Armed conflicts and attacks

• Nuclear program of Iran
  • Iran reports that a blackout at its underground Natanz nuclear facility is an act of nuclear terrorism and says that they reserve the right to respond, but it does not specify who was responsible or how they would respond. Parts of the electrical grid at Iran's main nuclear facilities at Natanz have been compromised. Intelligence sources claim in Israeli media that the Mossad intelligence agency carried out a cyber attack on the facility. (Al Jazeera)
• War in Donbass
  • A Ukrainian soldier is killed and another is seriously wounded by Russian separatist forces artillery fire on the front line in Eastern Ukraine, bringing the total number of troops killed in combat this year to 27. (AP)

Arts and culture

• The Cambodian Ministry of Culture and exiled politician Mu Sochua condemn American-Canadian digital media company Vice for publishing an article about an art project aiming to colorize photographs of inmates interred at Khmer Rouge-era prison Tuol Sleng, after social media users noticed that the photos were edited to have the subjects smiling. The article was subsequently deleted. (Al Jazeera)

Disasters and accidents

• Sohag train collision
  • Egypt's prosecution service declares that nobody was at the controls of one of the trains that collided last month, in an accident that killed 20 people and injured around 200. (The New Arab)
• Rescue operations commence in Hutubi, Xinjiang, China, after a coal mine floods, trapping workers. Eight miners have been freed, but 21 still remain trapped. (BBC)

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
    • COVID-19 pandemic in India
      • India reports 152,879 new confirmed cases of COVID-19, a record for the sixth consecutive day. The country also reports 839 deaths in the past 24 hours, which is the highest daily total since October 18. (Business Standard)
      • The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare bans the export of the anti-viral drug Remdesivir, and the ingredients used to make it, following an increase in the number of COVID-19 cases. (Reuters)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Bangladesh
      • Bangladesh reports 78 deaths from COVID-19, a record for the second consecutive day, thereby bringing the nationwide death toll to 9,739. (Dhaka Tribune)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Iraq
      • Iraq receives 50,000 doses of the Pfizer–BioNTech vaccine. (Anadolu Agency)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Pakistan
      • Pakistan reports 114 deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, which is the highest number of deaths this year, thereby bringing the nationwide death toll to 15,443. (Geo News)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines
      • The Greater Manila Area, the provinces of Abra and Quirino, and the city of Santiago, Isabela, are placed under the looser modified enhanced community quarantine until the end of April. (Rappler)
    • COVID-19 pandemic in Thailand
      • Thailand reports a record 967 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of cases to 32,625. (Bangkok Post)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Australia
    • COVID-19 vaccination in Australia
      • Prime Minister Scott Morrison abandons the country's plan to vaccinate all Australians by the end of the year amidst medical advice that makes the vaccination program uncertain. (ABC Australia)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
    • COVID-19 pandemic in California
      • California surpasses 60,000 deaths from COVID-19. (The Los Angeles Times)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in Cameroon
    • Cameroon receives 200,000 doses of the Sinovac BBIBP-CorV vaccine from China, which will be used in the first phase of their vaccination campaign. (Barron's)
  • COVID-19 pandemic in France
    • Health Minister Olivier Véran confirms that all people aged 55 and over would be eligible for a vaccine starting tomorrow, which is a week earlier than originally scheduled, with AstraZeneca, and a single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccines. (The Connexion)
  • COVID-19 vaccine, 501.V2 variant
    • An Israeli study finds that the Pfizer–BioNTech vaccine may be less effective against the South African variant when compared to other strains of the virus. (Reuters)

Law and crime

• Killing of Daunte Wright, Daunte Wright protests
  • A police officer in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneapolis, kills a man during an attempted arrest following a traffic stop, leading to rioting and looting in the city and surrounding areas. (Minneapolis Star-Tribune)
• An Egyptian court sentences university student Ahmed Bassam Zaki to an additional eight years in prison for sexually assaulting and blackmailing at least three women between 2016 and 2020. The case led to a public debate about sexual harassment and abuse within the country. Zaki was previously sentenced to three years in prison by a different court in December. (Reuters)
• Seven Catholic clergy, including two French citizens, are kidnapped in Croix-des-Bouquets, Ouest, Haiti. (Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Politics and elections

• 2021 Peruvian general election, 2017–2021 Peruvian political crisis
  • Peruvians head to the polls to elect their president after having four presidents in four years. (CNN)
• 2021 Chadian presidential election
  • Chadians head to the polls to elect their president. Incumbent Idriss Déby is expected to extend his three-decade mandate. (Reuters)
• 2021 Beninese presidential election
  • After violent days of protests, Beninese citizens head to the polls to elect their president. Incumbent Patrice Talon is expected to win his second term as most of his rivals are either in prison or in exile. (Al Jazeera)
• 2021 Ecuadorian general election
  • Centre-right candidate Guillermo Lasso defeats socialist Andrés Arauz in the second round of voting in Ecuador for the presidency. (The Wall Street Journal)
• 2021 Kyrgyz constitutional referendum
  • Kyrgyz citizens head to the polls on a referendum to reform the Constitution. If approved, it would increase the powers of incumbent populist President Sadyr Zhaparov and allow him to run for a second term. It would also reduce the size of the parliament by 25%. (DW)
• 2021 German federal election
  • Bavarian minister president Markus Söder and leader of the ruling Christian Democratic Union Armin Laschet announce their respective candidacies to succeed current Chancellor Angela Merkel after the federal elections take place. (Bloomberg)

Sports

• 2021 Masters Tournament
  • Hideki Matsuyama wins the 85th edition of the Masters to become first male Japanese major champion. (Reuters)
• WrestleMania 37
  • The first WWE show with fans in attendance since March 2020 takes place in Tampa, Florida, US. (CBS Sports)