Current Affairs Quiz - July, 2021

Notes:
Bashar al-Assad has won the recent election held in Syria and has sworn in as the President of the country for the 4th time. He has been serving as the 19th president of Syria since 17 July 2000. He would serve as the President for a seven-year term.
He has won the recent elections with more than 95% votes favouring him, while his opponents claim the election to be illegitimate.

Notes:
NASA recently announced that its new spacecraft, named NEA Scout (Near-Earth Asteroid Scout) has completed all required tests and has been safely tucked inside the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket.
NEA Scout is one of several payloads that will ride on Artemis I, which is expected to be launched in November. Artemis I will be an uncrewed test-flight of the Orion spacecraft and SLS rocket. Under the Artemis programme, NASA has aimed to land the first woman on the Moon in 2024.

Notes:
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, is an immigration policy that grants some extra rights to illegal immigrants who were brought into the United States as minors. As per the program, they can claim a renewable two-year period of deferred action from deportation and can receive work permits.
Recently, a Federal judge in Texas has ruled that the 2012 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program created by former president Barack Obama is illegal because Congress never properly approved it.

Notes:
Russian aircraft makers unveiled a prototype of the stealth fighter dubbed “Checkmate”, as per the statement from Rostec, the state-owned military giant which is responsible for exporting Russian technology.
The sneak peek of the new fifth-generation lightweight single-engine fighter jet, was unveiled to the Russian President Vladimir Putin. With a combat radius of 1,500 kilometers and seven tons of combat load, this unique fighter prototype has not been developed before in Russia.

Notes:
Russia has invited India for the first time to the Russia-US-China Troika Plus meet on Afghanistan. The meeting aims to discuss the role of Taliban and the future of the landlocked country, among other issues.
As per media reports, Iran has also been invited for the meeting. Pakistan and representatives from Afghanistan are also expected to take part in the meeting.

Notes:
The International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach has announced that the Australian city of Brisbane has been selected to host the 2032 Summer Olympics.
The Games of the 35th Olympiad are awarded to Brisbane, Australia. With this, Australia has become the second country after the United States to host the Olympic Games in three different cities. Before this, Melbourne had hosted Olympics in 1956 and Sydney in 2000.

Notes:
Ariel Henry was recently appointed as the new Prime Minister of Haiti, amid political turmoil caused by the assassination of President Jovenel Moise.
Ariel Henry, a neurosurgeon and former cabinet minister was chosen as Prime Minister by the President, days before he was assassinated at his home. Ariel Henry will lead the nation until a new President is chosen in an election scheduled in September.

Notes:
The United States President’s “nuclear football” or the Presidential Emergency Satchel is said to contain the codes needed for a nuclear strike. One such briefcase nearly came within range of rioters storming the US Capitol on January 6, this year.
The Pentagon’s watchdog said that it would evaluate the safety protocols surrounding the issue and find if it were “lost, stolen or compromised.” Any nuclear strike order would be confirmed and processed only by the Military.

Notes:
Ports, Shipping and Waterways Minister Sarbananda Sonowal introduced the Inland Vessels Bill, 2021 in the Lok Sabha.
It seeks to provide safety of navigation, protection of life and cargo and prevention of pollution that may be caused. It also seeks to bring in transparency in administration of inland water transportation, strengthen procedures governing inland vessels. inland waterways of 4000 km  are operational in India.

Notes:
Gwalior and Orchha cities from Madhya Pradesh have been selected by UNESCO under ‘Historic Urban Landscape Project’.
The project was started in the year 2011, for the inclusive and well-planned development of fast-growing historical cities. Six cities of South Asia, including Ajmer and Varanasi in India are already involved in this project. Orchha and Gwalior have been included as the seventh and eighth cities.