Portal:Current events/2021 July 17

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Mali War
  • Three Chinese nationals and two Mauritanians are abducted at gunpoint from a construction site in Kwala, Mali. (Al Jazeera)
• Protests erupt across Iran as the country is facing its worst drought in 50 years. Two protestors are killed. (Al Jazeera)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia
      • Malaysia reports a record 138 deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide death toll to 6,866. (The Star)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Myanmar
      • Myanmar reports a record 233 deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide death toll to 4,769. (ANI News)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Thailand
      • Thailand reports a record 10,082 new cases and 141 deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, prompting the government to impose a nationwide ban on gatherings with a maximum penalty of a two-year jail term, a fine of up to 40,000 baht (US$1,220.15) or both for violators. (Al Jazeera)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Vietnam
      • Vietnam reports a record 3,718 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 47,904. (Viet Nam News)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Europe
    • COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom
      • The United Kingdom reports 54,674 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, which is the highest single-day total of new cases since mid-January. (Sky News)
      • Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Sajid Javid tests positive for COVID-19, despite having been fully vaccinated, one day after he met with Prime Minister Boris Johnson. (Bloomberg)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Greece
      • Greece imposes a night-time curfew from 1 a.m. to 6 a.m. and bans all music on the island of Mykonos in an effort to reduce the local spread of COVID-19. These restrictions would last until July 26. (The Hill)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Fiji
    • Fiji reports a record 1,405 new cases and six deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the national total of cases to 16,471 and the national total of deaths to 85. (RNZ)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
    • The U.S. surpasses 34 million cases of COVID-19. (WFTV)
• Ghana culls more than 4,500 chickens and restricts the movement of poultry after nearly 6,000 birds died from the highly pathogenic H5N1 avian flu. (Reuters)

International relations

• Japan–South Korea relations
  • South Korea summons the Japanese ambassador following remarks by a Japanese senior official mocking South Korean President Moon Jae-in. Moon had hinted at a summit with Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, to which the official responded that it was not a possibility and that Moon was "masturbating". South Korea states that the remarks were highly inappropriate, but the Government of Japan said that the remarks were not directed at Moon. (CNA)
• 2019 Bolivian political crisis
  • At the request of Bolivia, Argentine prosecutors file charges against former president Mauricio Macri, security minister Patricia Bullrich, defense minister Oscar Aguad and former Argentine ambassador to Bolivia Normando Álvarez García for allegedly supporting the removal of Evo Morales from power in November 2019. The Argentine government of that time is also accused of sending ammunition and weaponry to help the government of interim president Jeanine Áñez suppress protests organized by Morales' supporters. (MercoPress)

Law and crime

• 2020–2021 United States civil unrest, Violence against LGBT people in the U.S.
  • Los Angeles Police Department officers fire rubber bullets at close range as LGBT+ activists showed up to counter far-right protesters who called for a boycott of Wi Spa which allows trans women to use women’s facilities. Dozens of activists were arrested following the chaotic and sometimes violent encounter. (Guardian)
• A shooting at a baseball game in Washington, D.C. between the Washington Nationals and the San Diego Padres causes the game's suspension at the bottom of the sixth inning. Four people were shot just outside of the Third Base Exit at Nationals Park. (ESPN)

Politics and elections

• COVID-19 pandemic in France
  • Over 100,000 people protest across France against President Emmanuel Macron's plan to require COVID-19 vaccinations for health workers, along with other restrictions on unvaccinated citizens. (Reuters)

Sports

• COVID-19 pandemic in Japan, 2020 Summer Olympics, Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sports
  • The first case of COVID-19 is reported in the Tokyo Olympic Village by the Tokyo Olympic organizer, in a person who is not an athlete but who is involved in organizing the games. (NBC)