Armed Robbers Blow U ATM At Bank, Steal US$30K*
FIVE armed robbers blew up an ATM at a bank in Murehwa Centre in the early hours of yesterday and made off with US$30,000 and ZiG15,000.

The daring robbery happened around 2am, leaving residents shaken as police launched investigations to track down the gang.

National police spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi confirmed the robbery.

“We are investigating an armed robbery incident which occurred in Murehwa where five suspects blew up an ATM and went away with US$30,000 as well as ZiG15,000.

“We will release more information later as investigations continue,” Comm Nyathi said.

The suspects are said to have first disarmed and assaulted a security guard who was manning the bank before using explosives to blow up the ATM.

They also allegedly tried to capture another security guard at a nearby bank but failed.

The robbery has left Murehwa residents worried, with some calling for a swift police response.

One resident, who declined to be named, said the latest incident had heightened fears among people in the area.

“We woke up today (yesterday) to this devastating news that our area has been attacked by armed robbers and some money has been stolen.

“This is scary and we are concerned with this spate of robbery incidents as citizens and Government should put a stop to this.

“We are now afraid to conduct our business due to these criminals.”

Another resident said police should move quickly to arrest the suspects.

“We have trust in our police to deal with these issues promptly. We know they are capable of finding these culprits.

“What happened in Murehwa is wrong. To our police, please help us and bring these people to book. Murehwa and the entire nation should be free from these armed robbers.”

The latest incident comes amid a series of armed robberies targeting cash-rich businesses across the country.

In Bulawayo, more than US$64,000 and R1,000 was stolen in three robberies targeting mobile money outlets and a cash collection centre between July 13 and 17.

On July 13, two armed suspects raided a mobile money booth at Emganwini Shopping Centre and escaped with US$2,000 and Econet airtime worth US$280.

Three days later, another mobile money outlet in Cowdray Park was targeted as workers closed for the day.

The robbers got away with US$8,653, R1 000 and two mobile phones used for transactions after reportedly locking employees and a customer inside an office.

On July 17, four armed men stormed a cash collection centre along Fort Street while 16 cashiers were reconciling the day’s takings.

The gang forced employees to lie on the floor at gunpoint before escaping with about US$53,000. *Herald*

*WHO Says Staff Shortage, Funding Challenges Hamper Congo Ebola Response*
Shortages of trained staff, operational partners and funding are causing a bottleneck in efforts ‌to expand the Ebola response in the Democratic Republic of Congo as the outbreak spreads geographically, a World Health Organization official said on Tuesday.

The outbreak has spread beyond its initial epicentre in Bunia, affecting six provinces and prompting authorities to adopt a more decentralised strategy by building treatment centers ​closer to newly affected communities, the WHO said.

Congo’s outbreak of the Bundibugyo species of Ebola has killed 3,175 ​people and infected more than 6,000, according to the WHO — making it the country’s worst epidemic — ⁠and it is continuing to spread across its northeast.

WHO technical officer Luca Fontana said nearly 1,400 treatment beds had already been ​established across 59 treatment centres, one of the fastest scale-ups he said he had witnessed, including during the 2014 to 2016 ​West Africa Ebola epidemic.

“Yet, despite this extraordinary effort, we estimate that another 1,600 beds will be required,” he said.

WHO estimates around three health workers are needed for each Ebola patient bed, meaning around 9,000 staff would be required for the planned capacity of 3,000 beds.

That would require the ​recruitment and training of roughly 5,000 additional health workers.

“Every time a healthcare worker walks inside the patient’s area, wearing the full ​gear, the personal protective equipment, it’s approximately $25. We have hundreds of staff walking inside the patient’s area every single day,” Fontana said.

Compounding the ‌challenge, the ⁠pool of international organisations capable of running Ebola treatment centres is limited, partly due to the impact of broader global donor funding cuts, Fontana said.

“Where are all the organisations that were running treatment centres in West Africa outbreaks in 2014 to ’16? Why they are not currently in the field to support this current response is probably because of lack of resources, and this ​is probably one of the bottlenecks ​now that can delay ⁠the scale-up plan,” he said.

It costs approximately $500,000 to run a treatment centre of 50 beds, according to WHO estimates.

WHO estimates that only five or six major organisations have the expertise and capacity ​to set up and operate a treatment centre for Ebola and that they risk becoming ​tied up managing ⁠existing centres unless other partners step in to take over facilities that are already running smoothly, he said.

In some cases, Congo’s Health Ministry is assuming responsibility for centres opened at the start of the outbreak, but Fontana warned that its capacity would also eventually ⁠be stretched.

“So ​more actors in the field will be needed to ensure that the ​most experienced partners can move to the front line again,” he said.

The WHO has urged donors to increase funding and accelerate contributions to fund the Congolese government-led ​Ebola response plan of $1.3 billion over the next six months. *Reuters*

*US Strikes Iranian Oil Tankers as Tehran Targets American Base in Jordan*
US forces struck five Iranian tankers on Tuesday, sinking one, in response to Tehran twice targeting an American warship, US Central Command (Centcom) said.

Four Iranian oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman linked to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) were targeted, as well as another near Kharg Island, a major oil terminal off Iran’s coast, Centcom added.

Tehran responded by launching missiles at a US base in Jordan – most of which were shot down – and said it attacked two US vessels and eight oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz.

Tit-for-tat strikes between the two countries have escalated in the past week, more than six months after the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran on 28 February.

Oil prices rose in Asia trading. Benchmark Brent crude was up by 1.5% at $99.35 (£73.35) a barrel, while US-traded oil was 1.3% higher a