Portal:Current events/2021 November 18

November 18, 2021 (Thursday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Aftermath of the October 2021 Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan protests
- Saad Hussain Rizvi, the leader of the far-right Islamist party Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan, is released from prison under a deal to end weeks of protests by his followers, which resulted in the deaths of dozens of people. (Reuters)

Arts and culture

22nd Annual Latin Grammy Awards
- The 22nd Annual Latin Grammy Awards are held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Colombian singer Camilo was the most awarded artist with four wins. (Billboard)

Health and environment

COVID-19 pandemic
- COVID-19 pandemic in Europe
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Germany
    - COVID-19 vaccination in Germany
      - The Standing Committee on Vaccination recommends that a booster dose of an mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccine should be given to all adults over the age of 18 years. (Deutsche Welle)
    - Germany reports a record for the second consecutive day of 65,371 new cases of COVID-19. (Anadolu Agency)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Austria
    - Austria reports a record 15,145 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 1,011,465. (Kronen Zeitung)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Greece
    - Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announces that beginning on November 22, unvaccinated people will be banned from entering all indoor venues for which they could previously present a negative test result, due to an increase in new COVID-19 cases. Mitsotakis also announces that vaccine passports will expire after seven months for people over the age of 60 years and urges people in this age group to receive a booster dose. (Greek Reporter)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in the Netherlands
    - The Netherlands reports a record for the fourth consecutive day of 23,860 new cases of COVID-19. (Dutch News)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Russia
    - Russia reports a record for the second consecutive day of 1,251 deaths from COVID-19, thereby bringing the nationwide death toll to 260,335. (The Moscow Times)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Laos
    - Laos reports a record 1,041 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 58,798. (Vietnam Plus)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in South Korea
    - South Korea reports a record 3,292 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 406,605. (The Korea Herald)
A lab in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States, is placed on temporary lockdown by the CDC after several vials labeled "smallpox" are discovered in a freezer. (CBS News)

International relations

2021 Belarus–European Union border crisis
- Belarus suspends electricity supplies to Ukraine, in "accordance with the established procedure for interaction within the framework of contractual relations", according to a statement from the Belarusian Ministry of Energy. (Ukranews)

Law and crime

At the Birmingham Crown Court in England, Zephaniah McLeod is sentenced to at least 21 years imprisonment for manslaughter and four counts of attempted murder after killing one person and wounding seven others during a 90-minute stabbing spree in September 2020. (BBC News)
The New York Supreme Court vacates the convictions of Muhammad Abdul Aziz (formerly Norman 3X Butler) and the late Khalil Islam (formerly Thomas 15X Johnson) for the 1965 assassination of Malcolm X. The two men were convicted alongside Thomas Hagan (formerly Talmadge Hayer) in 1966. An investigation led by Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. discovered that the FBI and the NYPD had withheld evidence that would have acquitted Aziz and Islam. (The New York Times)
Vladimiro Montesinos, adviser to former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori, is sentenced to 17-years in prison for the kidnapping of left-wing journalist Gustavo Gorriti. (MercoPress)

Politics and elections

2021 Tongan general election
- Tongans go to the polls to elect their new government. (RNZ)