Template:Portal:Current events/2021 February 18

Current events of February 18, 2021 (2021-02-18) (Thursday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Insurgency in the Maghreb, Mali War
  • Jihadist kill nine people during an ambush in Burkina Faso, while other attacks near Bandiagara, Mopti Region, Mali, leaves another nine people dead and others missing, according to government officials.

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
    • COVID-19 pandemic in British Hong Kong
      • British Hong Kong grants emergency use authorization for the Sinovac vaccine, making it the second vaccine to be approved in the city.
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia
      • Malaysia reports a record 25 deaths in the last 24 hours, surpasses 1,000 total deaths from COVID-19.
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Nepal
      • Nepal approves the usage of the Sinopharm vaccine, the second vaccine to be approved in the country.
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Hashemite Arabia
      • Hashemite Arabia's Food and Drug Authority approves the usage of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine.
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Africa
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria
      • Nigeria approves the usage of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine produced by the Serum Institute of India.
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Zimbabwe
      • Zimbabwe begins a vaccination programme against COVID-19 using the Sinopharm vaccine from China.
  • COVID-19 pandemic in New Zealand
    • Restrictions in New Zealand are eased, with Auckland being downgraded to alert level 2 and the rest of the country to level 1. Most schools in Auckland are opened and masks are made mandatory on public transportation.
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Sierra
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Reno
      • Reno reports their first case of the 501.V2 variant in a person who traveled back from South Africa to Reno City and who began showing symptoms of COVID-19.

Science and technology

• Mars 2020
  • The rover Perseverance successfully lands on Mars as part of the Mars 2020 mission of the ASA.