Portal:Current events/2021 May 14

May 14, 2021 (Friday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

War in Afghanistan
- 2021 Afghanistan attacks
  - 2021 Kabul mosque bombing
    - Twelve people, including an imam, are killed and 15 others are wounded when a bomb explodes inside a mosque in the Shakardara District on the outskirts of Kabul. The Taliban condemns the attack, for which nobody has so far claimed responsibility. (Reuters)
2021 Israel–Palestine crisis
- The death toll from the Israeli airstrikes in Gaza increases to 137 people with more than 920 others wounded, as shellings and bombardments increase in the districts of Gaza. The Shati refugee camp is hit by bombings, resulting in the death of ten people, including eight children, thereby bringing the number of children killed to 36. The death toll in Israel rises to nine people killed, including a six-year-old boy. The International Criminal Court says that individuals involved in the conflict may be targeted by an investigation into war crimes. Violence also continues in the West Bank, with Israeli settlers attacking Palestinian homes in the city of Hebron, while eleven protestors in the West Bank are shot dead by soldiers, bringing the number of Palestinian protestors killed there to 15. Additionally, two men are killed in Lebanon during protests at the border against Israeli soldiers. (Al Jazeera)

Disasters and accidents

Cyclone Tauktae
- India's western state of Gujarat braces for cyclone Tauktae, reported to be the strongest storm to hit the region since 1998. (BBC News)

Health and environment

COVID-19 pandemic
- COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Japan
    - Due to the rising number of COVID-19 cases in Japan, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga extends the state of emergency to Hokkaido, Okayama, and Hiroshima prefectures from May 16 until the end of this month. He alsos declare a quasi-state of emergency in Gunma, Ishikawa, and Kumamoto prefectures from May 16 until June 13. (The Japan Times)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore
    - The Singaporean Health Ministry announces that it will impose the strictest curbs since the circuit breaker last year, including limiting social gatherings to two people, making work from home default, and banning dining at restaurants. The new restrictions will be in effect from May 16 until June 13. (The Straits Times) (Forbes)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Taiwan
    - The Taipei City Government announces the indefinite closure of entertainment venues and multiple public facilities such as libraries and sports centres beginning tomorrow after Taiwan reports a record 29 new locally transmitted cases in the past 24 hours. (France 24)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Vietnam
    - The Vietnamese health ministry says the country will receive 31 million Pfizer vaccine doses this year and also register to buy about 10 million additional doses through COVAX. (Bloomberg)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Europe
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Andorra
    - Andorran minister of Finances Èric Jover becomes re-infected with COVID-19, becoming the second minister in the past week to test positive for the virus after Minister of Economy Jordi Gallardo on May 12. (Diari d'Andorra)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Greece, impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on tourism
    - Greece officially reopens its borders to all visitors who present a proof of vaccination, a negative PCR test result, or a document certifying a recent recovery from the COVID-19 as tourism season begins, hoping to revive the sector badly affected by the pandemic. (Balkan Insight)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Italy
    - Italian Health Minister Roberto Speranza signs a decree that will remove quarantine rules for travelers from the European Union, the Schengen area, the United Kingdom, and Israel, as long as they have tested negative for COVID-19. The decree will take effect on May 16. (Barron's)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Canada
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Saskatchewan, Lineage B.1.617
    - Saskatchewan reports its first case of the Lineage B.1.617 variant, which was first discovered in India. (CKCK-DT)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Colombia
  - Colombia surpasses 80,000 deaths from COVID-19. (Reuters)

International relations

International reactions to 2021 Israel–Palestine crisis, Czech Republic–Israel relations
- Czech Republic President Miloš Zeman orders the Israeli flag to fly at the Prague Castle to show support for the country amidst its conflict with Palestine. (Newsweek)

Law and crime

Protests against the 2021 Israel–Palestine crisis
- Jordan police disperse protesters who are trying to reach the Allenby Bridge near the border with Israel. Additionally, protesters from Lebanon also reach the Israeli border. (Al Arabiya) (Times of Israel)
- Pro-Palestinian protesters storm the Queensway tunnel in the United Kingdom, disrupting traffic. (Birmingham Mail)
- A court in France bans pro-Palestinian protests planned in Paris. However, activists say that protests will go as planned. (France 24)
Health Service Executive cyberattack
- The Irish Health Service Executive shuts down its IT systems nationwide after a cyberattack involving ransomware. (RTÉ)
Two men are arrested and charged with the theft of U.S. government property after allegedly obtaining and selling 1,875 stolen technical orders, including documents detailing the operations, maintenance, and schematics of equipment, from the United States Air Force between 2015 and 2020 in exchange for at least $132,280. The seller worked for Summit Aerospace, while the buyer operated a private company, LTC Products, listed only for aircraft rental services, and they were discovered because of sales to a third company, Newport Aeronautical Sales. (Military.com)
Venezuelan authorities seize the headquarters of oppositional newspaper El Nacional for failing to pay a US$13 million fine for allegedly defaming United Socialist Party of Venezuela assemblyman Diosdado Cabello. (DW)

Politics and elections

Taiwan's Central Election Commission approves three referendums in late August. The referendums will allow the public to decide on banning pork containing ractopamine, on holding referendums on the same day as general elections, and whether to change the location of a planned new liquefied natural gas terminal to protect the maritime environment. (Reuters)

Sports

2021 Formula One World Championship, Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on motorsport
- The Turkish Grand Prix, originally scheduled for June, is canceled due to the recent upgrading by the British government of pandemic-related travel restrictions on Turkey. (Arab News)