Portal:Current events/2021 February 20

February 20, 2021 (Saturday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian civil war
- Russian military intervention in the Syrian civil war
  - At least 130 Russian airstrikes have killed 21 members of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in the past 24 hours in the Badia desert, according to the opposition Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. (France 24)
2021 Myanmar protests
- Two people are killed and 40 others are injured in a clash between police and demonstrators in Mandalay as the police fire live ammunition to suppress protesters and force workers back to their jobs. (The New York Times)

Disasters and accidents

2020–21 North American winter
- February 13–17, 2021 North American winter storm, 2021 Texas power crisis
  - U.S. President Joe Biden declares a major disaster in Texas following a severe winter storm and cold weather that left at least 70 people dead and millions of others without power. The declaration allows federal funds to be spent and made available to affected people. (NBC News)

Health and environment

COVID-19 pandemic
- COVID-19 pandemic in Europe
  - COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom
    - COVID-19 pandemic in England
      - The British Health Secretary announces a small step to ease the nation's lockdown, allowing care home visitors in England to be regularly visited by a single friend or family member. This change will take effect on March 8. (BBC News)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Hungary
    - Hungary surpasses 400,000 cases of COVID-19. (Hungary Today)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in the Republic of Ireland, Lineage P.1
    - Irish health officials say that the three cases of the Brazilian variant of SARS-CoV-2 have been contained. (Reuters)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Russia
    - Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin announces the approval of the CoviVac vaccine for domestic use in Russia, becoming the third vaccine to be approved despite not yet having undergone any clinical trials. (CNBC)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Israel
    - Data from the Health Ministry show that COVID-19 vaccines are 99.2% effective against serious illness, reduce mortality by 95.8% and decrease the chance of hospitalization by 98.9%. (The Times of Israel)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines
    - The Philippines reports 239 deaths in the past 24 hours, the second-highest number of daily reported deaths since the beginning of the pandemic, thereby bringing the nationwide death toll to 12,068. (CNA)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Taiwan
    - Taiwan grants emergency use authorization for the Oxford–AstraZeneca vaccine. (The Straits Times)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Kuwait, travel restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic
    - Kuwait bans entry to all non-Kuwaiti citizens until "further notice", while its citizens returning from abroad must quarantine at a hotel for a week, and then spend a further week in quarantine at home. (Reuters)
- COVID-19 pandemic in New Zealand
  - New Zealand begins a vaccination programme against COVID-19, starting with 70 border workers under strict infection prevention measures. (RNZ)
- COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
  - The United States surpasses 28 million cases of COVID-19. (UPI)
2020–21 H5N8 outbreak
- Russia reports their first case of human transmission of highly pathogenic H5N8 bird flu in seven workers at a poultry farm in the southern part of the country. (The Daily Telegraph)

Law and crime

Aftermath of the 2021 storming of the United States Capitol
- The Department of Justice and the FBI announce that they are investigating whether Alex Jones, Roger Stone, and Stop the Steal organizer Ali Alexander played any role in inciting the January 6 riot at the United States Capitol. (The Independent)
Mass shootings in the United States, Crime in Louisiana
- Three people are killed, including the gunman, and two others are wounded during a shooting at a gun store and indoor shooting range in Metairie, Louisiana. (CNN)
Protests against the imprisonment of Pablo Hasél
- Looting, barricades, and riots are reported during the fifth consecutive night of protests mainly in Barcelona, Spain, over the imprisonment of rapper Pablo Hasél. Several protesters break windows at the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Palau de la Música Catalana and also attempt to storm the Stock Exchange of Barcelona. (ABC.es)
The Moscow City Court upholds the three-year prison sentence against opposition politician and anti-corruption activist Alexei Navalny. Navalny now faces slander charges. His defense had previously said that the European Court of Human Rights had labeled his arrest as "unlawful". (DW)

Politics and elections

2020–2021 Thai protests, COVID-19 pandemic in Thailand, impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on politics
- Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha survives a second vote of no-confidence in the House of Representatives, accused of mismanagement of the economy, mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic, corruption, and abuse of human rights. (The Washington Post)

Sports

2021 Australian Open
- Naomi Osaka defeats Jennifer Brady in the final to win the Women's Singles. She is the first player to win a fourth Grand Slam singles title since Maria Sharapova at the 2012 French Open. (BBC News)