Portal:Current events/2021 February 7

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Somali Civil War
  • A roadside bomb explodes in Dusmareb, Somalia, killing twelve agents of the National Intelligence and Security Agency, including its local head. (Al Jazeera)
• 2020–21 Sudanese–Ethiopian clashes
  • Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto arrives in Khartoum to help reduce tensions between Sudan and Ethiopia. He will also visit a refugee camp containing refugees fleeing the Tigray War and visit Ethiopia after spending time in Sudan. (European Union)

Disasters and accidents

• 2021 Uttarakhand glacial outburst flood
  • A glacier breaks off in Joshimath, India, in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district resulting in flash floods along the Alaknanda River and Dhauliganga River. Eighteen people are found dead and 200 more are feared dead. (Reuters)
• An earthquake of magnitude 6.1 occurs in the southern province of Davao del Sur, Philippines, with damage and aftershocks expected. No casualties have been reported. (The Philippine Star)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in North America
    • COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
      • COVID-19 pandemic in Texas
        • U.S. Rep. Ron Wright (R-TX) dies from COVID-19 at the age of 67, thus making him the first member of Congress to die from the disease. (NBC News)
      • The United States surpasses 27 million cases of COVID-19. (KIRO-TV)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Canada
      • COVID-19 pandemic in Ontario, Lineage P.1
        • Ontario reports Canada's first case of the Lineage P.1 variant in a person who travelled from Brazil to Toronto. (CP24)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico
      • Beatriz Yamamoto Cázarez becomes the fifth incumbent member of the Congress of the Union to die from COVID-19. (El Universal)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Afghanistan
      • Afghanistan receives 500,000 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine from India. (The Hindu)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Bangladesh
      • Bangladesh begins a nationwide vaccination programme against COVID-19 in Dhaka. (All India Radio)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Cambodia
      • Cambodia receives its first 600,000 doses of the Sinopharm vaccine from China. (ABC News)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Vietnam
      • Vietnam surpasses 2,000 cases of COVID-19. (Reuters)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Europe
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Austria
      • Austria tightens its border controls with all neighbouring countries in order to avoid non-essential travel due to the pandemic. (The Local Austria)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Hungary
      • Hungary approves the use of the Sputnik V vaccine in the country. (The Moscow Times)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa
    • South Africa suspends its rollout of the Oxford-AstraZenenca vaccine after research finds that the vaccine is less effective against the 501.V2 variant discovered in the country. (Sky News)
  • COVID-19 vaccine
    • Oxford–AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, 501.V2 variant
      • A limited-size clinical trial in Johannesburg suggests that the Oxford–AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine is weak against the 501.V2 variant of SARS-CoV-2. (The Wall Street Journal)
• The health ministry of the Democratic Republic of the Congo announces a "resurgence" of the Ebola virus in the country's eastern side, after it was reported that a woman there died from the disease four days prior. The announcement comes three months after the World Health Organization declared an end to the Kivu Ebola outbreak in the country's Équateur province. (AFP via France 24)

International relations

• Iran–United States relations after 1979
  • Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei says that the United States should "lift all sanctions" if it wants to reverse its nuclear steps, saying that Iran complied with all obligations of the 2015 deal and accuses the United States and European countries of not doing so. (Reuters)

Law and crime

• 2018–2021 Haitian protests
  • The Haitian government says that it has thwarted an attempted coup d'état against President Jovenel Moïse, with at least 23 people arrested. Protesters assert that Moïse's term expires today, however, he claims that his term ends on February 7, 2022; in accordance with the constitution. (AFP via Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Politics and elections

• 2021 Ecuadorian general election
  • General elections occur in Ecuador to elect the successor of President Lenín Moreno. Socialist and former aide of President Rafael Correa, Andrés Arauz, is expected to finish in first place, but may face a run-off. (DW)
• 2021 Liechtenstein general election
  • General elections occur in Liechtenstein to elect the 25 members of the Landtag. (Euronews)
• 2021 Myanmar protests, aftermath of the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état
  • Tens of thousands of people protest against the military coup in Myanmar's largest city Yangon, calling for the release of jailed leader Aung San Suu Kyi. The protests are the largest to occur in the country's history since the 2007 Saffron Revolution. (Reuters)

Sports

• 2020 NFL season, Super Bowl LV
  • The Tampa Bay Buccaneers win the Super Bowl following a 31–9 victory against the Kansas City Chiefs, making them the first wildcard team to win the Super Bowl since the 2010 Green Bay Packers and the first to win it in their home stadium. Quarterback Tom Brady is named Super Bowl MVP. (BBC News)
  • Sarah Thomas becomes the first female NFL official to officiate a Super Bowl. (The New York Times)
• 2020 FIFA Club World Cup
  • Tigres UANL defeats Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras 1–0 in the semi-finals, to become the first CONCACAF team to reach the final of the FIFA Club World Cup. (AP via The Seattle Times)