JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Gov. Tate Reeves is hoping to breeze past two political newcomers in the state’s primary election Tuesday and secure the Republican nomination as he seeks a second term, setting up a general election contest with Democrat Brandon Presley.

Reeves says Mississippi has momentum with a low unemployment rate and steady job growth, while Presley — a cousin of rock ’n’ roll icon Elvis Presley — says Reeves is out of touch with people who struggle to make ends meet in one of the poorest states of the U.S.

LONDON, Aug 8 (Reuters) - Russia's lack of ships and Western grain traders' shrinking appetite for business with Moscow are adding to rising costs of moving Russian wheat, at a time when the war in Ukraine has spilled perilously close to vital Black Sea supply routes.

President Vladimir Putin promised to replace Ukrainian grain with Russian shipments to Africa after Moscow in July ended an arrangement that gave Ukraine's food cargo safe passage in the Black Sea, imposing a de-facto blockade on its neighbour and attacking storage facilities, in an escalation of the war.

MOSCOW, August 8. /TASS/: Russia is strong enough to achieve all of the goals of its special military operation despite facing an almost direct confrontation with all of NATO, Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev wrote on Telegram.

He drew parallels between the current conflict and the developments that took place in South Ossetia in August 2008.

ANKARA, Aug. 8 (Xinhua) -- Türkiye has introduced a 20 percent additional charge on imports of some gold jewelry to reduce gold imports, according to a decision published in the Official Gazette on Tuesday.

The decision states that an additional 20 percent will be added to the price of all gold jewelry and metal products with precious metal plating, with the exception of those from the European Union and countries that have signed free trade agreements with Türkiye.

LJUBLJANA, Aug 8 (NNN-PRENSA LATINA) — Clean-up operations in Slovenia were in full flow Saturday after torrential rains and severe floods brought havoc to the Alpine country in its worst natural disaster since independence, officials said.

As heavy rainfall started to ease, with the weather situation gradually normalising, the extent of the damage caused by the devastating floods was being assessed.

RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) — Israeli security forces on Tuesday demolished the West Bank home of a Palestinian man accused of carrying out a deadly shooting attack earlier this year, the military said, the latest incursion to fuel tensions in the occupied territory.

Israel’s decades-old tactic of leveling the family homes of alleged Palestinian assailants has drawn intense criticism from human rights groups, which call it collective punishment — prohibited under international law.

BANGKOK, Aug 8 (Reuters) - The second-eldest son of Thailand's King Maha Vajiralongkorn visited a child-care centre for underprivileged families on Tuesday during a surprise visit to the kingdom, the first time he has been back in his homeland in 27 years.

The trip by Vacharaesorn Vivacharawongse, 42, comes at a fraught time for the Thai royal family, with the monarch's eldest daughter in a coma since December.

Vacharaesorn, who works at a law firm in New York, visited the Foundation for Slum Child Care, which is supported by the royal family, and greeted well-wishers.

BEIJING, Aug 8 (Reuters) - China's imports and exports fell much faster than expected in July as weaker demand threatens recovery prospects in the world's second-largest economy, heightening pressure for authorities to release fresh stimulus to steady growth.

The grim trade numbers reinforce expectations that economic activity could slow further in the third quarter, with construction, manufacturing and services activity, foreign direct investment and industrial profits all weakening.

UNITED NATIONS, Aug 08 (APP): A United Nations spokesperson Tuesday reiterated the world body’s concerns over the deteriorating human rights situation in Jammu and Kashmir, saying “the concerns we have expressed still stand.”

The UN Deputy Spokesperson, Farhan Haq, made that statement in response to a question about India’s unilateral action in abolishing the special status of Kashmir on August 5, 2019, in violation of UN resolutions and international law.

SUVA, Aug. 8 (Xinhua) -- Civil society organizations in Fiji are urging Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka to reevaluate his position regarding Japan's planned discharge of nuclear-contaminated wastewater from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant into the Pacific Ocean.

Rabuka recently expressed contentment with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)'s report on Japan's radioactive wastewater discharge plan, Fiji Broadcasting Corporation reported on Tuesday.

MOSCOW, August 8. /TASS/: Russian President Vladimir Putin is submitting to the State Duma draft amendments to the procedure of notifying the United Nations and the Council of Europe in the event of the introduction or termination of martial law or state of emergency in Russia. The official portal of legal information published a presidential decree saying that Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko will be the official representative of the president during the consideration of these amendments by the Russian parliament.

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — A Kenyan police official said Tuesday that dead bodies were planted to accuse police officers of using excessive force during recent anti-government protests, which rights groups say left dozens of demonstrators dead.

Japhet Koome, the national police inspector general, told reporters that “people were hiring dead bodies and parading them to the media to taint the police’s image.”

He did not provide evidence or details to support the claim.