Portal:Current events/2021 April 24

April 24, 2021 (Saturday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Insurgency in Northern Chad
- Northern Chad offensive
  - Spokesperson for the Front for Change and Concord in Chad (FACT) Sharfadine Galmaye said that FACT was "willing to negotiate with the government to spare Chad further conflict". The rebel group is asking Mahamat Déby Itno to step down and for "an independent person who would be acceptable by all people to rule" to take his place. (The Guardian)
War in Afghanistan
- 2021 Afghanistan attacks
  - Fourteen people are killed and many others are wounded in a series of explosions and shootings in three provinces. (Al Jazeera)
Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Gaza–Israel conflict
- At least 35 rockets are fired into Israel from the Gaza Strip amidst yesterday's clashes between far-right Jewish demonstrators and Palestinians in Jerusalem. Israel retaliates by firing on targets operated by Hamas within the Strip. (AP)

Disasters and accidents

KRI Nanggala (402)
- Indonesian authorities discover debris from the submarine that went missing on Wednesday, as well as an oil spill off the island of Bali. In response, the navy declares the submarine's status changed from missing to sunk, and it also declares its 53 crew members to be dead. (Jakarta Globe) (CBS News) (Al Jazeera)
Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on hospitals, COVID-19 pandemic in Iraq
- Baghdad hospital fire
  - A fire at a hospital in Baghdad, Iraq, kills 82 people and injures more than 100 others. (BBC)

Health and environment

COVID-19 pandemic
- COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
  - COVID-19 pandemic in India
    - India reports 346,786 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, which is a world record for the third consecutive day, thereby bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 16.6 million. The country also reports a record 2,624 deaths in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide death toll to 189,544. (Nikkei Asia)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Iran
    - Iran bans all travel from India and Pakistan due to an increase in the number of COVID-19 cases in those countries as Iran's death toll surpasses 69,000. (ABC News)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia
    - Malaysia receives its first shipment of 268,800 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine distributed through the COVAX initiative. (Malay Mail)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Thailand
    - Thailand reports a record 2,839 new cases and eight deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 53,022 and the nationwide death toll to 129. (CNA)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Europe
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Germany
    - Germany begins to implement its "emergency brake" law designed to reduce the number of COVID-19 infections in regions with incidence rates of more than 100 new infections per 100,000 people over the last seven days. Measures that will be taken include curfews as well as school closures in areas where the incidence rate has exceeded 165. (RFI)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Switzerland, Lineage B.1.617
    - Switzerland reports its first case of the Lineage B.1.617 variant first detected in India. (Swissinfo)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Oceania
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Australia
    - Metropolitan Perth and Peel regions enter a three-day lockdown after a person from Victoria tested positive in Melbourne after leaving quarantine at a Perth hotel and spending five days in the community. (ABC Australia)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Papua New Guinea
    - The official death toll from COVID-19 in Papua New Guinea surpasses 100. (U.S. News & World Report)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Costa Rica
  - Costa Rica reports a record 1,830 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 238,760. (CNA)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Venezuela
  - Venezuela receives another shipment of 880,000 doses of the Sputnik V vaccine as the number of cases continues to rise. (Reuters)

International relations

Turkey–United States relations, Armenian Genocide recognition
- In a statement commemorating Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day, U.S. President Joe Biden formally acknowledges the massacre of Armenians by the Ottoman Empire during World War I as a genocide. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu denounces Biden's statement as "political opportunism" and "based on populism". (CNN)

Law and crime

2019 Sri Lanka Easter bombings
- Sri Lankan Member of Parliament and former industry minister Rishad Bathiudeen is arrested, along with his brother, under the Prevention of Terrorism Act for having connections with the perpetrators of the 2019 attack. (Arab News)
Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on crime, COVID-19 pandemic in Spain
- Police arrest a man suspected of infecting 22 people, eight directly and 14 indirectly, with COVID-19, as part of an investigation into an outbreak in Manacor, Spain. According to authorities, the suspect made no efforts to quarantine himself or wear a face mask despite showing symptoms and having taken a test. (CNN)

Politics and elections

2021 Louisiana's 2nd congressional district special election
- Democratic state senator Troy Carter wins the runoff election for a special election for Louisiana's 2nd congressional district to replace Representative Cedric Richmond, who had left his position to work for President Joe Biden. (AP)

Science and technology

Human spaceflight
- SpaceX Crew-2
  - SpaceX's Crew Dragon C206 "Endeavour", which is carrying four astronauts on board, successfully docks with the International Space Station. (Space.com)