Portal:Current events/2021 March 16

March 16, 2021 (Tuesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

2021 Tillabéri attacks
- Gunmen in Niger kill at least 58 people after ambushing a convoy returning from a market and then attacking a nearby village. (Al Jazeera)
Protesters storm the Presidential Palace in Aden, Yemen, amid anger over the lack of services and poor living conditions. (Al Jazeera)

Arts and culture

The Israel Antiquities Authority finds fragments of the Dead Sea Scrolls in the Cave of Horror, believed to be hidden during a Jewish revolt against Rome 1,900 years ago. In addition, a 10,500-year-old weaving basket made of woven reeds is also found. (Haaretz) (ABC Australia)

Health and environment

COVID-19 pandemic
- COVID-19 pandemic in Europe
  - COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom
    - COVID-19 pandemic in England
      - The Public Health England detects the first two cases of the new variant named P.3, which originally detected in the Philippines and has designated as "variant of investigation". (The Independent)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Lithuania
    - Lithuania suspends the use of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine as precaution following three reports on suspected serious adverse thromboembolic reaction among vaccinated people in the country. (Baltic Times)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Russia
    - Russia identifies the first two cases of the 501.V2 variant, which originally detected in South Africa. (The Moscow Times)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in San Marino
    - San Marino surpasses 5,000 people vaccinated and becomes the fifth country in the world in terms of injections of the vaccines in proportion to its population. (San Marino RTV)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Serbia
    - Serbian Prime minister Ana Brnabic announces a five-day nationwide lockdown from tomorrow until March 21, which closing all non-essential shops. Students in the lower grades of primary schools will probably switch to online classes from March 22 for least a week. (See News)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Spain
    - Emeritus Queen consort Sofía receives the first shot of the COVID-19 vaccine complying with the protocols of being over 80 years of age. (El Mundo)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Sweden
    - The Public Health Agency of Sweden temporarily suspends the use of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine pending review from the European Medicines Agency following reports on abnormal blood clotting amongst the vaccinated people. (NPR)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
  - COVID-19 pandemic in India
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Gujarat
      - Gujarat state government decides to extend the curfew timing by two hours to from 10:00 pm to 6:00 pm IST in Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara and Rajkot until March 31. (The Economic Times)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Cambodia
    - Cambodia reports a record 105 new confirmed cases in the past 24 hours, and brings the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 1,430. (Khmer Times)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Japan
    - Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga receives his first dose of the Pfizer–BioNTech vaccine ahead of April visit to the United States to meet President Joe Biden. (Nikkei Asia)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Thailand
    - Thailand resumes their vaccination rollout using Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine after it temporarily suspended due to safety concern. Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha was one of the first people to receive AstraZeneca's vaccine. (CNBC)
- COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Massachusetts
    - Massachusetts confirms their first case of the Lineage P.1 variant that originated in Brazil. (The Boston Globe)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Guinea-Bissau
  - Guinea-Bissau suspends the use of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine until May amid safety concerns regarding the vaccine, which including fears about blood clot. (Urdu Point)
- COVID-19 vaccine
  - Moderna begins studying its vaccine in babies and children aged six months to 11 years in the U.S. and Canada. (The Wall Street Journal)