Portal:Current events/2022 February 24

February 24, 2022 (Thursday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Russo-Ukrainian War
- 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
  - Battle of Chernobyl
    - Russian troops enter the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. Ukraine says that Russian forces have captured the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy calls the attack on Chernobyl a "declaration of war on all of Europe". (Daily Sabah) (The Independent) (Unian)
  - Attack on Snake Island
    - Ukraine reports that Russian Navy warships have attacked Snake Island near the Danube Delta. (IndiaTV)
  - Battle of Sumy
    - Russian troops enter Sumy and take control of the road leading from Kyiv to Moscow. Battles for strategic cities on the railway to Sumy are also underway. (Novoye Vremya)
  - Battle of Antonov Airport
    - Russian gunships bombard Hostomel Airport near Kyiv. Ukraine says that three helicopters were shot down in defence. Russian Airborne Forces seized control of the airport, but the Ukrainian Ground Forces have recaptured the airport. (The Moscow Times) (Reuters) (Ukrinform)
    - An-225 Mriya, the largest aircraft in the world by weight and by wingspan, is destroyed during a Russian air strike on the suburb of Kyiv. The plane did not manage to leave Hostomel before hostilities began. (Radio Liberty Ukraine)
  - Battle of Kyiv, Kyiv Offensive
    - The Mayor of Kyiv, Vitali Klitschko, announces a curfew in the capital from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. (Reuters)
  - Russian President Vladimir Putin orders a military operation to "demilitarise and denazify" Ukraine. Putin also warns of "consequences you have never seen in history" for anyone who tries to interfere or "create threats for our country". (CNN) (AP)
  - Ukraine confirms that Russian Ground Forces have entered Luhansk, Sumy, Kharkiv, Kherson, Chernihiv, and Zhytomyr Oblasts and have also crossed the border from occupied Crimea. Russian troops also attack the port cities of Odesa and Mariupol in amphibious landings. (CNN) (The Business Standard)
  - Russia announces that they have taken control of the North Crimean Canal in the Kherson Oblast and have restored the supply of water to Crimea. (Reuters)
  - Russian ballistic and cruise missiles strike multiple Ukrainian cities and airfields, with eighteen people being killed in Odesa. A missile also strikes the Ministry of Defence intelligence headquarters in Kyiv. (CNN) (NDTV) (Reuters)
  - A Ukrainian Air Force Antonov An-26 is shot down and crashes in Obukhiv, killing five crew members, according to the State Emergency Service of Ukraine. (Interfax)
  - An attack on a military unit in Podilsk kills six civilians and injures seven others. (BBC News)
  - Ukraine's military reports that at least 137 of its soldiers have been killed in Eastern Ukraine, with a senior Ukrainian government official estimating that hundreds of Ukrainian troops have been killed by airstrikes. Ukraine's military also says that 50 Russian soldiers have been killed in action. (The Wall Street Journal) (CNN) (The Guardian)
  - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy declares martial law across the country in response to the invasion. Zelenskyy also orders a general military mobilization of fit-to-serve Ukrainian citizens, with men between the ages of 18 and 60 years prohibited from leaving the country. (TASS) (CNN)
  - The Russian Armed Forces says that its "lightning offensive" has crippled the Ukrainian military and suppressed its air defense systems. However, the Ukrainian Air Force says that it is repelling Russian invaders. (TASS) (BBC News)
  - The Russian Defence Ministry says that it has destroyed 83 Ukrainian "above-ground military facilities", including 11 aerodromes. (Reuters)
  - Ukraine says that it has shot down six Russian warplanes and two helicopters, and destroyed dozens of enemy armored vehicles, according to its Joint Centre of Control and Coordination. However, Russian military representatives deny the claims. (Mil.gov.ua) (Firstpost)
  - Russia says that two Russian civilian ships have been hit by anti-ship missiles in the Sea of Azov, causing multiple deaths. Russia subsequently restricts access for civilian vessels on the Sea of Azov. (Ynet) (Reuters)
  - A Turkish-owned vessel is bombed off the coast of Odesa, according to Turkey's Directorate General of Coastal Safety. No casualties are reported. (Daily Sabah)
- Reactions to the 2021–2022 Russo-Ukrainian crisis
  - Russia–NATO relations
    - Romania, Poland, and the Baltic states agree to trigger article 4 of NATO's North Atlantic Treaty in response to Russian aggression. (ERR) (Digi24)
    - German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock states that Germany will "launch the full package with the most massive sanctions against Russia." (EURACTIV)
  - Russia–Ukraine relations
    - Ukraine suspends diplomatic relations with Russia in response to the invasion. (The Times of Israel)
  - Lithuanian president Gitanas Nausėda announces that he will sign a decree declaring a state of emergency and asks Seimas to ratify it in an extraordinary session. (ERR)
  - Moldova declares a state of emergency in response to the invasion. Hundreds of Ukrainians are crossing the border, according to President Maia Sandu. (National Post)
  - Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova close their airspaces to commercial aircraft. (ABC News Australia) (Reuters)
  - U.S. President Joe Biden orders Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin to send 7,000 troops to Germany in order to assist NATO allies. (Reuters) (Army Times)
Afghanistan conflict
- Eight polio vaccination workers are killed by unknown gunmen in Kunduz and Takhar, leading to the suspension of the vaccination campaign in the two provinces. The campaign was launched nationwide in November 2021. (VOA)
Israel's role in the Syrian Civil War
- Israel fires several missiles towards Damascus, Syria, killing three Syrian soldiers. (The Washington Post) (Times of Israel)

Arts and culture

Eurovision Song Contest 2022
- It is announced that Russia will participate in the upcoming Eurovision Song Contest in Turin, Italy despite invading Ukraine. (AOL)
Iraq unveils three monumental structures in Hatra in an effort to restore the city after it was destroyed by the Islamic State in 2015. (France 24)

Business and economy

Reactions to the 2021–2022 Russo-Ukrainian crisis
- A massive selloff occurs on the Moscow Stock Exchange, which prompts its operator to trigger circuit breakers twice in three hours. The Russian ruble's exchange rate falls to a record low of ₽89.98 per US dollar. (Rzeczpospolita) (Reuters)
- The National Bank of Ukraine pegs the official hryvnia rate to the US dollar at ₴29.25, bans foreign currency purchases on the interbank market and introduces cash withdrawal limits. The central bank also orders a suspension of all transactions with Russian accounts and introduces unlimited short-term liquidity loans for banks. (National Post) (Ekonomichna Pravda)

Health and environment

COVID-19 pandemic
- COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Hong Kong
    - Hong Kong begins rolling out COVID-19 vaccine passports for people over the age of 12 years. (Reuters)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia
    - Malaysia reports a record 31,199 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 3.3 million. (The Star)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore
    - Singapore suspends a plan to ease and simplify COVID-19-related rules, including home gatherings, which was expected to begin tomorrow due to an increase in new COVID-19 cases. (Bloomberg)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Thailand
    - Thailand reports a record 23,557 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 2.79 million. (Bangkok Post)
- COVID-19 pandemic in North America
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Canada
    - COVID-19 vaccination in Canada
      - Health Canada approves Medicago's CoVLP COVID-19 vaccine for use in adults, making it the first domestic vaccine to be approved for use in Canada. (The Vancouver Sun)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Maine
      - Maine surpasses 2,000 deaths from COVID-19. (Portland Press Herald)
- European Union response to the COVID-19 pandemic
  - The European Medicines Agency recommends the usage of the Pfizer–BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine as a booster dose for teenagers over the age of 12 years and also approves the use of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine for children between the ages of 6 and 11 years. (The Journal.ie)

International relations

Reactions to the 2021–2022 Russo-Ukrainian crisis
- International sanctions during the Russo-Ukrainian War
  - Russia–European Union relations
    - The European Union says that it will introduce the "strongest, harshest package" of sanctions on the Russian economy in response to the invasion. (AP)
  - Russia–New Zealand relations
    - The New Zealand government is expected to introduce a package of sanctions against Russia that includes a ban on the entry into and transit through the country of Russian government officials and other people connected to the invasion, as well as a ban on the export of goods to Russian military and security forces. (RNZ)
  - Russia–South Korea relations
    - South Korean president Moon Jae-in announces that the country will impose economic sanctions against Russia. (Reuters)
  - Russia–United Kingdom relations
    - Prime Minister Boris Johnson announces that the United Kingdom will impose sanctions on Russian banks and oligarchs. Russian airline Aeroflot will also be banned from operating flights to the UK due to the invasion. (BBC News)
  - Canada–Russia relations
    - Canada terminates all export permits with Russia in response to the invasion of Ukraine. (U.S. News & World Report)
  - Russia–United States relations
    - U.S. President Joe Biden announces sanctions against Russia and vows that additional sanctions could be coming. He also reaffirms that the U.S. will not directly intervene in Ukraine but will continue to defend NATO. (NBC News) (BuzzFeed)
  - India–Russia relations
    - Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin hold a telephone meeting. During the meeting, Modi called for Russia and Ukraine to "end the violence". (Telangana Today)
  - Latvia and the Czech Republic suspend issuing visas to Russian citizens. (RusTourismNews)

Law and crime

Protests against the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
- 2022 anti-war protests in Russia
  - Protesters in Russia are detained as people gather in cities across the country in order to protest Putin's invasion of Ukraine. (The Moscow Times) (Newsweek)
  - Russian activist Marina Litvinovich is detained by Moscow police after calling for anti-war demonstrations across Russia. (Reuters)
- Anti-war protesters gather at Russian embassies in many countries to oppose President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine. (Axios) (CBS News)
- Protesters gather at 10 Downing Street to denounce Russia's invasion of Ukraine and to call for Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the United Kingdom to support Ukraine. (The Big Issue) (The New York Times)
Murder of George Floyd
- Three former Minneapolis police officers, J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas K. Lane and Tou Thao, are found guilty of violating the civil rights of George Floyd under government authority. (NBC News)
Kyrgyzstan President Sadyr Japarov signs a decree that bans the slaughtering of cattle during funerals in the country. (AKIpress)

Sports

Reactions to the 2021–2022 Russo-Ukrainian crisis
- UEFA announces that the 2022 UEFA Champions League Final will be moved from Saint Petersburg, Russia, in response to the invasion of Ukraine. (Sky News)
- Formula 1 driver Sebastian Vettel says that he will not participate in the 2022 Russian Grand Prix, which is expected to be held on September 24 in Sochi. (RACER) (CTV News)