Portal:Current events/2021 March 24

March 24, 2021 (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Insurgency in the Maghreb
- 2021 Niger attacks
  - At least 10 people are killed during attacks at two villages in the Tillabéri Region, Niger. (Reuters)
War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
- Afghanistan–United States relations
  - The Defense Inspector General releases a report accusing the United States for failing to charge partner nations for the use of American military aircraft. The report also says that the Department of Defense had no way of knowing how many dollars have been lost. (Air Force Times)
Aftermath of the Second Libyan Civil War
- Mahmoud al-Werfalli, a commander loyal to Khalifa Haftar, is killed alongside his cousin after unknown gunmen open fire on their vehicle in Benghazi. (Al Jazeera)
Tigray War
- Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed admits for the first time that Eritrean troops entered Ethiopia's Tigray Region and fought the rebel Tigray People's Liberation Front, and that they may have been involved in war crimes. Abiy says that Eritrean forces promised to leave the region as soon as Ethiopia's military was able to "control the border". (Al Jazeera)

Business and economy

COVID-19 recession, COVID-19 pandemic in Vatican City
- Pope Francis issues a decree that cuts the 10% of the cardinals' and other officials' salaries in view of the fact that the Vatican foresees a financial deficit of 50 million euros this year. (BBC News)

Disasters and accidents

2021 Suez Canal obstruction
- The Suez Canal remains blocked for a second consecutive day after the container ship Ever Given got stuck during a dust storm. The Suez Canal Authority says that tugboats are continuing to try to move the 220,000-ton ship as more than 100 cargo ships wait to pass. (The Guardian)

Health and environment

COVID-19 pandemic
- COVID-19 pandemic in Europe
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Belgium
    - Belgium announces new strict lockdown measures, which will close schools and non-medical contact professions such as hairdressers, restrict operation of non-essential shops, and ban outdoor gatherings of more than four people. These measures will begin on March 26 and will last for at least four weeks. (The Brussels Times)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Bulgaria
    - Bulgaria reports a record 4,851 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 312,741. (Bulgarian News Agency)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in France
    - Culture Minister Roselyne Bachelot becomes the second member of the government to be admitted to a hospital with COVID-19 after Élisabeth Borne, who has already been discharged. (Politico.eu)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Germany
    - Chancellor Angela Merkel announces that yesterday's decision to impose a five-day nationwide shutdown has been reversed. She says that the plan was a "mistake" and apologizes for it. (ABC News)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Iceland
    - Iceland will close schools, swimming pools, gyms, and bars at midnight and lower the limit on gatherings from 50 people to 10 people. These measures will be enforced for the next three weeks following an increase in the number of COVID-19 cases. (Iceland Review)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Poland
    - Poland reports a record 29,978 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 2,160,671. The country also surpasses 50,000 deaths from COVID-19. (TVN24 English)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Ukraine
    - Ukraine reports a new single-day record for the second consecutive day of 343 deaths from COVID-19, thereby bringing the nationwide death toll to 30,773. (Kyiv Post)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Mongolia
  - Mongolia reports a record 218 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 5,610. (Montsame)
- COVID-19 pandemic in North America
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Canada
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Alberta
      - Alberta reports its first two cases of the Lineage P.1 variant first detected in Brazil linked in a community transmission. (Global News)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
    - The U.S. surpasses 30 million cases of COVID-19. (Reuters)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil
  - Brazil surpasses 300,000 deaths from COVID-19, becoming the second country to do so after the U.S. (AP)

Politics and elections

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on politics
- Slovak Foreign Minister Ivan Korčok resigns amid a wave of mass resignations after President Zuzana Čaputová demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Igor Matovič over the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. The education minister also resigned. (DW)

Law and crime

Capital punishment in the United States, Capital punishment in Virginia
- Virginia becomes the 23rd U.S. state to abolish the death penalty, and the first Southern state to do so. (The Washington Post)
Bárcenas affair, Corruption in Spain
- Former Prime Ministers José María Aznar and Mariano Rajoy testify as witnesses at the National Audience in a corruption trial affecting the People's Party. The main defendant, Luis Bárcenas, claims that Rajoy and Aznar received cash payments from a slush fund, which they deny. (Euronews)