Portal:Current events/2021 February 26

February 26, 2021 (Friday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Iran–Israel proxy conflict
- An explosion hits the Israeli-owned cargo ship MV Helios Ray in the Gulf of Oman. No injuries are reported among the ship's 28 crew members. Israeli media reports, citing unnamed Israeli government officials, that Iran was likely behind the blast. (Bloomberg)
Zamfara kidnapping
- At least 317 girls are kidnapped by armed bandits raiding a secondary school hostel in the Nigerian state of Zamfara. (Al Jazeera)
2019–2021 Iraqi protests
- Security forces open fire against a crowd of demonstrators during anti-government protests in Nasiriyah, Iraq, killing 3 people and wounding 47 others. Two other protestors have also been killed in the past few days. (Al Jazeera)
War in Donbass
- Ukraine reports 10 ceasefire violations in the Luhansk region. (Unian)
Batwa–Luba clashes
- An NGO vice-president met with 70 members of the Twa and Bantu in Nyunzu, Democratic Republic of the Congo, to ensure lasting peace in the Nyunzu Territory. (Radio Okapi)
Ituri conflict
- Claude Ibalanky, the coordinator of the National Monitoring Mechanism of the Addis Ababa Agreement (MNS), reveals at a workshop organized by the MNS and MONUSCO in Kinshasa that there are residents taking advantage of the instability in eastern Congo. (Radio Okapi)
Allied Democratic Forces insurgency
- The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) kill three civilians in an ambush on the Beni-Kasindi road. Congolese and MONUSCO troops positioned nearby then clashed with the ADF, forcing them to retreat. (Radio Okapi)

Business and economy

Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic
- Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, American Rescue Plan Act of 2021
  - The United States House of Representatives votes 219-212 to pass U.S. President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion relief package, which would provide $1,400 in direct payments. The bill will head to the Senate for a vote. (CNET)
Aftermath of the GameStop short squeeze
- The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission temporarily halts the trading of 15 stocks, most of which are penny stocks, out of concern that online users were coordinating to artificially raise their value. (Bloomberg)

Disasters and accidents

A small plane crashes in Gainesville, Georgia, U.S., killing three people. (Yahoo! News)

Health and environment

COVID-19 pandemic
- COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
  - COVID-19 pandemic in India
    - COVID-19 vaccination in India
      - The Indian government announces that people can choose their COVID-19 vaccination centres when the vaccination campaign expands next week. This will allow people to choose whether they want to receive the Oxford–AstraZeneca vaccine or the Bharat Biotech vaccine. (Zee News)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Hong Kong
    - Hong Kong begins administering vaccines to the general public with the Sinovac CoronaVac vaccine. (CNA)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia
    - Indonesian Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin issues a new regulation that authorizes a mutual assistance vaccine programme so that private companies can buy state-approved vaccines in order to vaccinate their staff. (Tempo.co)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in South Korea
    - South Korea begins a mass vaccination campaign against COVID-19 using the Oxford–AstraZeneca vaccine, with the first doses administered to residents at about 200 nursing homes across the country. (Nikkei Asia)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Vietnam
    - Vietnam approves the emergency use of the American Moderna and Russian Sputnik V vaccines. (dpa International)
- COVID-19 pandemic in North America
  - COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Nebraska, Lineage B.1.1.7
      - Nebraska reports their first case of the Lineage B.1.1.7 variant in a person from Douglas County. (Lincoln Journal Star)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Canada
    - Health Canada authorizes the use of the Oxford–AstraZeneca vaccine and a related vaccine made by the Serum Institute of India. (CTV News)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Europe
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Belgium
    - Belgium announces that easing of major COVID-19-related restrictions will be put on hold for another week due to an increase in the number of COVID-19 infections and the spread of the Lineage B.1.1.7 variant. (ABC News)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in the Czech Republic
    - The Chamber of Deputies passes a new pandemic law that allows the health ministry and local authorities to shut down trade, production facilities, and events. In turn, the government announces the new state of emergency from February 27 until March 28. (Politico.eu)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Finland
    - Authorities in Greater Helsinki order the closure of public and private facilities, such as gyms, indoor sports venues, saunas, playgrounds, and swimming pools for two weeks beginning March 1 as part of measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19. (Yle)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Hungary
    - President Janos Ader receives his first dose of Sinopharm BBIBP-CorV vaccine. (Budapest Times)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Slovenia, 501.V2 variant
    - Slovenia reports their first case of the 501.V2 variant first detected in South Africa in a person from Maribor who recently travelled to Africa. (STA)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Spain
    - The Spanish health ministry announces that people under 55 who have already been infected with COVID-19 will be given just a single dose of the vaccine, six months after their infection. (The Local Spain)
- COVID-19 pandemic in South America
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Argentina
    - Argentinian Health Minister Carla Vizzotti tests positive for COVID-19. (El Día)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil
    - Brasília enters a 24-hour lockdown for all non-essential services due to an increase in COVID-19 cases that has pushed the city's intensive care units to near full capacity with more than 80% of beds already occupied. (Reuters)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Ivory Coast
  - Ivory Coast becomes the second country to receive vaccines via the COVAX initiative, with 500,000 doses of the Oxford–AstraZeneca vaccine manufactured by the Serum Institute of India arriving in the country. (Africanews)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Papua New Guinea
  - Papua New Guinea reports a record 89 new confirmed cases in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 1,228. (France 24)

International relations

2021 Myanmar coup d'état
- Myanmar's Ambassador to the United Nations Kyaw Moe Tun addresses the UN in New York, calling for the international community to take the "strongest possible action" to remove the military junta from power. (France 24)
Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi, Saudi Arabia–United States relations
- The Biden administration releases a previously classified intelligence report on the assassination of Saudi dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi, confirming that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman had approved of the assassination. (The New York Times)

Law and crime

aftermath of the 2021 storming of the United States Capitol
- Criminal charges brought in the 2021 storming of the United States Capitol, Death of Brian Sicknick
  - The Federal Bureau of Investigation has reportedly identified a suspect in connection to the death of Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick during the storming of the U.S. Capitol last month. (CNN)
Begum v Home Secretary
- The UK Supreme Court rules that ISIL supporter Shamima Begum is forbidden from returning to the United Kingdom to appeal the revocation of her citizenship. This overturns the decision by the Court of Appeal, citing four errors in their ruling. (CNN)
2021 Croix-des-Bouquets jailbreak
- Arnel Joseph, a powerful Haitian gang leader, is killed in a gun battle with police in L'Estère a day after escaping from prison during a riot. The death toll from the incident rise to a total of 25 people, including many civilians killed by the inmates after randomly opening fire in the streets. The prison's director, six inmates and police officers are among the dead. Sixty more prisoners who escaped are captured and arrested, while more than 200 others are still on the run. (BBC News)

Sports

The Belarus Olympic Committee elects Viktor Lukashenko, son of President Alexander Lukashenko, as its new President. Lukashenko is currently suspended from the International Olympic Committee meaning Belarusian athletes will likely be forced to compete as an independent team in the upcoming Tokyo Games. (CTV News)