- January 9
- Islamic State in the Greater Sahara militants assault a Nigerien military base in Chinagodrar, killing at least 89 Nigerien soldiers. [1384]
- January 10
- The genetic sequence of the new coronavirus is released. [1563.16]
- Death of Qaboos bin Said, Sultan of Oman (born 1940). His cousin Haitham bin Tarik is named his successor. [1384] [1598.41]
- January 11
- Election in the Republic of China: Tsai Ing-wen of Democratic Progressive Party is re-elected to another four-year term. [1598.34]
- January 12
- The Taal Volcano in the Philippines has its first major eruption since 1977. [1384]
- The People's Republic of China publishes the genetic sequence of the new coronavirus. [1598.77]
- January 14
- First case of new coronavirus confirmed out of People's Republic of China, in Thailand. [1563.17]
- The United Kingdom, France, and Germany formally accuse Iran of breaching a 2015 agreement to curb its nuclear program. [1598.40]
- January 15
- Russian prime minister Dmitry Medvedev and the entire government cabinet resigns. New prime minister is Mikhail Mishustin. [1598.10,45]
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- January 16
- In the People's Republic of China, transport into and out of Wuhan city is cut off. [1563.17]
- The first impeachment trial of the President of the United States, Donald Trump, begins in the U.S. Senate. (He is acquitted on February 5.) [1384]
- January 18
- 111 Yemeni soldiers and 5 civilians are killed in a drone and missile attack on a military camp near Ma'rib. [1384]
- January 20
- People's Republic of China authorities publicly confirm human-to-human transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. [1384]
- Chinese health authorities impose a quarantine on the inland province of Hubei (population 60 million people), to control the spread of the new coronavirus. [1597.33]
- January 21
- Some Italian towns with high case counts of the coronavirus are put into lockdown. [1563.18]
- The Republic of China reports its first confirmed coronavirus case. [1563.21]
- January 23
- The People's Republic of China city of Wuhan, the epicentre of the initial COVID-19 outbreak, is quarantined with all scheduled public transport services and intercity flights halted. [1384] [1563.16] [1613.26]
- Singapore confirms its first case of Covid-19. [1593.38]
- January 25
- First case of new coronavirus confirmed in Canada. [1639.44]
- January 29
- U.S. president Donald Trump signs the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, a North American trade agreement set to replace NAFTA. [1384]
- January 30
- The World Health Organization issues its highest level of alert regarding the coronavirus: that it is a "public health emergency of international concern". [1384] [1563.17] [1808.4]
- January 31
- First case of coronavirus confirmed in the United Kingdom. [1563.17]
- The United Kingdom and Gibraltar formally withdraw from the European Union, beginning an 11-month transition period. [1384]
- February 1
- A passenger aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship tests positive for Covid-19. [1585.51]
- February 3
- Albin Kurti is sworn in as prime minister of Kosovo. [1593.46]
- Malawi's constitutional court nullifies the general election results of the previous May, ordering a re-run within 150 days. [1596.39]
- February 8
- General election in Ireland, Sinn Fein is most popular party for first time, at 24.5% of votes. [1593.9] [1607.49]
- February 10
- Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer resigns as head of Germany's ruling Christian Democrats. [1593.45]
- February 11
- The World Health Organization names the new coronavirus disease COVID-19. [1384]
- February 18
- The Boy Scouts of America files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. [1605.30]
- February 24
- The Pakatan Harapan coalition government of Malaysia collapses and is replaced by the Perikatan Nasional coalition. (Muhyiddin Yassin becomes the eighth Prime Minister of Malaysia on March 1.) [1384]
- February 28
- NATO expresses solidarity with Turkey after 34 Turkish soldiers were killed in an airstrike by pro-Syrian government forces. [1384]
- February 29
- A conditional peace agreement is signed between the United States and the Taliban. (The U.S. begins gradually withdrawing combat troops from Afghanistan on March 10.) [1384]
- Election in Slovakia. Ordinary People and Independent Personalities party most popular, with 25% of votes. [1607.49]
- March 2
- General elections in Guyana, won by President David Granger of the Partnership for National Unity party. [1611.7]
- March 8
- Brent crude oil trading price drops 30 percent within seconds of market trading opening, falling below US$30 per barrel. [1374.10]
- March 9
- International share prices fall sharply in response to a Russo-Saudi oil price war and the impact of COVID-19. Oil prices plunge by as much as 30% in early trading. [1384]
- Lebanon government sovereign default on US$1.2 billion Eurobond, first time in its history. [1606.38]
- Italy becomes the first country to implement a nationwide quarantine in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. [1384] [1473.11] [1563.18] (March 10 [1374.41])
- March 11
- The World Health Organization declares the COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic. [1384] [1425.4] [1563.18]
- Denmark shuts down much of the country due to the spread of Covid-19. [1473.11]
- March 12
- Global stock markets crash due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the United States travel ban on the Schengen Area. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closes down over 2,300 points. [1384]
- March 13
- Unilever head Alan Jope orders the firm's 60,000 workers in all countries except the People's Republic of China to work from home. [1612.61]
- The government of Nepal announces that Mount Everest will be closed to climbers and the public for the rest of the season due to concerns from the COVID-19 pandemic in Asia. [1384]
- March 14
- Spain shuts down much of the country due to the spread of Covid-19. [1473.11] [1563.18] [1611.46] [1612.45]
- Colombia President Iván Duque closes borders to foreigners, due to Covid-19 pandemic. [1610.24]
- March 15
- Peru locks down country due to spreading Covid-19. [1613.24]
- March 16
- Venezuela president Nicolás Maduro orders lockdown of country, due to Covid-19 pandemic. [1611.30]
- March 17
- The Euro 2020 and 2020 Copa América association football tournaments are postponed until the summer of 2021 by UEFA and CONMEBOL respectively. [1384]
- The European Union's external and Schengen borders are closed for at least 30 days in an effort to curb the COVID-19 pandemic. [1384] [1611.47]
- France shuts down much of the country due to the spread of Covid-19. [1473.11] [1563.18] [1611.47]
- In the Philippines, the Manilla stock exchange closes due to Covid-19 restrictions on Luzon island. [1611.64]
- March 18
- The Eurovision Song Contest 2020 is cancelled due to COVID-19 in Europe, the first cancellation in the contest's 64-year history. [1384]
- The European Central Bank announces emergency asset-purchase scheme: 750 billion euros (US$809 billion) in government and corporate bonds. [1612.65]
- The government of the United Kingdom orders all schools closed until further notice. [1563.18]
- The New York Stock Exchange closes trading floors, to re-open March 23 fully electronic. [1611.64]
- March 20
- The Bhadla Solar Park is commissioned and becomes the world's largest solar park. [1384]
- The government of the United Kingdom orders all pubs and restaurants closed until further notice. [1563.18]
- The worldwide death toll from COVID-19 surpasses 10,000 as the total number of cases reaches 250,000. [1384]
- March 21
- Rwanda closes border with Congo due to spreading Covid-19. [1612.43]
- March 23
- Fashion retailer Primark announces it is temporarily closing all 376 of its stores in 12 countries due to Covid-19. [1612.57]
- Great Britain shuts down much of the country due to the spread of Covid-19. [1473.11]
- South African president Cyril Ramaphosa announces nationwide lockdown due to Covid-19. [1612.41]
- March 24
- People's Republic of China Premier Li Keqiang reports that the domestically-transmitted epidemic is now under control. [1384]
- The government of Japan announces the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games will be postponed by one year due to Covid-19. [1612.33]
- The International Olympic Committee and Japan suspend the 2020 Summer Olympics until 2021. [1384]
- India and the United Kingdom go into lockdown to contain COVID-19. The total number of people in the world facing some form of pandemic-related movement restriction now exceeds 2.6 billion, a third of the global population. [1384] [1488.63] [1612.36]
- March 26
- Militants in the Philippines, Syria, Yemen, and Libya agree to U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres' call for a ceasefire; some accept medical aid for themselves and civilians in their communities. [1384]
- Global COVID-19 cases reach 500,000, with nearly 23,000 deaths confirmed. The U.S. surpasses China and Italy in total number of known COVID-19 cases, with at least 81,321 cases and more than 1,000 deaths. [1384]
- March 27
- The NASA orbiting telescope Near-Earth Object Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer discovers comet NEOWISE over the northern hemisphere. [1491.64]
- North Macedonia becomes the 30th country to join NATO. [1384]
- March 29
- Spain announces minimum annual income for citizens, starting June 1, 461.5 euros for single person, 1015 euros per family. [1479.42]
- March 31
- President Anies Baswedan of Singapore declares national emergency due to the spreading COVID-19 virus. [1479.30]
- April 1
- People's Republic of China reports 130 asymptomatic cases of COVID-19, its first reported asymptomatic cases. [1384]
- Yemen's internationally-recognised government releases more than 470 of its prisoners amid concerns of the spread of COVID-19 in Yemen's overcrowded jails. [1384]
- April 2
- The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 passes 1 million worldwide. [1384]
- April 5
- The first case of COVID-19 in a zoo animal is reported: a four-year-old female Malayan tiger at the Bronx Zoo in New York City. [1384]
- April 6
- The United States designates the Russian Imperial Movement as a terrorist organization and imposes sanctions on its leaders. [1384]
- April 7
- Japan declares a state of emergency in response to COVID-19 and finalises a stimulus package worth 108 trillion yen (US$990 billion), equal to 20% of the country's GDP. [1384]
- April 8
- The Saudi-led coalition declares a unilateral ceasefire in its operations against Houthi forces in Yemen. [1384]
- April 10
- The death toll from COVID-19 exceeds 100,000 globally. [1384]
- EU finance ministers agree on a 540 billion euro loan package to alleviate the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic. [1384]
- April 12
- OPEC and allies strike a deal to cut oil production by 9.7 million barrels per day, the largest such cut agreed upon, starting May 1. [1384]
- U.S. president Donald Trump announces that the U.S. will suspend funding towards the World Health Organization pending an investigation of its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and its relationship with the People's Republic of China. [1384]
- April 15
- The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 passes 2 million worldwide. [1384]
- April 17
- The China Securities Regulatory Commission approves a transaction in which Switzerland's Credit Suisse will take a majority interest in a People's Republic of China securities firm, making Credit Suisse the first foreign bank to own a majority of such a company since the easing of foreign ownership rules in 2018. [1384]
- Europe surpasses 100,000 COVID-19-related deaths. [1384]
- April 18
- 44 suspected Boko Haram members are found dead, apparently due to poisoning, inside a prison in N'Djamena, Chad. [1384]
- April 20
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Blue and White Alliance leader Benny Gantz agree on a deal to form a unity government, thus ending more than a year of political deadlock. As part of the deal, Netanyahu will hold onto his position for 18 more months, with Gantz replacing him afterwards. [1384] [1609.38]
- In Nova Scotia, Canada, Gabriel Wortman, disguised as a police officer and driving a car modified to look like a police car, shoots and kills 18 people, before police shoot and kill him. [1563.6]
- Price of crude oil drops from $18 to -$38 per barrel, due to lack of storage space brought on by the pandemic. [1384] [1430.54] [1563.6]
- The Industrial Bank of Korea agrees to pay US$86 million and will enter a two-year deferred prosecution agreement to settle lawsuits with the U.S. Department of Justice and the state of New York over a 2011 scheme to help transfer US$1 billion to Iran. [1384]
- April 21
- Mozambique police say 52 male villagers were killed by Islamist militants earlier this month in Muidumbe District, Cabo Delgado Province, after they refused to join the militants. [1384]
- April 22
- Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps deploys the country's first military satellite, using a new satellite carrier called "Ghased" ("Messenger"). [1384]
- April 25
- The global death toll from COVID-19 exceeds 200,000. The UK becomes the fifth country to report 20,000 deaths. [1384]
- The Southern Transitional Council announces the establishment of a self-rule administration in southern Yemen and deploys forces in Aden. (Governors of multiple southern Yemeni Governorates and Socotra island reject the claim to self-rule and declare their loyalty to President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi.) [1384]
- April 26
- King Salman issues a royal decree, declaring that people will no longer be executed in Saudi Arabia for crimes they were convicted of when they were minors. [1384]
- April 27
- The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 passes 3 million worldwide, while the number of confirmed cases in the U.S. passes 1 million. [1384]
- April 28
- Colombia formalizes its membership with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, becoming the 37th nation of the organization. [1384]
- A fast radio burst is detected from the Magnetar SGR 1935+2154, the first ever detected inside the Milky Way, and the first to be linked to a known source. [1384]
- April 29
- A near-Earth asteroid that is 2 kilometres wide makes a close approach of 6.3 million km to Earth. [1384]
- April 30
- Bulgaria applies for ERM II (the "waiting room" for the Eurozone), due to join along with Croatia in July 2020. [1384]
- NASA officially selects SpaceX, Blue Origin, and Dynetics to build its next-generation lunar lander to carry American astronauts to the Moon by 2024. [1384]
- May 1
- The total number of recovered COVID-19 patients reaches 1 million worldwide, according to data from The Johns Hopkins University. [1384]
- May 3
- Venezuelan dissidents and an American-based private military company, Silvercorp USA, unsuccessfully attempt to infiltrate Venezuela and forcibly remove President Nicolás Maduro from office. [1384]
- May 4
- A team of British and Kenyan scientists announce the discovery of Microsporidia MB, a parasitic microbe that blocks mosquitos from carrying malaria, potentially paving the way for the control of malaria. [1384]
- May 5
- The Philippines' National Telecommunications Commission issues a cease and desist order to the broadcasting operations of ABS-CBN, the country's largest media network, as Congress fails to renew its franchise. [1384]
- May 9
- Several Chinese and Indian soldiers are injured in a cross-border clash at the Nathu La crossing. About 150 troops participated in the face-off, which involved fistfights and stone-throwing. [1384]
- May 10
- The Iranian Navy frigate Jamaran accidentally strikes the Iranian support vessel Konarak with a missile, killing nineteen sailors. [1384]
- May 11
- The Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology publishes the result of radiocarbon and DNA analysis from the fossils that had been found in the Bacho Kiro cave, Bulgaria. The result, showing that the fossils belong to Homo sapiens instead of Neanderthal, indicates that modern humans may have arrived in Europe thousands of years earlier than previously thought. [1384]
- May 12
- In Kabul, Afghanistan, gunmen storm a maternity hospital and kill 24 people, including two newborn babies. In a separate incident in Kuz Kunar, 32 people are killed at a funeral by a suicide bomber. [1384]
- May 14
- NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg says the military alliance is "ready to support" the UN-recognized Government of National Accord while Greece, a member state of NATO, strongly criticizes Stoltenberg's remarks, saying his recognition of the "Muslim Brotherhood government" does not reflect the positions of the military alliance. [1384]
- The global death toll from COVID-19 exceeds 300,000. [1384]
- May 15
- Researchers announce a 2.5cm millipede fossil belonging to the Kampecaris genus, discovered on the island of Kerrera in the Scottish Inner Hebrides, is the world's oldest-known land animal, which lived 425 million years ago in the Silurian period. [1384]
- May 16
- Félicien Kabuga, a Rwandan businessman responsible for supporting the Rwandan genocide, is arrested in Asnières-sur-Seine, France, after 26 years as a fugitive. [1384]
- May 18
- The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs announces that nearly 1 million people are affected and at least 24 people have died in flash floods that have hit Beledweyne and Jowhar, Somalia. [1384]
- May 19
- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas announces the termination of all agreements, including security ones, with Israel and the United States, in response to Israel's plans to annex the Jordan Valley. [1384]
- May 21
- Cyclone Amphan makes landfall in eastern India and Bangladesh, killing over 100 people and forcing the evacuation of more than 4 million others. (It causes over US$13 billion in damage, making it the costliest cyclone ever recorded in the North Indian Ocean.) [1384]
- The U.S. announces it will withdraw from the Open Skies Treaty within six months, alleging continuous violations by Russia. [1384]
- The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 passes 5 million worldwide. [1384]
- May 22
- Flight PK8303, a Pakistan International Airlines passenger aircraft, crashes in a residential area near Karachi, in Pakistan, killing 97 of the 99 total people on board and injuring dozens on the ground. [1384]
- May 24
- Mining corporation Rio Tinto admits to blowing up the 46,000-year-old Juukan Gorge caves in the Pilbara area of Western Australia. [1384]
- Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi pardons 3,157 prisoners to celebrate Eid al-Fitr. [1384]
- May 25
- Presidential election in Suriname. Chan Santokhi of the Indo-Surinamese Progressive Reform Party defeats President Dési Bouterse. [1476.27] [1488.5]
- May 26
- LATAM Airlines, the largest air carrier in Latin America, files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. [1384]
- President of Zambia Edgar Lungu pardons nearly 3,000 inmates to commemorate Africa Freedom Day. [1384]
- May 27
- The Chinese National People's Congress votes in favour of national security legislation that criminalizes "secession", "subversion", "terrorism" and foreign interference in Hong Kong; the legislation grants sweeping powers to the Chinese central government to suppress the Hong Kong democracy movement, including banning activist groups and curtailing civil liberties. The U.S. government responds by declaring Hong Kong is "no longer autonomous" under the United States-Hong Kong Policy Act. [1384]
- May 30
- A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches from Cape Canaveral, Florida, USA, carrying the Crew Dragon space capsule with two American astronauts, Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley, destined for the International Space Station. This is the first manned spacecraft to take off from U.S. soil since the retirement of the Space Shuttle in 2011, and the world's first space launch of humans by any private company. [1384] [1479.10,66]
- June 3
- SpaceX successfully launches and deploys 60 Starlink satellites into a low Earth orbit from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, bringing the total number of Starlink satellites in orbit to 482. [1384]
- Russian President Vladimir Putin declares a state of emergency after 20,000 tons of oil leaked into the Ambarnaya River near the Siberian city of Norilsk within the Arctic Circle on May 26. [1384]
- June 4
- Libya's Government of National Accord says they are in full control of the capital, Tripoli, after forces of the Libyan National Army retreat from the territory following months of intense fighting in the city. [1384]
- June 7
- The global death toll from COVID-19 exceeds 400,000. [1384]
- June 8
- The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 passes 7 million worldwide. [1384]
- June 10
- Swedish police investigators announce conclusion that Prime Minister Olof Palme's 1986 assassin was Stig Engstrom. As Engstrom died in 2000, the case is now closed. [1487.41]
- June 15
- Turkish and Iranian forces commence air and artillery strikes against Kurdistan Workers' Party forces in Iraqi Kurdistan. [1384]
- At least 20 Indian soldiers and over 40 Chinese forces are killed or injured in skirmishes in the disputed Galwan Valley, the largest escalation along the Sino-Indian border in five decades. [1384] [1473.9]
- June 16
- North Korea demolishes the Inter-Korean Liaison Office in Kaesong, established in 2018 to improve relations. [1384]
- The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 passes 8 million worldwide. [1384]
- June 17
- United Nations member states choose Norway and Ireland to fill two vacant Security Council seats. Their two-year terms begin January 2021. [1488.24]
- June 21
- An annular solar eclipse occurs. [1384]
- June 22
- The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 passes 9 million worldwide. [1384]
- June 23
- The People's Republic of China launches the last piece of their satellite-navigation system, from Sichuan province. [1491.31]
- Malawi presidential election won by Lazarus Chakwera of Malawi Congress Party and alliance, with 59 percent of votes. [1489.38]
- A 7.5-magnitude earthquake strikes the coast of Oaxaca, Mexico and kills at least four people. It is felt more than 640 kilometres away in Mexico City. [1384]
- June 27
- Micheál Martin succeeds Leo Varadkar as Taoiseach of Ireland, with Varadkar becoming Tánaiste in a three-party coalition government. [1384]
- June 28
- The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 passes 10 million worldwide. The U.S. continues to report the highest number of any country as it reaches 2.5 million, a quarter of all cases globally. The global death toll from COVID-19 exceeds 500,000. [1384]
- June 30
- The People's Republic of China passes the Hong Kong national security law, allowing the Chinese government to crack down on opposition to Beijing at home or abroad. [1384]
- (month unknown)
- Christie's auction house in England sells the most complete Tyrannosaurus Rex set of bones, nicknamed "Stan", for US$31.8 million. [1802.12]
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