Portal:Current events/2020 October 28

October 28, 2020 (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Ituri conflict
- The army of the Democratic Republic of the Congo says it killed 33 militiamen and reported the death of two soldiers in days of intense fighting in Ituri province. The army says it seized control of two rebel strongholds held by the Cooperative for the Development of Congo (CODECO) group, which is accused by the United Nations of committing war crimes. (Reuters)
War in Afghanistan
- Over 100 Taliban insurgents are killed as the Afghan Armed Forces retake parts of Helmand Province. (TOLO News)
2020 Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Barda ballistic missile attacks
- Azerbaijan says the death toll from an Armenian cluster missile attack on Barda has risen to 21 with dozens more wounded. Armenia denies carrying out the strike. (BBC News)

Business and economy

German anti-trust regulator Federal Cartel Office launches an investigation into Amazon and Apple for potentially breaking competition laws, by having the former being the exclusive distributor for the latter's dealerships online. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

2020 Atlantic hurricane season
- U.S. President Donald Trump declares a state of emergency for Louisiana ahead of Hurricane Zeta's impending landfall. (Fox News)
- The National Hurricane Center forecasts 5–8 feet (1.5–2.4 m) of storm surge for the entire Mississippi coastline. In Louisiana, mandatory evacuations are issued in Terrebonne Parish and Jefferson Parish. Alabama Governor Kay Ivey and Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves issue a state of emergency for their states. (CNN)
- The National Weather Service issues Storm Surge Warnings from the mouth of the Atchafalaya River, Louisiana, to Navarre, Florida. (National Hurricane Center)
- Hurricane Zeta strengthens to a Category 2 hurricane. (National Hurricane Center)
- Hurricane Zeta makes landfall near Cocodrie, Louisiana, as a Category 2 hurricane with sustained winds of 110 mph. In the process, it sets a new record for being the fifth named storm to make landfall in Louisiana in a single season, the previous record being four. (The New York Times)

Health and environment

COVID-19 pandemic
- COVID-19 pandemic in Europe
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Germany
    - The Robert Koch Institute reports a record 14,964 new infections in the past 24 hours, putting the total number of cases at 464,239. (Welt)
    - Chancellor Angela Merkel and leaders of 16 states agree to impose a nationwide partial lockdown from November 2, which means that restaurants, bars, and all leisure facilities are ordered to be closed until November 30, private gatherings will be limited to ten people and social contacts will be limited to two households. However, schools, churches and kindergartens will remain open with strict hygiene measures. The new restrictions will last for at least four weeks. (France 24) (CNN)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Switzerland
    - Switzerland's Federal Office of Public Health reports a record of 8,616 new infections in the last 24 hours, bringing the total to 135,658. In addition, in the last two weeks, the positivity rate has risen from 14% to 32%, higher than the peak of 26% during the first wave. (Le News)
    - Switzerland imposes new restrictions, ordering dance clubs to be closed beginning tomorrow, halting in-person university classes beginning in early November, and placing new limits on sporting and leisure activities. In addition, a requirement to wear masks in all offices and secondary schools as well as outdoors where social distancing is difficult has been indefinitely extended. (Yahoo! Finance)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in the Czech Republic
    - The Czech Republic reports 15,663 new cases, a record number since the pandemic began, as the country struggles with one of Europe's fastest growing infection rates. (Arab News)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in France
    - French President Emmanuel Macron announces a second nationwide lockdown from October 30, with all non-essential businesses ordered to close. Unlike the first lockdown in March, most schools and factories will remain open and care home visits will still be allowed. (BBC News)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Greece
    - Greece reports a record 1,547 new cases, bringing the nationwide total to 34,299 cases, according to data from National Public Health Organization. (NPHO)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Italy
    - Italy registers a record 24,991 new infections over the past 24 hours, according to health ministry data, bringing the nationwide total of cases to 589,766. (RTÉ)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Poland
    - Poland reports 18,820 new cases and 236 new deaths in the last 24 hours. It is the largest jump in the number of cases and the deadliest day since the start of the pandemic, bringing the total number of cases to 299,049. (Reuters) (Poland In)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Portugal
    - Portugal reports a record daily increase with 3,960 new cases, bringing the cumulative counts to 128,382 confirmed cases and 2,395 deaths. (DGS)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Russia
    - Russia reports a record high of 346 new fatalities in the last 24 hours, pushing the national death toll to 26,935. (The Moscow Times)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Slovenia
    - Slovenia reports 2,605 new cases, a new record since the start of the pandemic. (STA)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Sweden
    - Sweden reports 1,980 new infections in the past 24 hours, its highest number in a single day yet, bringing the nationwide total at 117,913. (Reuters)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Turkey
    - Turkey surpasses 10,000 COVID-19 deaths, becoming the eighth European country to reach the milestone. (Anadolu Agency)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Ukraine
    - Ukraine reports a record high of 165 fatalities in the last 24 hours, bringing the nationwide death toll to 6,755. (Gordonua)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia
    - Indonesia surpasses 400,000 total cases of COVID-19, becoming the first country in Southeast Asia to reach the milestone. (CNN Indonesia)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Iran
    - Iran reports a record 415 new fatalities, bringing the death toll since the pandemic began to 33,714. (Barron's)
    - Iran's parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf tested positive for COVID-19. (Voice of America)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Thailand
    - Thailand's cabinet agrees to extend a state of emergency until the end of November to contain its COVID-19 outbreak. (Reuters)
- COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
  - COVID-19 pandemic in New York (state)
    - New York surpasses 500,000 total confirmed COVID-19 cases, becoming the fourth state to surpass that number after California, Florida and Texas. (WNBC-TV)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Oceania
  - Tonga extends the state of emergency, which includes curfews and restrictions on gatherings, until November 23. The country, which is COVID-19-free, imposed strict measures on March 12. (RNZ)
- COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa
  - President Cyril Ramaphosa goes into self-quarantine after one of 35 guests at a charity event that he attended tested positive for COVID-19. (Sowetanlive)

International relations

France–Turkey relations
- Turkey threatens to take "legal and diplomatic action" in response to French magazine Charlie Hebdo's caricature mocking Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay condemns the publication. France responds by saying that the country would not give in to "destabilisation and intimidation attempts." (France 24)

Law and crime

2020–2021 United States racial unrest, Black Lives Matter
- Protesters march through Philadelphia for a second night, demanding racial justice after the killing of Walter Wallace. The marches began peacefully but became more confrontational into the evening and Wednesday morning. Police and the city's office of emergency management said looting was reported in several areas. Protesters try to erect makeshift barricades using bins while police use pepper spray and batons after saying they were attacked by demonstrators. (BBC News)
Gretchen Whitmer kidnapping plot
- An unsealed search warrant reveals that Barry Croft, one of the suspects accused in federal court of plotting to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, has also discussed South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster and President Donald Trump as possible targets. (The Detroit News) (The Post and Courier)
The FBI arrests five people in the United States, and charges three more, for spying on opponents of the Chinese Communist Party and trying, among other things, to coerce them to return home to face trial. (BBC News)

Politics and elections

2020 Tanzanian general election
- Tanzanians head to the polls to elect their President. Incumbent John Magufuli seeks reelection as his top opposition candidate Tundu Lissu, who returned from exile after a failed assassination attempt, warns of "widespread irregularities". (Al Jazeera)

October 2020 Polish protests
- Approximately 430,000 people participated in 410 protests across the country, according to the police spokesperson Jarosław Szymczyk. (Gazeta Prawna)

Science and technology

Scientists announce that last week they discovered a reef structure in the Great Barrier Reef that is 500 m (1,600 ft)-tall, surpassing the height of the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur. The discovery is the first of its type in the region since the 1800s. (BBC News)