February 4, 2022 (Friday)
Health and environment
- COVID-19 pandemic
- COVID-19 pandemic in Europe
- COVID-19 pandemic in Austria
- Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen signs a law that makes the country the first in the European Union to mandate that people over the age of 18 years receive the COVID-19 vaccine after the Bundesrat voted 47–12 yesterday to approve the law. (The Guardian)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Russia
- Russia reports a record for the 15th consecutive day of 168,201 new COVID-19 cases, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 12.45 million. (Interfax)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Turkey
- Turkey reports a record 111,157 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours. (Hürriyet Daily News)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Austria
- COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
- The United States surpasses 900,000 deaths from COVID-19. (Al Jazeera)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Europe
Law and crime
- Whaling in Iceland
- Iceland announces it will end the practice of whaling by 2024, citing the decreasing price of whale meat. (Al Jazeera)
Politics and elections
- Politics of Montenegro, 2022 Montenegrin crisis
- The Government of Zdravko Krivokapić is ousted after a motion of no confidence passes 43–11. (Deutsche Welle)
Sports
- 2022 Winter Olympics
- The 2022 Winter Olympics begin in Beijing. (CNN)
- Dutch journalist Sjoerd den Daas is interrupted and dragged away by a Chinese security guard as he broadcasts live from the ongoing Olympics. (Newsweek)
- Iran–United States relations
- An American visa is denied for an Iranian national wrestling team that had a coach who advocated Death to America. (Fox News)