The Justice Department announced charges against 10 Iranian nationals on Friday for running a nearly 20-year-long scheme to evade U.S. sanctions on the government of Iran.
Why it matters: The DOJ said the defendants, who are believed to be outside the U.S., helped the country evade sanctions by disguising more than $300 million worth of transactions through front companies in the U.S., Canada, Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates.
COVID-19 cases are spiking at an "exponential rate" in Germany and there may not be enough vaccine doses to avoid a third wave, German Health Minister Jens Spahn warned at a press conference on Friday, according to Deutsche Welle.
Why it matters: The deteriorating health situation means that Germany may need to consider more restrictive measures, halting reopening plans, Spahn noted.
U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Friday received his first dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine and said he "did not feel a thing."
Why it matters: Public leaders around the world have gone live on air to receive their coronavirus jabs to boost confidence in the vaccines' efficacy. In the U.S., both President Biden and Vice President Harris received their vaccines on TV.
The House adopted a resolution condemning the military coup in Myanmar with a 398-14 vote.
Why it matters: Protesters have been demonstrating in cities across Myanmar for more than a month, demanding the Feb. 1 coup that ended the country's transition to democracy be reversed. All votes against the resolution on Friday came from Republicans.
The Biden administration on Thursday took a modest first step toward sharing coronavirus vaccines with the world, announcing that it intends to send 1.5 million AstraZeneca doses to Canada and 2.5 million to Mexico.
Why it matters: The vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University hasn't been approved in the U.S., and the White House has faced growing criticism for sitting on doses that could be used elsewhere
Secretary of State Antony Blinken and National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan are in Anchorage in the middle of their first meeting with their Chinese counterparts.
The big picture: After the tumult of the Trump administration, Chinese diplomats have gone into the meeting openly calling for the re-establishment of “strategic dialogue” and a more cooperative relationship. But the chances of that look slim.
Paris and other regions within France will enter a month-long lockdown starting Friday as coronavirus cases, hospitalizations and deaths across the country spike, Prime Minister Jean Castex announced Thursday, according to Le Parisien.
Driving the news: The lockdown, the third for France's capital city since the start of the pandemic, will include the closure of nonessential businesses, a curfew and restrictions on outdoor trips.
The European Medicines Agency on Thursday declared that the COVID-19 developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University is "safe and effective," giving a nod of approval for European nations to resume using the inoculation.
Why it matters: It comes after vaccination was halted across much of Europe, following reports that a small number of patients who received the vaccine experienced blood clots. EMA Executive Director Emer Cooke said Thursday the vaccine benefits "outweigh the possible risks."
The UAE suspended plans for a summit in Abu Dhabi with Israel, the U.S. and Arab states in protest of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu's attempts to use Abu Dhabi's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed (MBZ) as a prop in his election campaign, U.S. sources briefed on the matter told me.
Why it matters: This is the first big crisis between the UAE and Israel since the announcement of the normalization relations last August.
21 states filed a lawsuit against President Biden on Wednesday over his executive order to rescind permits for the Keystone XL oil pipeline.
Driving the news: The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court in Texas, aims to overturn Biden's decision, arguing that he overstepped his authority by ordering a cross-border permit for the Canada-U.S. pipeline to be revoked.
