Tag: President Trump

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Weekly Summaries

16th of August – 22nd of August

Chaos at the airport in Kabul

Thousands of Afghans continue to try to flee the country, with some clinging on to departing planes and crowds at the airport trampling people to death. Britain and Canada have since announced that they will both take 20,000 Afghans each who had fled the country. Meanwhile, President Biden defended the “hard and messy” retreat from Afghanistan, claiming that he had to either follow through on the deal with the Taliban he inherited from President Trump or fight the Taliban, according to the New York Times.

Earthquake in Haiti

Haiti was already trying to cope with the aftermath of the 2010 earthquake and the murder of President Jovenel Moïse in July. Now, another earthquake has hit, the death toll of which has now increased to more than 2,200 people. The government also estimates that around 10,000 more people have been injured. Heavy rains have made rescue missions difficult and the people are turning to local churches for support.

Elections in Zambia

Hakainde Hichilema, the leader of Zambia’s main opposition party — the United Party for National Development — won the presidential elections, receiving 59.38% of the votes. His main opponent, Edgar Lungu, who was the previous President, received only 38.33% of the votes. It is only the third time in Zambia’s history that an opposition leader won the election.

Other News

  • Amazon has taken over Walmart’s position and become the world’s largest online retailer operating outside of China, according to the New York Times
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Weekly Summaries

22nd of February – 28th of February

General Strike in Myanmar

A general strike took place in Myanmar on Monday the 22nd of February. Millions participated, protesting against the military rule that has been in place since the military coup three weeks ago. Last weekend, two protestors and dozens more had been injured when the military started shooting at the protestors. Since then Facebook has banned Myanmar’s military from its platforms, making it obvious that they were siding with the pro-democracy protests.

Other News

  • An order was issued by the Supreme Court which allows the release of the former US President Donald Trump’s tax returns
  • Italy’s ambassador to the Democratic Republic of Congo was among three other people who were killed during an attack close to the city of Goma
  • The Syrian pound reached an all-time low against the dollar on the black market
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Weekly Summaries

18th of January – 24th of January

President Biden’s Inauguration

This past Wednesday was Trump’s last day in office. He became the first US President to leave the White House before his successor’s (Joe Biden) inauguration. Biden became the 46th President of the United States and Kamala Harris officially became the first woman and person of colour to take up the position of vice president. Since then, President Biden has already released a national pandemic response plan.

US accuses China of Genocide

The US State Department declared on Tuesday — former US President Trump’s last full day in office — that the Chinese government is committing genocide and crimes against humanity. There has long been criticism of China for suppressing Muslim minority groups, including Uyghurs, in the region of Xinjiang. US officials later said that they hope that other countries will follow in their footsteps.

Other News:

  • Armin Laschet was named the next leader of Angela Merkel’s CDU Party. Elections will take place in Germany in fall.
  • On Thursday morning two bombers wearing explosive vests killed at least 32 people in an attack at a busy market in central Baghdad, Iraq.
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Weekly Summaries

11th of January – 17th of January

President Trump’s Second Impeachment

On Wednesday night, the House voted to charge President Trump with inciting insurrection over the breach of the Capitol just last week. This means that President Trump has now become the first President in the history of the United States to be impeached twice. The vote was 237 to 197, with 10 Republicans voting for his impeachment along with the Democrats.

Russian Opposition Leader Aleksei Navalny Returns to Russia

Aleksei Navalny returned to Moscow on Sunday and was arrested shortly after his arrival. He has accused the Kremlin for trying to murder him. Previously, he had been treated in Germany after suffering a near deadly nerve-agent attack in August. 

Navalny was detained at a passport control and — according to Russia’s penitentiary service — is waiting for a court hearing. He is wanted for “violating the terms of a prior suspended sentence.”

Other News

  • China’s currency, the yuan, reached its strongest level against the US dollar in more than two years
  • President-elect Joe Biden announced plans for a rescue package worth $1.9 trillion for the US 
  • Elections in Uganda. Read our detailed article here: https://econir-web.com/2021/01/17/elections-in-uganda/
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Weekly Summaries

4th of January – 10th of January

Storm on U.S. Capitol

Pro-Trump rioters overwhelmed the security forces present on Wednesday. The aim was to interrupt the counting of electoral votes to confirm Joe Biden as the 46th U.S. President. Chaos and violence followed, with one person shot and more dying later from their injuries. After more than three hours, the police, with support from the F.B.I. and National Guard members were able to regain control. Since, several social media platforms have banned President Trump’s accounts, including Twitter and Facebook. 

Other news

  • 100 civilians were reported dead in Niger on Monday after gunmen carried out a revenge attack in an area controlled by militants.
  • Saudi Arabia agreed to reopen its border and airspace to Qatar, after a boycott was first put in place in 2017.
  • In Hong Kong, the police arrested 53 pro-democracy officials and activists. It was the largest roundup since the introduction of the new national security law by Peking.
  • Elon Musk, the founder of Tesla replaced Jeff Bezos as the richest man in the world on Thursday.
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Weekly Summaries

28th of December 2020- 3rd of January 2021

Brexit Deal

More than four years after British citizens first voted to leave the EU, Brexit is really happening: something that many people did not believe until the last minute. The UK’s transition period ended with a “Christmas Eve trade agreement.” This means that Britain is now no longer a part of the EU’s customs union and common market. However, the trade agreement means that British financial firms will lose their biggest benefit of being an EU member: the advantage of offering services across the EU from a UK base. Although at the moment it looks like the Conservatives are for the agreement, the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson may still face opposition from hard-liners and businesses. This past Wednesday, the deal was easily approved by Parliament. 

Earthquake in Croatia

A 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck in Croatia on Tuesday afternoon, killing at least six people, wounding dozens more, and leaving several towns in ruins. Tens of thousands of people were left homeless.

Other news:

  • President Trump signed a $900 billion pandemic relief deal
  • Argentina voted to legalize abortion
  • At least 16 people were killed and 60 more wounded at an airport attack in Aden, Yemen. The attack happened at the same time as an airplane with members of the newly-formed government onboard came in.
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Weekly Summaries

28th of September – 4th of October

War breaks out between Azerbaijan and Armenia

On Sunday the 29th of September fighting broke out between Azerbaijan and Armenia over the province of Nagorno-Karabakh. The border running through the province was already a point of dispute between the two countries in the past. Now, the renewed outbreak of fighting has turned into the largest clash between the two countries since 2016, with both countries describing the conflict as “war.”

President Trump tests positive for the coronavirus

Early on Friday morning President Trump announced that both he and the First Lady of the United States of America had tested positive for the coronavirus.

Europe imposes sanctions on Belarus

After only watching and criticizing the Belarusian President’s supposed cheating in the recent elections, the European Union has now taken action. The EU agreed on sanctions after Cyprus agreed in exchange for penalties to be imposed on Turkey to enter negotiation talks with Cyprus and Greece for Turkey’s energy exploitation of Greek and Cyprusian waters.