Key Storylines
- AFRICA: The daughter of a former Ethiopian prime minister has accused the government of stopping her from leaving the nation because of her Tigrayan heritage, highlighting continuing prejudice in the country.
- AMERICAS: Former U.S president Donald Trump is changing his legal defense team about a week before his second impeachment trial is about to take place.
- ASIA: The ruling Vietnamese Communist Party chief Nguyen Phu Trong, 76, has been re-elected for a rare third five-year term, state media reported, securing his position as one of the country’s longest-serving leaders.
- EUROPE: Hong Kong residents can apply for a new visa offering them an opportunity to become British citizens after Beijing’s imposition of a new national security law in the Asian financial hub last year.
- MIDDLE EAST: The number of people vaccinated against the COVID-19 in Israel has exceeded 3 million, the state’s Ministry of Health reported.
- TECH & COMMUNICATIONS: China’s Huawei tumbled four spots to become the sixth-best selling cell phone vendor in the world last quarter after U.S. sanctions crippled the company’s sales, industry analysts reported.
Top Story
- Russia: Protests restart in an attempt to rally for the freedom of opposition leader Alexei Navalny
- Supporters of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny staged new protests in Moscow and in other Russian cities for a second straight weekend despite the near-certainty of a confrontation with government forces.
- In Moscow police have closed metro stations and are restricting movement in the city center, with 100 arrested in the city.
- Defying minus 20 degrees temperatures, more than 6,000 people marched across Russia’s third-largest city of Novosibirsk, yelling “Down with the czar!” after riot police blocked the main square.
- According to civil rights activists, nearly 250 people were detained in the far east of the nation, with the major port of Vladivostok having one hundred arrests.
- Reporting: Reuters, BBC, Telegraph, DPA,
Africa
- Ethiopia: The daughter of a former prime minister has accused the government of stopping her from leaving the nation because of her Tigrayan heritage, highlighting continuing prejudice in the country. (FT)
- Kenya: The nation’s public debt rose by 1.3 trillion shillings (11.8 billion U.S. dollars) in 2020 as the east African nation increased borrowing in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and implemented various infrastructure projects. (Xinhua)
- Republic of Congo: The nation’s main opposition party will boycott the March 21 elections in which President Denis Sassou Nguesso, is running for re-election despite decades of rule. (AFP)
- Tunisia: The nation has become the third African country to register Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine for use against COVID-19, the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) reported. (Reuters)
Americas
- Mexico: The nation’s health ministry reported 15,337 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 1,495 additional fatalities, bringing the total to 1,857,230 cases and 158,074 deaths. (Reuters)
- United States: Former president Donald Trump is changing his legal defense team about a week before his second impeachment trial is about to take place. (WaPo)
- United States: Motorists waiting at the country’s largest vaccination sites were briefly halted as anti-vaccination protesters descended on Dodger Stadium, the authorities said. (NYT)
Asia
- China: A World Health Organization team studying the origins of the COVD-19 pandemic visited a market known to be the food distribution center for the city of Wuhan during the 76-day lockdown at the beginning of the current crisis. (AP)
- China: The country has temporarily banned the entry of foreign nationals traveling from Canada, even if they hold valid Chinese residence permits for work, the Chinese consulate in Toronto reported. (Reuters)
- South Korea: The nation will have enough Pfizer vaccine doses for 60,000 people delivered in mid-Feb. (YNA)
- Vietnam: The ruling Communist Party chief Nguyen Phu Trong, 76, has been re-elected for a rare third five-year term, state media reported, securing his position as one of the country’s longest-serving leaders. (Reuters)
Europe
- Region: The UK and European Union will “reset” relations after Brussels triggered a provision in the Brexit deal to control vaccine exports, Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove has announced. (BBC)
- United Kingdom: Hong Kong residents can apply for a new visa offering them an opportunity to become British citizens after Beijing’s imposition of a new national security law in the Asian financial hub last year. (Reuters)
- United Kingdom: The minister in charge of vaccines, Nadhim Zahawi, and London mayor, Sadiq Khan, worked together in a cross-party appeal to people from ethnic minority backgrounds to be vaccinated. (The Guardian)
Middle East
- Israel: The number of people vaccinated against COVID-19 in the nation has exceeded 3 million, the state’s Ministry of Health reported. (Xinhua)
- Israel: A soldier has shot dead a Palestinian suspected of attempting an attack on troops in the West Bank, an army spokesman reported. (AP)
- United Arab Emirates: Dubai’s house prices are expected to fall at a slower pace this year and next than previously thought as hopes for a successful vaccine rollout and an economic recovery boost confidence in the sector, a Reuters poll announced. (Reuters)
Tech & Communications
- Communications: China’s Huawei tumbled four spots to become the sixth-best selling cell phone vendor in the world last quarter after U.S. sanctions crippled the company’s sales, industry analysts reported. (UPI)
World
- Cyclones:
- TROPICAL CYCLONE ANA
- Location:18.2S 178.6E
- Movement: SSE
- Wind:75 mph
- MAP
- TROPICAL CYCLONE ANA
- Hurricanes: Nothing to report.
- Earthquakes: Nothing to report.
- Volcanoes: Nothing to report.
- Global Disease Outbreaks:
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global (as of 29JAN21)
- Confirmed cases: 102,632,290
- Total recovered cases: 56,839,678
- Deaths: 2,208,782
- Countries with confirmed cases: 192
- Sourcing: John Hopkins University
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global (as of 29JAN21)
Tomorrow’s Outlook (01FEB21)
- Global: U.N. Security Council monthly presidency rotates
- Global: Latin American and Caribbean environment ministers meet (virtual)
- Hong Kong: Pro-democracy activist faces bail hearing
- India: Union Budget presentation
- Iran: Anniversary of the founding of the Islamic Republic of Iran
- Myanmar: Parliament convenes amid military threats
- Netherlands: Dutch court discusses next steps in the MH17 murder trial
- United States: National African American History Month
- United States: Senate votes on DHS secretary nominee
- Vietnam: 13th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam to decide on new leadership and a five-year economic plan.
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