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Hard Numbers: Myanmar's deadliest day, Brazil's COVID deaths peak again, Italy blocks Australia jabs, "Buttergate" in Canada

A Myanmar citizen living in India burns a poster of Myanmar's army chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing with his face crossed out, during a protest organised by Chin Refugee Committee, against the military coup in Myanmar, in New Delhi, India, March 3, 2021.

38: At least 38 people were killed in Myanmar Wednesday, the bloodiest day since the military staged a coup there last month. Witnesses described scenes like "a war zone" when armed forces opened fire on peaceful protesters in cities across the Southeast Asian country.

1,910: Brazil recorded 1,910 COVID deaths on Wednesday, the highest daily toll since the virus first emerged there over a year ago. Brazil, which has recorded the second highest COVID death toll behind the US, is trying to contain a new variant that scientists say is more contagious, and its vaccine rollout is off to a patchy start.

250,000: Italy has blocked 250,000 doses of the AstraZeneca jab from being delivered to Australia after the EU introduced stricter rules for exporting vaccines in an attempt to make up for the bloc's sluggish vaccine rollout.

12.4: In Canada, butter purchases jumped 12.4 percent in 2020, as stay-at-home orders stirred up massive interest in making bread and baking cakes. But now there is controversy in cakeland! Canadians have hit social media to complain that their butter isn't softening as easily as it should. The mystery — dubbed "Buttergate" — has prompted the dairy industry to weigh in with its own findings.

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People search for casualties under the rubble of a collapsed building in the aftermath of earthquakes, in Caracas, Venezuela, on June 25, 2026.
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The death toll from the Venezuelan earthquakes continues to rise, nearing 600 by Friday morning. But as is often the case with natural disasters of this scale, there will be a political dynamic too.