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Revision as of 01:38, 20 May 2021

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Armed conflicts and attacks

• 2021 Israel–Palestine crisis
  • Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Gaza militants say that fighting between Israel and Gaza will continue while working toward a ceasefire. (Reuters)
  • The United States rejects a United Nations resolution that calls for a ceasefire in the conflict between Israel and Gaza. (The Washington Post)
• Spillover of the Colombian conflict
  • Rebel forces confirm that former Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) leader Jesús Santrich has been killed in a cross-border operation in Zulia, Venezuela, by the National Army of Colombia. Five others were also killed in the operation on May 17. His rebel group says Colombian troops also cut off his little finger before withdrawing back across the border. Santrich was wanted by the United States on charges of drug trafficking. (The Guardian)
• A manhunt is ongoing for a far-right extremist, identified as a soldier, in Dilsen-Stokkem, Limburg, Belgium, after threatening virologist Marc Van Ranst. The suspect is heavily armed and considered as a serious threat. Four rocket launchers are found in his car. (BBC)

Business and economy

• The U.S. Air Force has awarded a $14 billion contract to Lockheed Martin to build new 128 Block 70/72 F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter jets on behalf of Bahrain, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Taiwan and Morocco through 2026. (Military.com) (AFLCMC)
• India has raised the subsidy it provides to farmers on diammonium phosphate (DAP) by 140% from Rs 500 ($6.90) to Rs 1200 ($16.40). This is the largest ever increase for the subsidy. The unsubsidized price of a single bag is Rs 2400 ($33). The NABARD All India Rural Financial Inclusion Survey of 2016-2017 found that the average Indian farming household income was Rs 8930 ($122) per month. (The New Indian Express)(Times of India - Income Reference)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
    • COVID-19 pandemic in India
      • It is revealed that the Ganges river in India has had hundreds of human bodies floating in its waters and buried in its banks in recent days, including some thought to have died of COVID-19. (BBC)
      • An anti-fungal drug, Amphotericin B, used in the treatment of a rare infection called mucormycosis, or "black fungus", is in short supply across states in India. Immunity to this infection can be reduced by the use of steroids in severely ill COVID-19 patients. (BBC)
      • India reports a new world record of 4,529 daily deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide death toll to 283,248. (The Straits Times)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia
      • Malaysia reports a record 6,075 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 485,496. (Free Malaysia Today)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines, COVID-19 vaccination in the Philippines
      • Vice President Leni Robredo receives her first dose of the Oxford–AstraZeneca vaccine. (CNN Philippines)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Taiwan
      • Taiwan raises its COVID-19 alert level to level 3 nationwide, which is same level as Taipei and New Taipei City where masks are required to be worn at all times and gatherings of more than five indoors and ten people outdoors are banned amid a rising number of locally transmitted cases. (The Guardian)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Europe
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Cyprus
      • Cyprus reports its first four cases of the Lineage B.1.617 variant, which was first discovered in India. (Cyprus-Mail)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in France
      • Restaurants, bars, and cafés for outdoor terraces are reopened in France for the first time in six months as well as museums, theatres and other cultural venues as the curfew was pushed back to 9:00 p.m. as part of easing of restrictions. (The Washington Post) (France 24)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Argentina
    • Argentina reports a record of cases of COVID-19 for the second consecutive day of 39,652 new cases, thereby bringing the national toll to over 3.4 million. (El Día)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Zimbabwe
    • Zimbabwe reports its first cases of the Lineage B.1.617 variant. The variant had been detected among a group of people in the central town of Kwekwe after a student returned from India on April 29. (Reuters)
• A tabular iceberg slightly larger than the size of Mallorca, dubbed A-76, calves from the Ronne Ice Shelf in Antarctica's Weddell Sea. (CNN)

International relations

• European migrant crisis, Morocco–Spain relations
  • Morocco closes its border with Spain following the escalation of diplomatic tensions generated by the massive influx of migrants into Ceuta on Tuesday. (El Confidencial)
• Russia–United States relations, Foreign policy of the Joe Biden administration
  • The Biden administration lifts sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project between Russia and Germany. Despite Joe Biden's personal opposition to the project, the U.S. State Department says it concluded that it was in the "U.S. national interest" to waive the sanctions. (BBC)
• International reactions to the 2021 Israel–Palestine crisis, China–Israel relations
  • Israel condemns a "antisemitic" report by China's state-owned China Global Television Network that claims "wealthy Jews dominate the finance, media and internet sectors" in the United States. The report also claims that Israel is a American puppet state. The Israeli Foreign Ministry calls on CGTN to take down the video citing its "racist and dangerous" ideas. (France 24) (The Jerusalem Post)

Law and crime

• Presidency of Jair Bolsonaro, Corruption in Brazil
  • The Federal Police of Brazil reveals an investigation against Brazilian Environment Minister Ricardo Salles, IBAMA president Eduardo Bim and other high-ranking officials for facilitating illegal logging in the Amazon region. Salles' fiscal and banking secrecies are lifted, and Bim is suspended from his post. (G1)
• Aftermath of the 2021 storming of the United States Capitol, January 6, 2021 commission
  • The U.S. House of Representatives votes 252-175 to approve a commission that investigates the January 6 riot at the United States Capitol. The bill will head to the U.S. Senate. (Voice of America)
• International protests over the 2021 Israel–Palestine crisis
  • In Kuwait, protesters burn Israeli flags and rally in support of Palestine. Protesters also reject normalization agreements signed by Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates. (Reuters)
• The Spanish Audiencia Nacional summons the leader of the Polisario Front, Brahim Ghali, to present himself in court on June 1 on accusations of multiple charges related to human rights violations by human rights groups and Western Sahara individuals. Ghali, who is currently hospitalized in northern Spain, refused to sign the summon, saying he has to refer to the Algerian embassy first. (Reuters)

Politics and government

• An investigation is published purporting that the the U.S. Armed Forces operate a human intelligence gathering (HUMINT) program employing a larger number of personnel than the CIA based on a two year investigation of resumes, job postings, Freedom of Information Act requests, and interviews with participants. (Newsweek)(Pravda.ru)

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