The Taliban captures Samangan (Aibak), the provincial capital of Samangan Province, making it the sixth capture of a provincial capital by the Islamist group in the past four days.
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August 9, 2021 (Monday)
3.7 minutes to read
Armed conflicts and attacks
The Afghan National Security Forces launch a counter-offensive, in an attempt to retake Kunduz, which was captured by the Taliban yesterday. Heavy fighting is reported elsewhere in the northern part of the country, where the Islamist group has launched an offensive. Civilians flee Kunduz, trying to reach Kabul as there are conflicting reports as to who is responsible for dozens of civilian casualties.
Violence occurs in Lebanon due to the severe fuel shortages that are affecting the country, leaving three people dead.
Disasters and accidents
Health and environment
Scotland moves to level zero and removes most of the remaining COVID-19-related restrictions, allowing all hospitality venues, including nightclubs, to reopen at full capacity and to remove most legal social distancing requirements. However, face masks remains mandatory in indoor public settings and on public transport, and must be worn by pupils and teachers at school for the first six weeks of the semester.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration grants provisional approval for the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, becoming the fourth vaccine to be approved for use in Australia.
The U.S. CDC announces that 60% of Americans have received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Egypt receives their first shipment of 261,000 doses of the single-dose Janssen COVID-19 vaccine.
Guinea reports West Africa's first death from the Marburg virus after a person died from viral hemorrhagic fever.
France begins to require people who want to enter shopping centres, cafés, restaurants, or travel by long-distance bus, train, and airplane, to show a health pass generated by a QR code, which contains either proof of full vaccination, a negative test result from the previous 72 hours, or that the person has recovered from COVID-19.
Swissmedic approves the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine for children between the ages of 12 and 17.
Palau reaches herd immunity as 80% of its 12-and-over population are vaccinated against COVID-19. Plans to vaccinate teenagers are underway as tourism reopens in the country.
United States Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announces that all service members will be required to be vaccinated by mid-September.
International relations
Canada reopens their border to Americans and permanent residents who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 for non-essential travel. All travellers must present a negative COVID-19 test result from the previous 72 hours in order to enter the country.
Direct commercial flights between Russia and Egypt resume for the first time since the Metrojet Flight 9268 bombing in 2015, which killed 224 people, most of whom were Russian tourists. A Rossiya Airlines passenger plane landed in Sharm El Sheikh carrying 518 passengers, and was welcomed with a water cannon salute, roses and flags.
Law and crime
A priest is murdered at a church in Saint-Laurent-sur-Sèvre, France, by the same person who committed the arson at the Nantes Cathedral in July 2020. He is arrested after confessing to the killing.
A barely legible letter to Pope Francis regarding the Vatican's financial scandals, which contained three bullets and is believed to have originated from France, is intercepted by postal workers in Peschiera Borromeo, near Milan. The letter is being treated by authorities as a possible death threat against Francis.
Federal prosecutors say that five men who were accused of plotting to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer also discussed Ohio Governor Mike DeWine as a potential target.
Politics and elections
The Brazilian government announces that President Jair Bolsonaro will attend a military parade featuring tanks and armored vehicles in BrasĂlia tomorrow, as a preparation for military exercises. The parade is expected to pass near the National Congress building as a controversial bill reinstating paper ballots and ending electronic voting, which is supported by the government, is set to be voted. As the bill is widely expected not to pass, critics argue that Bolsonaro is using the parade as a show of force and intimidation against the Congress.
Science and technology
Smoke from wildfires in Siberia is detected in the Geographic North Pole for the first time in recorded history, according to NASA. The space agency says that as of August 6 "most of Russia" is covered in smoke, while Russia's weather monitoring institute Rosgidromet says that the situation "continues to deteriorate" in the far-eastern Sakha region with around 3.4 million hectares (8.4 million acres) of land currently on fire.
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