Key Storylines
- AFRICA: Separatist fighters in Cameroon killed six people in a raid on an army post in the troubled English-speaking Northwest province, the government announced.
- AMERICAS: The United States recorded more than 300,000 COVID-19 cases in a single day for the first time, according to data released.
- ASIA: China confirmed that preparations were still ongoing for a World Health Organization trip to Wuhan to investigate the origins of Covid-19, following a rare rebuke from the UN body over a delay to the long-planned trip.
- EUROPE: British Health Secretary Matt Hancock visited a doctor’s office in London this week to showcase the start of COVID-19 vaccinations by local general practitioners
- MIDDLE EAST: Foreign companies will not be allowed to test COVID-19 vaccines on Iranians, President Hassan Rouhani said, a day after Iran’s Supreme Leader banned vaccine imports from the United States and Britain.
- TECH & COMMUNICATIONS: Staffers at Voice of America, the government-funded international news organization, have filed a whistleblower complaint noting concerns about an upcoming address by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, saying it would be dangerous for them to gather at the agency’s headquarters amid the COVID-19 pandemic and that orders to broadcast his speech could be promoting “propaganda.”
Top Story
- United States: President Trump was banned from several social media sites over his role in inciting the riots at the capitol on January 6th.
- Twitter permanently suspended US President Donald Trump’s account from its platform on Friday, citing a risk of further incitement of violence.
- Google has suspended “free speech” social network Parler from its Play Store over its failure to remove “egregious content”.
- U.S. President Donald Trump said he will look at building his own platform after Twitter suspended him, citing a risk of further incitement of violence following the storming of the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday by hundreds of his supporters.
- The president fired off tweets from the official presidential account @POTUS, accusing the company of conspiring with the “Radical Left.”, the social network promptly deleted the tweets.
- Reporting: DPA, BBC, Reuters, AFP
Africa
- Cameroon: Separatist fighters in the nation killed six people in a raid on an army post in the troubled English-speaking Northwest province, the government announced. (AFP)
- Ethiopia: The National Ministry of Health on Friday recorded 345 additional COVID-19 cases over the last 24 hours, taking the national count to 127,572. (Xinhua)
- Tunisia: The Health Ministry reported 2,649 new COVID-19 cases in the past day, raising the total number of infections to 154,903. (Xinhua)
Americas
- United States: President-elect Joe Biden says that President Donald Trump is not “fit for the job,” but he notably refused to endorse growing Democratic calls to impeach the president a second time. (AP)
- United States: The nation recorded more than 300,000 COVID-19 cases in a single day for the first time, according to data released. (DPA)
- Venezuela: Authorities located 345 new infections of COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, with which there are already 115,667 cases of COVID-19 detected since the beginning of the pandemic, the Minister of Communications, Freddy Ñáñez, reported. (EFE)
Asia
- China: The nation confirmed that preparations were still ongoing for a World Health Organization trip to Wuhan to investigate the origins of COVID-19, following a rare rebuke from the UN body over a delay to the long-planned trip. (AFP)
- China: The Ministry of Commerce published new rules for countering “unjustified” laws and restrictions imposed by foreign countries on Chinese companies and citizens, as economic relations between Beijing and Washington deteriorate. (Reuters)
- Japan: Osaka and its surrounding prefectures asked the nation to expand a state of emergency to the western cities in an effort to contain the latest COVID-19 outbreak, while Tokyo’s new daily infections keep above 2,000 cases reported. ( Reuters)
- South Korea: The unification ministry stated it has a firm determination to implement inter-Korean agreements, after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un accused the South of breaking it at a rare party congress. (YNA)
Europe
- Germany: After the attack on the Capitol in Washington, Federal Foreign Minister Heiko Maas offered the United States closer cooperation in the fight for democracy, saying, “We are ready to work with the USA on a joint Marshall Plan for democracy.” (DPA)
- Germany: The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the nation increased by 24,694 to 1,891,581, data from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases showed. (Reuters)
- Spain: The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the nation surpassed 2 million after the Ministry of Health recorded 42,160 new infections and 245 deaths for the period between 2 p.m. on Jan. 5 and 2 p.m. on Jan. 7. (Xinhua)
- United Kingdom: Health Secretary Matt Hancock visited a doctor’s office in London this week to showcase the start of COVID-19 vaccinations by local general practitioners. (AP)
Middle East
- Iran: Imprisoned human rights activist Nasrin Sotoudeh has been given three days’ leave from jail on medical grounds, according to her husband. (DPA)
- Iran: Foreign companies will not be allowed to test COVID-19 vaccines on citizens, President Hassan Rouhani said, a day after the Supreme Leader banned vaccine imports from the United States and Britain. (Reuters)
- Lebanon: The nation reported a new high of 5,440 daily COVID-19 cases, raising the total number in the country to 210,139. (Xinhua)
Tech & Communications
- Media: Staffers at Voice of America, the government-funded international news organization, have filed a whistleblower complaint noting concerns about an upcoming address by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, saying it would be dangerous for them to gather at the agency’s headquarters amid the COVID-19 pandemic and that orders to broadcast his speech could be promoting “propaganda.” (AP)
World
- Cyclones:
- Cyclone Danilo
- Location: 18.4 S 64.2 E
- Movement: W at 13 mph
- Wind: 30mph
- Map
- Cyclone Danilo
- Hurricanes: Nothing to report.
- Earthquakes: Nothing to report.
- Volcanoes: Nothing to report.
- Global Disease Outbreaks:
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global
- Confirmed Cases as of 09JAN21: 88,969,386
- Total Recovered Cases as of 09JAN21: 49,489,545
- Deaths as of 09JAN21: 1,915,540
- Countries with Confirmed Cases: 191
- Sourcing: John Hopkins University
Tomorrow’s Outlook (10JAN21)
- Libera: Deferred Enforced Departure for Liberia terminates unless extended
- Kazakhstan: parliamentary elections
- Kyrgyzstan: Presidential elections and referendum
END
