The 10 Most Important Things In The World Right Now

DINA SPECTOR

SEP. 24, 2014

REUTERS/Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Eric Garst/U.S. Navy/Handout

The guided-missile cruiser USS Philippine Sea (CG 58) launches a Tomahawk cruise missile, as seen from the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77), in the Arabian Gulf in this handout photograph taken and provided on September 23, 2014.

Hello! Here’s what you need to know for Wednesday. 

1. The first airstrikes in Syria by the US and its allies against Islamic State militants hit key targets, including control centers and training camps, the Wall Street Journal reports.

2. China, the world’s largest polluter of greenhouse gas, pledged to do more to reduce carbon emissions during a one-day climate change summit at the UN in New York City on Tuesday. 

4. India’s first Mars probe entered the red planet’s orbit on Wednesday, roughly 10 months after launch. 

5. Starbucks announced it will buy out its Japan unit for more than $900 million.

6. Australian police say they shot and killed a “known terror suspect” after he stabbed two officers. 

7. The Centers for Disease Control predicts that, in a worst-case scenario, 1.4 million people will have become infected with the Ebola virus in Sierra Leone and Liberia by Jan. 20.

8. Meanwhile, bioexperts have stated that US hospitals are not equipped to deal with waste from treating patients infected with Ebola, according to Reuters. 

9. The Burger King-Tim Hortons merger will continue despite new US tax rules aimed at preventing American companies from dodging high taxes at home by moving out of the country.

10. Northern China is facing the worst drought in 60 years with farmers losing an estimated $1.2 billion already this year, the Associated Press reports.

And finally…

A microphone recorded British Prime Minister David Cameron telling former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg that the Queen “purred” on the phone when he told her that Scotland rejected independence.