To reduce the spread of viral hepatitis disease and promote greater understanding of hepatitis, July 28 is observed as World Hepatitis Day. On this day, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and its partners focus on the fact that although the burden of disease caused by viral hepatitis is growing, it remains largely ignored or unknown as a health threat. For 2013, the overall theme continues to be ‘This is hepatitis. Know it. Confront it’.

Foreign Office (FO) spokesperson Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry has said talks with US secretary of state John Kerry during his visit to Pakistan will encompass broad based bilateral ties between Pakistan and US. Talking to Voice of America FO spokesperson said talks on regional situation with particular reference to Afghanistan will be part of dialogue agenda. Dates for John Kerry visit to Pakistan are being worked out which will be announced soon, he indicated.

Kuwait has promised $4 billion in aid to Egypt, which together with contributions from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates makes up a $12 billion Gulf Arab package that shows support for the Egyptian army’s ousting of Islamist President Mohamed Mursi on July 3. Despite some public unease about rapprochement with former arch-foe Iraq, analysts and diplomats give high marks to Sheikh Sabah for his pragmatic efforts to rebuild ties with Baghdad.

Federal employees were told to identify U.S. stations but not to make offers of government-funded news to domestic media. With the controversy swirling over media reports that after a recent congressional modification in the 1948 Smith-Mundt Act, U.S. officials may try to target Americans with government propaganda, the federal agency in charge of news and information programs for foreign audiences told its employees that they can start identifying U.S. stations that may be interested in taking their programming but should not contact them specifically to market such programs.

South Africa has generally had strong relations with Zimbabwe, but some say a last week's hiccup over criticism of election preparations reveals the diplomatic fine line the southern African nations walk. Last week, Lindiwe Zulu, a top international advisor to South African President Jacob Zuma, voiced concern that Zimbabwe was not well-prepared for the July 31 election, saying Zuma had spoken to Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe by phone about the matter.

The Liberal Democrat president, Tim Farron, has called for the government's new billboards to be shredded. Nigel Farage said it was a nasty campaign with elements of Big Brother. The text on the ads runs: "In the UK illegally? Go home or face arrest." It continues: "106 arrests last week in your area*." The asterisk is there to indicate that this is a made-up figure, relating to no particular area, and no particular week.

Countries that provide conditions such as ample financial access, training programs, and social services are more likely to cultivate female entrepreneurs, says a new study. The Women’s Entrepreneurial VentureScope—launched by the Inter-American Development Bank’s Multilateral Investment Fund on July 25—is the first comprehensive assessment to score Latin America’s best and worst environments for women business owners of micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs).

Shrestha and 80 other young techies and civil society representatives came together for the first time to create mobile applications to end gender-based violence as part of a hackathon sponsored by the World Bank. Patriarchy is a deeply rooted problem in Nepal. As someone who grew up there, I know of many instances in which women faced violence and discrimination. One-third of married women have experienced some form of emotional, physical, or sexual violence from their spouse in their marital relationship.