Portal:Current events

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search

Regional

World • Africa | Bangladesh | Canada | China | Europe | India | Israel | Latin America | Middle East | Pakistan | Poland | Southeast Asia | United Kingdom | United States

Topic-specific

Science and technology | Sports

Topics in the news

President of Zambia Levy Mwanawasa (pictured) dies after suffering a stroke weeks earlier.
Pervez Musharraf announces his resignation as President of Pakistan.
Michael Phelps wins his eighth gold medal of the 2008 Summer Olympics, surpassing Mark Spitz's record for most gold medals won at a single Olympics.
Usain Bolt of Jamaica wins the Olympic gold medal in the 100-metre sprint, setting a new world record of 9.69 seconds.
Maoist leader Prachanda is elected Prime Minister of Nepal, the first since the country's transition from a monarchy to a republic.
Moulaye Ould Mohamed Laghdaf is appointed Prime Minister of Mauritania, following a coup d'etat.
Russia calls an end to its military offensive in Georgia and agrees to a European Union plan for a ceasefire and peace talks, amid reports of more fighting around the city of Gori.

Olympic highlights – Wikinews – Recent deaths – More current events...

August 19, 2008 (Tuesday)

North Korea declares Sweden its enemy and a United States war puppet. (Swedish Armed Forces) (The Local)
A bomb in at a paramilitary police training academy in the town of Issers 60 km east of Algiers kills at least 43 people and injures another 38. (BBC)
French forces engage in heavy fighting with Taliban insurgents 50 kilometres east of Kabul, Afghanistan with 10 French soldiers dead. (AFP via Google News), (BBC)
2008 South Ossetia war:
- Russian and Georgian forces exchange prisoners of war (Reuters Alertnet).
- Russia begins to withdraw troops from Georgia proper according to eyewitness accounts (Reuters).
- Russia temporarily closed its borders with Georgia and Azerbaijan to prevent terrorist groups from crossing into Russia.(Delfi), (Reuters).
- A United Nations aid convoy which entered Gori on Sunday reported evidence of large-scale looting. "While the buildings did not appear to be very damaged, there are clear signs of massive looting of both shops and private accommodations," the office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees said. (The Vancouver Sun).
- Alexander Stubb, the current Chairman of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe says that Russia has agreed to a beefed-up monitoring mission for Georgia's disputed region of South Ossetia.(AP via Google News)
- NATO cools relations with Russia (BBC), (Delfi). NATO: Russia not honoring cease-fire terms (CNN).

August 18, 2008 (Monday)

Taliban militants unsuccessfully attack the United States base Camp Saleno in Khost Province. (AP via Google News)
2008 Summer Olympics:
- Russia's Yelena Isinbayeva sets a new world record of 5.05 m outdoors in the womens pole vault at the Summer Olympics Games in Beijing. (AP via Yahoo! News)
2008 South Ossetia war:
- According to general staff in Moscow, Russia has begun troop withdrawals from Georgia, following a pledge by President Dmitry Medvedev. However, 'Moscow saying it has the right to keep some troops as peacekeepers in a buffer zone around South Ossetia'. (BBC News)
- Secretary General of the OSCE Marc Perrin de Brichambaut stated on a press-conference in Vladikavkaz, capital of Northern Ossetia, that 'the will of all the people of the region' need to be 'taken into the consideration' when deciding the future of the breakaway republic of South Ossetia. ('OSCE Secretary General visits Russia's North Ossetia' - OSCE). He then added: 'I made it very clear that the people who live in South Ossetia will have a say in what happens in the country' ('Ethnic Ossetians To Have Voice In South Ossetia Status' - OSCE - Nasdaq)
  - South Ossetia had held the referendum on independence from Georgia on November, 12th, 2006 with 99% voted in favor of the independence. Both NATO and the US opposed the referendum and did not recognise its results saying it may 'exacerbate tensions' in the region. ('U.S. Rejects Independence Referendum in Georgia's South Ossetia' - America.gov), ('NATO rejects referendum in Georgia's South Ossetia region' - AP via International Herald Tribune)
- Swedish Prime Minster Fredrik Reinfeldt cancels all exercises and military ties between Sweden and Russia, saying that "[the] Russian invasion of Georgia is unacceptable and a crime against international law. The Russian action has changed [our view] of Russia as an international partner." (Prime Minister's Office) (Dagens Nyheter) (AP via The Hindu)
- NATO convenes an emergency foreign ministers meeting on the crisis. (AP via Google News)
Pakistan Presidential Impeachment
- Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, who was facing impeachment, announces his resignation as President. Indirect presidential elections will be held within 30 days. (BBC News)
A US-Poland agreement to deploy a missile defense shield prompts unnamed Russian officials to declare Poland "a legitimate military target" and the deputy of the Russian general staff states that Poland "opens itself to a nuclear strike". (AFP via Google News) (Asia Times)

August 17, 2008 (Sunday)

Ex-president Chen Shui-Bian is barred from leaving Taiwan over corruption charges. (AFP)
Gunmen massacre 14 people at a quinceañera celebration in Creel, Chihuahua, Mexico. (Xinhua)
2008 Atlantic hurricane season:
- Tropical Storm Fay kills at least 4 people in Haiti and the Dominican Republic before heading for the Florida Keys where tourists are being evacuated. (Bloomberg)
- About 50 people die as a bus is swept away by flood waters near the town of Bomont in Grand-Anse province in Haiti. (BBC News)
The Afghan National Army kills 28 Taliban insurgents as the militants attempt an ambush of a convoy in Zabul province. (Reuters)
Iran announces it has launched a satellite launch-capable Safir rocket. (Reuters) (BBC News)
2008 South Ossetia war:
- Russian troops continue to withdraw from the Georgian city of Gori, where the major Georgian army base was dismantled by Russian troops soon after the conflict ended. Two Russian APCs still remain at a checkpoint near the city, Reuters reports. (Reuters)
- The BBC's Richard Galpin, who has spent the past two days travelling from the Black Sea port of Poti to Tbilisi, says Georgian forces seem to be surrendering control of the highway to the Russians. (BBC News)
- Russia has denied claims its forces have begun withdrawing from the breakaway republic of South Ossetia. (Sky News)
2008 Summer Olympics:
- China, having won 8 gold medals in one day, overtakes its record (32 gold medals) at Athens and leads the medal table with 35 gold medals. (BBC News)
- Jamaica dominates the Athletics Women's 100 metres event with Shelly-Ann Fraser taking the gold and Sherone Simpson and Kerron Stewart taking the silver. Officially, no bronze medal is awarded as Simpson and Stewart finish with an equal time of 10.98 seconds in second place. (AP via Yahoo! News)
- Swedish wrestler Ara Abrahamian is stripped of his bronze medal in the Men's 84kg Greco-Roman category after throwing the medal to the mat and leaving the medal ceremony in protest at the officiating of his semifinal match. (Reuters)
- Constantina Diṭă-Tomescu of Romania wins the Women's Marathon with a time of 2:26:44. At 38, she is the oldest woman to win the Olympic Marathon.
- American swimmer Michael Phelps wins gold as the butterfly leg of the winning Men's 4 x 100 metre medley relay team. With the relay victory, Phelps earns his eighth gold medal (5 individual, 3 relay), setting a record for most golds at an Olympic games, beating Mark Spitz's previous record of 7 set in 1972. (Bloomberg)
- The Australian Women's 4 x 100 metre swimming relay team of Emily Seebohm, Leisel Jones, Jessicah Schipper and Libby Trickett wins the gold medal in world record time. (Reuters)

August 16, 2008 (Saturday)

2008 South Ossetia war:
- Georgian officials claim Abkhazian army, backed by the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, takes control of 13 Georgian villages. (AFP via ABC News Australia)
- The President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev signs the six-point peace plan for a ceasefire in the 2008 South Ossetia War. (Press Trust of India)
2008 Atlantic Hurricane season: The Governor of Florida Charlie Crist declares a state of emergency as Tropical Storm Fay is due to hit Florida on Monday, possibly at hurricane strength. (AP via The Guardian)
A bomb explodes outside the house of Mayor Lito Pinol in the city of Mlang, Philippines, but fails to assassinate the Mayor. Police successfully defuse a bomb placed in the market of Kidapawan City. (Khaleej Times)
At least eight people die and 60 are injured after a passenger train collides with a goods train in Indonesia's Lampung province. (Reuters via International Herald Tribune)
Athletics at the 2008 Summer Olympics:
- Sprinter Usain Bolt of Jamaica wins the 100 metre-title in a world record time. (The New York Times)
Swimming at the 2008 Summer Olympics:
- Michael Phelps of the United States wins his seventh gold medal of the 2008 Summer Olympics in the 100 metre butterfly, tying Mark Spitz's record for gold medals at an Olympic Games. (The New York Times)
- Kirsty Coventry of Zimbabwe wins the 200 metre backstroke title setting a world record. (The New York Times)
- Rebecca Adlington of Great Britain wins the 800 metres freestyle, breaking Janet Evans' 19 year old world record in the process. (The New York Times)

August 15, 2008 (Friday)

ETS Europe, part of the American-owned Educational Testing Service, is sacked by the British government for bad failures in manipulating Key Stage education tests. ETS agrees to repay some £35 million (USD70 million). (BBC News)
The Nepalese Constituent Assembly elects former Maoist rebel Prachanda as the first first Prime Minister of Nepal as a republic. (BBC News via ABC Australia)
Leftist former Catholic bishop Fernando Lugo is sworn in as the President of Paraguay, ending 60 years of one-party rule. (AP via CNN)
Former President Hissene Habre is sentenced to death in absentia by a Chadian court for a military assault on the capital. (BBC News)
Russia threatens Poland with military consequences for allowing the United States of America to place defense missiles within its borders. (AP via Google News)
2008 South Ossetia war:
- Russia will provide 'at least' 10 billion Roubles (approx. €270 million, US$420 million) aid to South Ossetia to help rebuild Tskhinvali 'leveled' during the Georgian 'lasting artillery shelling' of 7th and 8th of August. (Rossiyskaya Gazeta) (Regnum) (Rian) (RBC)
- Russian soldiers continue to occupy Georgian towns. (The Independent)
  - Georgian police left the town of Gori and neighbouring villages right after the hostilities in South Ossetia ended and the peace was brokered, says AP. 'The Russian troops had stopped the looting, restored order', while the locals interviewed by journalists say Russians are 'behaving well'. (AP via Yahoo! News)
- Russia asks for the adequate covering of the conflict from the Western media. High Russian official names the way the anchor treats his guest in a breaking news on Fox a 'total shamelessness'. The journalist interrupts the story of an Ossetian-American girl and her aunt accusing Micheil Saakashvili of the war, and announces commercial break before the two refugees have chance to continue. (InterFax) (Fox via YouTube) (RT via YouTube)
- The U.S. Secretary of State has flown to Tbilisi for urgent talks to try to bring the Georgia's conflict with South Ossetia and Russia to an end. (Sky News) (Delfi) (The New York Times)
- Turkish journalists near the border with South Ossetia came under attack by people Sky News supposes are either Russian soldiers or Ossetian militia. (Sky News)
- The President of the United States George W. Bush assures Georgia that it has US support stating the people of Georgia have chosen freedom and "we will not cast them aside." (USA Today) The president of Estonia, Toomas Hendrik Ilves, said on Thursday that Russia's strike into Georgia should persuade NATO urgently to give Georgia and Ukraine membership of the alliance, Reuters reports. (Baltic Business News) (Reuters)
  - However, the outcome of the conflict is characterized by many Western media as a 'victory' of Russia, both in politics and warfare. (The Times) (The Economist) (The Times) (The Guardian) (Calgary Sun)
2008 Summer Olympics
- Michael Phelps of the United States wins his sixth gold medal of the Beijing Olympics in the men’s 200 metres individual medley setting a new world record. (The Times)
- United States swimmers Rebecca Soni and Ryan Lochte win gold medals and set swimming world records in the women's 200-metre breaststroke and men's 200m backstroke respectively. (DPA via the Bangkok Post)
Five people are arrested in Beijing after unfurling a "free Tibet" banner on the Central TV Tower, the highest building in Beijing. (BBC News)

August 14, 2008 (Thursday)

Donald Tusk, the Prime Minister of Poland, announces that the United States and Poland have reached an agreement on basing missile defense in Poland. (AP via Google News)
The Consumer Price Index in the United States rises by .8 per cent in July 2008 giving an annual inflation rate of 5.6 per cent, the highest in 17 years. (The Times)
2008 South Ossetia war:
- Russia says it will support whatever decision the people of breakaway republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia will make during referendum on the future of their land (International Herald Tribune) (The New York Times)
  - Analysts 'see the conflict as a gamble initiated by Georgia, which is seeking EU and NATO membership, to test the strength of its Western allies in the face of Russia's unwillingness to see the West encroaching on its doorstep.' (CNN)
- Russia appeared 'to be handing over a key Georgian city Thursday', U.S. officials said. Senior U.S. General James Cartwright claims that 'Russian forces seemed to be complying with an internationally-mediated cease-fire'. (CNN)
- Georgia's Prime Minister Lado Gurgenidze claimed that more than 100 Russian vehicles, some of them armoured, had gathered outside the major western Georgian town of Zugdidi. However, Robert Gates, the US Secretary of Defense, said that the Russian army is 'withdrawing their forces back towards Abkhazia and towards South Ossetia' US warns Russia of lasting impact (BBC News)
- Russian forces say they will start to return control of the key town of Gori to Georgia soon. 'For another two days Russian troops will stay in the region to ... hand over control functions to Georgian law-enforcement bodies, after which they will leave," Major-General Vyacheslav Borisov as quoted by Russian news agencies. (Reuters)
  - Georgian police return to the town of Gori as the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation leave. (CNN)

2008 Summer Olympics
- China's Liu Zige wins the 2008 Beijing Olympics' women's 200-meters-butterfly gold setting a world record of two minutes and 04.18 seconds. (China Daily)
- The Australian team of Stephanie Rice, Bronte Barratt, Kylie Palmer and Linda Mackenzie wins the 800 metre freestyle relay breaking the existing world record by six seconds. China and the United States finish second and third respectively. (AP via Google News)
Judge Jamie S. Perri of New Jersey's Superior Court rules that the Communications Decency Act exempts the Wikimedia Foundation from liability in a defamation suit filed by literary agent Barbara Bauer. (Ars Technica)
Indian National Capital Region (Delhi/NCR) sufferred deadlock traffic jams due to way blockings caused by heavy rainfalls. The traffic blockage began at Gurgaon nearly 5:00 PM IST and continually expanded to almost all stations of NCR. Noida, Faridabad, South Delhi and Gurgaon regoins majorly suffered the jam. In the evening when jam began, it took people almost double the time to their usual time on same route. Gradually, the jam extended so badly that waiting time went exponentially up. For instance, if one car passed after two times of waiting time than on any average day; than car just behind it took almost 2.5 times than usual and so on.
In all, the jam began nearly 5:00 PM IST and remained until midnight in the Indian NCR. Some people share their experience as NCR to be an abbreviation for Nightmare Captial Region.

August 13, 2008 (Wednesday)

Bill Gwatney, the current state Chairman of the Democratic Party of Arkansas is shot and killed at the Party headquarters in Little Rock, Arkansas. The man who shot Gwatney is later shot by police during a pursuit. (CNN)
Princess Lilian of Sweden is taken to hospital after falling and breaking her hip. (The Local)
American swimmer Michael Phelps breaks the record for most Olympic gold medals won by an individual athlete at the Beijing Olympics. (ESPN)
2008 South Ossetia war:
- The Russian President Dmitry Medvedev announces a national day of mourning in Russia in connection with the Battle of Tskhinvali and the death of a large number of Russian citizens there. Georgian Orthodox Church Patriarch Ilia II announced the national day of mourning for soldiers and civilians who died during the 2008 South Ossetia war. (ITARTass) (24.UA) (AOL news India) (Newsgeorgia via NitaPress)
- The investigation of what Russian officials called a 'genocide' started in South Ossetia. Some witnesses say that a church with civilians inside was burned by the Georgian Army in the captured Ossetian village in the first day of Georgian attack. (Mail On Sunday)
  - Journalists may again enter the South Ossetian capital Tskhinvali as the city is mostly secured after Georgian retreat. The articles give new evidence of what the city looks like and what people in Tskhinvali think of the recent events. (The Guardian) (BBC News) (AP)
- No reports of fighting after ceasefire in the the war between Georgia and Russia holds.(HRW) (The Times) (Guardian)
- Saakashvili accused Russia of bombing Tskhinvali, South Ossetia's capital, and invading Gori. However, journalists in Gori report no Russian tanks seen on the streets. Anatoly Nagovitsyn, the Russian military's deputy chief of staff, categorically denied that there were any tanks on the streets of Gori, saying Russian forces were at an abandoned Georgian artillery base near Gori, dismantling it, but not inside the town. (BBC News) (BBC News) (CNN)
  - Sky's Jason Farrell claims he witnessed Russian armor moving at the outskirts of the Georgian town of Gori. (Sky News)
  - British television's Sky Team was robbed near the Georgian town of Gori by a man who 'did not seem to be Russian'. The journalist Andrew Wilson claims 'he could not be sure the men who had pulled their car over were South Ossetian' either. (Sky News)
- An unnamed 'senior U.S. NATO official' says that USA may withdraw from a major NATO naval exercise with Russia that is to begin on Friday. (Fox News)
- President George W Bush has said the United States will use military aircraft and naval forces to deliver aid to Georgia. (BBC News)
  - President Bush sends United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to Paris and then Tbilisi. (AP via Google News)
A Fokker F27-500 cargo aircraft operated by Fly540 Logistics Ltd. crashes in Somalia. Three people died. (Bloomberg)
An explosion at a police station in the Pakistani city of Lahore kills at least three people, on the eve of the 61^st anniversary of independence. (BBC News)

More August 2008 Events...

Latest news from Wikinews

Visit Wikinews to read and write news articles in more detail.

Time: 18:26 UTC \| Date: August 19, 2008

<<	August 2008					>>
S	M	T	W	T	F	S

					1	2
3	4	5	6	7	8	9
10	11	12	13	14	15	16
17	18	19	20	21	22	23
24	25	26	27	28	29	30
31
More August 2008 events... edit box

News about Wikipedia • About this page Adding a new date • Suggest a headline

Ongoing events
2008 Summer Olympics Diplomatic response to Kosovar independence Economic crisis in U.S. and Europe EU Treaty ratification Subprime mortgage crisis U.S. presidential election World food price crisis

Recent deaths
August 19: Levy Mwanawasa 16: Dorival Caymmi 16: Ronnie Drew 15: James Orthwein 15: Leroy Sievers 15: Vic Toweel 15: Jerry Wexler 14: Lita Roza 14: Sandy Bruce-Lockhart 13: Jack Weil 13: Sandy Allen 13: Bill Gwatney 13: John MacDougall 12: Christie Allen 12: Jerry Finn 11: Don Helms 11: Dursun Karatas 11: George Furth 11: Anatoly Khrapaty 11: Terence Rigby 11: Bill Cotton 11: Fred Sinowatz 11: Günther Schifter 10: Isaac Hayes 9: Mahmoud Darwish 9: Bernie Mac 9: Peter Coe 8: Orville Moody 7: Bernie Brillstein 7: Andrea Pininfarina 6: Anthony Russo 6: Simon Gray 4: Craig Jones 3: Skip Caray 3: Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn 2: Helga Gitmark 1: Pauline Baynes 1: Harkishan Singh Surjeet edit sidebar

Ongoing conflicts
Acholiland insurgency Israeli-Palestinian conflict Colombian armed conflict Insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir Iraq War Insurgency in the Philippines Fatah-Hamas conflict War in Somalia Turkey-PKK conflict Second Chechen War Insurgency in Ogaden South Thailand insurgency Sri Lankan Civil War War in Afghanistan War in North-West Pakistan War in Darfur Civil war in Chad Sa'dah insurgency South Ossetia War

Elections
Recent July 8: Grenada, Parliament 19: Nepal, President (1^st round) (by the parliament) 21: Nepal, President (2^nd round) (by the parliament) 27: Cambodia, Parliament 30: Republic of the Congo, Senate (indirect) August 2: Latvia, Constitutional referendum 5: North Korea, Parliament 10: Bolivia, Recall referendum Upcoming August 23: Latvia, Pensions law referendum

Trials
Upcoming Austria: Josef Fritzl Canada: Larry O'Brien Malaysia: Anwar Ibrahim Netherlands: ICTY Radovan Karadžić Singapore: Peter Lloyd U.S.: Aníbal Acevedo Vilá U.S.: Viktor Bout U.S.: Tom DeLay U.S.: Noshir Gowadia U.S.: William J. Jefferson U.S.: Kwame Kilpatrick U.S.: James Charles Kopp U.S.: O. J. Simpson U.S.: Ehren Watada Ongoing Cambodia: Khmer Rouge Tribunal Iraq: Supreme Iraqi Criminal Tribunal Netherlands: ICC Thomas Lubanga Netherlands: ICTY Peru: Alberto Fujimori Sierra Leone: SCfSL Charles Taylor Thailand: Thaksin Shinawatra US: Jena Six US: Brian Nichols US: José Padilla US: Phil Spector

Upcoming holidays and observances
August 18-20: Co Trach (Vietnam) 19: Buhe (Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church) 19: Independence Day (Afghanistan) 19: Quezon Day (Philippines) 19: National Aviation Day (United States) 20: Feast of Asma' (Baha'i Faith) 20: Restoration of Independence (Estonia) 20: St. Stephen’s Day (Hungary) 20: Revolution of the King and People (Morocco) 20: Children’s Day (Nepal) 21: Ninoy Aquino Day (Philippines) 23: Krishna Janmashtami (Hinduism) 23: Liberation Day (Romania) 23: Umhlanga Day (Swaziland) 23: International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition 23 - 24: Unity Day (Philadelphia) 24: National Flag Day (Liberia) 24: Independence Day (Ukraine) (observed 25) 25: Dia do Soldado (Brazil) 25: National Heroes' Day (Philippines) 25: Independence Day (Uruguay) 25: Summer Bank Holiday (England, Northern Ireland, Wales) 26: Heroes' Day (Namibia) 26: Women’s Equality Day (United States) 27: La Tomatina (Buñol) 27: National Day (Moldova) 27: Lyndon Baines Johnson Day (Texas) 28: Dormition of the Theotokos (Julian calendar) 28: Liberation Day (Hong Kong) 28 - September 3: Paryusana Parva (Jainism) 29: Constitution Day (Kazakhstan) 29: Slovak National Uprising Anniversary (Slovakia) 30: Constitution Day (East Timor) 30: Huey P. Long Day (Louisiana) 30: Victory Day (Northern Cyprus) 30: Santa Rosa de Lima (Peru) 30: Constitution Day (Tatarstan) 30: Victory Day (Turkey) 30: International Day of the Disappeared 31: Independence Day (Kyrgyzstan) 31: Hari Merdeka (Malaysia) 31: National Language Day (Moldova) 31: Independence Day (Trinidad and Tobago) edit sidebar

Events by month

2008 · January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December
2007 · January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December
2006 · January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December
2005 · January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December
2004 · January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December
2003 · January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December
2002 · January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December
2001 · January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December
2000 · January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December
1999 · January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December
1998 · January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December
1997 · January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December

Content listings

Lists
Overviews · Topics (basic) · Academic disciplines · Glossaries · Portals · Categories
Countries · People · Timelines (centuries · decades) · 2008 · Anniversaries (today) · Current events · Deaths this year

Indices
Dewey classes · LOC classes · A–Z Index

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:Current_events"

Categories: Current events portals | 2008 by day | 2008

Hidden categories: Semi-protected against vandalism | Current events

Views

Personal tools

Log in / create account

Search

Toolbox

Languages