Zika Is No Longer a Global Emergency: Here’s What We’re Reading Today

The Daily 5 is Sharp’s essential reading list for what’s happening in the world today. Make sure to follow us on Twitter or subscribe to the Sharp Insider newsletter to stay up to date.

Here’s what we’re reading today:

1. Zika emergency declared over but still needs ‘intense action,’ WHO says

“The Zika virus outbreak is no longer an international health emergency but it needs ongoing, ‘intense action,’ the World Health Organization says. The committee on Zika and associated neurological disorders was convened by the UN health agency to assess the outbreak that is spread primarily by mosquitoes. It was declared an emergency nine months ago.”

CBC News

2. The end of ice

“The Arctic is warming twice as fast as any place on the planet. Can native villages in northernmost Alaska survive climate change?”

The New Republic

+1: Stephen Hawking says we have 1,000 years to escape earth. – USA Today

3. U.S. election  has sparked a mad dash for territory in Syria

“According to a source close to the rebels, Trump’s victory left some fighters who had been trained and groomed by Americans utterly confused, wondering whether the US would simply abandon them. ‘Their commander’s order was, ‘Just take whatever you can until we see what happens,” the source said.”

– BuzzFeed News

4. Trump picks three hard-liners for top posts

“President-elect Donald J. Trump moved quickly on Friday to begin filling national security posts at the top echelons of his administration, announcing that he had tapped a group of hawks and conservative loyalists who reflect the hard-line views that defined his presidential campaign.”

New York Times

+1: Donald Trump nears $25 million settlement for Trump University fraud charges – BBC News

+1: Steve Bannon’s dangerous campaign to rebrand racism as American “nationalism” – Quartz

5. FYI, the world is still garbage

“Remember that heartwarming video from a few days ago showing a dog as it was being petted by a giant polar bear? In a twist that comes as a surprise to no one, a polar bear had to be immobilized last week after it killed and ate a dog from the same sled pack.”

Gizmodo