Officials in Seattle and San Francisco announced Wednesday that they are banning large public gatherings in an attempt to halt the ongoing spread of COVID-19. Governor Jay Inslee banned all gatherings and events of more than 250 people. The ban is specifically aimed at the King, Snohomish, and Pierce Counties for the month of March. [...]

US President Donald Trump announced a new ban on travel to and from Europe late Wednesday night in a public address from the Oval Office. The President’s address began by discussing the nature of the pandemic and attempting to reassure Americans that they would survive this current disease. The President reiterated recent moves to fight [...]

A brief order by the Supreme Court Wednesday allowed President Donald Trump’s “Remain in Mexico” policy to stay in effect while appeals to the Supreme Court are filed. This overturns an injunction by the US District Court for the Northern District of California that blocked the policy, which entails sending some asylum seekers back across [...]

The Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) announced Wednesday that the coronavirus strain known as COVID-19 is now officially classified as a pandemic. The director also noted that although this distinction “does not change WHO’s assessment of the threat posed by this virus,” it should also be recognized that “we have never before seen [...]

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called Tuesday for the humanitarian release of Americans unlawfully detained in Iran amidst growing concerns about the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in Iranian prisons. Pompeo warned that the US would hold Tehran responsible if any of the citizens died from COVID-19, stating “our response will be decisive.” Pompeo later alleged [...]

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced the first part of a stimulus plan Wednesday meant to safeguard Australia’s public health and economy against the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). The plan, worth A $2.4 billion (USD $1.6 billion), proposes opening up to 100 respiratory and fever clinics as the latest demonstration of continued support [...]

Both houses of the Russia Parliament on Wednesday approved a constitutional change that would allow President Vladimir Putin to run for reelection again. The current Russian constitution requires the president to step down after serving two consecutive terms. Putin is currently serving his second consecutive term and would have to leave office when his term [...]

The High Court of South Africa in Pretoria cleared South African President Cyril Ramaphosa of corruption charges on Tuesday. The president made an inaccurate statement before the Parliament in 2018 concerning a campaign donation made to his son by African Global Operations. He later wrote a letter to the Parliament to clarify the error. The [...]

The governor of Oregon signed an expansive executive order to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the state Tuesday, just days after a Republican walkout in the state senate scuttled legislative efforts to achieve the same ends. Republicans in the state senate and house staged walkouts to prevent a quorum, forcing the Oregon legislature to [...]

Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani agreed Wednesday to a phased release of thousands of imprisoned Taliban fighters. This decision follows an earlier refusal that threatened to thwart the recently negotiated peace plan between the Taliban, the US and the Afghan government. The president announced that the government has agreed to release the prisoners in exchange for [...]