INTERNATIONAL
In today’s global news:
Worldometer is tracking COVID-19 cases and fatalities.
The New York Times is tracking global vaccine distribution.
MIDDLE EAST
IRAQ
Islamic State fighters reportedly attacked an Iraqi army outpost in Diyala province late Tuesday, killing at least five soldiers and wounding another four. The attackers killed one soldier in their initial strike and subsequently ambushed an army unit sent to support the outpost.
Elsewhere, Muqtada al-Sadr seems to have had a change of heart regarding his supporters’ sit-in protest inside the Iraqi parliament building in Baghdad. Sadr, or one of his representatives (presumably following his orders) told those protesters via Twitter on Tuesday to leave the building while continuing their demonstration in Baghdad’s “Green Zone.” But on Wednesday, Sadr delivered a televised speech in which he told his supporters to stay in the building unless/until his demands for a new election and unspecified constitutional changes are met. The reason for this abrupt change of course is unclear.
