May 22, 2021 (Saturday)
Arts and culture
- Eurovision Song Contest 2021
- Måneskin, representing Italy, wins in the final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 which took place in Rotterdam, Netherlands, with the song "Zitti e buoni". It is the first time that the country has won since 1990. (Eurovision.tv)
- The United Kingdom becomes the first country to achieve "Nul points" from both the televote and jury since the current voting system was implemented in 2016. (News.com.au)
Disasters and accidents
- Gansu ultramarathon disaster
- Twenty-one runners die and eight more are injured when high winds and freezing rain strike a long-distance race in Jingtai, Gansu, China. (BBC News)
- 2021 Mount Nyiragongo eruption
- Mount Nyiragongo, located in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, erupts. Thousands evacuate from the nearby city of Goma. (BBC News)
Health and environment
- COVID-19 pandemic
- COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
- COVID-19 pandemic in India
- India releases information on a second, deadlier form of "white fungus" infection that has begun spreading among patients initially placed at risk because of COVID-19. The newly identified white fungus is known as candidiasis. Steroid treatment can cause white fungal infection in COVID patients while unsterile use of oxygen cylinders can also be a cause. White fungus infection is more dangerous because it rapidly affects vital organs and genitals along with the mouth, stomach and skin. The antifungal drugs fluconazole, itraconazole, caspofungin, and micafungin are being prescribed to treat patients. (New Indian Express)
- India's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology writes to all social media companies asking them to remove content referring to an "Indian variant" of COVID-19. (Reuters)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia
- The government announces additional restrictions for the third movement control order, including mandating 80% of public sector workers and 40% of private sector workers to work from home, restricting the operating hours of businesses from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. and reducing the capacity of public transport and other mass transportation vehicles to 50 percent. These new restrictions will take effect on May 25. (Malay Mail)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Sri Lanka
- Sri Lanka reports a record 46 deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide death toll to 1,178. (Colombo Page)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Thailand, Lineage B.1.351
- Thailand reports its first locally transmitted cases of the South African Lineage B.1.351 variant in three test samples from a cluster of infections that could be linked to illegal immigration in the southern portion of the country. (The Star)
- COVID-19 pandemic in India
- COVID-19 pandemic in Argentina
- A nationwide lockdown begins as President Alberto Fernández says that the country is experiencing its worst moment of the pandemic. As the number of cases increases, only essential personnel are allowed to travel freely for the next nine days. (BBC News)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Italy, COVID-19 vaccination in Italy
- Italy reaches a milestone of 30 million COVID-19 vaccine doses administered, with 9.85 million people fully vaccinated. (Al-Arabiya English)
- COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
- Australia reports that it is suffering a plague of mice across New South Wales, from the Queensland border all the way to Victoria. Mice are chewing through walls and ceilings, and are estimated to have caused $100 million in damage to crops and grain stores. Homeowners setting traps are reporting catching 500 to 600 mice per night. (9News)
International relations
- Bangladesh–Israel relations
- Bangladesh removes a passage from its passport saying that it cannot be used for travel to and from Israel, thereby formally lifting the travel ban. (Jerusalem Post)
- Belgium–Democratic Republic of the Congo relations
- Belgian officials announce that they will return the remains of Congolese independence leader Patrice Lumumba to his family, which is just a single tooth as his body was dissolved in acid following his assassination in 1961. The handover ceremony is expected to take place on either June 21 or 22 in Brussels. (Yahoo! News)
Law and crime
- 2020–2021 United States racial unrest
- New footage reveals that William Jennette, a truck driver, died in the Marshall County jail while gasping for breath minutes after police officers held him face down, with one taunting, "You shouldn't be able to breathe." Jennette's official post-mortem examination had ruled the death to be a homicide. (BBC News)
Politics and elections
- International protests over the 2021 Israel–Palestine crisis
- Protests against Benjamin Netanyahu
- Protests form outside the residence of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem, accusing him of intentionally escalating the conflict between Israel and the Gaza Strip in order to maintain his power. (Jerusalem Post)
- Over 180,000 protesters gather in Hyde Park in London to show solidarity with Palestine, making it the largest pro-Palestinian protest in British history. Protests also occur in Bristol, Peterborough, and Nottingham. (The Guardian)
- Over 1,000 people gather at the Place de la République in Paris to protest in solidarity with Palestine. Unlike protests that occurred earlier this month, this one was approved by authorities. (UrduPoint)
- Protests against Benjamin Netanyahu
- 2021 Myanmar coup d'état
- In his first interview since the coup, junta leader Min Aung Hlaing says that deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi is in good health and that she will appear in court soon. (Reuters)
- April 2021 Samoan general election, 2021 Samoan constitutional crisis
- The Samoan head of state, Tuimalealiifano Va'aletoa Sualauvi II, issues a proclamation preventing the Legislative Assembly of Samoa from meeting on May 24 without explanation, triggering a constitutional crisis. Opposition leader Naomi Mataʻafa of FAST was expected to be elected prime minister at the upcoming session following a Supreme Court ruling upholding the results of the general election. (Samoa Observer) (RNZ)
- Nepali President Bidya Devi Bhandari dissolves parliament and calls for new elections in November. Her office says that the decision was made on the recommendation of Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli. This is the second time in six months that the parliament has been dissolved amidst a political crisis. (DW)
Sports
- 2020–21 La Liga
- Atlético Madrid win La Liga for the first time since the 2013–14 season, after defeating Real Valladolid 2–1 on the final matchday. (The Independent)
- 2020–21 Bundesliga
- FC Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski scores his 41st goal of the season in a 5–2 win against FC Augsburg during the final matchday, setting the Bundesliga record for the highest number of goals scored by a player in a single season, which was previously held by Gerd Müller for scoring 40 goals during the 1971–72 season. (The Irish Times)