Portal:Current events/2022 March 24

March 24, 2022 (Thursday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Russo-Ukrainian War
- 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
  - Southern Ukraine offensive
    - Battle of Berdiansk
      - Ukrainian forces destroy a Russian Navy Alligator-class landing ship at the port of Berdiansk. Images on social media appear to show the Orsk landing ship burning at the port. (Sky News)
  - Belarusian involvement in the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
    - Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba says that Belarusian troops are not willing to fight alongside Russia in Ukraine. (Prensa Latina) (Ukrinform)
  - Battle of Kharkiv
    - Russian forces airstrike a Nova Poshta post office in Kharkiv, killing six civilians. (Times of Israel)
  - Ukrainian volunteer battalions, International Legion of Territorial Defense of Ukraine
    - Canada bans its soldiers from joining the volunteer forces in Ukraine, stating that their presence could be used in Russian propaganda. (Rzeczpospolita)
  - Foreign aid to Ukraine during the Russo-Ukrainian War
    - The United Kingdom says it is doubling the number of missiles it is sending to Ukraine, with 6,000 more missiles, including anti-tank guided missiles and surface-to-air missiles, and is also sending £30 million to help Ukraine pay the wages of its soldiers and air force pilots. (Reuters)
Ethiopian civil conflict
- Tigray War
  - War crimes in the Tigray War
    - Dedebit airstrike
      - Human Rights Watch (HRW) calls on the Ethiopian government to investigate an airstrike on a school being used as an IDP camp in Dedebit, which killed at least 57 people. HRW describes the bombing as a war crime. (Africanews)
  - The Government of Ethiopia makes an "indefinite humanitarian truce" with the TPLF in order to allow aid and humanitarian supplies into the Tigray Region. (Al Jazeera)
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
- 2021–2022 Armenia–Azerbaijan border crisis
  - According to the government of Artsakh, Azerbaijani soldiers crossed the Line of Contact and took control of the village of Farukh, with women and children being evacuated from the nearby village of Khramort. Russian peacekeepers are reported to be negotiating with Azerbaijan. (The Jerusalem Post)
War on Terror
- Insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
  - A shootout between military forces and Tehrik-i-Taliban militants in North Waziristan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, leaves four Pakistani soldiers dead. (ABC News)
The Sudan People's Liberation Movement-in-Opposition (SPLM-IO) is accused by the South Sudanese military of attacking government positions in Longechuk County. The SPLM-IO says that the military attacked first, causing it to clash with authorities. (ABC News)
A United Nations World Food Programme truck convoy is attacked in Jonglei State. Three people die and one is injured. (Reliefweb)

Disasters and accidents

A 14-year old boy dies after falling off a drop tower ride at ICON Park, which is near International Drive in Orlando, Florida. (AP)

Health and environment

COVID-19 pandemic
- COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
  - COVID-19 pandemic in New York (state)
    - COVID-19 pandemic in New York City, Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sports
      - New York City Mayor Eric Adams lifts the vaccine mandate for unvaccinated athletes from teams like the New York Yankees, New York Mets, and Brooklyn Nets. The lifting of the mandate also clears the way for point guard Kyrie Irving to play home games for the Nets. (Reuters)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Canada
  - COVID-19 vaccination in Canada
    - The World Health Organization in an email rejects the approval Canada’s CoVLP COVID-19 vaccine over Medicago’s ties to the Philip Morris International tobacco company. (The Globe and Mail)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Poland
  - Poland will end all COVID-19-related restrictions on March 28, including ending quarantine and isolation for COVID-19 cases. However, mask mandates in hospitals will continue to be enforced. (Rzeczpospolita)
- COVID-19 pandemic in South Korea
  - South Korea reports 470 deaths from COVID-19 in the past 42 hours, a new single-day record. (Korea Herald)
The World Health Organization announces that a polio vaccination campaign will begin in Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, and Zambia. (News-Medical.net)

International relations

Reactions to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Russia–Ukraine relations
  - Ukrainian Presidential Administration head Andriy Yermak says that progress has been made in ongoing talks between Russia and Ukraine, and expresses a "cautious optimism" that a ceasefire could be reached to end the war. (Axios)
- Belarus–Ukraine relations
  - In retaliation for Belarus's expulsion of Ukrainian diplomatic staff yesterday, Ukraine orders a reduction of Belarusian staff in Ukraine to only five diplomats and also orders the closure of the Belarusian consulate in Lviv. (Interfax-Ukraine)
- Belarus's bid to join the World Trade Organisation is blocked by a group of mostly Western countries. (Reuters)
2021–2022 North Korean missile tests
- North Korea–South Korea relations
  - The South Korean military says that it has conducted multiple missile drills in response to North Korea launching a missile. (The Independent)
- North Korea is suspected of testing an ICBM for the first time since November 2017, when they tested the Hwasong-15. The missile, which is said to be capable of reaching Guam, was launched towards the Sea of Japan. (NPR)
- White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki condemns the North Korean missile launch. (Korea Herald)
Foreign relations of Mali
- The UEMOA court orders sanctions against Mali to be suspended. The sanctions were imposed on the junta in January after elections were delayed. (Reuters)

Law and crime

Israel Police seize 63 weapons from Arab Israeli smugglers, uncovering the largest attempt to smuggle weapons from Lebanon to Israel. (Times of Israel)