Axis of Resistance, Mount Vinson Massif, World Health Assembly

• Leaders of the Iran-led, so-called “axis of resistance”, discussed the war in Gaza during a meeting in Tehran on the sidelines of President Ebrahim Raisi’s funeral.
• The “axis of resistance” brings together Iran’s regional allies in the fight against Israel, including the Palestinian movement Hamas, Lebanon’s Hezbollah, Yemen’s Houthis and Iraqi Shia armed groups.
• As per an Iranian news agency, representatives of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine were also present.
• Iran is a key backer of Hamas but repeatedly denied involvement in the Hamas attack on Israel.

Dig Deeper: What is Operation Al-Aqsa Flood?

• A University of Kerala study ‘Microplastic contamination in Ashtamudi Lake, India: Insights from a Ramsar wetland’ has shed light on the extent of microplastic pollution in Ashtamudi Lake, a Ramsar wetland in the Kollam district of Kerala.
• The study found microplastics in the brackish-water lake’s fish, shell fish, sediment and water.
• The highest percentage composition of microplastics was found in the macrofauna, with fish accounting for 19.6% and shell fish 40.9%.
• Microplastics are plastic fragments less than five millimetres in length.
• Detailed analysis of the samples revealed the presence of plastic polymers as well as hazardous heavy metals.
• Polymer composition of microplastics found in the guts of fish and shellfish included nylon, polyurethane, polypropylene, polyethylene, and polysiloxane.
• Hazardous heavy metals such as molybdenum, iron and barium, potentially adsorbed from the surroundings, were detected in the microplastics posing risks to aquatic organisms and human beings.
• The Ashtamudi wetland was designated a Ramsar site in 2002 considering the estuarine system’s extraordinary importance for its hydrological functions.

Dig Deeper: Read about the Montreux Record and Indian Ramsar sites listed on it.

As the Agnipath scheme for the recruitment of soldiers into the three services completes two years, the Department of Military Affairs (DMA), headed by the Chief of Defence Staff, has sought feedback from the forces on the scheme.

• Deliberations are going on over increasing the intake size per batch from around 46,000 and also the recruitment to permanent cadre from 25% to 50% as the services.
• It has been learnt that the headquarters at various levels of the Army had sent agenda points on the Agnipath scheme for the Army Commanders Conference, the apex biannual deliberations.
• All recruitment in the forces for soldiers, sailors, and airmen is now being done through the Agnipath scheme.
• There was no recruitment during the pandemic for over two and a half years.
• Around 60,000 soldiers retire from the Army every year which has led to a significant shortage.
• The government had stated that the Agnipath scheme would bring down the average age of the armed forces from 32 to 26 years in line with the age profile of major armies across the world.

Dig Deeper: Compare benefits to recruits under the old recruitment scheme and Agnipath Scheme.

• A 16-year-old girl (Kaamya Karthikeyan) became India’s youngest and the world’s second youngest to scale Mount Everest from the Nepal side.
• She aims to summit Mt. Vinson Massif in Antarctica this December          
• Mt. Vinson Massif is a peak in the Sentinel Range of the Ellsworth Mountains of western Antarctica, overlooking the Ronne Ice Shelf.
• It is, at 16,050 feet (4,892 metres) above sea level, the highest mountain on the continent. The massif slopes gently to the northwest.

Dig Deeper: View on the map, the highest summits of each continent.

• It is sold in the Turkish province of Rize.
• The lush green Pontic Alps are home to a subspecies of rhododendrons whose purple flowers contain a hallucinogenic neurotoxin with which bees make ‘mad honey’.
• It’s argued by people without proof that it can cure heart palpitations, dodgy stomachs, and even impotence.
• Yet every year, hundreds of people end up in hospitals after gorging themselves on the substance.

Dig Deeper: Read about Datura and Oleander neurotoxins.

• The WHA generally meet every year in May in Geneva at the Palace of Nations, the location of WHO Headquarters.
• The World Health Assembly (WHA) is the forum through which the World Health Organization (WHO) is governed by its 194 member states.
• It is the world’s highest policy-setting body and is composed of health ministers from member states.
• A package of amendments to the International Health Regulations, based on 300 proposals made by member countries after the pandemic, will be on the agenda. 
• The International Health Regulations (IHR), first adopted by the WHA in 1969 and last revised in 2005, were conceived to maximise collective efforts to manage public health events while minimising disruption to travel and trade.
• There are 196 State Parties to the IHR, comprising all 194 WHO Member States plus Liechtenstein and the Holy See.
• The IHR provides an overarching legal framework that defines countries’ rights and obligations in emergencies that have the potential to cross borders.
• They also introduce important safeguards to protect the rights of travellers and other persons concerning the treatment of personal data, informed consent and non-discrimination in the application of health measures under the Regulations.
• Therefore, the IHR is an instrument of international law that is legally binding on 196 countries.
• The IHR requires that all countries have surveillance systems capable of detecting acute public health events promptly.
• A potential new Pandemic Accord and the amended IHRs would be complementary to international instruments designed and negotiated by Members.

Dig Deeper: Read about the PRET (Preparedness and Resilience for Emerging Threats ) Initiative of the WHO to prevent future pandemics.

• A five-year-old girl undergoing treatment for Primary Amoebic Meningoencephalitis (PAM), a rare infection caused byNaegleria fowleri or brain-eating amoeba, died at the Government Medical College Hospital in Kozhikode.
• Primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) is a rare brain infection that is caused by Naegleria fowleri.
• It is a free-living amoeba or a single-celled living organism.
• Naegleria fowleri lives in warm fresh water and soil around the world and infects people when it enters the body through the nose, usually when people are swimming. It then travels up to the brain, where it destroys the brain tissue and causes swelling.
• Higher temperatures of up to 115°F (46°C) are conducive to its growth and it can survive for short periods in warm environments.
• The amoeba can be found in warm freshwater, such as lakes and rivers, swimming pools, splash pads, surf parks, or other recreational venues that are poorly maintained or minimally chlorinated.
• People cannot get infected with Naegleria fowleri from drinking water contaminated with the amoeba. PAM is also non-communicable.
• In the initial stage, the symptoms include headache, fever, nausea and vomiting. The patient may have a stiff neck and slip into a state of coma.

Dig Deeper: Can climate change increase the spread of the infection?