Portal:Current events/2013 January 11

Current events of January 11, 2013 (2013-01-11) (Friday)

Armed conflicts and attacks Syrian civil war: Rebel forces take over the strategic Taftanaz airbase in northern Syria. (AP via USA Today) Northern Mali conflict (2012–present): France commits troops to aid government forces in the Northern Mali conflict. (Reuters) (The Guardian) (The New York Times) (The Washington Post) 2012–2013 Central African Republic conflict: In the Central African Republic, the government signs a ceasefire agreement with rebels, ending a month of conflict and establishing a new coalition government. (BBC) Arts and culture The first official portrait of the Duchess of Cambridge, painted by Paul Emsley, is unveiled to a mixed reception from critics. (BBC) Disasters and accidents 18 people die after a landslide buries a village in the Yunnan province of China, while 40 people are feared to be buried. (BBC) 29 people die and 12 people are injured after a bus veers off a mountain road in Doti, Nepal. (BBC) A fire sweeps through a complex containing housing for foreign workers in Manama, Bahrain, leaving 13 foreign nationals dead. (BBC) Law and crime The Metropolitan Police and NSPCC have confirmed 214 separate sexual offences committed by Jimmy Savile over a period of fifty years. (BBC) Three people are injured after a hostage situation takes place in a Nordstrom Rack chain in the neighborhood of Westchester in Los Angeles, California. (Los Angeles Times) Aaron Swartz was found dead in his Brooklyn, New York apartment, where he had hanged himself. (BBC) (Time) (WSJ) (Business Insider) Politics and elections The Parliament of Sri Lanka passes an impeachment motion against Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake. (BBC) Science and technology Huge-LQG, a large quasar group, the largest known structure in the Universe, is discovered by a team of astronomers using data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. (Space.com) (FoxNews) (CNET) (New Scientist)