Portal:Current events/2020 October 23

October 23, 2020 (Friday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

War in Afghanistan
- Taliban insurgency
  - October 2020 Afghanistan attacks
    - The Taliban kills at least 20 Afghan soldiers in Khash Rod District, Nimroz Province. (TOLOnews)
Second Libyan Civil War
- The United Nations mission for Libya announces that the warring parties in the war have agreed to a "permanent ceasefire in all areas of Libya." The UN says it is an "important turning point towards peace and stability in Libya." The Libyan National Army (LNA) of Khalifa Haftar, based in the east, had been at war with the Government of National Accord (GNA), based in Tripoli. (Al Arabiya)

Disasters and accidents

2020 California wildfires
- The Pacific Gas and Electric Company announces that it may cut power to 1 million customers in California to prevent the spread of new wildfires. (ABC News)

Health and environment

COVID-19 pandemic
- COVID-19 pandemic in Europe
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Spain
    - COVID-19 pandemic in the Community of Madrid
      - The Madrid regional government announces new restrictions aimed at curbing the spread of COVID-19 when the current state of emergency expires tomorrow. Under the new rules, bars and restaurants will have to close by midnight and will not be able to accept new patrons after 11:00 p.m. local time, and socializing with people outside of one's household will be prohibited between midnight and 6:00 a.m. local time. Outside of these hours, social gatherings will be limited to a maximum of six people. Capacity at theaters and cinemas, as well as indoor sports facilities, will be reduced to 50%. Parks and gardens will be closed between midnight and 6:00 a.m. local time. (El Pais in English)
    - The regional government of Castile and León orders a curfew between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. local time that will take effect tomorrow and last for two weeks. (RTVE)
    - The Governments of Catalonia, Euskadi, Extremadura, Asturias, Melilla, and La Rioja urge the national government to declare a state of emergency. (La Vanguardia)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Scotland
      - Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon unveils parts of the draft five-level system of restrictions to curb the spread of COVID-19, ranging from Level Zero to Level Four. The new system will come into force on November 2 if the draft is approved by Scottish Parliament in Holyrood, Edinburgh, next week, and the application of different levels in different areas will be reviewed on a weekly basis. (ITV)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Belgium
    - Belgium's Consultative Committee announces that it will tighten its restrictions on social contacts by banning fans from sporting events, closing amusement parks, and imposing a limit of 200 people allowed in theatres, concert halls, and cinemas. The measures take effect immediately and will last for four weeks until November 19, in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19 threatening to overwhelm hospitals. (The Brussels Times)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in France
    - France surpasses one million COVID-19 cases after a record 42,032 new infections are reported in the last 24 hours, becoming the second European Union country to reach the milestone after Spain and the seventh country in the world to reach the same level. (ABC News)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Italy
    - Italy reports 19,143 new cases in the last 24 hours, a new record for the third consecutive day since the pandemic began, taking the nationwide total to 484,869. (ANSA)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in the Netherlands
    - The Flevo hospital in Almere begins to transfer two of its COVID-19 intensive care patients by helicopter to a hospital in Muenster, near the Dutch-German border, as hospitals in the Netherlands come under increasing strain from a second wave of infections. (Reuters)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Poland
    - After Poland reports the highest single-day record of 13,632 new infections, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki announces the designation of the country as a "red zone" area, which means that tomorrow it will partially close schools, with only grades one to three attending classes, restrict gatherings to five people, and restrict the operations of restaurants, cafés, and pubs to only serve take-away or delivery services. He also advises people over 70 years of age to stay home. (Times of India)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Portugal
    - The Portuguese Parliament approves a bill that imposes the mandatory use of a mask for people over ten years of age in crowded outdoor areas if social distancing cannot be implemented, as requested by the government, as a measure to curb the spread of COVID-19. The measures will be in effect for 70 days. (The Star)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Romania
    - The number of new cases since the beginning of the pandemic in Romania rises by a record of 5,028 in the past 24 hours, as new restrictions are introduced in Bucharest and other cities. (Digi 24)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Russia
    - Russia reports 17,340 new cases, a new record high in the past 24 hours, raising the cumulative case total to 1,480,646. Despite the rise, authorities pledge not to reimpose strict lockdown measures across the country and declare the epidemic "under control." (CBS News)
- COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Arkansas
    - The Arkansas Department of Health reports 1,337 new infections in the last 24 hours, a new record high since the pandemic began. In total, there are 104,135 confirmed and probable cases. (Arkansas Online)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in North Carolina
    - North Carolina reports a record number of new COVID-19 cases in the state, with 2,716 new cases in 24 hours. (WBTV)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Ohio
    - Ohio reports 2,518 new cases, a new record high for a single day. (WLWT)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Oregon
    - Oregon reports 550 new infections in the last 24 hours, a new record high since the pandemic began. 135 of them were from Multnomah County. (KGW8)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Pennsylvania
    - Pennsylvania reports 2,219 new cases of COVID-19, its highest single-day amount since April. (WPVI-TV)
  - The United States reports a new record of 83,757 new cases in a single day. In total, nearly 8.5 million cases have been reported since the pandemic began. (CNBC)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Iran
    - The number of new cases since the beginning of the pandemic in Iran rises by a record of 6,134 in the past 24 hours and pushes the overall count up to 556,891. This is the first time that new cases have surpassed more than 6,000. In addition, health ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari warns that 30 of 31 provinces are in the red zone with a high risk of COVID-19 infection. (Anadolu Agency)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia
    - Malaysia reports 10 deaths from COVID-19, making it the deadliest day since the beginning of the outbreak. (The Edge Markets)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Colombia
  - Vice President Marta Lucía Ramírez tests positive for COVID-19 and becomes the highest national official to get infected. (El País)
- COVID-19 vaccine
  - AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson resume their Phase III trials in the United States for a COVID-19 vaccine after previously pausing them as a result of complications with some volunteers. (Wall Street Journal)

International relations

Israel–Sudan normalization agreement, Israel–Sudan relations
- Israel and Sudan agree to establish diplomatic relations. (BBC News)

Law and crime

Protests over responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, COVID-19 pandemic in Italy
- Hundreds of people protests in Naples after stricter COVID-19 measures were imposed in the city and the whole region of Campania. The protestors clashed with police, wounding seven officers with smoke bombs, burning trash bins and chanting against the President of the region, Vincenzo De Luca. Two people are arrested. (Il Fatto Quotidiano) (ITV)
George Floyd protests, 2020–2021 United States racial unrest
- George Floyd protests in Minneapolis–Saint Paul
  - Federal prosecutors announce that Ivan Harrison Hunter, an alleged member of the Boogaloo Bois, has been charged for firing an AK-47 at a police station in Minneapolis during protests sparked by the killing of George Floyd. (NBC News)
Rohingya genocide case
- The Gambia announces that they have submitted a lawsuit against Myanmar for their role in the Rohingya genocide at the International Court of Justice in The Hague. (Dhaka Tribune) (The Daily Star)
The decomposed remains of seven people, believed to be undocumented migrants, are discovered in a fertiliser container in Asunción, Paraguay. The container set off from Serbia on 21 July and travelled through Croatia, Egypt, Spain and Argentina en route to Paraguay. Three of the seven were identified as being from Morocco and one from Egypt. According to the coroner, asphyxiation was the likely cause of death. (BBC News)