Portal:Current events/2021 January 8

January 8, 2021 (Friday)

Health and environment

COVID-19 pandemic
- COVID-19 pandemic in North America
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Canada
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Alberta, 501.V2 variant
      - Alberta reports the first case of the new variant of SARS-CoV-2 from South Africa. (CBC)
    - Canada reports a record of 9,197 new cases in the past 24 hours. (Global News)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
    - COVID-19 pandemic in New York
      - COVID-19 pandemic in New York City
        New York City Police Commissioner Dermot Shea tests positive for COVID-19. (Patch.com)
    - COVID-19 pandemic in California, COVID-19 vaccine
      - California Governor Gavin Newsom sets a goal of vaccinating 1 million people by January 17. (The Los Angeles Times)
    - President-elect Joe Biden says he will plan to speed up the release of vaccine doses. (USA Today)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Europe
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Cyprus
    - Health Minister Constantinos Ioannou announces a second nationwide lockdown for the country that will last three weeks beginning January 10 in order to reduce the spread of COVID-19. (France 24)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Germany
    - Germany reports a record 1,188 deaths in the past 24 hours, according to data from the Robert Koch Institute, bringing the nationwide death toll to 38,795. (Taggeschau)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Greece
    - Greece extends their nationwide lockdown until January 18 but will allow kindergartens, elementary schools and nurseries to reopen on January 11. (Ekathimerini)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in the Republic of Ireland
    - Ireland reports a record 8,248 new cases in the past 24 hours, bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 135,884. (Irish Examiner)
    - Chief Medical Officer Tony Holohan announces that three cases of the South African variant of SARS-CoV-2 named 501.V2 variant have been detected in Ireland. All of the people had travelled to South Africa. (The Irish Times)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Portugal
    - Portugal reports a new daily record of 10,176 cases, bringing the nationwide cumulative total of confirmed cases to 466,709. (DGS)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Sweden
    - The Riksdag passes a new law that gives the government power to impose COVID-19-related lockdowns, such as ordering certain businesses to close or prohibiting public gatherings of certain sizes. The law will take effect on January 10. (The Washington Post)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom
    - COVID-19 pandemic in England, COVID-19 pandemic in London
      - London mayor Sadiq Khan declares a "major incident" in the capital due to a rise in the number of cases that threatens to overwhelm hospitals. (Sky News)
    - The United Kingdom reports a record 68,053 new confirmed cases and 1,325 deaths in the past 24 hours. (BBC News)
    - The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency approves a vaccine made by Moderna for use in the UK. This comes after clinical trials found the vaccine had an efficacy of 94.1% and 100% for severe cases. (Evening Standard)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Bhutan
    - Bhutan reports its first death from COVID-19 after a 34-year-old man with chronic liver disease and renal failure, who tested positive for COVID-19, died in a hospital in Thimphu. (Reuters)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia
    - Indonesia reports a record for the third consecutive day of 10,617 new cases. It is the first time that the country has reported more than 10,000 cases and brings the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 808,340. (Kompas)
    - The Indonesian Ulema Council gives a religious approval for use of Sinovac Biotech's vaccine, deeming it halal, or permissible under Islam. (DW)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Iran
    - Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei calls for a ban on the American Pfizer and British AstraZeneca vaccines. (DW)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Japan
    - Japan reports a record 7,841 new confirmed cases in the past 24 hours. (NHK World)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia
    - Malaysia reports a record 16 deaths in the past 24 hours, bringing the nationwide death toll to 537. (Malay Mail)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia, COVID-19 vaccine
    - King Salman receives the first dose of Pfizer's vaccine in Neom. (Arab News)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore
    - Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong receives a COVID-19 vaccine as the country begins a nationwide vaccination campaign in public health institutions. (The Straits Times)
- COVID-19 pandemic in South America
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil
    - Brazil surpasses 8 million cases of COVID-19, becoming the third country to do so after the United States and India. (CNA)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Peru, Variant of Concern 202012/01
    - Peru reports the first case of the new variant of SARS-CoV-2 from the United Kingdom in a citizen who resides in Lima and had attended a family reunion days before Christmas. (Andina)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Australia, Variant of Concern 202012/01
  - Brisbane is placed into lockdown for three days in order to reduce the spread of COVID-19 after a cleaner at a hotel quarantine site was diagnosed with a known variant of concern. The Northern Territory and Tasmania ban all travellers from Brisbane. (ABC Australia) (The Canberra Times) (News.com.au)
  - Prime Minister Scott Morrison announces that anyone coming into Australia must present a negative COVID-19 test prior to their departure and that masks will be mandatory on all domestic and international passenger flights. The caps on international arrivals will also be reduced for the next month. (9 News)
- COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa
  - South Africa reports a record 21,980 new cases in the past 24 hours, bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 1,192,570. (Timeslive)
- Tozinameran, Variants of SARS-CoV-2
  - Vaccine developer Pfizer announces that lab studies have concluded that the joint Pfizer–BioNTech vaccine remains effective against mutation variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, including Variant of Concern 202012/01 and the 501.V2 variant. (BBC News)

Law and crime

Aftermath of the 2021 storming of the United States Capitol
- Criminal charges brought in the 2021 storming of the United States Capitol
  - The man photographed sitting at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's desk during the storming of the United States Capitol is arrested in Little Rock, Arkansas. (Newsweek)
  - The Department of Justice indicts 15 people involved in the assault on the Capitol. The department says that more charges are expected. (AFP via The Straits Times)
  - The United States Attorney for the District of Columbia announces that West Virginia delegate Derrick Evans is expected to face charges for illegally entering the Capitol. (CBS News)
Trial of Benjamin Netanyahu
- Amid another quarantine lockdown, the next hearing in the trial of current Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is postponed. Netanyahu stands accused, in three separate ongoing cases, of a litany of corruption accusations, including bribery, breach of trust, and fraud. (AP)
2019 Sri Lanka Easter bombings
- The U.S. Department of Justice charges three Sri Lankan nationals with "providing material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization" in the Islamic State-claimed bombings. (AFP via The Guardian)
A court in Pakistan sentences Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi to five years in prison on terrorism financing charges. Lakhvi, a senior member of the group Lashkar-e-Taiba, is accused of the 2008 Mumbai attacks, though he was convicted of unrelated charges. India and the United States welcome the verdict but ask that he be tried for the attacks. (Reuters)
A court in Pakistan sentences three people to death and a college teacher to 10 years in prison for blasphemy. Those convicted can now appeal to higher courts and ask for clemency from the President. Human rights groups say that the law persecutes religious minorities including Shias and the Ahmadiyya. (Al Jazeera)

Politics and elections

Presidential transition of Joe Biden
- United States President Donald Trump announces that he will not attend the inauguration ceremony of President-elect Joe Biden. Trump will be the first president to choose not to attend their elected successor's inauguration since Andrew Johnson in 1869. (CNN)
- Outgoing Secretary of State Mike Pompeo meets with incoming Secretary of State Antony Blinken for the first time in an effort to ensure an orderly transition of power. (CNBC)
2020–21 United States Senate election in Georgia
- Former Republican Senator David Perdue concedes to Democratic challenger Jon Ossoff. His concession formally guarantees the Democrats a majority in the United States Senate. (CNN)
Pope Francis appoints Vincenzo Buonomo as Head of the Disciplinary Commission of the Roman Curia, becoming the first layperson to hold the position. (Catholic News Agency)

Science and technology

Aftermath of the 2021 storming of the United States Capitol
- Twitter suspensions
  - Donald Trump on social media
    - Twitter permanently suspends Donald Trump's account. According to Twitter, he was suspended to end "the risk of further incitement of violence." (NBC News)
  - Twitter also suspends the accounts of former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, American attorney Sidney Powell, and former 8kun administrator Ron Watkins for spreading content related to the QAnon conspiracy theory. (The Hill)
- Google announces that it will suspend Parler from their Play Store due to concerns of incitement of violence. Apple also threatens to follow suit after 24 hours following the storming of the Capitol. (The Guardian) (Reuters)