Italy reports 551 new deaths in the past 24 hours, which is the highest single-day figure since January, thus bringing the nationwide death toll to 105,879. (Anadolu Agency)
Pfizer says that they plan to develop new vaccines for other viruses following the success of their COVID-19 vaccine candidate. (CNBC)
The Suez Canal is blocked in both directions after the Panamanian-flagged container ship Ever Given runs aground north of Egypt's Suez Port. (BBC News)
Ukraine reports a record 333 deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide death toll to 30,431. (Kyiv Post)
Alberta reports its first two cases of the Lineage P.1 variant first detected in Brazil linked in a community transmission. (Global News)
Bulgaria reports a record 4,851 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 312,741. (Bulgarian News Agency)
Chancellor Angela Merkel announces that yesterday's decision to impose a five-day nationwide shutdown has been reversed. She says that the plan was a "mistake" and apologizes for it. (ABC News)
Mahmoud al-Werfalli, a commander loyal to Khalifa Haftar, is killed alongside his cousin after unknown gunmen open fire on their vehicle in Benghazi. (Al Jazeera)
Mongolia reports a record 218 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 5,610. (Montsame)
Poland reports a record 29,978 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 2,160,671. The country also surpasses 50,000 deaths from COVID-19. (TVN24 English)
Pope Francis issues a decree that cuts the 10% of the cardinals' and other officials' salaries since the Vatican foresees a financial deficit of 50 million euros this year. (BBC News)
Ukraine reports a new single-day record for the second consecutive day of 343 deaths from COVID-19, thereby bringing the nationwide death toll to 30,773. (Kyiv Post)
2021 Suez Canal obstruction The Suez Canal Authority suspends navigation through the Suez Canal until the grounded container ship Ever Given can be refloated. The waterway has now been blocked for three consecutive days. (France 24)
Albania receives their first shipment of 192,000 doses of the Sinovac CoronaVac vaccine. (Albanian Daily News)
Andorra–Spain relations King Felipe VI of Spain makes the first ever state visit by a Spanish king to Andorra. (El Periódico)
Brazil reports a record 100,158 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours. (Global News)
Chile reports nearly 50,000 active cases of COVID-19, a new record for the country. The country also announces that the entire Santiago Metropolitan Region will be put under lockdown beginning next Saturday. (BíoBíoChile)
Colombia grants emergency use authorization for the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine. (Europa Press)
Hungary reports a record 272 deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide death toll to 19,224. (Daily News Hungary)
Iraq receives 336,000 doses of the Oxford–AstraZeneca vaccine distributed through the COVAX vaccine sharing initiative. (Arab News)
King Felipe VI of Spain makes the first ever state visit by a Spanish king to Andorra. (El Periódico)
Peru reports a record 11,260 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 1,492,519. (The Rio Times)
South Korea surpasses 100,000 cases of COVID-19. (Yonhap News Agency)
The Bundestag approves a new mandate to let Germany continue to station up to 1,300 Bundeswehr soldiers in Afghanistan until January 31, 2022. (Reuters)
The Philippines reports a record 8,773 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 693,048. (ABS-CBN)
The Suez Canal Authority suspends navigation through the Suez Canal until the grounded container ship Ever Given can be refloated. The waterway has now been blocked for three consecutive days. (France 24)
The Thailand Food and Drug Administration grants emergency use authorization for the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine, thereby becoming the third vaccine to be made available for local use. (CNA)
Ukraine reports a record 16,669 new confirmed cases and 362 deaths in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 1,596,575 and the nationwide death toll to 31,135. (Ukrinform)
Virginia reports its two first cases of the highly contagious SARS-CoV-2 variant first detected in California. (U.S. News and World Report)
Arizona reports its first case of the 501.V2 variant, which was originally detected in South Africa. (The Arizona Republic)
At least 19 people are killed and 185 others are injured after two trains collide in Sohag, Egypt. Passengers triggered the emergency brakes on the first train; a second train following on the same track was not stopped. (Al Jazeera)
Brazil reports a record 3,650 deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours. (The Rio Times)
Maine reports its first case of the Lineage P.1 variant, which was originally detected in Brazil. (Central Maine)
Mongolia reports a record 437 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 6,332. (AKIPress)
New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham receives her first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. (San Francisco Chronicle)
Poland reports a record for the third consecutive day of 35,143 new confirmed cases of COVID-19, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 2,189,966. (Polskie Radio)
Sohag train collision At least 19 people are killed and 185 others are injured after two trains collide in Sohag, Egypt. Passengers triggered the emergency brakes on the first train; a second train following on the same track was not stopped. (Al Jazeera)
The Colombian National Institute for Drug and Food Surveillance grants emergency use authorization for the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine. (El Periódico)
The Philippines reports a record 9,838 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, with the country surpassing 100,000 total active cases. This also brings the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 702,856. (Rappler)
Ukraine reports a record 18,132 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 1,614,707. (Kyiv Post)
Wisconsin confirms their first cases of the Lineage P.1 and 501.V2 variant of SARS-CoV-2. (WBAY-TV) (Madison.com)
At least 18 people are killed and 24 others are injured when an apartment complex building collapses in Cairo, Egypt. (Al Jazeera)
Cambodia reports a record 179 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 2,157. (Khmer Times)
One person is killed and six others are wounded in a mass stabbing in and around a public library in North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. (CBC News)
Scottish National Party MP Kenny MacAskill defects to the newly formed Scottish nationalist Alba Party, becoming the party's first MP in the House of Commons. (BBC News)
Three people are killed in a car bombing in Kandahar Province. (Lokmat)
Turkey reports 30,021 new cases in the past 24 hours, which is the highest single-day total this year, thereby bringing its cumulative case total to 3,179,115. (Arab News)
Wales lifts their "stay local" rules that have been imposed since December, allowing people to travel freely within the country. They also allow up to six people from two different households to meet and exercise outdoors, as well as resumption of organised outdoor activities and sports for people under the age of 18. (The Independent)
A lockdown begins across the entirety of Chile, despite its successful vaccination programme, as the hospital occupancy rate reaches 95%. (The Guardian)
Dianne Feinstein becomes the longest serving U.S. Senator from California, surpassing Hiram Johnson. (Los Angeles Times)
Maharashtra reports a record 40,414 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours despite a nightly curfew, thereby bringing the total of confirmed cases to 2.71 million. (Hindustan Times)
Mexico publishes revised figures, indicating that the number of deaths caused by COVID-19 is 60% higher than previously reported. The revised total is 321,000, thereby making it the country with the world's second-highest number of deaths. (BBC News) (Al Jazeera)
North Macedonia receives their first shipment of 24,000 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine through the COVAX vaccine-sharing initiative. (UNICEF)
The National Command and Operation Centre announces an immediate ban on all indoor and outdoor gatherings across Pakistan as well as weddings beginning April 5 due to an increase in the number of COVID-19 cases. (Tribune)
The number of people who have received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine in the United Kingdom surpasses 30 million. (Sky News)
Two guards are killed at a water dam near the Pashtun Kot, Faryab, by the Taliban. (Hindustan Times)
2021 Balongan refinery explosion One person is dead, twenty others are injured, and three are missing after an explosion at the Pertamina oil refinery in Indramayu, West Java, Indonesia. (The Guardian)
2021 Suez Canal obstruction The grounded container ship Ever Given is refloated and towed north, allowing the Suez Canal to reopen. At least 369 ships are now waiting to pass through the canal. (Reuters)
Mongolia reports a record 575 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 7,589. (AKI Press)
Morocco suspends all flights to Spain and France due to the worsening of the epidemiologic situation in Europe. (La Razón)
One person is dead, twenty others are injured, and three are missing after an explosion at the Pertamina oil refinery in Indramayu, West Java, Indonesia. (The Guardian)
The grounded container ship Ever Given is refloated and towed north, allowing the Suez Canal to reopen. At least 369 ships are now waiting to pass through the canal. (Reuters)
The Philippines reports a record 10,016 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 731,894. (ABS-CBN News)
Brazil reports a record 3,780 deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thus bringing the nationwide death toll to 317,646. (Anadolu Agency)
COVID-19 vaccine, Lineage B.1.1.7 Trials for the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine show that it is 90% effective against COVID-19 and the Lineage B.1.1.7 variant of SARS-CoV-2. (UrduPoint)
Ethiopia receives 300,000 doses of the Sinopharm BBIBP-CorV vaccine. (The National Herald)
Following the fall of Palma to Islamist militants, Portugal announces it will be deploying 60 special forces troops to Mozambique in the coming weeks to train local forces amid an intensifying insurgency. (France 24)
Greece reports a record 4,340 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 260,077. (Ekathimerini)
Insurgency in Cabo Delgado Following the fall of Palma to Islamist militants, Portugal announces it will be deploying 60 special forces troops to Mozambique in the coming weeks to train local forces amid an intensifying insurgency. (France 24)
Pakistan reports 100 deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, the highest recorded in a single day of the year so far, thus bringing the nationwide death toll to 14,434. The number of patients in critical care with COVID-19 also reaches an all-time high of 3,749. (Dawn)
Trials for the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine show that it is 90% effective against COVID-19 and the Lineage B.1.1.7 variant of SARS-CoV-2. (UrduPoint)
Turkey reports a record 37,303 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 3.27 million. (Anadolu Agency)
Venezuela receives more than 115,000 doses of the EpiVacCorona vaccine as part of trials of the Russian vaccine candidate. (Reuters)
2021 Nigerien coup d'état attempt Gunfire erupts in the streets of Niamey, Niger, during an attempted coup d'état by soldiers. The coup was foiled and the perpetrators were arrested. (France 24)
Bangladesh reports a record 5,358 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 611,295. (Dhaka Tribune)
