Anadolu Agency's Morning Briefing - August 31, 2020

By Burak Bir

ANKARA (AA) - Anadolu Agency is here with a rundown of the latest developments on the coronavirus pandemic and other news in Turkey and around the world.

- Coronavirus and other developments in Turkey

Turkey confirmed 1,482 new cases of the novel coronavirus, bringing the tally to 268,546.

Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said 1,027 more patients recovered from COVID-19, pushing the overall number to 243,839.

Turkey marked the 98th anniversary of Victory Day, which commemorates the resounding defeat of Greek forces at the hands of the Turks in the Battle of Dumlupinar in 1922.

The death toll from flooding in Turkey's Black Sea province of Giresun has risen to 10, the country's interior minister said.

Those who burned a copy of the Quran in Sweden are “modern barbarians” who have a “primitive mindset,” Turkey’s presidential spokesman said in a strong message against the Islamophobic act.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Turkey will start space trials of its liquid-propellant rocket engines.

Turkey slammed French President Emmanuel Macron's statement on the lingering tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean.

- COVID-19 updates worldwide

As of Sunday, the worldwide tally for novel coronavirus infections had surpassed 25 million, according to US-based Johns Hopkins University

Brazil reported 758 more fatalities from the novel coronavirus, while Mexico registered 673 more deaths.

South Africa registered 2,505 new cases, bringing the number of infections to 625,056.

Coronavirus cases and fatalities also continued to rise across Eurasian and Central Asian countries.

Since originating in Wuhan, China in December, the pandemic has claimed more than 845,000 lives in 188 countries and regions. The US, Brazil, India and Russia are currently the worst-hit countries.

Over 25 million COVID-19 cases have been reported worldwide, with recoveries exceeding 16.5 million, according to data from US-based Johns Hopkins University.

- Other global developments

The Organization of Islamic Cooperation condemned the burning of a copy of the Muslim holy book the Quran in the southern Swedish city of Malmo.

Montenegro is holding parliamentary polls amid the coronavirus pandemic, with both the long governing Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) and the main opposition coalition declaring victory

Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah said the Shia group was open to discussions for a new political pact in Lebanon.

Jordan decided to release a cartoonist held for drawing a cartoon mocking a recent deal to normalize relations between the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Israel.

At least 99,479 people in Syria went missing from March 2011 to August 2020, according to the Syrian Network for Human Rights.