Portal:Current events/2022 January 25

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Arts and culture

• The Australian Government announces that it has purchased the intellectual property rights to the Australian Aboriginal Flag from its designer Harold Thomas for over $20 million (US$14m), allowing for the public use of the flag. [https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-60120997 (BBC News)] [https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20220124-australia-buys-rights-to-aboriginal-flag-ending-long-dispute (AFP via France 24)]

Disasters and accidents

• Millions of people are left without electricity after a major power outage affects Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. Uzbekistan's energy ministry reports that the power outage had been triggered by an "energy imbalance" in Kazakhstan's power grid. [https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/1/25/millions-left-without-power-after-huge-blackout-hits-central-asia (Al Jazeera)]

Health and environment

• COVID-19 pandemic
• COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
• COVID-19 pandemic in Japan
• The Japanese government announces that the quasi-state of emergency measures will be expanded to 18 more prefectures including Hokkaido, Osaka, and Fukuoka from January 27 to February 20 amid the spread of the Omicron variant. [https://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0008211581 (The Japan News)]
• COVID-19 pandemic in South Korea
• South Korea reports a record 8,571 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 749,979. [https://m-en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20220125002351320 (Yonhap News Agency)]
• COVID-19 pandemic in Europe
• COVID-19 pandemic in Bulgaria
• Bulgaria reports a record 12,399 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 903,676. [http://www.bta.bg/en/c/ES/id/2561734 (Bulgarian News Agency)]
• COVID-19 pandemic in the Czech Republic
• The Czech Republic reports a record 30,350 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours. [https://www.reuters.com/article/health-coronavirus-czech/czech-republic-reports-record-daily-tally-of-30350-new-covid-19-cases-idUSL8N2U50NA (Reuters)]
• COVID-19 pandemic in France
• France reports a record 501,635 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours. [https://www.connexionfrance.com/French-news/Covid-19/500-000-daily-Covid-cases-in-France-is-going-out-a-key-reason-why (The Connexion)]
• COVID-19 pandemic in Russia
• Russia reduces the mandatory isolation period for close-contact COVID-19 patients to seven days amid an unprecedented increase in SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant cases with the country reporting a record for the fifth consecutive day of 67,509 new COVID-19 cases. [https://apnews.com/article/coronavirus-pandemic-health-europe-russia-pandemics-7a4fe6722f077e98d864571fb6defdc8 (AP)]
• COVID-19 pandemic in Argentina
• Argentina surpasses 8 million cases of COVID-19. [https://www.perfil.com/noticias/salud/nuevos-casos-covid-argentina-25-de-enero-de-2022.phtml (Perfil)]
• History of COVID-19 vaccine development
• Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech begin a clinical trial to test the safety and immune response of their Omicron-specific COVID-19 vaccine for adults under the age of 55 years. [https://www.npr.org/2022/01/25/1075519101/omicron-vaccine-covid-19-pfizer-biontech (NPR)]

Law and crime

• Canadian Indian residential school gravesites
• The Williams Lake First Nation in British Columbia, Canada, discovers 93 potential unmarked graves around the former Saint Joseph's Mission residential school near Williams Lake, British Columbia. [https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/b-c-first-nation-to-release-initial-results-of-probe-at-former-residential-school (Vancouver Sun)]
• A prison riot in the Mexican state of Colima results in the deaths of nine inmates and seven others being injured. [https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/dead-injured-inmates-riot-inside-mexican-prison-82472159 (ABC News)]
• Four victims of a shooting are found dead inside a home in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada. The shooting is believed to have happened the night before, and the victims are believed to have known each other. [https://bc.ctvnews.ca/4-dead-after-shooting-at-richmond-duplex-homicide-investigators-called-to-scene-1.5755081 (CTV News)]

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