Portal:Current events

Worldwide current events · Sports events

Topics in the news

NASA launches the MAVEN probe to Mars.
Fifty people are killed when a Tatarstan Airlines Boeing 737 crashes in Kazan, Russia.
Abdulla Yameen is elected president of the Maldives.
Sachin Tendulkar (pictured) retires from all forms of cricket.
The prime ministers of Canada, India and Mauritius boycott the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Colombo, Sri Lanka, over allegations of war crimes and human rights abuses.
At Christie's in New York City, Francis Bacon's Three Studies of Lucian Freud sells for US$142.4 million, a record price for a work of art sold at auction.

Recent deaths: Doris Lessing – John Tavener

November 19, 2013 (Tuesday)

edit

history

watch

Armed conflict and attacks

Syrian civil war spillover in Lebanon:
- Two suicide bombers target the Iranian embassy in the Lebanese capital Beirut killing at least 23 people. (Reuters via ABC News Australia)
War in Somalia (2009–present):
- An African Union base in Beledweyne, Somalia, is stormed by armed attackers, resulting in the deaths of 19 people. (BBC)
Syrian Civil War:
- The Syrian Army captures the town of Qarah. (AP via The Hindu)

Arts and culture

The United States commemorates the 150th anniversary of the Gettysburg Address. (Sydney Morning Herald)

Business and economy

Bombardier, a Canadian manufacturer, signs a letter of intent to sell Iraq's national carrier five CSeries jets with options for 11 more. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

Typhoon Haiyan:
- The World Bank offers a US$500 million loan to the Philippines. (NBC News)
At least 18 people are dead after Cyclone Cleopatra hits the Italian island of Sardinia, causing heavy floods. (BBC)
An under construction shopping mall collapses in the South African town of Tongaat, KwaZulu-Natal, with 50 people trapped and at least one person dead. (AFP via the Melbourne Age)

Law and crime

Virginia State Senator Creigh Deeds was stabbed multiple times at his home. His son, Gus was found dead from a gunshot wound in the home. (CBS News)
George Zimmerman is accused of felony aggravated assault and other charges for interactions with his current girlfriend. (BBC News)

Politics and elections

Voters in Nepal start voting to elect a Constituent Assembly to draw up a new Constitution. (Reuters)

November 18, 2013 (Monday)

edit

history

watch

Armed conflicts and attacks

A gunman attacks the offices of the newspaper Libération and the bank Société Générale in Paris, three days after attacking the offices of the news channel BFM TV. (BBC)

Disasters and accidents

Typhoon Haiyan:
- Philippine President Benigno Aquino III encamps in Tacloban to oversee the rescue and relief operations after receiving criticism for his disorganized response early into the tragedy. (USA Today)
At least twenty people are dead after an Egyptian train collides with a minibus and other vehicles south of Cairo. (BBC)
Mounts Merapi and Sinabung erupt in Indonesia forcing residents of Central Java and North Sumatra to flee. (Fox News)

International relations

Destruction of Syria's chemical weapons
- Belgium ruled itself out as a candidate to host the destruction of Syria's chemical weapons stockpile and said it would prefer the arsenal to be eradicated close to Syria itself. (AP)
Indonesia recalls its ambassador to Australia and will "review" Australian diplomatic positions in Jakarta following revelations that Australia had tapped the phone of the President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his wife. (Sydney Morning Herald)

Science and technology

NASA successfully launches its MAVEN space probe on a mission to study Mars' atmosphere. (The Verge)

November 17, 2013 (Sunday)

edit

history

watch

Armed conflicts and attacks

Post-civil war violence in Libya:
- Libya's deputy intelligence chief Mustafa Noah is kidnapped outside Tripoli airport. (Reuters)

Arts and culture

British author Doris Lessing, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2007, dies at the age of 94. (The Independent)

Business and economy

Sony announces they sold one million PlayStation 4 units in the first day. (Joystiq)

Disasters and accidents

Typhoon Haiyan:
- The number of people displaced reaches 1.9 million people. Numbers vary between 1,000-20,000 for estimates about missing people. (NPR) (Voice of America)
- Flooding in Vietnam has killed at least 28 people with nine more missing and nearly 80,000 displaced. (Reuters)
Fifty people are killed after a passenger Boeing 737 crash lands in the city of Kazan in central Russia. (RT)
Several midwestern states in the United States are placed under multiple tornado watches, with multiple tornadoes touching down, causing at least four deaths and up to 50 injured in the area; one leveled parts of a suburb of Peoria, Illinois. (Peoria Journal Star) (CNN), (NBC News)

Politics and elections

Abdulla Yameen is sworn in as the President of the Maldives following yesterday's election victory. (ABC News Australia)
Giorgi Margvelashvili is sworn in as the President of Georgia following the victory in the October election. (Civil Georgia)
Voters in Chile go to the polls for a general election of president, senators, deputies, and regional advisers. The presidential election looks likely to go to a runoff between former President Michelle Bachelet and Evelyn Matthei of the ruling Coalition. (BBC), (Reuters)

Sports

In motorsport:
- Sebastian Vettel wins an eighth consecutive Formula One race at the 2013 United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas breaking the record previously held by Michael Schumacher. (AFP via Sydney Morning Herald)
- Jimmie Johnson wins his sixth NASCAR Sprint Cup championship title, one title short of the all-time record of seven held by both Dale Earnhardt and Richard Petty. (USA Today)

November 16, 2013 (Saturday)

edit

history

watch

Armed conflict and attacks

Syrian civil war:
- The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons agrees to a Syria arsenal destruction plan. (The Australian)
Post-civil war violence in Libya:
- Second day of fighting in Tripoli as death toll from violence at anti-militia protest topped 40. (Al Jazeera)
Islamist protests in Egypt (July 2013–present):
- Lawyers in the UK accuse Egypt's military of committing crimes against humanity after July's ouster of President Mohamed Morsi. (Al Jazeera)
War in Afghanistan (2001–present):
- Suicide car bombing in Kabul kills six people and injures twenty. (Al Jazeera)
Iraqi insurgency (post-U.S. withdrawal):
- A series of attacks in Baghdad and north Iraq kills four policemen and wounds dozens. (Daily Star)

Disasters and accidents

Typhoon Haiyan:
- David Cameron commits an additional £30 million to the victims. (BBC)

Law and crime

A San Diego, California family of four, who disappeared in 2010, is found buried in the desert; local authorities are now treating the case as multiple homicides. (CBS News)

International relations

The Brazilian Federal Police officially asks the Interpol to search and arrest in Italy the former Banco do Brasil marketing director chief, the italian Henrique Pizzolato, who has allegedly fled following a Supreme Federal Court order to arrest him for bribery, amongst others involved. (BBC) (GloboNews)
Aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya is commissioned into the Indian Navy at the Russian shipbuilding complex of Sevmash in Severodvinsk, ending a five-year delay to the $2.33 billion project. Russian deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin and Indian Defense Minister AK Antony attend the handing over ceremony. (Times of India) (RT) (Reuters)

Politics and elections

Voters in the Maldives go to the polls for a presidential election with Abdulla Yameen winning the election with 51.3% of the vote. (ABC News Australia)

Sports

Sachin Tendulkar retires from all forms of cricket following his final Test at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium, scoring 74 runs in his career's last innings. (ESPN Cricinfo)

November 15, 2013 (Friday)

edit

history

watch

Armed conflict and attacks

Syrian civil war:
- North Korea denies giving military aid to Syria. (Al Jazeera)
- Hezbollah vows to keep fighters in Syria. (News.com)
- Albania says it will not allow the destruction of Syrian chemical weapons on its soil after days of protests. (BBC)

Disasters and accidents

Typhoon Haiyan:
- The United Nations tallies the death toll to around 4,400. The Red Cross estimates that around 20,000 are still missing, many of whom are feared dead. This is contrary to a previous estimate by Benigno Aquino III, who put the death toll to a low 2,000. (NBC News)
- The official death toll is now at 3,631. (The Huffington Post)
At least five people are killed and 10 injured after four coaches of the Mangala Lakshadweep Express derail near the Indian city of Nashik in Maharashtra state. (NDTV) (Times of India)
Two people die after a light aircraft crashes near the runway at Airbus Facilities in Broughton, Flintshire. (ITV News)
12 migrants drown off the coast of Greece. (Reuters)

International relations

Gambia cuts diplomatic relations with Taiwan. (BBC)
Police in Ethiopia arrest dozens of people outside the Saudi Arabian embassy in the capital Addis Ababa who were protesting against attacks on Ethiopians in Saudi Arabia. (Al Jazeera)

Law and crime

Prosecutors in the Australian state of Queensland drop manslaughter charges against American surgeon Jayant Patel, who pleads guilty to charges of fraud. (AP)
The U.S. Supreme Court says that it will hear a securities fraud case this term that arises out of the asbestos liabilities of Halliburton, an oilfield services company. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

China is to relax some elements of its one-child policy and announces it will end its "re-education through labour" camps. (BBC) (Xinhua)
Burma announces the release of 69 political prisoners in ongoing reform. (BBC)
The Australian Electoral Commission petitions the High Court of Australia for a new Senate election in the state of Western Australia due to the loss of 1,370 ballot papers and the closeness of the result. (The Australian)
The Brazilian Supreme Federal Court issues a long-time awaited order to arrest for bribery 12 former top officials who had served under ex-president Lula, in one of the nation's biggest corruption cases. (Bloomberg)

November 14, 2013 (Thursday)

edit

history

watch

Attacks and conflicts

Iraqi insurgency (post-U.S. withdrawal):
- 39 people are killed in Iraq in attacks against Shiites Muslims. (Daily Star)
A French priest is kidnapped in Cameroon near the border with Nigeria. (BBC)

Disasters and accidents

Typhoon Haiyan:
- Philippine President Benigno Aquino III is criticized by survivors, aid agencies, and international and local media for his inadequate response to the tragedy. (BBC)

International relations

Russian ministers led by Foreign Affairs Minister Sergei Lavrov including Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu arrive in Cairo and meet with their Egypt counterparts including the head of Egypt's military General Abdel Fattah el-Sisi in talks over a new era of enhanced military co-operation. (BBC) (Reuters)
Protests are held in Albania against the proposal to bring Syria's chemical weapons stockpile to be destroyed in the country. (TIME) (The Washington Post) (Reuters)

Law and crime

Canadian police reveal that 348 people have been arrested internationally and 386 children rescued as a result of a three-year child pornography investigation called "Project Spade". (RT) (BBC)

Politics and elections

Following the heightened scrutiny from the April 2012 controversy, two U.S. Secret Service agents are relieved of duty from Barack Obama's security detail after charges of sexual harassment towards a female subordinate. (TIME)

Sport

In cricket, Indian player Sachin Tendulkar, the leading run scorer of all time, starts his 200th and final test match in Mumbai. (Sydney Morning Herald)

November 13, 2013 (Wednesday)

edit

history

watch

Armed conflicts and attacks

Syria civil war:
- Syrian army retakes strategically important Damascus suburb of Hujaira from the rebels. (Reuters)
- Four Palestinians are killed in a bombing attack at the Yarmouk refugee camp. (Maan News)
- Syrian Kurds announce transitional autonomous authority amidst fighting with rebels. (BBC)
Iraqi insurgency (post-U.S. withdrawal):
- Bombs across Iraq detonate, killing 18 people. (Voice of America)
Israeli-Palestinian conflict:
- Israel cancels proposed plans to build new settlements in the West Bank after US and Palestinian opposition. (AP via Fox News)

Arts and culture

Francis Bacon's painting of his friend Lucian Freud, Three Studies of Lucian Freud (1969), is sold for $142.4 million. (BBC)
A 14.82-carat orange diamond sets a world record after it is sold at a Christie's auction in Geneva for $35.5 million. (Forbes)
At the same auction, a pink diamond is sold for US$83.2 million, setting a new world record. BBC
One World Trade Center becomes the tallest building in the United States. (CNN)

Business and economics

Poppy farmers in Afghanistan report record yields for their opium crops. (The Guardian)
Starbucks is ordered to pay Kraft Foods $2.76 billion in damages over a dispute about packaged coffee. (BBC)

Disasters and accidents

Typhoon Haiyan:
- The official death toll in the Philippines is actually reported that 2,500 people were killed. (Newsinfo)
- The total international aid for the typhoon victims reaches over $140 million. (CNN)
Four members of the United States Marine Corps are killed after ordnance accidentally explodes after a training exercise at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton in Southern California. (NBC News)

Politics and elections

The United States State Department designates Boko Haram as a "terrorist" group. (Reuters)
China, Russia, Cuba, Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, and Algeria are elected to the United Nations Human Rights Council. (The Washington Post))
Kevin Rudd announces his retirement from Australian politics. (Herald Sun)
Wikileaks publishes a secret draft chapter of the Trans-Pacific Partnership. (The Guardian)
The United States Government announces that 106,185 people signed up for health insurance through the Health Insurance Marketplace as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act during its first month of release on October. (The New York Times)

Science and technology

A gigantic iceberg is floating in the Southern Ocean after breaking off the Pine Island Glacier in Antarctica. (The Australian)
Scientists discover Panthera blytheae in Tibet, the oldest big cat fossil ever discovered. (Los Angles Times)
WWF releases a photo, taken by a camera trap in a forest in central Vietnam in September, of one of Earth's rarest mammals, the saola, which hadn’t been seen in 15 years. (The Washington Post)

More November 2013 events...

Ongoing events
Economic Great Recession Eurozone crisis Greek government-debt crisis Environmental 2013 Atlantic hurricane season 2013 extreme weather events 2013 North Indian Ocean cyclone season 2013 Pacific hurricane season 2013 Pacific typhoon season Political 2013 mass surveillance disclosures More details on ongoing conflicts below edit sidebar

Recent deaths
November 18: Peter Wintonick 17: Syd Field 17: Doris Lessing 17: Nicholas Mevoli 16: Zbyněk Hejda 16: Louis D. Rubin, Jr. 15: Glafcos Clerides 15: Raimondo D'Inzeo 15: Mike McCormack 15: Barbara Park 14: Hari Krishna Devsare 14: Barbara Handman 13: Todd Christensen 12: Mavis Batey 12: Al Ruscio 12: Aleksandr Serebrov 12: John Tavener 12: William Weaver 11: Shirley Mitchell 10: Safdar Rahmat Abadi 9: Steve Prescott 7: John Cole 7: Ian Davies 7: Joey Manley 7: Jack Mitchell 7: Manfred Rommel 6: Peter Fatialofa 6: Dan Lurie 6: Ace Parker 5: Habibollah Asgaroladi 5: Charlie Trotter 4: John D. Hawk 4: Ray Willsey 3: William J. Coyne 3: Leonard Long 3: Reshma 2: Walt Bellamy 2: Ghislaine Dupont 1: Hakimullah Mehsud 1: Bobby Parker 1: Editta Sherman October 31: Chris Chase 31: Gérard de Villiers 31: Johnny Kucks 30: Michael Palmer 30: Frank Wess 29: Sherman Halsey 28: Eunice Kazembe 28: Tadeusz Mazowiecki 28: Ike Skelton 28: Aleksandar Tijanić 27: Lou Reed 26: Doug Ireland 25: Arthur Danto 25: Nigel Davenport 25: Hal Needham 25: Augusto Odone 25: Paul Reichmann 25: Bill Sharman 25: Marcia Wallace 24: Manna Dey 24: Manolo Escobar 24: Reggie Rogers 24: Nyanasamvara Suvaddhana 23: Anthony Caro 23: Niall Donoghue 21: Bud Adams 21: Major Owens 20: Jovanka Broz 20: Don James 20: Jamalul Kiram III 20: Lawrence Klein 20: Émile Louis 19: Noel Harrison 19: Ronald Shannon Jackson 19: Vladimir Keilis-Borok 18: Francisco Rafael Arellano Félix 18: Naomi Conner 18: Felix Dexter 18: Tom Foley 18: Bum Phillips 18: Allan Stanley 18: Bill Young edit sidebar

Ongoing conflicts
Global War on Drugs War on Terror Operation Active Endeavour Operation Enduring Freedom Terrorist incidents, July–December 2013 Africa Lord's Resistance Army insurgency Maghreb insurgency OEF – Horn of Africa OEF – Trans Sahara Egypt Political violence Sinai insurgency Libya Libyan factional fighting Nigeria Niger Delta conflict Islamist insurgency in Nigeria Somalia Civil war Sudan and South Sudan Sudan internal conflict South Sudan internal conflict Americas Colombian conflict Mexican Drug War Asia Afghanistan War Military operations Taliban insurgency India Naxalite–Maoist insurgency Islamic insurgency in the Philippines Operation Enduring Freedom – Philippines Korea Korean maritime border conflict Pakistan Balochistan conflict North-West War Sectarian violence Southeast Asia Cambodian–Thai border dispute Kachin conflict Papua conflict South Thailand insurgency Territorial disputes in the South China Sea Europe Dissident Irish Republican campaign North Caucasus insurgency War in Ingushetia Middle East Arab–Israeli conflict Gaza–Israel conflict Israeli–Lebanese conflict Israeli–Palestinian conflict Israel–Iran proxy conflict Iraqi insurgency Kurdistan Kurdish–Iranian conflict Syrian civil war Yemen al-Qaeda crackdown Shia insurgency South Yemen insurgency edit sidebar

Elections
Recent: October 4: Ireland, Constitutional referendum 7: Ethiopia, President (indirect) 9: Azerbaijan, President 20: Luxembourg, General 20: San Marino, Referendum 25: Madagascar, President (1st round) 25–26: Czech Republic, Legislative 27: Argentina, Legislative 27: Georgia, President Recent: November 6: Tajikistan, President 7: Falkland Islands, General 9: Maldives, President (1st round; re–run) 16: Maldives, President (2nd round; re–run) 17: Chile, President (1st round) and parliament Upcoming: November 19: Nepal, Constituent Assembly 23: Mauritania, Parliament (1st round) 24: Guinea-Bissau, General 24: Honduras, General 24: Mali, Parliament (1st round) edit sidebar

Trials
Recently concluded Canada: Michael Thomas Rafferty China: Bo Xilai Croatia: Ivo Sanader Germany: Breno Borges Indonesia: Abu Bakar Bashir Italy: Silvio Berlusconi Netherlands: Ante Gotovina (ICTY), Mladen Markač (ICTY), Momčilo Perišić (ICTY) Norway: Anders Behring Breivik Russia: Leonid Khabarov, Vladimir Kvachkov, Pussy Riot Sierra Leone: Charles Taylor (SCFSL) South Africa: Chris Mahlangu Ukraine: Yulia Tymoshenko United Kingdom: Levi Bellfield, Robert Black, Vincent Tabak, Ali Dizaei, Antoni Imiela, Brian Regan, Donna Air, Ched Evans, Clayton McDonald, Titus Bramble, Dan Penteado, John Terry, Iftikhar and Farzana Ahmed, Asil Nadir, Justin Lee Collins, Kweku Adoboli, Tony McCluskie, Kevin Hutchinson-Foster, Chris Huhne, Nicola Edgington, Vicky Pryce, Derek Rose, Mick Philpott, Mairead Philpott, Paul Mosley, Kevin Liverpool, Junior Bradshaw, Aggro Santos, Stuart Hall, Stuart Hazell, Mark Bridger, Andrew Lancel, Dale Cregan, Ray Wilkins, Michael Le Vell, Liam Adams United States: Noshir Gowadia, Buju Banton, Barry Bonds, Raj Rajaratnam, Casey Anthony, Conrad Murray, George Huguely, Allen Stanford, Roger Clemens, Jerry Sandusky, Jared Lee Loughner, Lauryn Hill, Kermit Gosnell, George Zimmerman, Chelsea Manning, Ariel Castro, Whitey Bulger, Robert Bales, Nidal Malik Hasan Ongoing Brazil: Mensalão scandal Cambodia: Khmer Rouge Tribunal Canada: Luka Magnotta China: Organized crime in Chongqing Egypt: Mohamed Morsi, Hosni Mubarak France: Church of Scientology Germany: Christian Wulff, Beate Zschape Hong Kong: Alfredo Lim Iraq: Supreme Criminal Tribunal Malaysia: Anwar Ibrahim Netherlands: Thomas Lubanga (ICC), Radovan Karadžić (ICTY), Ratko Mladic (ICTY) Palau: Tommy Remengesau Philippines: Andal Ampatuan, Jr., Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, Janet Lim-Napoles, Nur Misuari, Jovito Palparan Russia: Platon Lebedev Sudan: Lubna al-Hussein Thailand: Thaksin Shinawatra Turkey: Ergenekon network, Kenan Evren United Kingdom: Michael Adebolajo and Michael Adebowale, Rebekah Brooks and Andy Coulson, William Roache, Eddy Shah, Koo Stark United States: Jodi Arias Upcoming France: Éric Raoult Ivory Coast: Laurent Gbagbo Jordan: Abu Qatada Libya: Saif al-Islam Gaddafi South Africa: Oscar Pistorius United Kingdom: Dane Bowers, Max Clifford, Ian Watkins, Neville Neville, Nicholas Jacobs United States: Javaris Crittenton, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Peter Madoff, Christian Gerhartsreiter, Crystal Mangum, Dylan Quick, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, James Eagan Holmes, Aaron Hernandez, Graham Spanier, Tim Curley, Gary Schultz edit sidebar

Events by month

2013: January; February; March; April; May; June; July; August

2012: January; February; March; April; May; June; July; August; September; October; November; December

2011: January; February; March; April; May; June; July; August; September; October; November; December

Content listings

Lists

Indices

Portal:Current events

Economic

Environmental

Political

November

October

Global

Africa

Americas

Asia

Europe

Middle East

Recent: October

Recent: November

Upcoming: November

Recently concluded

Ongoing

Upcoming

Navigation menu

Personal tools

Namespaces

Variants

Views

Actions

Search

Navigation

Interaction

Tools

Print/export

Languages