Portal:Current events/2011 January 9

Current events of January 9, 2011 (2011-01-09) (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks The mother of a woman who died in her home during a demonstration against Israel's separation barrier in Bil'in says she died from inhaling massive quantities of tear gas; the Israeli army says she did not die of tear gas inhalation. (The Observer)(The Jerusalem Post) Aftermath of the 2011 Tucson shooting: Officials investigating the shooting, who were seeking a second person of interest, have cleared the other person of involvement in the shooting. (CNN) Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, known for frequently disagreeing with the United States, condemns the shooting as "atrocious", "absurd" and "unjustifiable". (AP via Fox News) American politician Sarah Palin is criticised for targeting the shot Gabrielle Giffords electoral district with crosshairs on her website along with 19 other rivals before the attack. (The Guardian) Arts and culture Teachers and cultural figures criticise as "foolhardy" the British government's abolition of a scheme intended to improve teaching of the arts in schools. (The Observer) Viewers of UK soap opera EastEnders complain in record numbers about a "hurtful", "unrealistic" and "exploitative" cot death storyline as the BBC sets out to meet the grieving mothers it has upset. (The Independent) (The Observer) A Border Collie is reported to have learned 1022 words, and acts consequently to human citation of those words. (Physorg.com) (Discovery.com) Business and economics The Algerian government cuts food prices amid unrest, and vows to punish those responsible for rioting in recent days. (Al Jazeera) 2010–2011 Tunisian protests: Unrest in Tunisia over youth unemployment continues, with several deaths reported. (Al Jazeera) Disasters and accidents Iran Air Flight 277 crashes with 100 people on board near Orumiyeh in the northeast of the country; at least 50 survive. (BBC) (Press TV) At least 14 people are killed and at least 25 others are injured in a bus crash near Concepción Tutuapa in Guatemala's San Marcos department. (BBC) (Latin American Herald Tribune) International relations Israeli demolition of the historic Shepherd Hotel: Israeli bulldozers begin demolishing a 1930s East Jerusalem hotel to build 20 new settler homes, "destroying all the US efforts and ending any possibility of a return to negotiations" according to a spokesperson for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. (BBC) (AP via Fox News) Hillary Rodham Clinton calls Israel's demolition of the hotel a "disturbing development" which undermines peace efforts. (Xinhua) The U.S. ambassador to Iceland is summoned in relation to secret United States attempts to access private details concerning Icelandic MP Birgitta Jónsdóttir. The matter is described as "very serious". (AP via Google News) Hillary Rodham Clinton of the United States speaks out against Iran in Abu Dhabi during a five-day trip to the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Qatar. She requests that the world increase its pressure on Iran, a country she considers "a serious concern". (Al Jazeera) Demonstrators gather outside the Iranian Embassy in London to protest against an attack on Iranian exiles in Iraq, an attack reportedly ordered by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. (BBC) United States Secretary of Defense Robert Gates flies to China for a four-day trip after expressing American worries that the Chinese "clearly have potential to put some of our [military] capabilities at risk", adding that America has "to pay attention to them" and "respond appropriately with our own programmes". (BBC) Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang begins a four-day visit to the UK; Scotland and China sign a green energy deal. (BBC) Law and crime An investigation by The Guardian newspaper reveals details of how Metropolitan police officer Mark Kennedy infiltrated dozens of protest groups in 22 countries using the pseudonym Mark Stone. (The Guardian) Prosecutors in the U.K. drop the case against members of a group who were planning to forcefully shut down the coal based Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station temporarily, after the undercover officer, an alleged provocateur in the group, offers to give evidence in support of the activists. (BBC) Politics and elections People in Southern Sudan vote in a referendum on independence. (Al Jazeera) (BBC) (The Observer) (The Global Herald) Ulster Unionist Party leader Tom Elliott accepts an invitation to meet with members of the Northern Ireland Gay Rights Association in a groundbreaking move. (Irish Independent) (The Belfast Telegraph)