World roundup: May 20 2022

Stories from Iran, Ethiopia, Ukraine, and more

INTERNATIONAL

In today’s global news:

• Worldometer is tracking COVID-19 cases and fatalities.

• The New York Times is tracking global vaccine distribution.

MIDDLE EAST

SYRIA

Another apparent Israeli missile attack reportedly caused a fire at Damascus International Airport on Friday evening, causing authorities to postpone two flights. Syrian media is reporting that at least three people were killed. Under different circumstances (i.e., if we were talking about two different countries) one could imagine a fair amount of international backlash at an attack like this being carried out close enough to a civilian airport to cause a fire. If the positions of the two countries involved in this incident were reversed, in fact, you might expect the United States to attack Syria in response. But in this case any backlash will be minimal and the US government probably won’t say a word.