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Illustration of the novel coronavirus

The World Health Organization declares the outbreak of respiratory disease from a novel coronavirus (pictured) to be a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.
Floods and landslides in southeastern Brazil kill at least 60 people and leave thousands homeless.
At the Grammy Awards, Billie Eilish wins the major categories of Best New Artist, and Song, Record, and Album of the Year.

January 31, 2020 (Friday)

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Disasters and accidents

The Royal Solomon Islands Police Force stop searching for nine people who disappeared at sea on January 15 when their boat capsized. Five men, two women and two children are now presumed dead. (RNZ)

International relations

Brexit
- The United Kingdom is set to formally withdraw from the European Union at 23:00 GMT. (BBC)

Law and crime

In Farrukhabad, India, a man is shot and killed by police after taking more than 20 children as hostages for more than 10 hours. Angry locals later beat the hostage-taker's wife to death. It is unknown whether she was involved in her husband's plan. (BBC)

January 30, 2020 (Thursday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian civil war, Northwestern Syria offensive (November 2019–present)
- Warplanes backed by the Syrian Government strike Ariha, Idlib Governorate, killing at least ten people. (ABC News)
Armed men kill at least six Mayangna Indians and kidnap another ten in the Bosawás Biosphere Reserve, Nicaragua. (BBC)

Business and economy

Arvind Krishna is appointed chief executive officer of IBM, taking over from Ginni Rometty. (Wall Street Journal)

Disasters and accidents

Massive floods in Madagascar kill 31 people and displace 16,000 others. (The Weather Channel)

Health and environment

2019–20 Wuhan coronavirus outbreak
- More than 6,000 passengers are barred from disembarking a cruise ship docked at Civitavecchia, Lazio, Italy, after authorities expressed concern that two Chinese passengers have the coronavirus. (The Guardian)
- Two cases of novel coronavirus are confirmed in Italy after two Chinese tourists are recovered in Rome. (Il Messaggero)
- The World Health Organization declares a "global emergency", a rare designation that helps the international agency mobilize financial and political support to contain the outbreak. (CNBC)

Law and crime

The Virginia, Nevada, and Illinois state attorneys general file a lawsuit to get the Equal Rights Amendment added to the Constitution of the United States. (CNN)
Japanese prosecutors issue arrest warrants against a former United States special operations forces soldier and two others for allegedly helping Carlos Ghosn to escape from Japan. Another arrest warrant was issued against Ghosn himself. (Reuters)
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection reports that in August it discovered a 1,313 m (4,308 ft) smuggling tunnel running from Tijuana to San Diego, making it the longest tunnel of its type along the Mexico–United States border. It was possibly used by the Sinaloa Cartel. (BBC)
Catholic Cardinal Philippe Barbarin is acquitted by an appellate court of having covered up allegations of child sexual abuse by a former priest. (Reuters)

January 29, 2020 (Wednesday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian civil war, Northwestern Syria offensive (November 2019–present)
- The Syrian Army say that the armed forces are now in full control of the city of Maaret al-Numan, after they entered it yesterday with little resistance. (France24)
Mali War
- Mali's Prime Minister Boubou Cissé announces that his country will increase the size of its armed forces by 50% in recruitment to uproot jihadist groups. (Reuters)

Business and economy

The British government announces that rail firm Northern will be nationalized following public outcry over Arriva UK Trains handling of the firm. Arriva says it "understood the government's decision", but blames problems on "external factors" such as rail infrastructure. (BBC)
Facebook agrees to pay US$550 million to settle a class action lawsuit launched in 2015 over its mass harvesting of biometric data in the state of Illinois. (The New York Times)

Disasters and accidents

In the Indian state of Maharashtra, two vehicles collide and plunge into a well, killing 26 people and injuring 32 others. (Reuters)
Thirteen people are injured in a fire at a high rise apartment building in Los Angeles, California, United States. (KTLA)

Health and environment

French Agriculture Minister Didier Guillaume announces that the culling of unwanted male chicks will be outlawed by the end of 2021, becoming one of the first countries to initiate such a ban. (BBC)

International relations

Algeria–Bangladesh relations
- Algeria reopens its embassy in Dhaka, after closing it in 1990. (New Age)
Brexit
- The European Parliament votes 621–49 to pass the 2020 Brexit agreement, making today the last day Britain will be represented in the EU Parliament. MEP and Brexit campaigner Nigel Farage applauds its passage by saying "we'd be better off out", while UK Labour MEP Judith Kirton-Darling tearfully states it "attacks the very foundation of our identity". (Reuters)

January 28, 2020 (Tuesday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian civil war, Northwestern Syria offensive (November 2019–present)
- The Syrian Army, backed by Russian Air Force support, enters the largely deserted city of Ma'arrat al-Nu'man in the northern Idlib Governorate. Only light resistance is reported as most rebel groups, including Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, withdrew their fighters. The city had been under rebel control since October 2012. (Middle East Eye)

Business and economy

The Barakah nuclear power plant in the United Arab Emirates, the first commercial nuclear plant in the Arab world, is declared ready for operation after years of delays. It is expected to go online sometime during this quarter. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

2020 Caribbean earthquake
- A magnitude 7.7 earthquake is recorded off the coast of Jamaica. (KRON 4 News)
Three people, including former Mayor Frank Edwards and his wife Cinda, are killed in a plane crash near Springfield, Illinois, United States. (ABC News)

Health and environment

2019–20 Wuhan coronavirus outbreak
- Palau's President Thomas Remengesau Jr. bans chartered flights from China and suspends charter flights from Macau and Hong Kong until further notice. Remengesau is set to issue an executive order to that effect after a meeting with the National Emergency Committee. (RNZ)
- The Health Commission in the central Chinese province of Hubei say there are 1,291 new confirmed cases of novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) and 24 more deaths, bringing the total death toll to 106 people. (AFP via New Straits Times)
- Chinese President Xi Jinping tells the World Health Organization he is confident about defeating the "devil virus". (Reuters)

Law and crime

Prosecutor General of Tajikistan, Yusuf Rakhmon, announces the arrest of 113 alleged members of the Muslim Brotherhood. (Reuters)
Investigations involving Benjamin Netanyahu
- Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu withdraws a request for immunity to the Knesset. Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit formally indicts Netanyahu on charges of bribery, fraud, and breach of trust in three cases of suspected corruption. (Vox)

Politics and elections

2020 New Zealand general election
- Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announces that the next general election is to be held on September 19. (The Guardian)

Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Trump peace plan
- U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu unveil a peace plan developed by the Trump administration for three years. The plan recognizes Israeli sovereignty over major settlement blocs in the occupied West Bank, as well as the annexation of the Jordan Valley, in exchange for a freeze on new Israeli settlements in certain areas for four years. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas dismisses the plan as "nonsense", while Israeli opposition leader Benny Gantz casts his support for the plan. (Associated Press)

January 27, 2020 (Monday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian civil war, Northwestern Syria offensive (November 2019–present)
- The Syrian Army besieges the strategic rebel-held city of Ma'arrat al-Nu'man in the Idlib Governorate and cuts the M5 Highway between Ma'arrat al-Nu'man and Saraqib to the north. (Middle East Eye) (Reuters)

Arts and culture

Albert II of Belgium acknowledges being Delphine Boël's biological father. (The Guardian)

Business and economy

The World Bank delays its decision on granting a US$500 million loan to Tanzania, in response to pressure from activist groups over the country’s policy of banning pregnant students from attending state schools. (CNN)
Brazil's antitrust authority ruled in favor of a pending acquisition of the commercial aviation division of Embraer S.A. by Boeing, without restrictions. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

2020 United States Air Force E-11A crash
- A United States Air Force E-11A aircraft crashes and catches fire in Ghazni Province, eastern Afghanistan. All five people on board are killed. (BBC) (Voice of America)
2020 Brazilian floods and mudslides
- Widespread flooding and landslides in Brazil cause 50 deaths and force thousands to evacuate their homes. (Fox News)
Caspian Airlines Flight 6936
- A Caspian Airlines passenger airliner crash lands on a runway and skids onto a major highway in Mahshahr, Iran, leaving 2 injured. (Sky News)
A fire destroys at least 35 houseboats moored along the Tennessee River in Scottsboro, Alabama, United States, killing eight people. (Sky News)

Health and environment

2019–20 Wuhan coronavirus outbreak
- Chinese Premier Li Keqiang visits Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak, to direct epidemic prevention.(Reuters)
- Six travelers from China are denied entry and turned away from Samoa following the island country's introduction of a ban on all travelers from China. They later arrive in Fiji, where they are quarantined with no symptoms. These strict regulations come after a measles outbreak ravaged Samoa last month. (RNZ)
- Germany confirms its first case of novel coronavirus in the state of Bavaria. The infected man has been placed in an isolation ward and the risk of further infection is currently considered to be "low", according to the Bavarian Health Ministry. (Deutsche Welle)

Law and crime

A court in Cairo, Egypt, sentences 37 people to prison terms, including eight to life imprisonment for supporting or joining Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant affiliate in the Sinai Province. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

Politics of Slovenia
- Slovenian Prime Minister Marjan Šarec submits his resignation after losing the parliamentary support of The Left party in November and calls for snap elections. (Reuters)
2019–20 Lebanese protests
- The Lebanese government votes 49–13, with eight abstentions and the rest boycotting, to pass the government budget in the midst of escalating protests. The budget projects a deficit of six percent, with no new taxes and most of the cuts going to the state utility company Électricité du Liban. Economists criticize the bill for failing to address the issues that caused the protests. (Al Jazeera)

January 26, 2020 (Sunday)

edithistorywatch

Armed conflicts and attacks

War in Afghanistan (2001–present)
- Afghan forces launch ground and air operations against the Taliban, killing 51 of them in nine provinces of the country. Afghanistan's Ministry of Defense say that the military conducted thirteen ground offensives and twelve airstrikes. In the northern province of Balkh, local officials say that three women and four children were killed. (Reuters)
Syrian Civil War, Northwestern Syria offensive (November 2019–present)
- Syrian government forces retake several cities in the Idlib Province area, amid a push from Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to recapture the last rebel strongholds. (Reuters)
Mali War
- Nineteen Malian soldiers are killed in an attack on an army camp. No group has claimed responsibility. (France24)
Iraqi protests (2019–present)
- Amid further heavy clashes in Baghdad rockets hit the United States embassy wounding at least one. (Al Jazeera)(The Guardian)

Arts and culture

62nd Annual Grammy Awards
- Billie Eilish sweeps the major categories winning Song of the Year, Record of the Year, Album of the Year, and Best New Artist. (Los Angeles Times)

Disasters and accidents

At least 39 people are dead in the Brazilian states of Minas Gerais and Espírito Santo after heavy rains hit the country's southeast region. (VEJA)
Death of Kobe Bryant
- Retired NBA player Kobe Bryant, his daughter and seven other people are killed in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, California, U.S. (ABC News)

Health and environment

2019–20 Wuhan coronavirus outbreak
- A leading group on the prevention and control of the novel coronavirus outbreak is established, led by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang. The leading group decides to extend the Spring Festival holiday to contain the coronavirus outbreak. (Xinhua News)

Politics and elections

2020 Peruvian parliamentary election
- People in Peru head to the polls to elect the members of the country's congress after its dissolution in September 2019. (BBC)
Trump–Ukraine scandal
- An unpublished manuscript of former National Security Advisor John Bolton's book The Room Where It Happened reveals that President Donald Trump told him that unfreezing military aid to Ukraine was conditional on their performing investigations into Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton. (The New York Times)

January 25, 2020 (Saturday)

edithistorywatch

Armed conflicts and attacks

Two women, one of them pregnant, are killed and seven others are injured when artillery hits a Rohingya village in Rakhine State. The locals blame Myanmar's armed forces. The armed forces deny responsibility and blame the Arakan Army, and say the artillery hit the village amid ethnic clashes. (Reuters)
Iraqi protests (2019–present)
- Iraqi security forces raid a protest site in Baghdad and try to remove protesters in southern cities, firing tear gas and live bullets, killing four and wounding dozens more. The raid comes after Muqtada al-Sadr ordered his followers to withdraw. (Reuters)