Portal:Current events/2020 November 23

November 23, 2020 (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

War in Afghanistan
- Civilian casualties in the war in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
  - According to Save the Children, over 26,000 children have been killed in the Afghanistan war from 2005 to 2019. (BBC News)
Second Saudi–Yemeni War, Iran–Saudi Arabia proxy conflict
- The Iranian-backed Houthis say they attacked a Saudi Aramco oil terminal in Jeddah with a new type of Quds cruise missile. Saudi Arabia acknowledges the attack. (AP)

Health and environment

COVID-19 pandemic
- COVID-19 pandemic in North America
  - COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
    - COVID-19 pandemic in California
      - California reports 20,654 new cases in the last 24 hours, a new single-day record since the pandemic began. (San Francisco Chronicle)
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Ohio
      - Ohio reports a new single-day record of 11,885 new cases. This number is likely inflated because of a two-day backlog from multiple labs. (The Columbus Dispatch)
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Maryland
      - Maryland is expected to send state troopers to enforce restrictions in the state for Thanksgiving. (WRC-TV)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Canada
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Manitoba
      - Manitoba reports a record 540 new cases in the past 24 hours, bringing the total confirmed cases to 13,087 and pushing the five-day positivity rate tests to 14%. (CKY-DT)
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Ontario
      - Ontario reports 1,589 new cases, a new single-day record. (Global News)
    - Nationwide, a record 5,713 new cases reported in Canada in the last 24 hours, bringing the nationwide confirmed cases to 337,555. (CBC)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Europe
  - COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom
    - COVID-19 pandemic in England
      - Prime Minister Boris Johnson announces that gyms, bars, and non-essential shops across England will be allowed to reopen when the lockdown ends on December 2. The three-tiered regional measures will return at the same time, but with tighter rules. (BBC News)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Italy
    - Italy surpasses 50,000 total deaths from COVID-19. (CBS News)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Russia
    - Russia reports a new single-day record of 25,173 cases, bringing the nationwide total since the beginning of the pandemic to 2.11 million cases. (Anadolu Agency)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Spain
    - King Felipe VI voluntarily quarantines for 10 days after being in close contact with someone who later tested positive for COVID-19. (Euro weekly News)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Turkey
    - Turkey reports a record 6,713 new cases and 153 deaths in the past 24 hours, bringing the nationwide totals to 453,535 confirmed cases and 12,511 deaths. (Daily Sabah)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Selangor
      - The government announces that it will temporarily close 28 Top Glove factories in Klang in stages to enable the Health Ministry to conduct COVID-19 screening and quarantine workers. This comes as the world's largest surgical glove maker sees an increase in infections among factory workers. (France 24)
    - The number of new confirmed cases in Malaysia increases by a record 1,884 new cases in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of cases to 56,659. 1,203 of these cases are from Selangor due to an increase in new infections in workplaces in the Klang Valley. (CNA)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia
    - Indonesia surpasses 500,000 total confirmed cases of COVID-19. (Bisnis.com)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Thailand
    - Thailand's Cabinet extends a COVID-19 state of emergency for 45 days until January 15, 2021. (The Bangkok Post)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Australia
  - The land border between New South Wales and Victoria reopens after 137 days of closure. People will now be able to travel between the two states without permits. (ABC Australia)
  - Victoria eases restrictions, allowing larger public and private gatherings, larger capacity quotas for businesses, and relaxing of the mask mandate so that masks will only be required in settings where social distancing is impractical. Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton states that he is confident there will be no community transmission in the state. (ABC Australia)
- COVID-19 vaccine
  - AstraZeneca and University of Oxford's vaccine showed 90% efficacy when it was given to 2,741 people as a half-dose followed by a full dose and 62% efficacy when two full doses were given to 8,895 people. (CNN)

International relations

Israel–Saudi Arabia relations
- Israeli media reports that, on Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu secretly flew to Neom in Saudi Arabia for a meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Alternate Prime Minister Benny Gantz describes "the leak of the prime minister's secret flight to Saudi Arabia" as "an irresponsible move". Saudi Arabia denies that such a meeting occurred. On Saturday, Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud repeated the 2002 Saudi Arab Peace Initiative offer to fully normalize relations, only after the Palestinians achieve statehood. (BBC News) (The New York Times)

Law and crime

Corruption in France
- The first trial of former President Nicolas Sarkozy, on charges of corruption and influence peddling in 2014, starts. (ABC News)

Politics and elections

2020 United States presidential election, Presidential transition of Joe Biden
- The General Services Administration officially certifies President-elect Joe Biden as the "apparent winner" of the 2020 presidential election, and announces that the formal transition will be allowed to begin. (CNN) (AP)

Science and technology

Chinese Lunar Exploration Program
- The China National Space Administration successfully launches the Chang'e 5 robotic spacecraft from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site. It is China's first sample return mission, and if the mission is successful it will be the first lunar sample return mission since the Soviet Union's Luna 24 in 1976. Chang'e-5 will bring back at least 2 kilograms of lunar soil. (The Guardian)

Sports

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sports
- 2020 NFL season
  - The National Football League extends their mask mandate and threatens to discipline anybody who violates the league's COVID-19 protocols. (Chicago Tribune)
FIFA bans the president of the Confederation of African Football Ahmad Ahmad from all football-related activity for five years, following an investigation into financial misconduct. He is also fined $220,000. Ahmad declined to comment on the ban. (Al Jazeera)