36 Syrian Army troops and 25 Turkish-backed rebels are killed, bringing the total death toll in Idlib since December to 1,186 opposition fighters and 1,136 Syrian government soldiers. (SOHR)
Twitter, Facebook and Instagram are blocked in Turkey, while YouTube and WhatsApp are partially restricted. It is understood that the measures are intended to protect details surrounding troop and equipment deployments. (Netblocks)
A cyber attack in Australia forces the cancellation of wool sales across the country. (ABC AU)
236 more coronavirus cases are confirmed in Italy, bringing the number to 655. Five more virus-related deaths are confirmed, bringing the death toll in the country to seventeen. Forty-five people recovered from the disease. (La Repubblica)
A woman is diagnosed with the coronavirus after a possible person-to-person transmission. It would be the first case of transmission in the United States with no known contacts to overseas cases. (NBC)
Saudi Arabia temporarily suspends entry to the kingdom for the Umrah Islamic pilgrimage and visits to al Al-Masjid an-Nabawi in Medina due to fears over the spread of the deadly novel coronavirus. (Reuters)
Saudi Arabia blocks all foreign pilgrims from entering the country. This block happens just before the Ramadan fasting. (ABC AU)
Prime Minister of JapanShinzo Abe announces that all junior and high schools will be asked to close from March 2 until their upcoming spring break to help fight the coronavirus pandemic. (Reuters)
A senior Turkish official tells Reuters that Turkey "will no longer stop Syrian refugees from reaching Europe". (Reuters)
Science and technology
Astronomers discover the largest known explosion ever in the history of the Universe, which occurred in the Ophiuchus galaxy cluster. It replaces MS 0735.6+7421. As space and ground telescopes that study radio emissions improve (which are better than X-ray observations for detecting these), more similar explosions, or "giant radio fossils", may be found. (Phys)(CNN)(Astrophysics via arXiv at Cornell University)