People
Hong Kong put under lockdown for first time since beginning of pandemic
Residents will be required to stay at their homes until everyone in the specified area have undergone testing and "test results are mostly ascertained", the government said, adding it wants to allow residents to start returning to work at around 6 a.m. [Full Article...]
Italy probes TikTok 'blackout challenge' after 10-year-old girl's death
The ruling came after a girl died of asphyxiation in Palermo, Sicily, in a case that has shocked Italy. According to TikTok's terms and conditions, users must be at least 13 years old. Ordinarily privacy enforcement against TikTok would be led by the Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC), since the platform is legally established in Dublin. [Full Article...]
Utah National Guard troops deployed to D.C. for inauguration
The FBI is warning that armed protests are being planned at all 50 state capitols as well on Capitol Hill after a group called for "storming" state, local and federal government courthouses and administrative buildings on Inauguration Day. "Our National Guard soldiers and airmen are set around the city to protect our nation's Capital". "The peaceful transfer of power is a central tenet of Americ... [Full Article...]
Fauci says Trump ‘most likely’ claimed lives with COVID-19 misinformation
The 180-degree US policy shifts - both to remain in the WHO and to join COVAX - are "important steps toward reestablishing America's leadership in global health", said UNICEF USA President and CEO Michael J. As WHO members discuss reforming the WHO's financing, that should involve an assessment of what the organization can achieve with its current budget and how it can use those funds more effic... [Full Article...]
Three soldiers killed in helicopter crash in upstate NY
The incident remains under investigation. A tragic accident overnight claimed three National Guard members' lives when their helicopter crashed in New York Wednesday night, according to CNY Central . Mendon Fire Chief Peter Kester told reporters that the aircraft was engulfed in flames when first responders arrived at the scene. Local Rochester television station WKBW reported that the he... [Full Article...]
Oklahoma Lawmaker Pushes Bigfoot Hunting Season
Aside from setting the rules for hunting this hairy cryptid, House Bill 1648 (which you can read here) would also direct the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation to set the dates when this season would take place, and any Bigfoot-specific hunting licenses or fees. [Full Article...]
Rescuers say at least two more weeks to free Chinese miners
The reports said exhaustion has set in among some of the workers since the January 10 explosion ripped through the mine that was under construction in Qixia, a jurisdiction under Yantai in the eastern province of Shandong. Overnight temperatures in Qixia are set to drop below freezing during the next week. Boring has reached depths of around 700 meters (about 2,000 feet), the reports said. [Full Article...]
11th round of talks breaks down, deadlock on farm laws continues
Farmers stuck to their demands while the government urged them to consider its offer to hold discussions to address their concerns after deferring the laws. The farmers also expressed dismay as they were kept waiting for over three hours by the union ministers after the lunch break got over. The proposal was made during the tenth round of talks and is a serious move by the government to reach ... [Full Article...]