World
Robinhood restricts trading in shares including GameStop amid dizzying run-up
News/Business: The strange saga of GameStop took a new twist on Thursday, as trading brokerage Robinhood put restrictions on trading in the company's shares, a move that's sure to draw the ire of the app's merry band of stock-swapping Redditors.
Near-total abortion ban takes effect in Poland amid protests
News/World: A near-total ban on abortion has taken effect in Poland and triggered a new round of nationwide protests three months after a top court ruled that the abortion of congenitally damaged fetuses is unconstitutional.
Russia detains Navalny's allies, warns social networks
News/World: Russian authorities on Thursday detained several allies of opposition leader Alexei Navalny and issued warnings to social media giants after tens of thousands of people took to the streets in over 100 Russian cities last weekend to demand his release.
WHO experts in Wuhan leave quarantine to start virus origins study
News/World: A World Health Organization team emerged from quarantine in the Chinese city of Wuhan on Thursday to start field work in a fact-finding mission on the origins of the virus that caused the COVID-19 pandemic.
Why Reddit pumped GameStop shares up 1,000% on a lark to make short sellers lose their shirts
News/Business: Shares in an obscure video game retailer have gained more than 1,000 per cent in recent weeks as an army of online investors are waging war against Wall Street behemoths they resent for their power, money and influence.
Auschwitz survivors mark anniversary of liberation online amid pandemic
News/World: A Jewish prayer for the souls of the people murdered in the Holocaust echoed Wednesday over where the Warsaw ghetto stood during the Second World War, as a world paused by the coronavirus pandemic observed the 76th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.
Biden pauses oil and gas leases, cuts subsidies to act on climate
News/Technology & Science: U.S. President Joe Biden signed a raft of executive actions on Wednesday to combat climate change, including pausing new oil and gas leases on federal land and cutting fossil fuel subsidies, as he pursues green policies he billed as a boon to the economy.
Indonesia's most active volcano erupts
News/World/World Photos: Indonesia's Mount Merali erupted Wednesday, forcing more than 150 people, mostly elderly, living within five kilometres of the crater to flee. It was Merapi's biggest lava flow since authorities raised its danger level in November. The volcano is on the densely populated island of Java.
U.S. warns of heightened domestic terrorism threat after election, Capitol riot
News/World: The United States could face a heightened threat of domestic extremist violence for weeks from people angry at Donald Trump's election defeat and inspired by the deadly storming of the U.S. Capitol, the Department of Homeland Security warned on Wednesday.
Doomsday Clock hovers dangerously close to midnight, as experts warn of 'crossroads' on climate change
News/Technology & Science: The Doomsday Clock, introduced in 1947 as a symbolic representation of how close humanity is to destroying civilization, remains at 100 seconds to midnight, as experts warn the world is at a 'crossroads' on climate change, but see some positive developments.
Man pleads guilty to conspiracy over plot to kidnap Michigan governor
News/World: One of six men charged in connection with an alleged plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer pleaded guilty Wednesday to conspiracy, admitting that the group discussed an incredible scheme to snatch her at her lakeside vacation home and destroy a bridge to slow down police.
GameStop's stock run hits 1000% as 2 Wall Street hedge funds admit defeat and bail out at huge loss
News/Business: A pair of professional investment firms that placed big bets that money-losing video game retailer GameStop's stock will crash have admitted defeat in the David vs. Goliath battle that has seen retail investors on Reddit drive shares to record high after record high — forcing billions of dollars in losses to Wall Street firms along the way.
Battling COVID-19 resurgence, South Africa prepares for first vaccines
News/World: Battling a COVID-19 resurgence driven by what health officials say is a more infectious variant, South Africa is preparing to roll out its first vaccines to front-line health-care workers. A delivery of one million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine is expected to arrive imminently at Johannesburg's international airport.
Bill Gates says gap in vaccine rollout between rich and poor countries will be '6 to 8 months, best case'
News/World: Poorer countries face a best-case scenario of a six- to eight-month lag behind richer nations in getting access to COVID-19 vaccines, philanthropist Bill Gates said on Wednesday.
