Portal:Current events/2020 July 17

July 17, 2020 (Friday)

Arts and culture

List of changes made due to the George Floyd protests
- United States Secretary of Defense Mark Esper issues a new Department policy that effectively bans the display and depiction of the Confederate flag at any U.S. military installation around the world. "The flags we fly must accord with the military imperatives of good order and discipline, treating all our people with dignity and respect, and rejecting divisive symbols," wrote the Secretary. (Reuters) (CNN)

Business and economy

COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico
- President Andrés Manuel López Obrador announces he will donate a quarter of his US$4,806 monthly salary to help health services fight the virus. He also encouraged other public officials to follow his move. (Reuters)

Health and environment

COVID-19 pandemic
- COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
  - COVID-19 pandemic in India
    - India surpasses one million cases, as the death count reaches 25,000. (BBC News)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Japan
    - Tokyo reports a record daily increase in COVID-19 cases, with 293 new cases. (Voice of America)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Kazakhstan, COVID-19 pandemic in Kyrgyzstan
    - Kyrgyzstan announces the addition of thousands of cases and hundreds of deaths to its COVID-19 tallies, describing the corresponding pneumonia-related cases, which had not been confirmed by tests, as most likely linked to the SARS-CoV-2 novel coronavirus. Neighboring Kazakhstan announces it will do the same starting next month. (Reuters)
- COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
  - COVID-19 pandemic in California
    - Manhattan Beach announces it will fine people who do not wear masks. (Los Angeles Times)
    - California Governor Gavin Newsom lays out new rules for schools with high COVID-19 rates to do virtual learning and close campuses until they meet certain health standards. (Politico)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Florida
    - Officials in Miami announce that they will impose a curfew at South Beach as Florida tops 10,000 cases. (CBS News)
  - Military medics are deployed to hospitals in Texas and California as cases surge. (The Chicago Tribune)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Australia
  - Victoria state reports a record daily increase in COVID-19 cases, with 428 new cases and three new deaths. Australia in overall records 438 new cases, highest since mid-March. (Reuters) (ABC News (Australia))

International relations

Egypt–Turkey relations, Turkey–United Arab Emirates relations, Second Libyan Civil War
- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan denounces Egypt and the United Arab Emirates for supporting the eastern-based Libyan forces of Khalifa Haftar. Turkey says it will maintain its support for the Government of National Accord (GNA) and calls the UAE's actions "piratical". (Reuters)
North Korea–South Korea relations
- South Korea revokes licenses to anti-Pyongyang groups which often send leaflets to the border with political messages. The South Korean government says these groups are "seriously hindering the unification policy of the government". The groups accuse the government of censorship. (Al Jazeera)

Law and crime

George Floyd protests
- George Floyd protests in the United States
  - George Floyd protests in Illinois
    - George Floyd protests in Chicago
      - Protesters attempt to remove a statue of Christopher Columbus at Grant Park, prompting a standoff with police. (Newsweek)
  - George Floyd protests in Kentucky
    - Prosecutors drop felony charges against 87 people who protested the Breonna Taylor police killing outside of Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron’s home. (The New York Times)
Iranian police disperse protesters, who this week marched against the death sentence upon three political activists, and vow to "decisively" deal with further protests. The protesters march under the slogan "#StopExecutionsinIran". (DW)
Police in Germany arrest a gunman, nicknamed Rambo due to his acts, who disarmed four policemen and escaped in the Black Forest five days before. (BBC News)

Sports

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sports
- 2020 Major League Baseball season
  - Major League Baseball announces five more players have tested positive for COVID-19. (ESPN)
List of name changes due to the George Floyd protests
- The Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League are expected to change their name due to racism and insensitivity. (ESPN)