for "further consultations". Earlier it said Israel was reviewing the response from Hamas. In his statement, Sir Keir said: 'It is hard to see a hopeful future in such dark times. But I must reiterate my call for all sides to engage in good faith, and at pace, to bring about an immediate ceasefire and for Hamas to unconditionally release all hostages. We strongly support the efforts of the US, Qatar and Egypt to secure this. 'We are clear that statehood is the inalienable right of the Palestinian people. A ceasefire will put us on a path to the recognition of a Palestinian state and a two-state solution which guarantees peace and security for Palestinians and Israelis.' Solve the daily Crossword
Time Magazine
an hour ago
- Time Magazine
More Than 100 Dead From Hunger in Gaza, Including Dozens of Children
At least 113 people in Gaza have died from famine and malnutrition since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas, Gaza's Health Ministry said Thursday, as international organizations warn that the humanitarian catastrophe is deepening. The latest figure includes two deaths in the past 24 hours, officials said. Among the dead are 81 children. The Health Ministry also reported more than 28,000 cases of malnutrition in Gaza, with over 5,000 cases recorded in July alone. The figures come as the World Health Organization (WHO) this week described Gaza's famine as 'man-made.' 'I don't know what you would call it other than mass starvation, and it is man-made and that is very clear… This is because of the blockade,' said WHO Chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus at a news briefing Wednesday. He added that since July 17, all treatment centers for severe acute malnutrition in Gaza have been full and are running out of essential supplies. Meanwhile, more than 100 aid organizations have issued a joint statement urging governments to act, saying they 'must stop waiting for permission.' 'Humanitarian organizations are witnessing their own colleagues and partners waste away before their eyes,' the statement read. Warehouses both within and just outside Gaza are filled with 'food, clean water, [and] medical supplies,' it said, but aid groups are blocked from accessing them. 'The Government of Israel's restrictions, delays, and fragmentation under its total siege have created chaos, starvation, and death,' the statement added. Israel, in response, has rejected blame. 'In Gaza today, there's no famine caused by Israel, there is a man-made shortage, it's been engineered by Hamas,' said Israeli spokesperson David Mencer in an interview with Sky News. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) added in a statement to TIME: 'Despite the false claims that are being spread, the State of Israel does not limit the number of humanitarian aid trucks entering the Gaza Strip.' Health organizations warn of a sharp rise in malnutrition Health workers on the ground described an 'alarming' increase in severe malnutrition. 'Families stated that their diet is almost nonexistent,' said Mohammed Almadhoun, a community health worker in Gaza working for Medical Aid for Palestinians. 'On their luckiest day, they just have dry bread and tea.' Sarah Davies, a spokesperson for the International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC), said that for most, the best case scenario is finding bread. 'If you don't have that, you're planning the entire day on what you could possibly find [to eat],' she told TIME. Prior to the war in Gaza, an average of 500 aid trucks entered the enclave daily. Gaza has since been under blockade, after Hamas launched a terror attack on Israel killing around 1,200 people and taking approximately 250 hostages on Oct. 7 2023. Israel has since imposed a siege on Gaza and has halted the entry of goods into the strip. While the severity of the blockade has fluctuated throughout the war, Israel most recently imposed a near-total blockade on Gaza, that has since been partially lifted in May. Gaza's new aid distribution plan, controlled by the U.S. and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) means that nearly all aid entering the enclave can only be collected at certain times from four centers run by GHF, three of which are in the south of Gaza. GHF has faced severe criticism from international organizations, including the United Nations which has called the foundation's aid scheme 'a sadistic death-trap.' Almost 250 organizations signed a joint statement in June calling for change to Gaza's aid distribution, saying that 'starved and weakened civilians are being forced to trek for hours through dangerous terrain and active conflict zones,' under the GHF system. In response, the GHF has said its 'process of securely moving aid into a network of Secure Distribution Sites (SDSs) is allowing for the distribution of millions of lifesaving meals directly to the people of Gaza without interference or diversion.' Hundreds of Palestinians killed while seeking aid The United Nations said Tuesday that more than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed while seeking aid since the new aid distribution program was established on May 27. 'As of 21 July, we have recorded 1,054 people killed in Gaza while trying to get food… 766 of them were killed in the vicinity of GHF sites and 288 near U.N. and other humanitarian organizations' aid convoys,' said spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan. The Israel Defense Forces said they conducted thorough investigations following reports of civilian casualties at aid distribution points. 'Following incidents in which harm to civilians who arrived at distribution facilities was reported, thorough examinations were conducted in the Southern Command and instructions were issued to forces in the field following lessons learned,' the IDF said in a statement to TIME. 'The aforementioned incidents are under review by the competent authorities in the IDF.' At the Red Cross Field Hospital in Rafah, Davies noted that more than 3,400 patients have been treated for weapon wounds since May 27. 'A very high majority of those do tell us that they were attempting to access these [GHF] food distribution sites when they were injured, and there is a very high percentage of gunshot wounds to those patients.' The ICRC was not able to confirm where gunfire that has injured patients has come from. She added that the issue of hunger is being compounded by a number of other 'catastrophic' challenges. 'People have been wounded, people are grieving, they've lost family members who've been killed, children who have been killed,' she said. 'They've lost their homes.' Since the start of the war, Gaza's Health Ministry has reported that over 59,200 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza. In the absence of independent monitoring on the ground, the ministry is the primary source for casualty data relied upon by humanitarian groups, journalists, and international bodies. Its figures do not differentiate between civilians and combatants. Journalists in Gaza face starvation On Thursday, major news agencies including the BBC, Reuters, AFP, and The Associated Press issued a rare joint statement warning that Gaza-based journalists—often the only reporters able to document conditions on the ground—are now facing the same desperate hunger as those they cover. 'For many months, these independent journalists have been the world's eyes and ears on the ground in Gaza,' the statement read. 'They are now unable to feed themselves and their families.'
CNBC
11 hours ago
- CNBC
This Indian pharma company sees a big opportunity in generic versions of weight-loss drugs
Dr. Reddy 's Laboratories is betting big on a new wave of growth fueled by a global demand for weight-loss drugs — by launching its own lower-cost version of semaglutide, the blockbuster ingredient behind Wegovy and Ozempic. The Indian pharmaceutical company plans to launch its generic version of the drug in 87 countries by 2026, CEO Erez Israeli said. "This is a very, very important product because it's becoming more and more as a first-line therapy for type 2 diabetes, as well as for weight loss," he told CNBC. In 2022, more than 2.5 billion adults globally were overweight, of whom 890 million were obese, according to the World Health Organization . The International Diabetes Foundation says that around 589 million people worldwide have diabetes, of whom over 90% have type 2 diabetes. Their reported effectiveness in treating obesity and diabetes had led to a supply crunch for semaglutide, with major pharmaceutical giants such as Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly scrambling to meet the demand. That supply gap, combined with expiring patents in India and Brazil, has opened up an opportunity for Dr. Reddy's to be a first mover in dozens of emerging markets. "The reason that so many markets can be open next year is because in many of these markets, the product was never launched due to capacity constrained by the innovator," Israeli said. "We have a chance to bring the product for the first time to these countries." Novo Nordisk is behind brands like Wegovy, which is used for weight loss only, and Ozempic and Rybelsus, which are treatments for type 2 diabetes. Eli Lily owns brands such as Tirzepatide, Mounjaro and Zepbound. Dr. Reddy's expects its product to be a significant contributor to revenue over the coming years, with Israeli noting: "It is going to be an important product for us. We can certainly see it is growing at the pace to get to hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue." Goldman Sachs had previously projected that the GLP-1 market could exceed $100 billion in annual sales by 2030 . However, high costs and limited availability have made access to these drugs largely concentrated in wealthier countries. Dr. Reddy's is not just planning to launch its generic version of the drug in 2026, but is already preparing for launches in countries that may open up in 2027 or 2028. The company is also eyeing additional GLP-1 generic products in the future. That market share may be easier to capture in some countries where Dr. Reddy's could be the only player—at least temporarily. "It could be a situation in some markets where we'll be the main one, or the only one for a certain period of time until the others will come." Crucially, Israeli believes that broader access to generics will lower the cost of GLP-1 and improve affordability in markets where it's still an "out-of-pocket" product for most people. DRREDDY-IN YTD line Dr Reddy's falls short of quarterly profit expectations The pharmaceutical company missed quarterly profit expectations on Wednesday, with its net profit increasing by 2% to 14.18 billion rupees ($164.2 million), below analysts' estimate of 14.94 billion rupees, according to LSEG data. While the company is looking outward, Dr. Reddy's continues to operate in competitive markets like the U.S., where its product portfolio is evolving. Israeli also acknowledged the crowded nature of the U.S. generics market. "The business model in the United States is actually, in a way, that you have multiple competitors on every product. This is the nature of the business. It has its opportunities as well as its risks."
