Portal:Current events/2011 April 29

Current events of April 29, 2011 (2011-04-29) (Friday)

Armed conflicts and attacks 2011 Syrian uprising: A "Day of Rage" is set to get underway in Syria as the popular uprising against Bashar al-Assad's regime continues. (BBC) Security forces shut off Daraa's water supply and electricity, and begin confiscating food, in an effort to starve the people of the city. (News24) (Al Jazeera) At least 62 people are killed as scores of people die in the "Day of Rage". (Al Jazeera) (BBC) The United Nations Human Rights Council condemns Syria for using deadly force against peaceful protesters and calls for an investigation into the killing of civilians and other alleged crimes; China, Russia and Pakistan vote against measures as "meddling in Syria's internal affairs".(The Jerusalem Post) 2011 Yemeni protests: 100,000 people march through central Sanaa in one of the largest protests yet to have taken place against the Saleh regime, with protesters demanding that he resign immediately rather than wait for the phased handover of power he has orchestrated. (Al Jazeera) Protests in Bahrain, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia: Thousands march across Bahrain, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia in defiance of yesterday's death sentences handed down to anti-government protesters by the ruling Bahraini regime, with people in Lahore (Pakistan) carrying symbolic coffins in solidarity. (Al Jazeera) 2011 Libyan civil war in Tunisia: Muammar Gaddafi brings the 2011 Libyan civil war over the border into Tunisia, prompting complaints from the Tunisian foreign ministry. (BBC) (PA via Google News) NATO reports it has intercepted Muammar Gaddafi's forces in the act of laying mines in Misrata as Tunisia successfully captures some of the troops who have brought the Libyan civil war onto its territory. (BBC) 2011 Moroccan protests: People gather to demonstrate against terrorism in Marrakesh. (Al Jazeera) Riots take place in the Ugandan capital Kampala after opposition leader Kizza Besigye is attacked, leaving two people dead and dozens injured. (AFP via Google News) (Reuters) Arts and culture The Lisa Aschan-directed Swedish film She Monkeys wins best narrative feature and the Alma Har'el-directed Israeli film Bombay Beach wins best documentary prize at New York's Tribeca Film Festival. (BBC) The Vatican brings Pope John Paul II's coffin out from below St. Peter's Basilica in Rome in preparation for his beatification. (BBC) The wedding of Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine Middleton takes place in Westminster Abbey; Middleton becomes HRH The Duchess of Cambridge. Police make at least 18 arrests along the wedding route in London. (The New York Times) (Al Jazeera) (Daily Mirror) (BBC) (Sky News) Business and economy Air India pilots continue a strike for a third successive day with 120 flights cancelled. (Hindustan Times) Unemployment figures in Spain increase to a 14-year high; nearly 5,000,000 people are unemployed. (BBC) Demand for Samsung Electronics products plummets again, with the company only managing net profits of $2.6 billion for the first three months of 2011. (BBC) Disasters Renowned Swiss climber Erhard Loretan is killed after falling off a mountain in the Swiss Alps on his 52nd birthday. (BBC) (The Guardian) At least 43 people are killed and others are missing after a minibus of mourners falls from a ferry on the River Nile. (BBC) The death toll for the April 25–28, 2011 tornado outbreak in the United States reaches 300. (Fox Alabama) International relations Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh calls on the PLO to withdraw its recognition of Israel’s right to exist in response to Israel’s opposition to the reconciliation deal between his movement and Fatah. (The Jerusalem Post) Egypt's interim foreign minister Nabil al-Arabi vows to permanently open the country's Rafah Border Crossing with the Gaza Strip, branding the Mubarak regime's support for the previous blockade and assisting of Israel in implementing it as "disgraceful". (BBC) (Al Jazeera) 22,000 residents of the Japanese island of Okinawa file suit demanding the closure of the Kadena United States Airforce base at night and demand compensation from the Government of Japan. (Japan Times) Law and crime Police report violence in an early morning protest against controversial retailer Tesco. (BBC) (Jack FM) (Avon and Somerset Constabulary) Veteran former French right-wing interior minister Charles Pasqua has his conviction for illegally selling weapons to Angola quashed, while jail terms for Israeli-Russian businessman Arkady Gaydamak and French magnate Pierre Falcone are cut. (BBC) Australian Defence Force Academy sex scandal: 2 cadets are charged with misusing an electronic communications service and an indecent act after the secret filming of a woman engaging in sexual intercourse is broadcast on the internet. (BBC) Ombudsman of the Philippines Merceditas Gutierrez resigns. Politicians previously voted to impeach her. (BBC) Three people are shot dead and another three injured following a siege in the South Australian city of Adelaide in the suburb of Hectorville. (ABC News Australia) A ruling by the Oregon Supreme Court in the United States could lead to 30 prisoners serving life sentences for murder being freed early, if a parole board considers them to be capable of rehabilitation. (Oregon Live) Science Take-off of the Space Shuttle Endeavour for its final mission is postponed due to technical problems. (BBC) Sport The French Football Federation (FFF) announces an internal inquiry over allegations of a secret racial quota targeting blacks and Arabs and supported by its own officials. (BBC News)