Portal:Current events/2020 August 24

• Moro conflict
  • 2020 Jolo bombings
    • Militants believed to be Abu Sayyaf jihadists detonate two bombs in Jolo, Sulu, Philippines, killing 14 people and wounding 75 others. The first occurred as army personnel were assisting in carrying out COVID-19 humanitarian efforts. The second was carried out by a female suicide bomber near the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Cathedral, which was bombed in 2019. (The New York Times)
• Syrian civil war
  • A major blackout is reported in Syria after an explosion hits the Arab Gas Pipeline in the Rif Dimashq Governorate. Syrian Oil Minister Ali Ghanem says the explosion was a "terrorist attack", but does not elaborate on who was behind it. (Al Jazeera)
• An armed assault erupts on Sunday and continues into today in Bugarama, Rumonge, Burundi between militants and security forces, leaving at least 15 people dead. A group named Red Tabara, based in Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo, claims responsibility and says that the election of past May won by Évariste Ndayishimiye were a "farce" and calls for new elections. The Burundian army did not comment on the attack. (Reuters)

• Chinese video-sharing service TikTok sues U.S. President Donald Trump over his executive orders, signed earlier this month, that would effectively ban the app within the United States. The company says the executive orders are part of a "broader campaign of anti-China rhetoric" in the lead up to the upcoming presidential election. (Reuters)

• More than 200 people are missing after the five-storey Tariq Garden apartment block in Mahad, Maharashtra, India, collapses. Residents and rescue workers dispatched by the National Disaster Response Force have rescued at least 28 people. (The Independent)
• A massive fire engulfs the Juma Mosque in Durban, South Africa. No casualties are reported, and it is believed that it was caused by an electrical fire. (Al Jazeera)

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia
      • Indonesia reports its highest single-day record of more than 3,500 patients having recovered from COVID-19, pushing the recovery rate to 71.5%. Of those recovered, 1,896 are from Jakarta, which has reported the highest single day of any province in the country. (Okezone)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in South Korea
      • Seoul orders face masks to be worn in both indoor and outdoor public places for the first time as it battles a surge in cases centred in the densely populated metropolitan area. (Liputan6)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Oceania
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Australia
      • Victorian premier Daniel Andrews proposes to extend the state of emergency to at least September 2021. (9News)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in New Zealand
      • Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announces that Auckland will remain in Alert level 3 until 11:59 p.m. local time on August 30. (Newshub)

• Travel restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in France, COVID-19 pandemic in Germany
    • German Federal Foreign Office issue a travel warning for Île-de-France region, which includes Paris, and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, which includes Marseille and Nice, as well as French Guiana and other overseas French territories against "unnecessary tourism" due to rising COVID-19 infections in these regions. (RFI)
• Arab–American relations, Arab–Israeli conflict, Israel–United States relations, Israel–United Arab Emirates relations, United Arab Emirates–United States relations
  • U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visits Israel, 11 days after the country agreed to normalize relations with the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Pompeo embarks on a tour of the Middle East and Sudan to persuade the other Arab states to normalize relations with Israel as well. (Al Jazeera) (DW)
  • The UAE cancels a planned meeting with Pompeo and Israel for Friday after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly denied that a proposed armed deal with the U.S. and the UAE will involve the sale of F-35 military jets. The UAE maintains that the jet's acquisition is tied to the normalization deal. (Al Jazeera)

• Austria–Russia relations
  • Austria expels a Russian diplomat following a report accusing the envoy of being involved in economic espionage after an Austrian who works in a technology company confessed that he carried out espionage for years on behalf of the Russian, who was his intelligence handler. (Al Jazeera)

• Shooting of Jacob Blake, George Floyd protests
  • Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers deploys the National Guard to maintain "public safety" after police shot Jacob Blake on Sunday. Hundreds of people marched on police headquarters that night to demonstrate against the shooting. Up to 200 members of the National Guard will be deployed. (BBC News)
  • Police and demonstrators clash for a second night in Wisconsin in the aftermath of Blake's shooting. Blake is still in intensive care, said attorney Ben Crump who is representing him and his family. (CNN)
• Impeachment inquiry against Mike DeWine
  • Ohio Representative John Becker draws up 10 articles of impeachment on Governor Mike DeWine over his COVID-19 orders. Representatives Nino Vitale and Paul Zeltwanger are co-sponsors for the impeachment inquiries. (Cleveland.com) (WLWT-TV)
• Christchurch mosque shootings
  • Perpetrator Brenton Tarrant begins his sentencing before the High Court in Christchurch, New Zealand. He faces an unprecedented sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, having been convicted in March for murder involving multiple deaths. (AP via The Hindu) (UPI)
• A prison riot in Farafangana, Madagascar, leaves at least 20 inmates dead, while dozens of prisoners escape after overpowering the guards. The Justice Ministry says 31 prisoners remain on the loose, while 37 have been captured alive. (ABC News)
• Northern Ireland police charge nine members of the New IRA arrested last week for terrorism, conspiracy, and possession of explosives, among others. A tenth member remains in custody. (Reuters)

• 2020 United States presidential election
  • The 2020 Republican National Convention begins, running until Thursday. Incumbents President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence are expected to be officially nominated to run for re-election, facing off against former Vice President Joe Biden and Senator Kamala Harris in November. (CNN)
• 2020 Belarusian protests
  • The Coordinating Council of the Belarusian opposition report that two of its members, Sergei Dylevsky and Olga Kovalkova, have been detained by police in Minsk. (AP via ABC News)
• 2020 Conservative Party of Canada leadership election
  • Durham MP and former Minister of Veterans Affairs Erin O'Toole is elected as the new leader of the Conservative Party and new Leader of the Official Opposition in the House of Commons. (CTV News)
• The Cyprus Papers, consisting of more than 1,400 confidential approved applications relating to the Cyprus Investment Programme run by the Republic of Cyprus, are published by the international broadcaster Al Jazeera, which says they have been sold to criminals and fugitives who, by purchasing a Cypriot passport, become European Union citizens. The European Commission, as well as a leading anti-corruption NGO, want this program phased out. (Al Jazeera)
• The Charité hospital in Berlin, Germany, where Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny is admitted, reveals that doctors have found cholinesterase inhibitors in his body that suggest he may have been poisoned. Doctors in Omsk, Russia, where Navalny was initially admitted, earlier claimed that there was no evidence of poison in his body. (CBS News)
• Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune sets the date for a referendum on a new constitution for November 1. (Reuters)