Portal:Current events/2025 March 20

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Middle Eastern crisis
  • Gaza war
    • Israeli bombing of the Gaza Strip
      • March 2025 Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip
        • Early morning attacks conducted by the Israel Defense Forces on the Gaza Strip reportedly kill at least 91 Palestinians, including children. (CTV News) (Al Jazeera)
  • Red Sea crisis
    • Israel intercepts a ballistic missile fired by the Houthis from Yemen that targeted the Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv. (CNN)
• Kivu conflict
  • M23 campaign
    • 2025 Walikale offensive
      • Rwandan-backed M23 rebels capture the town of Walikale in North Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo, following the collapse of peace talks with the Congolese government. (AP)
• Russian invasion of Ukraine
  • Attacks in Russia during the Russian invasion of Ukraine
    • Massive explosions are reported after the Ukrainian Armed Forces drone strike the Engels-2 air base in Russia. Reports indicate that nearby houses are also damaged by the explosions. (Reuters)
  • Odesa strikes
    • Russia launches a massive drone attack in Odesa, Ukraine, causing injuries among civilians and damaging civilian infrastructure. (Reuters)

Business and economy

• German economic crisis
  • Deutsche Bank, a German multinational investment bank and financial services company, announces it will downsize and cut 2,000 jobs in its retail banking division this year. (DW)

International relations

• Germany–Syria relations
  • Germany reopens its embassy in Damascus, Syria after 13 years. (Euronews)

Law and crime

• 2025 Turkish anti-government protests, Internet regulation in Turkey
  • The Turkish government arrests dozens of civilians for posting "provocative" social media posts protesting the government's democratic backsliding following the arrest of opposition candidate Ekrem İmamoğlu. (BBC)
• The Indonesian House of Representatives passes a law revision regarding the armed forces, which expands the amount of civilian positions an active officer can hold from ten to fourteen while also raising the retirement age for soldiers, prompting protests across the country fearing eroding civil control. (Tempo) (CNN Indonesia)
• Social media company X files a lawsuit against the government of India alleging that the Indian government is censoring the social media platform along with other information. (DW)

Politics and elections

• Second Trump presidency
  • Response to the Department of Government Efficiency
    • United States district judge for the District of Maryland Ellen Lipton Hollander temporarily blocks the Department of Government Efficiency from accessing Social Security systems that cover the personal information of U.S. citizens. Judge Hollander also orders the department to delete any previously accessed personal identifiable information in their possession. (AP)
  • U.S. President Donald Trump signs an executive order that orders Secretary of Education Linda McMahon to start dismantling the U.S. Department of Education, which is responsible for allocating federal funds to schools and disbursing financial aid. (NBC News) (NPR)
• Vitold Fokin, the first prime minister of modern-day Ukraine, dies at age 92. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy mourns him as "a sense of loss for all Ukrainians". (The Kyiv Independent)

Science and technology

• The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration orders a product recall of 46,000 Tesla Cybertrucks, nearly all active Cybertrucks on the roads, due to an issue with an exterior panel that can detach while driving due to an ineffective structural adhesive. (AP) (The Hill)

Sports

• 144th IOC Session
  • Zimbabwe's Sports Minister Kirsty Coventry is elected as the 10th and first female President of the International Olympic Committee in the first round of voting. (BBC)
  • The International Olympic Committee votes unanimously to include boxing in the 2028 Summer Olympics. (BBC News)