Portal:Current events/May 2020

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May 2020 was the fifth month of that leap year. The month, which began on a Friday, ended on a Sunday after 31 days.

Portal:Current events

This is an archived version of Wikipedia's Current events Portal from May 2020.

May 1, 2020 (2020-05-01) (Friday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Sinai insurgency
  • ISIL claims responsibility via its Amaq News Agency for a bombing that killed and wounded several Egyptian Army personnel near the city of Bir al-Abd in North Sinai Governorate. (Reuters)

Business and economy

• Lebanon's banking association rejects a plan proposed by the government to secure emergency funding from the International Monetary Fund, saying they were not consulted and the plan will "further destroy confidence" in the country's financial system. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• All five crew members declared missing after the crash of a Canadian CH-148 Cyclone helicopter two days earlier are now presumed dead. (The Guardian)

Law and crime

• South Hedland stabbing attack
  • A fly-in fly-out worker from Perth attacks seven people in South Hedland, Western Australia. None were killed, though five were hospitalised. Police shot the attacker dead. (The Guardian)
• A riot over food shortages at the overcrowded Los Llanos prison in Guanare, Portuguesa, Venezuela, leaves at least 46 people dead and dozens more injured, including the prison's director, according to the military. (BBC News) (Inquirer)

Politics and elections

• Gun control in Canada
  • Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announces a ban on assault-style weapons, which includes buying, selling, transporting, importing or using the designated weapons. The legislation is said to be motivated by last month's killing spree in Nova Scotia. (Reuters)

May 2, 2020 (2020-05-02) (Saturday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Arif Wazir, a prominent PTM leader, dies of injuries from an attack that was carried out in a drive-by shooting in Wanna, Pakistan, a day earlier. (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)
• Iraqi insurgency (2017–present)
  • At least 10 members of the Popular Mobilization Forces are killed by ISIL militants in attacks in the town of Mekeeshfa and the city of Balad. Iraq and the paramilitary forces' official media report that scores of others were wounded. (Al Jazeera)
• Mali War, Operation Barkhane
  • A French Foreign Legion soldier dies at a military hospital in Paris, after being wounded in an IED blast, while conducting an operation against Islamist insurgents in Mali. (The Star)

International relations

• Foreign relations of Palau
  • President of Palau Thomas Remengesau Jr. condemns the exclusion of Taiwan from the World Health Organization, saying that it "endangers, not only Taiwanese people, but people everywhere". Palau remains one of Taiwan's few political allies in the Pacific. (RNZ)
• Venezuelan presidential crisis
  • Brazil's Supreme Federal Court issues a 10-day injunction against President Jair Bolsonaro's demand that all 30 members of Venezuela's diplomatic team leave the country. (Reuters)

Law and crime

• Inmates take seven guards hostage at a prison in Manaus, Brazil, during an attempted escape. A raid later frees the guards and ends the prisoners' rebellion. (Global News)

Politics and elections

• North Korea's state-run Korean Central News Agency reports that leader Kim Jong-un attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony for a fertilizer plant today, in his first official appearance since his disappearance from public focus last month. (Reuters)

May 3, 2020 (2020-05-03) (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Korean conflict
  • North and South Korean soldiers exchange gunfire across the DMZ at a South Korean guard post in Cheorwon, but no injuries are reported. South Korean and U.S. officials suspect the initial shots from the north to be accidental. (BBC News) (Reuters)
• Piracy in the Gulf of Guinea
  • Unidentified forces attack two fishing vessels near the Gabonese capital of Libreville and abduct six crewmen (3 Indonesian, 2 Senegalese, and a South Korean). It is the second pirate attack reported this year off the coast of Gabon. (The Korea Herald)
• Sinai insurgency
  • Egypt's military says that 15 of its members were killed or wounded in recent operations in Sinai and that 126 suspected militants had been killed. (Reuters)
• Macuto Bay raid, Crisis in Venezuela
  • Former U.S. Green Beret Jordan Goudreau, who took part in the failed 2019 Venezuelan uprising attempt to oust Nicolás Maduro, releases a video claiming responsibility for an incursion in Venezuela, announcing the start of an effort to capture senior Venezuelan officials wanted by the U.S. government, codenamed "Operation Gideon". Goudreau claims 60 troops have successfully entered Venezuela by "land and sea" and fighting is underway. (The Washington Post)
  • Venezuelan Interior Minister Néstor Reverol says the country's security forces have foiled a "marine incursion" by "terrorist mercenaries" from Colombia, killing at least eight gunmen and capturing two others. The foreign group reportedly landed on a beach in the city of La Guaira on speedboats. (Al Jazeera)
  • State television broadcasts images it says are captured high-calibre weapons, Peruvian documents, and uniforms emblazoned with an American flag. (Canberra Times)

Business and economy

• Indonesian e-commerce site Tokopedia launches a security investigation after a hacker said they stole the information of 91 million users and plans to release it on the dark web. (Reuters)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Russia
    • Russia reports a record 10,633 new cases of COVID-19 and 58 more deaths from the virus in the last 24 hours, bringing the country's total cases to 134,686 and 1,280 deaths. Moscow's mayor Sergei Sobyanin says the peak has still not been reached, warning residents to remain indoors. (BBC News)

May 4, 2020 (2020-05-04) (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• War in Afghanistan
  • The Taliban claims responsibility for an attack on Sunday on an Afghan military centre in southern Helmand where they say that "dozens were killed or wounded". (Reuters)
• Ituri conflict
  • The armed forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo announce that 12 soldiers were killed in an attack by militants in Ituri Province over the weekend. (Anadolu Agency)
• Macuto Bay raid
  • Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro says "13 terrorists", including two U.S. citizens working for Jordan Goudreau's private security company Silvercorp USA, have been detained after foiling a plot to assassinate him, accusing them of "playing Rambo". State television broadcasts footage of captured mercenaries in Aragua. (Reuters)
  • Opposition leader Juan Guaidó denies any involvement with the Silvercorp USA operation. Jordan Goudreau claims his company signed a contract with Guaidó to remove Nicolás Maduro from power by force, but says he has only been paid "a tiny share of the amount agreed upon." (AP via Toledo Blade)

Arts and culture

• 2020 Pulitzer Prize
  • Reuters wins the 2020 Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography for its coverage of the protests in Hong Kong. (Reuters)

Business and economy

• Coronavirus recession, COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
  • The U.S. government announces plans to borrow $3 trillion for the second quarter, five times more than the previous record set during the 2008 financial crisis. (BBC News)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Japan
    • Prime Minister Shinzo Abe extends the national state of emergency to May 31. (Reuters)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in New Zealand
    • New Zealand reports no new cases of COVID-19 for the first day in almost two months. (The Guardian)

Law and crime

• COVID-19 pandemic in Colorado
  • A Colorado man who organized planned armed protests against the state’s stay-at-home orders is arrested after pipe bombs were discovered at his house. (ABC News)

Politics and elections

• UK Trade Minister Conor Burns resigns after a watchdog group recommended suspending him from parliament for making "veiled threats" towards a company his father had financial disputes with. (BBC News)

Science and technology

• A team of British and Kenyan scientists announce the discovery of Microsporidia MB, a parasitic microbe in the Microsporidia fungi group that blocks mosquitos from carrying malaria. While acknowledging they need to understand how the microbe spreads and how it blocks the disease, the team believes it has potential to be used in malaria control. (BBC News) (Nature)
• A previously undetected Apollo group asteroid 2020 JJ passes 4,350 miles (7,000 kilometres) away from Earth. It is the closest near-Earth object since 2019 UN13. (CNET)

May 5, 2020 (2020-05-05) (Tuesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Macuto Bay raid, United States–Venezuela relations
  • U.S. President Donald Trump denies any involvement by the U.S. government in Silvercorp USA's armed incursion into Venezuela on May 3, which left eight people dead and several others captured, including two U.S. citizens. (Reuters)
• Western Iran clashes (2016–present)
  • Gunmen kill three Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) members near the Kurdish-majority city of Divandarreh, in the Kurdistan Province, while "several counterrevolutionaries" are reportedly killed in the fighting, according to Iranian media. (RFERL)

Disasters and accidents

• At least two miners are killed in a mine collapse in Grand Cape Mount County, Liberia. The mayor of the county's administrative centre says scores of others are unaccounted for and feared dead. (Reuters)
• A massive fire breaks out at the 48-storey residential skyscraper Abbco Tower in Al Nahda, Sharjah, UAE. At least 12 people are injured. (Gulf News)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Yemen
    • The Houthis-controlled area of Yemen reports its first case of COVID-19 and first death; that of a Somali man who had liver and kidney conditions. The government in the south reports nine new infections. (Reuters)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil
    • Brazil's Ministry of Health reports 6,935 new cases of COVID-19 and 600 more deaths, the highest daily death toll in the country to date, bringing the country's death toll to 7,921 and 114,715 total cases. (Reuters)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom
    • The Department of Health and Social Care reports that the death toll from COVID-19 in the United Kingdom stands at 29,427, which is now the highest in Europe, after surpassing Italy. (BBC News)

Law and crime

• The Philippines' National Telecommunications Commission issues a cease and desist order to the broadcasting operations of ABS-CBN, the country's largest media network, as Congress fails to renew its franchise granted in 1995. The network signed off at 7:52 PM, Philippine Standard Time. The last time the network was shut down was upon the declaration of martial law by the Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos. (Al Jazeera) (ABS-CBN News) (Rappler)

May 6, 2020 (2020-05-06) (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir
  • Indian Army troops kill Riyaz Naikoo, a commander of the Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist group, after launching an offensive that resulted in the death of at least three other militants in Kashmir's Pulwama district. (Reuters)
• Macuto Bay raid, United States–Venezuela relations
  • Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro says that the two captured American mercenaries accused of organizing an armed incursion into Venezuela will be tried in the country by its civil courts. United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says the U.S. government will "use every tool that we have available to try to get them back." (France24)
• Iraqi insurgency
  • Three Katyusha rockets, fired from the Bakriya neighborhood, land in the perimeter of Baghdad International Airport but cause no damage or casualties. (ABC News)

Disasters and accidents

• At least two people are killed and two others seriously injured after a plane carrying vital medical supplies crashes near Esquel Airport in Esquel, Argentina. (Mirror)

Law and crime

• Shooting of Ahmaud Arbery
  • A cellphone video of the shooting of an African-American man jogging in Brunswick, Georgia, surfaces. The two men who killed him claim that they believed he was a burglar and then got into a fight with him when he was fatally shot. The case is subsequently taken to a grand jury. (CNN) (CBS News)

Politics and elections

• 2020 Polish presidential election
  • The Polish governing coalition announces the presidential election, scheduled for May 10, is postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The new election date will be announced later. (AP)

Science and technology

• The European Southern Observatory announces the discovery of Earth's closest-known black hole (HR 6819). The invisible object in the QV Telescopii system has a mass at least four times that of our Sun, and is roughly 1,000 light years (10 quadrillion km) from Earth in the constellation Telescopium. (NPR) (BBC News)

May 7, 2020 (2020-05-07) (Thursday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• The U.S. removes four Patriot missile batteries, two jet fighter squadrons and dozens of military personnel from Saudi Arabia while considering a reduction in the U.S. Navy presence in the Persian Gulf. (The Wall Street Journal)
• Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
  • Saudi Arabia withdraws its troops from the Yemeni island of Socotra amid separatist unrest. (Middle East Monitor)

Disasters and accidents

• Visakhapatnam gas leak
  • Eleven people die and over 5,000 fall ill from a styrene gas leak from an LG Polymers chemical plant in Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh, India. (Times of India)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Canada
    • The Canadian Catholic Jesuit community at Pickering, Ontario mourns the deaths of five members of their community, including four priests, who died of COVID-19 at the religious order’s long-term care facility. (Crux)

International relations

• China–Indonesia relations
  • Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi summons Chinese Ambassador to Indonesia Xiao Qian to express concerns about the alleged human rights violation of Indonesian workers aboard Chinese fishing vessels. This comes after a video showing Chinese sailors throwing the body of a dead Indonesian crew member overboard went viral. (The Jakarta Post)

Law and crime

• Shooting of Ahmaud Arbery
  • Gregory and Travis McMichael are arrested for murder and aggravated assault in relation to the February shooting of an African American man in Brunswick, Georgia. (ABC News)
• Lesothan King Letsie III approves a law barring Prime Minister Tom Thabane from dissolving parliament and calling an election in the event of a vote of no confidence. (Reuters)
• Criminal charges brought in the Mueller special counsel investigation
  • The U.S. Department of Justice drops its prosecution of Michael Flynn for lying to the FBI. He previously pleaded guilty to the charges during the investigation led by Robert Mueller. (Politico)

May 8, 2020 (2020-05-08) (Friday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Insurgency in Balochistan
  • A roadside bombing in Kech, Pakistan, struck a patrol vehicle, killing six soldiers, including an army major. The Balochistan Liberation Army claimed responsibility for the attack. (The New York Times)

Business and economy

• Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Coronavirus recession
  • The U.S. unemployment rate hits 14.7%, the highest since the Great Depression, mainly due to job losses from the COVID-19 pandemic. (The Washington Post)
• Microsoft announces a $1.5 billion investment in Italy, as part of its expansion of cloud computing services around the world. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• Visakhapatnam gas leak
  • The death toll from a styrene gas leak in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, India, rises to 13. (The Weather Channel)
• Aurangabad railway accident
  • A train kills 16 migrant workers who were sleeping on the tracks in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, India. According to initial inquiries, the engineer tried to stop the freight train when he saw the workers. (Reuters)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Kuwait
    • Kuwait announces a total curfew lasting from May 10–30, as part of new measures to prevent the spread of the virus. This comes after the Health Ministry confirmed 641 new COVID-19 cases, the highest daily increase to date. (Gulf News)

International relations

• Macuto Bay raid, United States–Venezuela relations
  • Venezuelan Chief Prosecutor Tarek William Saab formally requests the extradition of U.S. citizen Jordan Goudreau and two dissident Venezuelans, JJ Rendón and Sergio Vergara, over their involvement in the armed incursion earlier this week, known as "Operation Gideon". (Reuters)

Law and crime

• Former Ethiopian minister of communication Bereket Simon is sentenced to six years in prison for corruption and mismanagement of public funds. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

• The Supreme Court of Malawi rejects a bid from President Peter Mutharika and upholds a lower court ruling that annulled last year's elections, paving the way for a new election that will be held on July 2. (Al Jazeera)

May 9, 2020 (2020-05-09) (Saturday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Second Libyan Civil War
  • 2019–20 Western Libya offensive
    • The National Oil Corporation of Libya reports that LNA forces loyal to military commander Khalifa Haftar fired multiple rockets toward Mitiga International Airport, Tripoli's only functioning airport. The rockets hit jet fuel tanks and damaged a plane. (Al Jazeera)
• 2020 East African Express Airways shootdown
  • Ethiopia admits shooting down a Kenyan private aircraft, killing all six on board. The Ethiopian National Defense Force says it believed the plane was on a "potential suicide mission". (Al Jazeera)
• At least 20 people are killed when a group of gunmen storm villages in Niger. The militants also loot shops, steal cattle and order villagers to flee. (BBC News)

Law and crime

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Afghanistan
    • Four civilians are killed in Ghor, Afghanistan, when police open fire on protesters who grew angry at the local distribution of food, which they said favored those with political connections. Two policemen also are killed. Police say they responded when protesters tried to enter the governor's house. (Reuters)

Sports

• Live sports returned as UFC 249 occurred. In the Co-main event Henry Cejudo defeated Dominick Cruz to retain his Bantamweight Championship and retired after the win. In the main event Justin Gaethje defeated Tony Ferguson to win the Interim UFC lightweight title. This set up a fight with undisputed UFC lightweight champ Khabib Nurmagomedov. (The New York Times)

May 10, 2020 (2020-05-10) (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Second Libyan Civil War
  • 2019–20 Western Libya offensive
    • The Libyan National Army (LNA), led by Khalifa Haftar, carries out massive artillery bombardment of Tripoli, Libya's capital, in a push to capture the city from Turkish-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) forces. Turkey says Haftar's forces are now "legitimate targets" if attacks on its interests continue. (Reuters)
• Mali War
  • A roadside bomb strikes a United Nations vehicle in Aguelhok, Kidal, Mali, killing three Chadian peacekeepers. (Voice of America)

Business and economy

• Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Coronavirus recession
  • Colombian airline carrier Avianca files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and liquidates its Peruvian subsidiary as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. (Financial Times)

Disasters and accidents

• Iran says an anti-ship missile fired during a training exercise in the Gulf of Oman struck its naval support ship Konarak, killing 19 sailors and wounding 15 others onboard the vessel. (The Guardian)

International relations

• Iran–United States relations
  • Iranian government spokesman Ali Rabiei says that Iran is prepared for a full prisoner exchange with the United States but that the American authorities had not yet responded. The swap could include Iranian university professor Sirous Asgari who is in U.S. custody and Michael R. White, a U.S. Navy veteran in Iranian custody. (Al Jazeera)

Law and crime

• An altercation between Indian and Chinese soldiers near the Naku La sector in Sikkim, India, leaves eleven soldiers wounded. (BBC News)

May 11, 2020 (2020-05-11) (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• War in Afghanistan
  • At least 27 Afghan soldiers have been killed during a Taliban attack at a convoy in the Alishing District of Laghman Province, Afghanistan. (Tolo News)

Arts and culture

• COVID-19 pandemic in mainland China; Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on The Walt Disney Company
  • Shanghai Disneyland reopens with new social distancing rules. (The Guardian)

Business and economy

• Socio-economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, COVID-19 pandemic in California
  • Tesla, Inc. CEO Elon Musk announces he will reopen the Tesla Factory in Fremont, California, United States, in defiance of an Alameda County shutdown order. Governor Gavin Newsom voiced his support for the reopening of the factory. (CNN)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in mainland China
    • New coronavirus clusters are reported in Wuhan—where the virus first emerged—and the north-eastern province of Jilin, after confirming its first case since April 3. (BBC News)
    • Wuhan plans to test all 11 million of their residents for the coronavirus. (Washington Post)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
    • The death toll from COVID-19 in the United States exceeds 80,000. (Reuters)

Law and crime

• COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia
  • Malaysian authorities detains hundreds of foreign workers in a major raid in areas around the Kuala Lumpur Wholesale Market. It is the second major raid on the country's biggest wholesale wet market by the authorities amid the movement control order. (The Straits Times)
• Vital Kamerhe, chief of staff of the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, denies all charges of embezzling more than $50 million in public funds. Kamerhe, who appeared before a court for two hours wearing prison fatigues and a surgical mask, could face up to 20 years in prison if convicted. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

• Aftermath of the Macuto Bay raid, Venezuelan presidential crisis
  • Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó accepts the resignations of his aides JJ Rendón and Sergio Vergara, over their roles in "Operation Gideon". Rendón and Vergara admitted signing a contract with Jordan Goudreau's Silvercorp USA in October 2019 to help remove Nicolás Maduro from office, and install Guaidó as President. (Bloomberg)
• Lesotho's Prime Minister Tom Thabane's coalition government collapses in parliament. He is due to resign on May 22 amid accusations that he and his wife are involved in his ex-wife's murder. (Reuters)

Science and technology

• The Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology publishes the result of radiocarbon and DNA analysis from the fossils that has been found in the Bacho Kiro cave, Bulgaria. The result, showing that the fossils belong to Homo sapiens instead of Neanderthal, indicates that modern humans may have arrived in Europe thousands of years earlier than previously thought. (DW)

Sports

• Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sports
  • 2020 Major League Baseball season
    • Major League Baseball team owners approve a proposal by Commissioner Rob Manfred to start the season in early July. It still needs to be approved by the Major League Baseball Players Association. (ESPN)

May 12, 2020 (2020-05-12) (Tuesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• War in Afghanistan; May 2020 Afghanistan attacks
  • In Kabul, gunmen wearing police uniforms open fire, killing at least 24 people, including two newborns, in the maternity ward of a hospital. Security forces kill the attackers. In Kuz Kunar, a suicide bomber kills at least 32 people at a funeral. (BBC News)
  • In response, President Ashraf Ghani orders that the armed forces switch to the "offensive" and to "start operations against the enemy". (Reuters)
• Israeli–Palestinian conflict
  • An Israel Defense Forces soldier dies after being struck on the head by a thrown stone in the West Bank town of Ya'bad. The military is seeking a suspect. In a separate incident, Israeli police in Kalandia shoot and wound a Palestinian man attempting to stab officers. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• At least five COVID-19 patients in a hospital in Vyborgsky District, St. Petersburg, Russia, die after a ventilator caught fire in the intensive care ward they are treated in. (DW)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Russia
    • Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov is hospitalized after testing positive for COVID-19. (AP)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil
    • Brazil's Ministry of Health reports 881 more deaths from COVID-19, the highest daily death toll in the country to date, bringing the country's death toll to 12,400 and 177,589 total cases. (BBC News)

International relations

• China–Australia relations; Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on politics
  • China suspends imports of beef from four Australian abattoirs, saying that its customs agency "continuously" found violations of inspection and quarantine requirements. Foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian says the suspension comes to "ensure the safety and health of Chinese consumers". This comes after the Australian government last month called for an independent inquiry into the origins of the novel coronavirus. (Reuters)

Law and crime

• Forest of Dean unidentified body
  • A man and woman are arrested in the Forest of Dean in connection with the discovery of the remains of a woman found in two suitcases. (The Guardian)

May 13, 2020 (2020-05-13) (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Israeli–Palestinian conflict
  • Israeli-Palestinian attacks
    • Israeli troops kill a 15-year-old boy and wound four others at the Al-Fawar refugee camp near Hebron, where they are looking for the rock thrower who killed a soldier yesterday. (Ynetnews)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
    • COVID-19 pandemic in New York City
      • New York City goes 58 consecutive days without a fatal pedestrian traffic collision, the most since tracking began in 1983. (ABC News)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Maryland
      • Maryland Governor Larry Hogan announces that the stay-at-home order will be lifted on May 15, except for Prince George's and Montgomery counties. Groups of over ten will remain forbidden. (The Hill)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Poland
    • Poland extends its ban on foreigners entering the country until June 12 due to COVID-19. (Reuters)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Lesotho
    • Lesotho reports its first case, an asymptomatic person who returned from Saudi Arabia. Eighty others test negative. (The Guardian)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Chile
    • Due to a spike in cases, the government announces a total lockdown in Santiago. (The New York Times)

Politics and elections

• 2020 California's 25th congressional district special election
  • Democrat Christy Smith concedes defeat to Republican Mike Garcia in yesterday's special election for California's 25th congressional district after vote returns showed Garcia in the lead. The results are the first time since 1998 that Republicans flipped a Democratic-held House seat in California. (CNN) (The Hill)
• Tom Thabane steps down as Prime Minister of Lesotho following investigations into his third wife's alleged murder of his second wife, Lipolelo Thabane. (Reuters)

Sports

• Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sports
  • 2020 Australian Football League season
    • Plans to restart the 2020 AFL season on June 11 have been halted after the South Australian government announced it would not allow the Adelaide and Port Adelaide clubs to be exempt from the 14-day mandatory quarantine. Western Australian-based teams Fremantle and West Coast have plans to temporarily relocate to Gold Coast, Queensland. (News.com.au)

May 14, 2020 (2020-05-14) (Thursday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• May 2020 Afghanistan attacks
  • A truck bomb explodes near a court in Gardez, Paktia, Afghanistan, killing five civilians. The Taliban claims responsibility, calling it a retaliation to statements by President Ashraf Ghani blaming the group for an attack on a maternity hospital two days ago. (Reuters)
• Insurgency in Cabo Delgado
  • The government of Mozambique announces that 50 Islamist insurgents have been killed in recent operations in Cabo Delgado Province. (Reuters)
• Second Libyan Civil War
  • NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg says the military alliance is "ready to support" the UN-recognized Government of National Accord. (Libya Observer)
  • Greece, a member state of NATO, strongly criticizes Stoltenberg's remarks, saying his recognition of the "Muslim Brotherhood government" does not reflect the positions of the military alliance. (Greek Reporter)
• Colombian conflict
  • An air force raid kills a senior National Liberation Army (ELN) commander and three others in a rural area of Bolívar. (Reuters)
• Gunmen opened fire against two social workers delivering aid for people amid the COVID-19 pandemic in Van Province, Turkey, killing them at the scene. (Xinhua)

Arts and culture

• The Vatican announces that Pope Francis is sending a donation to Lebanon for 400 scholarships in an expression of his concern for the country’s young people. Lebanon is experiencing a “severe crisis” that is robbing younger generations of hope. (Catholic News Agency)

Business and economy

• Equinor, a multinational oil company two-thirds owned by the government of Norway, rejected a group of environmental and climate change-related resolutions at its shareholders meeting. One of these called on Equinor to stop oil exploration in ecologically sensitive areas. (Reuters)
• The New York Stock Exchange is expected to partially reopen following Memorial Day. (Forbes)

Disasters and accidents

• 2020 Pacific typhoon season
  • Typhoon Vongfong makes landfall in the Philippines. (CNN)
• The Cathedral Church of St Peter and St Paul in Sheffield, England, suffers damage due to a fire. There were no injuries. A 40-year-old woman has been arrested and charged with arson, burglary and assault of an emergency worker. (BBC News)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
    • COVID-19 pandemic in New Jersey
      • Governor Phil Murphy announces that their beaches will reopen for Memorial Day, but with restrictions. (Politico)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Yemen
    • Save the Children reports a surge in deaths of people with coronavirus-like symptoms in Aden, with at least 380 in the last week. Officially, Yemen has only reported 13 COVID-19 deaths. (BBC News)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in mainland China
    • China marks a month without announcing new deaths. (ABC News)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Seychelles
    • The Seychelles bans cruise ships until the end of 2021 effective immediately, amid fears over COVID-19. (NPR)

International relations

• China–United States relations
  • The U.S. Senate unanimously passes a bill placing visa and property sanctions on Chinese officials involved in the persecution of Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang. (Al Jazeera)

Politics and elections

• COVID-19 pandemic in Burundi
  • Burundi expels the country's top World Health Organization representative and three other experts coordinating the COVID-19 response. The government says they are persona non grata and must leave Burundi. They accused them of "interfering with the government response to the pandemic". (Al Jazeera)

Science and technology

• UFO sightings in the United States
  • The United States Navy's Naval Safety Center discloses "hazard reports" of Navy pilot encounters with unidentified aerial phenomena, including an incident in March 2014, in which a fighter jet pilot encountered an "unknown aircraft", which was "approximately the size of a suitcase, and silver in colour." (Sky News)

May 15, 2020 (2020-05-15) (Friday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Yemeni Civil War
  • The Yemeni Army says that scores of Houthi militiamen were killed in clashes and that scores of others were wounded in the central Al Bayda Governorate. (Anadolu Agency)
• War in Afghanistan; May 2020 Afghanistan attacks
  • The Taliban ambush a group of soldiers in Khan Abad, Kunduz, killing three of them. Five Taliban insurgents are killed in the clash. (Tolo News)

Business and economy

• Economic impact of the 2019–20 coronavirus pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, Economy of the United States
    • The United States House passes a $3 trillion coronavirus relief package. The bill will head to the United States Senate. (NBC News)
• Coronavirus recession
  • American retail chain J. C. Penney files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy after accumulating $4.2 billion in debt. It will also close an unspecified number of stores. (USA Today)
• Indonesia announces that it is imposing a value added tax on the digital services provided by internet companies. The tax will take effect in July. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• A United States Air Force F-22 Raptor stealth fighter crashes outside of Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, the pilot safely ejects. (Business Insider)
• An earthquake with a magnitude of 6.5 strikes near Tonopah, Nevada, with several aftershocks reported, though no injuries are reported. The earthquake is the largest in the state since 1954. (Reno Gazette-Journal)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
    • COVID-19 pandemic in New York
      • New York Governor Andrew Cuomo extends the stay-at-home order for New York until June 13. (Business Insider)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Michigan
      • Michigan passes 50,000 cases of COVID-19, the seventh state in the U.S. to do so. As of this date, this state has 50,079 reported cases, causing 4,825 deaths. (MLive.com)
    • United States President Donald Trump announces the officials for Operation Warp Speed in an effort to develop a vaccine by the end of 2020. (Politico)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in the United Arab Emirates
    • The Dubai Road Transport Authority announces that the elevators on the Dubai Metro will be restricted to two people at a time. (Gulf News)
  • The death toll from COVID-19 exceeds 300,000 worldwide. (TimesnowNews)

International relations

• Afghanistan–United States relations, May 2020 Afghanistan attacks
  • Vice President of Afghanistan Amrullah Saleh rejects U.S. assertion that ISIL are responsible for the attack on the maternity hospital this week and instead blames the Taliban. The Taliban previously denied the accusation and labeled the attack as "heinous". (Reuters)
• COVID-19 pandemic in Colombia, COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil
  • Colombian Ministers of Defense, Foreign Affairs and Health meet with their Brazilian counterparts to coordinate a joint response to the increasing numbers of COVID-19 cases in the border region between both countries. (Reuters)

Law and crime

• Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili pardons two opposition politicians in a move to reduce political tension ahead of a parliamentary election. The pardoned are the former mayor of Tbilisi Gigi Ugulava and ex-defense minister Irakli Okruashvili. (Reuters)
• Ghanaian police names Coronation Street actor Philip Middlemiss as one of the four suspects in a £5 million bribery scandal over the sale of military planes, and asks he be turned over for questioning. (The Times)
• Germany's Bundestag votes to make the burning of the EU flag or that of another country a hate crime equivalent to that of burning the German flag - carrying a sentence of up to three years in prison. The only major party that opposed the move was the Alternative for Germany. (BBC News)

Politics and elections

• Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on politics
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil
    • Nelson Teich resigns as Brazil's Minister of Health less than a month into office amid disagreements with President Jair Bolsonaro over the federal government's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. (BBC News)
  • 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries, COVID-19 pandemic in New Jersey
    • Governor Phil Murphy announces the New Jersey primary will primarily be conducted via vote-by-mail. (CBS News)

May 16, 2020 (2020-05-16) (Saturday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Rwandan genocide
  • French police arrest Félicien Kabuga in Paris. He is suspected of funding militias that massacred around 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus in 1994. Kabuga had been on the run for 26 years and was living under a false identity. (Reuters)

Business and economy

• Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on aviation, Coronavirus recession
  • Air Canada announces it will lay off 20,000 employees starting June 7. (The Associated Press)

Disasters and accidents

• 2020 Atlantic hurricane season
  • Tropical Storm Arthur
    • The first tropical storm of the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season is presently off the United States eastern coast. Arthur has sustained winds of 40 mph (65 km/h), is moving north-northeast at 13 mph (20 km/h), and will move near or east of the North Carolina coast on Monday. The official start of the Atlantic hurricane season is June 1. (Weather Channel) (National Hurricane Center)
• At least 11 firefighters, who had gone inside a hash oil manufacturing building in downtown Los Angeles after an initial report of a fire, are injured following an explosion. (NBC News) (The Associated Press)

International relations

• South China Sea dispute, China–Malaysia relations
  • The United States Navy sends three warships in support of Malaysian oil exploration against diplomatic pressure from China in the South China Sea. (Wall Street Journal)
• Israel–Jordan relations, Trump peace plan, Annexation of the Jordan Valley
  • Jordanian King Abdullah II warns Israel of a "massive conflict" if it annexes parts of the West Bank. (Al Jazeera)

Law and crime

• A court in Iran sentences French–Iranian academic Fariba Adelkhah to six years in prison for breaching national security laws. Her lawyer said he would appeal against the verdict. (Al Jazeera)

Politics and elections

• Statehood movement in Puerto Rico
  • Amid growing disillusionment with Puerto Rico's territorial status, Governor Wanda Vázquez Garced announces a referendum in November to decide whether Puerto Rico should be made a U.S. state. (The Associated Press)

Sports

• Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sports
  • 2019–20 Bundesliga
    • Bundesliga becomes the first major sports league to resume its season since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany. (NBC News)

May 17, 2020 (2020-05-17) (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• War in Afghanistan; May 2020 Afghanistan attacks
  • Taliban militants attack a checkpoint in Logar, Afghanistan, killing eight security personnel and wounding five others. (Xinhua)
• Libyan Civil War
  • 2019–20 Western Libya offensive
    • The Government of National Accord reports that seven civilians are killed, including a child, after Khalifa Haftar's forces fire heavy artillery on a shelter in Tripoli. (Al Jazeera)
• Somali Civil War
  • The Governor of Somalia's Mudug region, Ahmed Muse Nur, and three of his bodyguards are killed in a suicide car bombing. Al-Shabaab claims responsibility for the assassination. (Reuters)
• Ituri conflict
  • A militia kills 20 villagers in an overnight attack in Ituri Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo. (Reuters)

Business and economy

• Coronavirus recession, Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic
  • Chair of the Federal Reserve Jerome Powell says U.S. economic recovery from the recession could take until the end of 2021. (The New York Times) (Financial Times)

Disasters and accidents

• A jet from the Royal Canadian Air Force's Snowbirds crashes into a house in Kamloops, British Columbia, killing one pilot and injuring another. (CTV News)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Madagascar
    • Madagascar reports its first death from COVID-19; that of a 57-year-old medical worker who suffered from diabetes and high blood pressure. (Reuters)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in India
    • India extends its lockdown, which was set to expire today, until May 31. (Al Jazeera)

International relations

• China–United States relations
  • United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warns China that the expulsion of 13 U.S. journalists could affect the U.S. assessment of Hong Kong’s status. (Reuters)
• Chinese ambassador to Israel Du Wei is found dead in his home in Tel Aviv, aged 57. (Haaretz)

Law and crime

• Investigators launch a criminal probe into yesterday's fire and subsequent explosion at a hash oil manufacturing building in downtown Los Angeles, which injured a dozen responding firefighters. (The Associated Press)

Politics and elections

• Thirty-fifth government of Israel
  • Israel's new unity government is sworn in, after 18 months of rule by a caretaker government. (The Jerusalem Post)
• Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and his rival Abdullah Abdullah sign a power-sharing deal to end a months long political turmoil that hampered the peace process. (Reuters)

Science and technology

• The United States Space Force successfully launches its X-37B robotic spacecraft on a classified mission from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station via an Atlas V rocket. Though little is known about the classified program, the spacecraft is expected to deploy a satellite into orbit, and test the "power-beaming technology". (BBC News)

Sports

• 2020 NASCAR Cup Series
  • NASCAR becomes the first major American sports league to resume its season since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. (The Washington Post)
  • Stewart-Haas Racing's Kevin Harvick wins The Real Heroes 400 at Darlington Raceway, his 50th career Cup series victory. The race took place behind closed doors. (NBC Sports)

May 18, 2020 (2020-05-18) (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Second Libyan Civil War
  • 2019–20 Western Libya offensive
    • Turkish-backed GNA forces capture the strategic al-Watiya airbase from forces loyal to Khalifa Haftar, and seize a Russian Pantsir missile system. (Al Jazeera) (Libyan Express)
• War in Afghanistan; May 2020 Afghanistan attacks
  • A car bombing at an intelligence agency installation in the central province of Ghazni kills at least seven people and wounds another 40. The Taliban claims responsibility. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• 2020 East Africa floods
  • The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs announces that nearly 1 million people are affected and at least 24 people have died in the flash floods that hit Beledweyne and Jowhar, Somalia. (CTV)
• In Sweden, an earthquake with a magnitude of 4.1 strikes near Kiruna. No injuries are reported. (The Local)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • In an unprecedented move, the World Health Organization holds its annual World Health Assembly using video conferencing instead of in-person meetings. (NPR)

Law and crime

• COVID-19 pandemic in Uganda
  • Ugandan police arrest Stella Nyanzi, a prominent academic and vocal critic of President Yoweri Museveni, for inciting violence as she protested against lockdown measures taken by the government to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

• 2019–20 Hong Kong protests
  • Fifteen pro-democracy activists are released on a HK$1000 bail. Notable political figures, including Benny Tai, University of Hong Kong academic and one of the Occupy Central founders; Civil Human Rights Front convener Jimmy Sham; former Democratic Party chairwoman Emily Lau; and others, flock to the court to show support for the activists. (The Standard Hong Kong)
• 2019–20 Chilean protests; COVID-19 pandemic in Chile
  • Protests against the government resume in Santiago due to food shortages in the poorest neighborhoods of the city created by the lockdown to control the COVID-19 pandemic. (Reuters)
• Politics of Monaco
  • The office of Minister of State announces that Serge Telle will leave the Headship of the Monegasque government on 31 August. (L'Observateur de Monaco)

May 19, 2020 (2020-05-19) (Tuesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Insurgency in Balochistan
  • Six Pakistani soldiers are killed when their vehicle was targeted by a roadside bomb in Balochistan. In another attack, a soldier is shot dead by separatists. (Al Jazeera)
• Second Libyan Civil War
  • 2019–20 Western Libya offensive
    • Turkish-backed GNA forces seize the towns of Badr and Tiji near the Tunisian border. (Al Jazeera)
• War in Afghanistan; May 2020 Afghanistan attacks
  • Gunmen storm a mosque in Afghanistan's central Parwan Province, killing seven people and wounding 12 others. (Al Jazeera)
  • Afghan troops repel a Taliban attack on the northern city of Kunduz, killing up to 40 insurgents. (The Hindu)

Disasters and accidents

• One day after former WWE wrestler Shad Gaspard disappeared near the Marina Del Rey beach in Venice Beach, California while swimming, the United States Coast Guard calls off the search. The Los Angeles Police Department is still searching for him. (CNN)
• Amid heavy flooding in the Tittabawassee River caused by three straight days of heavy rainfall, the Edenville Dam in central Michigan partially collapses, prompting evacuations downstream. Governor Gretchen Whitmer declares a state of emergency for Midland County and the Michigan Army National Guard has been called in to assist. (AccuWeather)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Minnesota
      • Annie Glenn, widow of astronaut John Glenn and disability rights advocate, dies of COVID-19 in a nursing home in Minnesota. (CNN)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Michigan
      • Michigan becomes the fourth state in the U.S. to pass 5,000 deaths from COVID-19. The state has 5,017 reported deaths and 52,350 total cases. (MLive.com)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil
    • The Brazilian Ministry of Health reports 17,408 new confirmed cases and 1,179 more deaths from COVID-19, their highest daily death toll to date, bringing Brazil's death toll to 17,971 and 271,628 total cases. (Reuters)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in South Sudan
    • Vice President of South Sudan Riek Machar and his wife Angelina Teny (who acts as defense minister) test positive for COVID-19 and self-isolate. (Reuters)

International relations

• Trump peace plan, Israel–Palestine relations, Palestine–United States relations
  • Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas announces the termination of all agreements, including security ones, with Israel and the United States in response to Israel's plans to annex the Jordan Valley. (WAFA)
• United Kingdom–Venezuela relations
  • The Central Bank of Venezuela launches a legal claim against the Bank of England, to try to force the British bank to release €930m ($1bn; £820m) worth of Venezuelan gold it claims it holds. (BBC News)

Law and crime

• 2020 Toronto machete attack
  • The Toronto Police declares a machete attack that occurred at an erotic massage parlor in February to be an act of terrorism driven by incel ideology. The attack left one woman dead and another injured. (Global News)
• Capital punishment in the United States
  • In the first execution since the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States began, a Missouri man is put to death by lethal injection for murdering an elderly woman in 1991. (The Associated Press)

Politics and elections

• The Parliament of Lesotho accepts the resignation of Tom Thabane. Finance minister Moeketsi Majoro replaces him as interim Prime Minister. (Reuters)

May 20, 2020 (2020-05-20) (Wednesday)

International relations

• Afghan peace process
  • Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada says his group is "committed to a landmark deal with the U.S." despite carrying out hundreds of attacks against Afghan forces since February. Akhundzada also urged the U.S. "to not afford anyone the opportunity to obstruct, delay and ultimately derail this internationally recognised bilateral agreement". (Al Jazeera)

Law and crime

• COVID-19 pandemic in Bolivia
  • Bolivian Minister of Health Marcelo Navajas is dismissed and arrested in graft probe over ventilators bought in a Spanish company. (Bloomberg)
• Crime in Arizona, gun violence in the United States
  • A gunman opens fire near the Westgate Entertainment District in Glendale, Arizona. Three people are injured, one of them seriously. The gunman is then taken into custody. (CBS News)
• In a hearing conducted over Zoom, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a court in Singapore sentences a 37-year-old Malaysian man to death for a 2011 heroin transaction. It is the first time that a death sentence has been imposed via teleconferencing in Singapore. (Reuters) (Al Jazeera)
• Missing WWE wrestler Shad Gaspard's body is found on a California beach. (CNN)
• U.S. authorities in Massachusetts arrest a father and son, aged 59 and 27, who have been charged in Japan with helping Carlos Ghosn, former Chairman of Nissan, to escape from Japan to Lebanon last year. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

• 2020 Burundian general election
  • Citizens of Burundi head to the polls to elect their president and the members of the National Assembly. Following a campaign marred by violence, the election takes place amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and a social media blackout. Regional and international election observers have been blocked from monitoring the election, raising doubts about its fairness. (DW)

May 21, 2020 (2020-05-21) (Thursday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Naval Air Station Corpus Christi attack
  • A motorist opens fire and attempts to breach the perimeter of Naval Air Station Corpus Christi in Texas, injuring a security guard, before being shot and killed. FBI officials determine the incident to be terrorism-related and say a second person of interest may be at large. The shooter is later identified as a Syria-born man who expressed support for ISIS and Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. (ABC News) (CNN)

Disasters and accidents

• Three women are killed in a stampede in Colombo, Sri Lanka, during an US$8 cash handout at a businessman's warehouse. (Al Jazeera)
• U.S. President Donald Trump approves Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer's emergency declaration in Midland County which experienced mass flooding after the Edenville Dam failed two days ago. The order authorizes FEMA to assist state and local officials with the emergency response. (WEYI-TV)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • The number of worldwide cases of COVID-19 surpasses five million. The United States remains the global epicenter, accounting for approximately 31% of all reported and confirmed cases in the world. (CNN)

International relations

• Russia–United States relations
  • The Trump administration announces it will withdraw from the Open Skies Treaty within six months, alleging continuous violations by Russia. (BBC News)

Law and crime

• European migrant crisis
  • The European Court of Justice rules that Hungarian authorities circumvented EU law by holding Afghan and Iranian asylum seekers in unlawful detention at a camp near the Serbian border. (DW)
• A military court in Vietnam sentences former deputy defense minister Nguyễn Văn Hiến to four years in prison for allowing three plots of land in Ho Chi Minh City to be illegally transferred from the Navy to private investors. He is also stripped of his Communist Party credentials. (Reuters)

May 22, 2020 (2020-05-22) (Friday)

Business and economy

• Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Coronavirus recession
  • Europe's largest coach operator Shearings collapses into administration with 2,460 immediate job losses and thousands of holidays cancelled. (The Guardian)
  • American car rental company Hertz files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy due to accumulating nearly $19 billion in debt. (CBC News)

Disasters and accidents

• Pakistan International Airlines Flight 8303
  • An Airbus A320 carrying 99 people crashes in a residential area near Karachi Airport, Pakistan. Ninety-seven people onboard are killed; the other two survive with injuries. Another person died on the ground. Some people on the ground were also injured when the plane crashed near houses. (BBC News)
• Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer declares states of emergency in Gladwin, Saginaw and Arenac counties due to the Edenville Dam failure and subsequent flooding of the Tittabawassee River earlier this week. (WJRT-TV)
• A tractor-trailer and a truck carrying passengers crash head-on on a highway in Darfur, Sudan, causing 57 deaths and 20 injuries. (Associated Press via ABC News)
• Hooghalen train crash
  • A collision between a train and agricultural vehicle on a level crossing in Hooghalen, Drenthe, the Netherlands. The machinist died. (NOS)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Michigan
    • Governor Gretchen Whitmer extends her state's stay-at-home order until June 12 and its state of emergency until June 19. (The Detroit News)

Law and crime

• A gunman kills seven people in Ukraine's Zhytomyr Oblast after a drunken quarrel during a fishing trip. The perpetrator is arrested afterwards. (MSN)

Politics and elections

• May 2020 New Zealand National Party leadership election
  • Todd Muller defeats Simon Bridges to become the new leader of the National Party, and the Leader of the Opposition. (Newshub)
• 2019–20 Hong Kong protests
  • Hong Kong executive says that the newly-proposed security law will not hamper judicial independence. Many activists condemn the move; the organizer of many of last year's protests and convener of the Civil Human Rights Front Jimmy Sham says that the law is a "nuclear bomb" dropped by "the Chinese Communist Party" and calls for mass protests. Activist Joshua Wong also condemns the law and calls it a law "to silence Hongkongers". (The Standard Hong Kong)
• Presidency of Jair Bolsonaro
  • Following accusations by former Justice Minister Sérgio Moro and a judicial order, footage from a controversial Brazilian Cabinet meeting is released to the media. The profanity-laden footage shows President Jair Bolsonaro calling for political interference in security organs to protect his family; Bolsonaro alleges this was a reference to his private security team, while Moro says that Bolsonaro was referring to Federal Police investigations. (Al Jazeera)
  • The footage also shows Environment Minister Ricardo Salles calling for the deregulation of environmental policies while the press is "distracted" by the COVID-19 pandemic. (Reuters)

May 23, 2020 (2020-05-23) (Saturday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• War in Afghanistan, Afghan peace process
  • The Taliban declares a three-day Eid ceasefire starting on Sunday. Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid orders all attacks to cease and only use force "if any action is taken against you by the enemy". Afghan President Ashraf Ghani welcomes the ceasefire and orders the armed forces of Afghanistan to "comply with the three-days truce and to defend only if attacked". (National Post) (Reuters)
• Second Libyan Civil War
  • 2019–20 Western Libya offensive
    • Forces of the international-recognized Libyan government retake two military camps, Hamza and Yarmuk, from forces loyal to Khalifa Haftar south of Tripoli. (Anadolu Agency)

Disasters and accidents

• A four-alarm fire destroys a warehouse at Pier 45 at Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco, California. More than 150 firefighters are able to contain the blaze and save both the SS Jeremiah O'Brien, a World War II Liberty ship that saw action on D-Day at Normandy Beach in northwest France; and the USS Pampanito submarine, which had six war patrols from March 1944 through early 1945 in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. (KPIX) (The Guardian)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic in mainland China
  • China reports no new cases for the first time since the pandemic began, according to the National Health Commission. (Reuters)
• COVID-19 pandemic in the State of Palestine
  • The Gaza Strip reports the first death from COVID-19, a 77-year-old woman. (Al Jazeera)

Law and crime

• The Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs confirms that independent member of the Verkhovna Rada Valeriy Davydenko has been found dead in his office in Kiev with a gunshot wound to the head. (Kyiv Post)

Politics and elections

• COVID-19 pandemic in Spain, Protests over responses to the COVID-19 pandemic
  • Thousands of protesters, mostly supporters of the far-right party Vox, participate in car protests in Madrid, Seville, Barcelona and other cities against the continuing lockdown and the national government. (BBC News)

May 24, 2020 (2020-05-24) (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Afghan peace process
  • President Ashraf Ghani pledges to speed up the release of more Taliban prisoners, and asks that the Taliban release more government prisoners in return. (Al Jazeera)
• War in Somalia
  • At least five people are killed and twenty others injured by a car bomb during an Eid festival in Baidoa, Bay. No claims of responsibility have been reported. (AFP via Al Arabiya)
• Insurgency in the Maghreb
  • The Army of Ivory Coast and the military of Burkina Faso report that they conducted a joint operation against jihadists at the border between the two countries, killing eight suspected militants and arresting fourteen more. The operation is ongoing. (Reuters)
• Second Libyan Civil War
  • 2019–20 Western Libya offensive
    • Wagner Group fighters withdraw from the frontline near Tripoli, after the Libyan National Army suffers a series of defeats. The mayor of Bani Walid says the Russians, who are allied to Khalifa Haftar, retreated to his town then left Bani Walid Airport on three military planes to Al Jufra Airbase, while their heavy equipment were driven there. (Reuters)
• Papua conflict
  • Indonesian police says an armed group had shot two health workers affiliated with the local COVID-19 task force in Wandai district, Intan Jaya, Papua. (The Jakarta Post)

Disasters and accidents

• 3,000 kilometres (1,900 miles) of the coast of Western Australia is battered by a "once in a decade" storm. (The Guardian)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic in Montenegro
  • Montenegro becomes the first European country to declare itself "coronavirus free". (Government of Montenegro)

International relations

• North Korea and weapons of mass destruction
  • In his first appearance in three weeks, leader Kim Jong-un meets with state officials to discuss improving nuclear war deterrence measures, including increased artillery firepower. (Reuters)
• Iran–Venezuela relations
  • The first of five Iranian tankers en route to Venezuela to deliver fuel enters Venezuelan territorial waters, after being escorted by the Venezuelan Air Force and Navy. Both Iran and Venezuela warned the United States not to interfere with the delivery. (BBC News)

Law and crime

• Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi pardons 3,157 prisoners to celebrate Eid al-Fitr. (Middle East Eye)

Politics and elections

• National People's Congress Decision on Hong Kong national security legislation
  • Thousands of protesters take to the streets of Hong Kong to oppose a controversial national security law expected to be passed by China's National People's Congress. (BBC News) (CNN) (Reuters)

May 25, 2020 (2020-05-25) (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Piracy in the Gulf of Guinea
  • The Bulgarian captain of Portuguese-flagged cargo ship the Tommi Ritscher, who was kidnapped along with seven other sailors by pirates off the coast of Benin last month, is freed. The captain was kidnapped at the port of Cotonou in the Gulf of Guinea on April 19. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• List of earthquakes in 2020, list of earthquakes in New Zealand
  • A 5.9 magnitude earthquake strikes 60 miles (97 km) west of Wellington, New Zealand. No injuries are reported. (The Guardian)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic in Japan
  • Prime Minister Shinzo Abe lifts the state of emergency in all remaining parts of the country, including Tokyo. (Associated Press)

International relations

• European migrant crisis
  • The Coast Guard of Libya stops nearly 400 migrants attempting to cross the Mediterranean in five boats in the past two days, according to the office for migrants of the United Nations. (Reuters)

Law and crime

• The government of Cyprus will deport 17 immigrants suspected of having links to extremist groups or involved in acts of terrorism. (AP News)
• Murder of George Floyd
  • A man dies after being restrained by police in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, subsequently triggering public outrage. (CNN)

Politics and elections

• 2020 Burundian general election
  • Candidate for the ruling party, National Council for the Defense of Democracy – Forces for the Defense of Democracy, and retired general Evariste Ndayishimiye wins the election with 68.72% of votes cast amid an election preceded by political violence including the arrest, torture and murder of opposition activists, according to a local human rights group. (Reuters)
• 2020 Surinamese general election
  • Citizens of Suriname head to the polls in the country's latest general election. It is the first election after Suriname's president Dési Bouterse was convicted of murder for the December murders in 1982. (BBC News)

May 26, 2020 (2020-05-26) (Tuesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Afghan peace process
  • The government urges the Taliban to extend the three-day truce due to expire today. It also announces the government will release 900 Taliban prisoners today. (Reuters)
• Second Libyan Civil War, Libya–Russia relations
  • The United States Africa Command accuses Russia of deploying fighter jets to eastern Libya to provide air support to Russian mercenaries allied to Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, who is locked in a civil war with the UN-recognized Government of National Accord (GNA). (BBC News)
• 2020 Democratic Republic of the Congo massacres
  • The Allied Democratic Forces kill at least 17 people in a village in Ituri Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo, one of three massacres by the ADF this week. (Reuters)
• Boko Haram insurgency
  • ISWAP militants kill two soldiers and wound five others in Soueram, Far North, Cameroon. Five militants also die in the attack. (Actu Cameroun)

Business and economy

• Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on aviation, COVID-19 pandemic in Chile, Coronavirus recession
  • LATAM Airlines, the largest air carrier in Latin America, files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. (Bloomberg)

Disasters and accidents

• Huge swarms of desert locusts destroy crops in central and western India prompting authorities to step up their response to the country's worst plague in nearly three decades. (Al Jazeera)

Law and crime

• LGBT rights in Costa Rica
  • Costa Rica becomes the first Central American country to legalize same-sex marriage. (Reuters)
• LGBT rights in Zambia
  • President Edgar Lungu pardons a gay couple jailed for 15 years due to consensual homosexual acts amid a mass wave of pardons of nearly 3,000 inmates to celebrate Africa Freedom Day. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

• The Social Democratic Liberal Party, the main opposition party in Fiji's parliament, is suspended from parliament for 60 days amid a political feud which has caused its appointments to be declared null and void. The party's parliament leader, Sitiveni Rabuka, said the decision will not be appealed. (RNZ)

May 27, 2020 (2020-05-27) (Wednesday)

Disasters and accidents

• A fire at a hospital kills five patients being treated for COVID-19 in Dhaka, Bangladesh. No cause for the fire has been determined. (Reuters)

International relations

• Hong Kong–United States relations, 2019–20 Hong Kong protests
  • United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tells Congress that Hong Kong is "no longer autonomous from China" following Beijing's plans to impose a new security law on the territory, and no longer meets its special designation for trade under U.S. law that was established in the United States–Hong Kong Policy Act. (BBC News)

Law and crime

• George Floyd protests
  • George Floyd protests in Minnesota
    • Rioting and looting take place in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, following the death of African-American man George Floyd during his arrest by Minneapolis Police Department officers. Several buildings are looted and burned down, and riot police have been deployed. (Fox News) (NBC News)
    • A 43-year-old protester is shot dead outside a pawnshop. The shooting is carried out by the owner of the shop. He is arrested. (Star Tribune)
• Kyoto Animation arson attack
  • In Kyoto, Japan, Shinji Aoba is arrested. He was moved from the hospital and charged for an arson attack at an animation center in July 2019, which killed 36 people. Aoba had been unable to be arrested due to the severe injuries he sustained during the attack. (Reuters) (BBC News)
• Terrorism in the United States, crime in Florida
  • The May 24 arrest of a 23-year-old man in Tampa, Florida, is announced by federal prosecutors. He had allegedly been planning a mass shooting at Honeymoon Island State Park in support of ISIS. (WTSP)
• Essex lorry deaths
  • Judicial authorities in Belgium and France announce the arrest of 26 suspects, followed 16 simultaneous early morning raids on 26 May in Brussels and Paris, which targeted the “notably suspected” organization believed to be responsible for the tragedy in the U.K. (Daily News)
• Zambian police arrest three people suspected of murdering three Chinese nationals three days prior and burning their bodies. (BBC News)

May 28, 2020 (2020-05-28) (Thursday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• War in Afghanistan, Afghan peace process, May 2020 Afghanistan attacks
  • In the first attack since the end of a truce declared by the Taliban, and despite a petition of the government for the Taliban to extend the ceasefire, at least 14 security forces members are killed in an attack on a checkpoint in Parwan. A government spokesperson says the Taliban also suffered casualties. The group has not commented on the attack. (Al Jazeera)
• Rwandan genocide
  • A court in Rwanda sentences former Mayor of Nyakizu Ladislas Ntaganzwa to life imprisonment for his role in orchestrating the massacre of hundreds of thousands of people in the 1994 genocide. His lawyer is planning to appeal the ruling. (Al Jazeera)
• Somali Civil War
  • Gunmen abduct multiple healthcare workers in Balad, Middle Shabelle, before killing seven of them and another civilian. (Reuters)
• Herder–farmer conflicts in Nigeria
  • Gunmen kill 60 to 74 people in villages in the Nigerian state of Sokoto, where similar attacks had occurred on Monday. (BBC News) (SR)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
    • The death toll from COVID-19 in the United States exceeds 100,000. (CNN)

International relations

• 2020 China–India skirmishes, China–India relations
  • China moves thousands of People's Liberation Army troops to its Himalayan border with India, bringing vehicles and heavy machinery to what India says is its territory. India sends several battalions of its Army from nearby Leh to the border in response. (The Guardian)

Law and crime

• George Floyd protests
  • Killing of George Floyd, George Floyd protests in Minnesota
    • Protests continue for a second day in Minneapolis and other U.S. cities after an unarmed man, George Floyd, died while being arrested. Some of them have escalated into riots, including looting and arson. (CNN)
    • A Minneapolis Police Department station is abandoned by police after being overran by protesters and is then looted and set on fire. An MPD spokesman confirmed the Third Precinct building had been evacuated "in the interest of the safety of our personnel". (Politico)
• COVID-19 pandemic in Malawi, COVID-19 pandemic in Zimbabwe
  • A manhunt is launched after hundreds of people, some with COVID-19, escape from quarantine centers in Zimbabwe and Malawi, with authorities worried that they will spread COVID-19 in countries whose health systems can be rapidly overwhelmed. (AP News)

Sports

• Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sports, COVID-19 pandemic in Massachusetts
  • The 2020 Boston Marathon is officially canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is the first time in the event's 123-year history that the annual running had to be canceled. A modified version of the race, scheduled for September 14, will be run virtually, and runners who complete the marathon track in six hours or less will be eligible for the 2021 Boston Marathon. (ESPN)

May 29, 2020 (2020-05-29) (Friday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• At least 15 people are killed in northern Burkina Faso after a convoy transporting traders is targeted by an unidentified armed group. Burkina Faso has been fighting Islamist terrorists amid a resurgence of attacks in the Sahel. (Reuters)

International relations

• U.S. President Donald Trump says he is terminating the country's relationship with the World Health Organization (WHO) over its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, claiming the WHO has become a "puppet of China" and that American funding will be redirected to "other global public health needs". (Reuters)

Law and crime

• Killing of George Floyd
  • George Floyd protests
    • George Floyd protests in the United States
      • George Floyd protests in California
        • George Floyd protests in Los Angeles County, California
          • In Los Angeles, more than 500 people are arrested as the city declares the protest an "unlawful assembly". (Deadline)
      • George Floyd protests in Georgia
        • George Floyd protests in Atlanta
          • In Atlanta, the CNN Center is vandalized and police vehicles are attacked and set on fire as protests spread. Seven people are reportedly arrested. (Newsweek)
      • George Floyd protests in Illinois
        • George Floyd protests in Chicago
          • In Chicago, 108 people are arrested after several police vehicles are vandalized. (WGN-TV)
      • George Floyd protests in Minnesota
        • George Floyd protests in Minneapolis–Saint Paul
          • Hundreds of Minnesota National Guard are deployed in Minneapolis to enforce a night curfew, after Mayor Jacob Frey declared a state of local emergency amid civil unrest, but rioting and arson fires continue. (Star Tribune)
      • George Floyd protests in Michigan
        • In Detroit, police use tear gas to disperse a crowd of protesters and make several arrests, including one person who drove their car at a police officer. A man was killed during an altercation during the protests. (CNN)
      • George Floyd protests in Texas
        • In Houston, at least 137 people are arrested, eight police officers are hospitalized, and 16 police vehicles are vandalized in a riot. (KHOU)
    • Several other protests against police brutality and systemic racism take place in large cities across the United States, some of which included arson, vandalism, and looting. (CNN)
  • Former Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chauvin, who was recorded on video kneeling on George Floyd's neck for several minutes and eventually causing his death, is taken into custody by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and charged with third-degree murder and second degree manslaughter. (KSTP) (WCCO)
• Taiwan decriminalises adultery in what is considered a landmark ruling. Marital infidelity was a crime with a maximum sentence of a year in prison. (Reuters)
• Lesotho's Appeal Court revokes former First Lady Maesiah Thabane's bail. Thabane and her husband, former Lesotho Prime Minister Tom Thabane, are accused of ordering the murder of his first wife, Lipolelo. Both deny involvement in the crime. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

• LGBT rights in Hong Kong
  • Pro-democracy and LGBT rights activist Jimmy Sham files a petition to the High Court to recognize his same-sex marriage, which was registered in New York City in 2014. Sham argues that not recognizing same-sex marriages violates the Basic Law. (South China Morning Post)

Science and technology

• A SpaceX Starship prototype (SN4) is destroyed in a large explosion during static fire testing at the SpaceX South Texas Launch Site. (CNBC)

May 30, 2020 (2020-05-30) (Saturday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Afghan peace process; War in Afghanistan; May 2020 Afghanistan attacks
  • Abdullah Abdullah, the head of Afghanistan's High Council for National Reconciliation, which leads peace efforts with the Taliban, says that his team is ready to start discussions with the armed group "at any moment". The group has not commented on Abdullah's remarks. (Al Jazeera)
  • A journalist and a technician are killed and seven others wounded when a private bus carrying network employees is bombed in Kabul. ISIL – Khorasan Province claims responsibility. (Reuters)
• Shooting of Iyad Halaq
  • Israeli police officers open fire in Jerusalem against an unarmed Palestinian 32-year-old man who had autism; the man dies at the scene. (The Guardian)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil
    • Brazil reports a record 33,274 new cases of COVID-19 and 956 more deaths in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 498,440 and 28,834 deaths, the fourth highest in the world. (Reuters)

International relations

• Ethiopia–Sudan relations
  • Sudan summons its Ethiopian ambassador regarding an attack at the border between the two countries that killed military personnel and civilians, including children. A Sudanese military spokesman blamed militias "supported by Ethiopia", while there was no response from the Ethiopian government. (Reuters)

Law and crime

• George Floyd protests
  • George Floyd protests in Illinois
    • George Floyd protests in Chicago
      • A man is killed and five others are injured in four shootings at protests in Chicago, Illinois. It is not known if the attacks were carried out by the same assailant. (WMAQ-TV)
  • 2020 boogaloo killings, George Floyd protests in California
    • A Federal Protective Service officer is killed and another injured in an overnight drive-by shooting outside the Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building in Oakland, California, amid protests over the killing of George Floyd five days prior. (NBC News)
  • A protester in St. Louis dies after being accidentally struck by a truck during the protests. (The Mercury News)
  • Many major cities around the United States implement curfews meant to prevent a second night of riots, including Atlanta, Chicago, Cleveland, Columbus, Denver, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Portland, Rochester, Salt Lake City, and Seattle. (NBC News)

Politics and elections

• COVID-19 pandemic in Russia
  • Russian President Vladimir Putin announces the adoption of a new package of measures to support the economy and citizens in the context of the coronavirus pandemic. This payment does not cancel but supplements the previously introduced support measures. Additionally, Putin proposed to establish a monthly payment of five thousand rubles for families with children under three years of age. (RT)

Science and technology

• Crew Dragon Demo-2
  • SpaceX launches Crew Dragon carrying two NASA astronauts, Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken, to the International Space Station (ISS) from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 3:22 pm Eastern U.S. time. (CNN)
  • Crew Dragon's mission is to check the ship's systems and the crew's readiness to work with it. Crew Dragon is heading to the ISS. It is the first time since the end of the Space Shuttle program in 2011 that American astronauts have been launched into orbit from the United States, and is the first ever crewed commercial space flight. (WSJ)
• Researchers announce a 2.5cm millipede fossil discovered on the island of Kerrera, in the Scottish Inner Hebrides, is the world's oldest-known land animal, which lived 425 million years ago in the Silurian period. (Reuters)

May 31, 2020 (2020-05-31) (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Somali Civil War
  • At least six civilians are killed when a minibus hits a roadside bomb near Mogadishu. There has been no claim of responsibility. (Reuters)
• Second Libyan Civil War
  • At least three civilians are killed and several others are injured in Tripoli when a park comes under shelling from suspected Libyan National Army forces loyal to Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar. (Reuters)
• Herder–farmer conflicts in Nigeria
  • Hundreds of men on motorcycles, some armed with assault rifles, kill at least 18 people, including a local official in Sabon Gari, and steal thousands of livestock in Katsina State, Nigeria. (Reuters)
• A 20-year-old Kurdish man was stabbed multiple times by three men in Ankara, Turkey, killing him. The attack, described as a xenophobic murder, was carried out as the victim was playing Kurdish music. (Middle East Eye)

Disasters and accidents

• Anglo-Australian mining corporation Rio Tinto admits blowing up the 46,000-year-old Juukan Gorge caves in Pilbara, Western Australia, on May 24. The firm issues an apology to Aboriginal Australians who are the traditional owners of the site, saying "We are sorry for the distress we have caused". (BBC News)
• A plane crash in Nettuno, Lazio, Italy, kills two Italian competitive swimmers, Fabio Lombini and Gioele Rossetti. (Khaleej Times)
• A plane crash near St. Louis, Missouri kills four people. (WCRZ)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Rwanda
    • Rwanda reports its first death from COVID-19, a 65-year-old who had severe respiratory complications and was being treated at a specialised center. (Reuters)
  • The number of worldwide confirmed cases of COVID-19 surpasses six million. The United States remains the global epicenter, accounting for approximately 29% of all reported and confirmed cases in the world. (CNN)

International relations

• India–Pakistan relations
  • India expels two officials at the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi, accusing them of being involved in espionage activities. Pakistan condemns the expulsion and alleges that the two were detained and tortured by Indian authorities. (DW)

Law and crime

• George Floyd protests
  • Shooting of James Scurlock
    • Police investigate the overnight shooting death of a protester, James Scurlock, by a bar owner in Omaha, Nebraska. Eyewitness video indicates the shooter was attacked by a group of people, one of whom was apparently Scurlock, before the fatal shots were fired. (Omaha World-Herald)
  • George Floyd protests in New York City
    • A woman is facing four counts of attempted murder, as well as counts of attempted arson, reckless endangerment, criminal possession of a weapon, and assault for throwing a Molotov cocktail at an occupied NYPD van during a riot in Brooklyn. (Fox News)
  • Rioting and looting continue overnight in cities all over the United States as 12 states activate the national guard to defuse the situation. (Al-Jazeera) (Voice of America)
  • At least 1,383 people have been arrested in 17 cities during the protests since Thursday. (Yahoo! News)
  • During protests in Indianapolis, two people are shot dead and two others injured after unidentified assailants open fire against protesters. (Fox News)
  • President Donald Trump announces his plans to designate Antifa as a terrorist organization after saying they were responsible for the looting and arson occurring during the protests. Various government and non-government officials claim that designating domestic terrorist groups is prohibited by the First Amendment. (CNN)
  • The media is revealed to have been the target of violence and harassment at least 50 times on Friday and Saturday. (The Guardian)

Politics and elections

• Presidency of Jair Bolsonaro
  • Anti-fascist protesters gather in the Brazilian cities of São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Belo Horizonte in response to police brutality and President Bolsonaro's defence of unconstitutional measures. A pro-government crowd forms in São Paulo, with police reporting neo-Nazi flags hung from a sound truck. (The Republic)
• 2020 New Caledonian independence referendum
  • In New Caledonia, the largest pro-independence party Caledonian Union agrees to postpone the referendum on independence from France due to COVID-19 pandemic concerns. Anti-independence parties welcome the decision. (RNZ)
• 2020 Niuean general election
  • In Niue, Sir Toke Talagi loses his seat at the Common Roll and is now leaving his position as Premier of Niue. Former Secretary to Government Richard Hipa, a first-time candidate, topped the Common Roll votes with 440 and now looks to be a contender for the premiership. (RNZ)

Science and technology

• Crew Dragon Demo-2
  • SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft successfully docks with the International Space Station (ISS) with NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Douglas Hurley joining the existing crew aboard the space station. (CNN)

May 2020

S	M	T	W	T	F	S
					1	2
3	4	5	6	7	8	9
10	11	12	13	14	15	16
17	18	19	20	21	22	23
24	25	26	27	28	29	30
31

Ongoing events

Business

• Coronavirus recession

Disasters

• COVID-19 pandemic
• Kivu Ebola epidemic
• 2018–20 Southern Africa drought
• 2019–20 South Pacific cyclone season
• 2019–20 European windstorm season
• 2019–20 locust infestation
• 2020 Atlantic hurricane season
• 2020 North Indian Ocean cyclone season
• 2020 Pacific hurricane season
• 2020 Pacific typhoon season
• 2020 wildfire season
• Yemeni famine

Politics

• Afghan peace process
• Chilean protests
• Hong Kong protests
• Iraqi protests
• Libyan peace process
• Post-Brexit diplomatic talks
• United States police brutality riots
• Venezuelan presidential crisis (protests)

Elections and referendums

Recent

• May
  • 20: Burundi, President, National Assembly
  • 25: Suriname, National Assembly
  • 30: Niue, Assembly

Upcoming

• June
  • 5: Saint Kitts and Nevis, National Assembly

Trials

Recently concluded

• Iran: Fariba Adelkhah
• United Kingdom: Alex Salmond

Ongoing

• Armenia: Serzh Sargsyan
• Cambodia: Kem Sokha
• Guatemala: Otto Pérez Molina, Roxana Baldetti, Juan Carlos Monzón and others
• Greece: Nikolaos Michaloliakos
• Israel: Faina Kirschenbaum, Benjamin Netanyahu
• Malaysia: Najib Razak
• Malta: Murder of Daphne Caruana
• Philippines: Leila de Lima, Maria Ressa, Marcos vs. Robredo electoral protest
• South Africa: Jacob Zuma
• Spain: Bárcenas affair, Catalan police leadership
• United States: Fat Leonard scandal, Varsity Blues scandal, North Korean Embassy in Madrid raid, 6ix9ine
• International: The Gambia v. Myanmar

Upcoming

• Guatemala: Álvaro Colom, Manuel Baldizón, Juan Alberto Fuentes
• Japan: Carlos Ghosn
• United States: Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Elizabeth Holmes, Meng Wanzhou, R. Kelly, Golden State Killer, Nikolas Cruz
• Zimbabwe: Ignatius Chombo

Sport

• Association football
  • UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying
  • 2019–20 UEFA Champions League
  • 2019–20 UEFA Europa League
  • 2019–20 La Liga
  • 2019–20 Premier League
  • 2019–20 Serie A
  • 2019–20 Bundesliga
• Women's association football
  • 2019–20 Champions League
  • 2019–20 Division 1 Féminine
  • 2019–20 FA WSL
  • 2019–20 Frauen-Bundesliga
• Baseball
  • 2020 MLB season
  • 2020 NPB season
• Softball
• Basketball
  • 2019–20 EuroLeague
  • 2019–20 NBA season
• Golf
  • 2020 European Tour
  • 2019-20 PGA Tour
• Ice hockey
  • 2019–20 NHL season
  • 2019–20 KHL season
• Rugby sevens
  • 2019–20 World Rugby Sevens Series
  • 2019–20 World Rugby Women's Sevens Series
• Rugby union
  • 2019–20 European Rugby Champions Cup
  • 2019–20 Premiership Rugby
  • 2019–20 Pro14
  • 2019–20 Top 14
• Other sports seasons
  • 2019–20 international cricket season
  • 2019–20 curling season
  • 2019–20 figure skating season
  • 2019–20 snooker season

More details – current sports events

Recent deaths

May 2020

• 29: Abderrahmane Youssoufi
• 28: Gustavo Guillén
• 26: Stanley Ho
• 25: Hyun Soong-jong
• 24: Mukar Cholponbayev
• 24: Jimmy Cobb
• 23: Hana Kimura
• 22: Mory Kanté
• 22: Saturn
• 22: Jerry Sloan
• 19: Annie Glenn
• 18: Ken Osmond
• 17: Shad Gaspard
• 16: Julio Anguita
• 16: Arthur Summons
• 15: Lynn Shelton
• 15: Fred Willard
• 14: Phyllis George
• 14: Ronald J. Shurer
• 14: Bob Watson
• 13: Gabriel Bacquier
• 11: Jerry Stiller
• 10: Jack Mundey
• 10: Betty Wright
• 9: Little Richard
• 8: Roy Horn
• 8: Byron Mallott
• 7: Maria Teresa Beccari
• 7: Andre Harrell
• 7: Mike Storen
• 7: Ty
• 6: Barry Farber
• 6: Brian Howe
• 6: Florian Schneider
• 5: Millie Small
• 4: Don Shula
• 2: Cady Groves
• 2: Gil Schwartz
• 2: Arif Wazir
• 1: Augustine Mahiga

April 2020

• 30: Tony Allen
• 30: Rishi Kapoor
• 30: Sam Lloyd
• 29: Giacomo Dalla Torre
• 29: Irrfan Khan

Ongoing conflicts

Africa

• Algeria, Libya and Tunisia
  • Maghreb insurgency
• Cameroon
  • Anglophone Crisis
• Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria
  • Boko Haram insurgency
• Central African Republic
  • Civil War
• Democratic Republic of the Congo
  • Kivu conflict
  • Allied Democratic Forces insurgency
  • Ituri conflict
  • Lord's Resistance Army insurgency
• Libya
  • Second Civil War
  • American intervention in Libya
  • Turkish intervention in Libya
• Mali
  • Mali War
• Mozambique
  • Insurgency in Cabo Delgado
• Nigeria
  • Communal conflicts in Nigeria
• Somalia
  • Civil war
• South Sudan
  • Ethnic violence (South Sudanese Civil War)
• Sudan
  • War in Darfur
  • South Kordofan conflict
  • Sudanese nomadic conflicts

Americas

• Colombia
  • Colombian conflict
• Mexico
  • Mexican War on Drugs
• Peru
  • Internal conflict in Peru

Asia-Pacific

• Afghanistan
  • Afghanistan War
• China
  • Xinjiang conflict
• India
  • Naxalite–Maoist insurgency
  • Insurgency in Northeast India
• India and Pakistan
  • Kashmir conflict
    • Border skirmishes
• Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines
  • Moro conflict
    • Cross border attacks in Sabah
• Indonesia
  • Papua conflict
• Myanmar
  • Internal conflict in Myanmar
    • Kachin conflict
    • Karen conflict
    • Rohingya conflict
• Pakistan
  • Insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
  • Insurgency in Balochistan
• Philippines
  • Communist rebellion in the Philippines
  • Philippine Drug War
• Thailand
  • South Thailand insurgency

Europe

• Armenia and Azerbaijan
  • Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
• Georgia
  • Abkhaz–Georgian conflict
  • Georgian–Ossetian conflict
• Russia
  • Chechen–Russian conflict
• Ukraine
  • War in Donbass
    • Russian military intervention in Ukraine

Middle East

• Egypt
  • Sinai terror attacks
• Iran and the Persian Gulf
  • Iran–Israel proxy conflict
  • Iran–Saudi Arabia proxy conflict
• Iraq
  • American-led intervention in Iraq
  • Iranian intervention in Iraq
• Iraq and Syria (map)
  • International military intervention against ISIL
• Israel and Gaza
• Israel and Syria
  • Israeli-Syrian border conflict
• Syria
  • American-led intervention in Syria
  • Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War
• Turkey
  • Kurdish–Turkish conflict
• Yemen and Saudi Arabia
  • Yemeni Civil War
  • Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
  • Saudi Arabian–Yemeni border conflict

Further information: List of ongoing armed conflicts

2020 events and developments by topic

Arts

• Animation (Anime)
• Architecture
• Comics
• Film (Horror, Science fiction)
• Literature (Poetry)
• Music (Classical, Country, Hip hop, Jazz, Latin, Metal, Rock, UK, US, Korea)
• Radio
• Television (Australia, Canada, Ireland, UK, Scotland, US)
• Video games

Politics and government

• Elections
• International leaders
• Sovereign states
• Sovereign state leaders
• Territorial governors

Science and technology

• Archaeology
• Biotechnology
• Computing
• Palaeontology
• Quantum computing and communication
• Senescence research
• Space/Astronomy
• Spaceflight
• Sustainable energy research

Environment and environmental sciences

• Climate change
• Weather (Heat waves
• Tornadoes
• Wildfires)

Transportation

• Aviation
• Rail transport
• Transportation technology

Establishments and disestablishments categories

• Establishments
• Disestablishments

Works and introductions categories

• Works
• Introductions
• Works entering the public domain