Hard Numbers: Biden sanctions Myanmar generals, Twitter caves to India, COVID cases slow in US, the cost of Brexit

Hard Numbers: Biden sanctions Myanmar generals, Twitter caves to India, COVID cases slow in US, the cost of Brexit
A placard is displayed outside the Central Bank of Myanmar during a protest against the military coup in Yangon.
Reuters

1 billion: The Biden administration has frozen about $1 billion in Myanmar state funds in US bank accounts under new sanctions following the February 1 coup. The sanctions — which will have limited effect given weak trade relations between the two countries — come as the junta faces mass street protests demanding a return to democracy and the release of deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

500: Reversing the reversion of its first policy reversion on the issue, Twitter finally caved to pressure from the Indian government and blocked over 500 accounts that criticized New Delhi for its handling of the farmer-led protests against controversial new agriculture laws. But the Indians were not placated: hours later the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology responded to Twitter's decision with a post on local rival social media platform Koo.

36: The number of new coronavirus cases in the US has dropped by 36 percent in the last two weeks to just under 95,000 as of February 10. Deaths are also declining, while daily vaccination shots have almost tripled since the beginning of the year. However, COVID is still spreading across America faster than any other hard-hit populous nation — and there's growing concern over new variants causing fresh outbreaks.

2.25: The European Union estimates that Brexit will cost the UK economy 2.25 percent in lost GDP by the end of 2022, compared to how the British economy would have fared had it remained in the EU. That's more than four times the 0.5 percent contraction that Brussels predicts the EU will suffer during the same period.

More from GZERO Media

In this episode of Tools and Weapons, Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith sits down with Ed Policy, President and CEO of the Green Bay Packers, to discuss how purpose-driven leadership and innovation are shaping the future of one of the world’s most iconic sports franchises. Ed shares how technology and community-focused initiatives, from Titletown Tech to health and safety innovations on the field, are transforming not just the game of football, but the economy and culture of Green Bay itself. He explains how combining strategic vision with investment in local startups is keeping talent in the Midwest and creating opportunities that extend far beyond Lambeau Field.

Subscribe and find new episodes monthly, wherever you listen to podcasts.

The Gen Z group led by Miraj Dhungana escalates their ongoing demonstrations, confronting police outside the prime minister's official residence in Kathmandu, Nepal, on Nov. 26, 2025.
Sanjit Pariyar/NurPhoto

Youth unemployment is making headlines from China to Canada, with many countries’ rates at historic highs. The fallout is fueling Gen Z discontent, creating migration pressures, and threatening social unrest in nations around the globe.

People stay at a school, which is functioned as the temporary shelter at flooded area, on November 30, 2025 in Sumatra, Sumatra. The authorities in Indonesia were searching on Sunday for hundreds of people they said were missing after days of unusually heavy rains across Southeast Asia that have killed hundreds and displaced millions.
Photo by Li Zhiquan/China News Service/VCG

800: The death toll from the tropical storm that battered parts of Southeast Asia is now close to 800.

US President Donald Trump pardons a turkey at the annual White House Thanksgiving Turkey Pardon in the Rose Garden in Washington, D.C., USA, on Nov. 25, 2025.
Andrew Leyden/NurPhoto

Although not all of our global readers celebrate Thanksgiving, it’s still good to remind ourselves that while the world offers plenty of fodder for doomscrolling and despair, there are still lots of things to be grateful for too.