India saw its deadliest day of the pandemic yet with more than 4,180 confirmed COVID-19 deaths reported Saturday.
Why it matters: The country has recorded more than 21.8 million coronavirus cases and 238,270 deaths since the pandemic began. The true numbers, however, are likely much higher, experts say, as the country battles a continued surge in cases that has left hospitals and health workers overwhelmed.
A massive booster rocket from a Chinese Long March 5B launch vehicle is expected to fall back to Earth in an "uncontrolled reentry" this weekend, though experts don't really know where debris from the rocket will land.
The state of play: China's space agency has said it expects most of the rocket to burn up in Earth's atmosphere. The chance of debris from the rocket actually landing in a populated area is low — but there is still a chance.
European leaders ramped up their criticism of the United States' support for a proposal to waive certain patent protections for coronavirus vaccines, with European Council President Charles Michel saying Saturday that a waiver is not "the magic bullet,” AP reports.
Why it matters: The leaders instead pressed President Biden to lift U.S. export restrictions on vaccines, arguing it would have a greater impact on vaccine production and distribution.
State Department officials spoke to their Israeli and Palestinian counterparts on Friday night and asked them to de-escalate the situation in Jerusalem and the West Bank, U.S. and Israeli officials said.
Why it matters: This is the first crisis between Israel and the Palestinians the Biden administration faces as it reengages with the Palestinians after a long freeze in the relations during the Trump presidency.
Several Asian countries are facing new coronavirus waves, with some struggling to keep up with some of the worst outbreaks since the beginning of the pandemic.
The big picture: While India accounted for half of the global infections this past week, per the World Health Organization, cases are surging in countries such as Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Cambodia, CNN reports.
At least 178 Palestinians have been injured in clashes with Israeli police in Jerusalem, Reuters reported late Friday.
The big picture: The clashes come amid growing anger over the threatened eviction of Palestinians from their homes on land claimed by Jewish settlers in East Jerusalem. Tensions have also escalated in the occupied West Bank in recent weeks.
The World Health Organization authorized China’s Sinopharm’s COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use on Friday, making it the sixth vaccine to receive clearance from the global health agency.
Why it matters: The authorization will allow COVAX, the WHO's initiative to equitably develop and distribute coronavirus vaccines, to purchase Sinopharm's vaccine and bolster its supply, according to the New York Times.
Amnesty International announced Friday that it would restore jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny's status as a "prisoner of conscience," apologizing to Navalny and Russian activists for revoking the designation in February.
Why it matters: Amnesty made the decision to strip the Russian opposition leader of the status after being flooded with complaints — which the group acknowledged appeared to be "part of a coordinated campaign abroad to discredit" Navalny — about his past xenophobic comments.
Slow global COVID-19 vaccination rates are raising concerns that worse variants of the coronavirus could be percolating, ready to rip into the world before herd immunity can diminish their impact.
Why it matters: The U.S. aims to at least partially vaccinate 70% of adults by July 4, a move expected to accelerate the current drop of new infections here. But variants are the wild card, and in a global pandemic where only about 8% of all people have received one dose, the virus will continue mutating unabated.
