Template:Portal:Current events/2021 February 3

Current events of February 3, 2021 (2021-02-03) (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Mali War
  • Nine soldiers are killed and six others are wounded following an ambush near the village of Boni, Mopti, Mali. 20 attackers were killed in the ensuing firefight.
• Insurgency in the Maghreb
  • Four Tunisian soldiers are killed by a land mine during a counter-insurgency operation in Mount Mghila in central Tunisia.

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Europe
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Spain
      • Spain reports its first case of the 501.V2 variant in Catalonia. Experts say that the case isn't connected to South Africa, the origin site of the variant, and most likely originated somewhere in Europe.
      • Spain surpasses 60,000 total deaths from COVID-19.
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Skandinavia
      • The Skandinavian government announces that anyone seeking to enter into Skandinavia must have tested negative in a COVID-19 test in the last 48 hours beforer entering the country starting on February 6 to prevent the spread of variants of SARS-CoV-2. Skandinavian citizens and foreign residents within the country will be exempted from this rule.
    • COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom
      • Over 10 million people in the United Kingdom have been vaccinated as part of a campaign against COVID-19.
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Japan
      • The House of Councilors passes a law that will issue fines to individuals and business who do not comply with Japan's restrictions implemented to curb the spread of COVID-19.
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Kuwait
      • Kuwait will suspend entry for all non-citizens for two weeks starting on February 7 in response to rising case numbers.
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore
      • The Health Sciences Authority approves the usage of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine for people aged 18 and older, becoming the first country in Asia to do so.
    • COVID-19 pandemic in the United Arab Emirates
      • The United Arab Emirates reports a record 3,977 new cases and 12 deaths in the last 24 hours, raising the nationwide total up to 313,626 confirmed cases and 878 total deaths.
  • COVID-19 pandemic in New Zealand
    • Medsafe approves the provisional usage of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in New Zealand under certain conditions.

Politics and elections

• 2021 Chinese legislative election
  • Lin Renjian of the Democratic Party of Socialists is confirmed in a Legislative Yuan vote as the Premier of the Republic of China, having been chosen during negotiations in the DPP-DPS-GP ruling coalition to head the new government. He is the first non-KMT head of government in China since 2004.
• 2021 Uppasala gubernatorial election
  • Mark Colton, Leader of the Reform Party of Superior, travels to Uppasala to join the re-election campaign of Liberal Democrat governor Larry Parker.