Portal:Current events/2020 December 21

December 21, 2020 (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Central African Republic Civil War
- Rwanda deploys what it calls a "protection force" to the Central African Republic after its peacekeepers were attacked by advancing rebel forces on the capital Bangui. The Rwandan and Central African Republic governments accuse former President François Bozizé of backing the rebels and plotting a coup, which he denies. Russia also sends troops and heavy weaponry to support the government. (BBC News)
War in Afghanistan
- December 2020 Afghanistan attacks
  - Rahmatullah Nikzad, head of the journalists’ union in Ghazni, dies after being shot three times in the chest by unknown assailants. Nikazd is the fifth journalist to have been killed in Afghanistan in the last two months, and the seventh this year. (Voice of America)

Arts and culture

Removal of Confederate monuments and memorials
- A statue of Confederate general Robert E. Lee presented by Virginia is removed from the National Statuary Hall of the United States Capitol. It is slated to be replaced by a statue of civil rights activist Barbara Rose Johns. (The Guardian)

Business and economy

Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, CARES Act
- The United States House of Representatives passes a $900 billion COVID-19 relief bill with a vote of 359-53. (Business Insider)
- The United States Senate passes the $900 billion COVID-19 relief bill with a 92–6 vote. The bill will head to President Donald Trump for his signature. (The Washington Post) (The Guardian)

Disasters and accidents

The Kīlauea volcano on Hawaii erupts, prompting the Hawaii County Civil Defense Agency to urge residents to stay indoors. The eruption followed a series of small earthquakes. A previous eruption in May 2018 destroyed hundreds of homes. (CNN)

Health and environment

COVID-19 pandemic
- COVID-19 pandemic in North America
  - COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
    - COVID-19 pandemic in New York (state)
      - COVID-19 pandemic in New York City, Variant of Concern 202012/01
        Governor Andrew Cuomo announces that British Airways will require passengers to test negative for COVID-19 before arriving at the John F. Kennedy International Airport due to the new variant of the SARS-CoV-2 in the United Kingdom. (WNBC-TV)
        
        Delta Air Lines announces that it would require passengers travelling from New York to the United Kingdom to get a COVID-19 test prior to departure. (U.S. News and World Report)
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Delaware
      - President-elect Joe Biden and incoming First Lady Dr. Jill Biden receive their first shot of the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine on live television to reassure Americans of the safety of vaccines. Meanwhile, Vice President-elect Kamala Harris and incoming Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff announce that they will receive their vaccines next week. (CNN)
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Illinois
      - Illinois reports 4,699 cases in the last 24 hours, the first time that the state has reported less than 6,000 cases and the lowest daily total since October 27. (WBBM-TV)
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Washington (state), Variant of Concern 202012/01
      - Governor Jay Inslee imposes a 14-day quarantine for travelers from South Africa and the United Kingdom in an effort to prevent the spread of a mutant variant of SARS-CoV-2 in those countries. (The Seattle Times)
    - The U.S. surpasses 18 million cases of COVID-19. (France 24)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Canada
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Ontario
      - Premier Doug Ford announces a province-wide lockdown across Ontario from December 26 until January 9 in Northern Ontario and January 23 in Southern Ontario in an attempt to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in the province. (CBC)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Europe
  - Travel restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Norway, Variant of Concern 202012/01
      - The government bans direct flights to and from the United Kingdom due to the emergence of a new variant of SARS-CoV-2. (NRK)
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Russia, Variant of Concern 202012/01
      - Russia announces the suspension of all flights to and from the United Kingdom for one week beginning at midnight due to the new variant of SARS-CoV-2. (The Moscow Times)
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Portugal, COVID-19 pandemic in Spain
      - The Spanish government announce the suspension of all flights from Spain to the United Kingdom beginning tomorrow, with the exception of flights for Spanish citizens residents of Spain. This comes a day after a similar suspension was announced by Portugal. (El Pais in English)
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Sweden, Variant of Concern 202012/01
      - The government announces a ban on travel into Sweden from the United Kingdom and Denmark for one month due to the new variant of SARS-CoV-2. (Yahoo! News)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Belarus, COVID-19 vaccine
    - Belarus is expected to begin production of Russia's Sputnik V vaccine during the first quarter of 2021 after it became the first foreign country to register the vaccine. (Meduza)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Denmark, Cluster 5
    - The Parliament passes a law that bans mink breeding until 2022. (Reuters)
  - European Union response to the COVID-19 pandemic
    - The European Medicines Agency conditionally approves the vaccine made by Pfizer and BioNTech for use in European Union countries. (ABC News)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
  - COVID-19 pandemic in India
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Maharashtra, Variant of Concern 202012/01
      - Maharashtra will impose a curfew in Mumbai and other major cities from 11:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. IST beginning tomorrow until January 5 in order to prevent the spread of the new variant of SARS-CoV-2 that was discovered in the United Kingdom. The state government also imposes a 14-day quarantine for anyone travelling from Europe and the Middle East. (Livemint)
    - The government will temporarily suspend all flights from India to the United Kingdom due to the emergence of a new variant of SARS-CoV-2. The suspension will begin tomorrow at 11:59 p.m. IST and will last until December 31. (Hindustan Times)
    - India reports 19,556 cases of COVID-19, the lowest in the country since July 3. (Reuters)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in South Korea
    - South Korea reports a record 24 new deaths in the past 24 hours, bringing the nationwide death toll to 698. In addition, the country surpasses 50,000 cases of COVID-19. (Yonhap News Agency)
    - The Seoul Metropolitan Government and local governments in Gyeonggi Province and Incheon announce that they will ban gatherings of more than four people in the Seoul Capital Area from December 23 to January 3 in order to reduce the spread of COVID-19. (The Korea Times) (Al Jazeera)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Hong Kong, Variant of Concern 202012/01, travel restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic
    - Health Secretary Sophia Chan announces that Hong Kong will ban all flights to and from the United Kingdom beginning tomorrow due to the new variant of SARS-CoV-2. (South China Morning Post)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia
    - Indonesia surpasses 20,000 deaths from COVID-19. (Kompas)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Jordan, Variant of Concern 202012/01
    - Jordan suspends all flights to and from the United Kingdom until January 3 due to the new variant of SARS-CoV-2. (The Jerusalem Post)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Oman, Variant of Concern 202012/01
    - Oman will close all land, air, and sea borders beginning tomorrow at 1:00 a.m. local time for one week due to concerns over the new variant of SARS-CoV-2 in the United Kingdom. (Times of Oman)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Pakistan
    - Pakistan Senator Kalsoom Perveen dies from COVID-19. (The Express Tribune)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore, COVID-19 vaccine
    - Singapore receives the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, becoming the first country in Asia to do so. (CNET)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Africa
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Egypt
    - Egypt reports 664 new cases in the past 24 hours, the highest single-day total in a months, bringing the nationwide total to 125,555 cases. (Egypt Independent)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Morocco
    - Morocco's government announces that they will impose a nationwide curfew from 9:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. local time and will require all cafes, shops, supermarkets, and restaurants to close at 8:00 p.m. beginning December 23. In Casablanca, Marrakech, Agadir, and Tangier, all restaurants will be closed for three weeks. (Morocco World News)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Sudan, Variant of Concern 202012/01
    - Sudan will ban all travellers from the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and South Africa beginning December 23 due to the discovery of a new variant of SARS-CoV-2. (Reuters)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Australia, Variant of Concern 202012/01
  - New South Wales detects two cases of the new variant of SARS-CoV-2 in travellers returning from the United Kingdom. (The Australian)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Colombia, COVID-19 vaccine
  - Colombia announces that it will receive 1.7 million doses of the Tozinameran vaccine. (Reuters)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Antarctica
  - The first cases of COVID-19 in Antarctica are reported. 36 people test positive for the virus after spending a week at the Base General Bernardo O'Higgins, in the Chilean Antarctic Territory. (Infobae)

International relations

Sudan–United States relations
- The United States Congress formally reinstates Sudan's sovereign immunity. Sudan had paid the U.S. a $335 million settlement to victims of al-Qaeda attacks. The U.S. will partially pay off Sudanese bilateral debt, and its debt to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), while making another US$700 million available until September 2022 for assistance to the country. (Reuters)

Law and crime

Essex lorry deaths
- Two men are found guilty at London's Old Bailey of the manslaughter of 39 Vietnamese people whom they were smuggling into the UK. The 39 people suffocated in a lorry during the journey across the North Sea, from Zeebrugge to Purfleet, in October 2019. (BBC News)
Halle synagogue shooting
- Germany's Federal Court of Justice sentences the perpetrator of the 2019 synagogue shooting to life imprisonment with subsequent preventive detention. (Reuters)
2020 Belarusian protests
- Former Miss Belarus winner Volha Khizhynkova is released from prison after 42 days for protesting against President Alexander Lukashenko. (Zee News)
Outgoing United States Attorney General William Barr announces charges against a bomb maker for his role in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 near Lockerbie, Scotland. (BBC News)

Politics and elections

Poisoning of Alexei Navalny
- A report surfaces that a Federal Security Service agent allegedly involved in the plot to poison the Russian opposition leader was "duped" by Navalny into admitting that the poison was planted in Navalny's underpants. (CNN)
2020 United States anti-lockdown protests
- About 300 demonstrators attempt to storm the Oregon State Capitol during a special legislative session closed to the public, but they are warded off by the Oregon State Police. The group, which called for reopening Oregon in the wake of COVID-19 mitigation measures, included members of groups such as Proud Boys and Patriot Prayer. (The Daily Beast) (Statesman Journal)
The Constitutional Court of Kosovo nullifies the parliamentary vote that elected Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti in June, after discovering that one of the members who voted was ineligible due to a prison sentence. The ruling mandates that Acting President Vjosa Osmani must call a new election to be held no longer than 40 days from the announcement. (RFE/RL)

Science and technology

Great conjunction
- The planets Jupiter and Saturn appear at their closest in the sky since 1623, in an event known as a great conjunction. The closest approach will occur at 18:22 UTC, when the two planets will be one-tenth of a degree apart; they will appear to be a binary object to the naked eye. (Euronews)