What in the World?" Weekly Quiz -- August 19-25, 2019

Officials laid a plaque this week to commemorate the death of glacier Okjokull (Ok), which sits atop a volcano in THIS country. Ok was declared a "dead" glacier in 2014, when it became too thin to move.  The plaque, entitled, "A letter to the future," reads in part, "All of our glaciers are expected to follow the same path. This monument is to acknowledge that we know what is happening and what needs to be done. Only you know if we did it":

 
Iceland
Argentina
Canada
Chile

Although it's not for sale, the Wall Street Journal reported this week that President Trump wants to purchase Greenland, an autonomous country that is part of THIS kingdom.  As odd as the idea might sound, Mr. Trump is not the first U.S. official to suggest purchasing the country; Harry Truman purportedly made an offer to purchase the territory in 1946, and William Seward looked into acquiring it in 1867:

 

The Netherlands
The United Kingdom
Sweden
Denmark

After more than a thousand of its employees took place in a pro-democracy strike in Hong Kong last week, Chinese officials banned planes owned by THIS airline from flying over its airspace, an important part of the airline's routes to Europe and North America.  A boycott of the airline by the Chinese government, plus lost revenues due to the shutdown of Hong Kong's airport by protestors, led to the resignation of CEO Rupert Hogg by the end of the week:

 

Air China
Cathay Pacific
Hong Kong Air
Singapore Airlines

Over 10,000 people, mostly low-income garment workers, lost their homes when a fire swept through a residential neighborhood in THIS city, Bangladesh's capital; thankfully, no deaths were reported because most residents were out celebrating the Eid al-Adha:

 
Kathmandu
Dakha
Bukhara
None of the above

Argentina's currency plunged and the country's stock index lost over 30% of its value last week after the current president lost a primary vote to populist rivals. The results of the vote are seen as an indictment of the current president's economic policy, which has led to more job losses and inflation rates of 55%.  It now seems unlikely that the incumbent will win the presidential election in October.  Who is the current president of Argentina?

 

Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner
Mauricio Macri
Lionel Messi
Alberto Fernandez

Fusarium, a fungus found in soil and which has devastated farms of THIS agricultural cash crop in Asia and Africa, was confirmed this week in Colombia:

Coffee
Cocoa beans
Bananas
Sugar cane

 An international diplomatic and political maelstrom erupted when U.S. president Donald Trump pressured Israel to deny entry to the West Bank and East Jerusalem to congressional representatives Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib, based on their criticism of Israeli policies toward the Palestinians Territories. What was the final status of Rep. Tlaib's request to visit Israel?

She was granted entry to visit her family in the West Bank, but refused to go because the entry came with free speech restrictions she found unacceptable
Rep. Tlaib was granted entry to the West Bank, and went
Rep. Tlaib is banned for life from visiting her relatives in the West Bank
She was refused entry this visit, but can reapply when she is no longer in office

The United States has requested that an Iranian tanker, held on suspicion of transporting oil to Syria since July, continue to be detained by authorities in Gibraltar.  The request was denied because of THIS:

 

Gibraltar has no current sanctions against Iran
The EU sanctions against Iran, to which Gibraltar is subject, are much narrower than U.S. sanctions, and do not apply in this case
Oil is seen as humanitarian aid to Syria, and is therefore not subject to sanctions
The tanker in question is carrying oil to trade for humanitarian supplies, and is therefore not subject to sanctions

Matt Healy, the lead singer of the award-winning British band The 1975, openly defied Dubai's anti-LGBTQ laws during a recent concert there by doing THIS:

 

Marching with demonstrators for LGBTQ rights
Openly calling for officials in the Arab emirate to stop arresting LGBTQ residents
Walking into the audience and kissing a male fan on the lips
Presenting £2 million to a legal defense fund for those arrested on suspicion of being homosexual

The drugs REGN-EB3 and mAb114 have been shown to cure 90% of people infected with THIS virus, when given as early as possible.  These two drugs will now be used to treat all patients diagnosed with the virus in question in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which is suffering a recent outbreak.  An earlier outbreak of the virus in 2014-2016 in Sierra Leone, Guinea, and Liberia claimed over 11,000 lives:

Malaria
Ebola
Polio
HIV
{"name":"What in the World?\" Weekly Quiz -- August 12-18, 2019", "url":"https://www.quiz-maker.com/QVNANFS","txt":"The Philippines President walked back comments made in Beijing about a “separation” from a historic partnership with the United States a day after his summit with Chinese leaders where he also called for closer Manila-Moscow ties. In his clarification he said, “It is not severance of ties. When you say severance of ties, you cut diplomatic relations. I cannot do that,\" adding, “It's in the best interest of my countrymen to maintain that relationship.\" WHO is the President of the Philippines?, Just as US-Philippines relations were becoming more strained Vietnam opened the door to a more vigorous American presence in the region when Hanoi announced, through the Defense Ministry, that the country would support U.S. “intervention” in the Asia-Pacific if it would help keep peace and stability. The statement was a milestone in the long road back for US-Vietnam relations from America’s war there that ended with the fall of Saigon ON THIS DATE:, The International Criminal Court (ICC), the world’s first permanent war crimes court, has been under pressure over charges it was pursuing a “neo-colonial” agenda based on 9 out of 10 of its prosecutions having been against African leaders. Last week THIS COUNTRY announced its intention to withdraw from the court after it was criticized for failing to arrest visiting Sudanese President Bashir, wanted by the court for genocide and war crimes.","img":"https://cdn.poll-maker.com/11-513922/middle-east-map-edited3.png?sz=1200-00000000001000005300"}
Quiz Maker Logo Make your own Quiz
Powered by: Quiz Maker