Egypt, Ethiopia, Israel-Palestine.
Today's three stories you should know.
Egypt
A horrible tragedy in Egypt. Forty-one people, most of them children, were killed after an electrical fire tore through a church in the city of Giza. About 5,000 people had gathered at the church. Most of the dead died from smoke inhalation, officials said, while others died in a stampede to escape. “Suffocation, suffocation, all of them dead,” one witness said. “There are children, we didn’t know how to get to them.”
More from the Guardian here.
Ethiopia
A ship carrying grain for Ethiopians at risk of starvation has set sail from Ukraine in the first shipment of a new program to get aid to countries on the brink of famine. Ukraine is one of the world’s biggest suppliers of grain and the war there has severely hampered the ability of the UN World Food Programme to get food aid to those in need. But Ukraine and Russia reached a deal with Turkey on July 22 to get shipments out. Ethiopia, which has been in a state of civil conflict for almost two years, is one of five countries the UN says are in need of emergency help for starving people.
More from AP here.
Israel-Palestine
At least eight Israelis were wounded, two of them critically, when a gunman attacked passengers on a bus in Jerusalem’s Old City. Israeli forces chased the suspected gunman into the Palestinian neighborhood of Silwan, according to local reports. A man later handed himself in but police gave no details of his identity. The attack comes a time of heightened tensions. Israel last week carried out air raids on the occupied Gaza Strip in which 49 Palestinians, including 17 children, were killed.
More from Al Jazeera here.