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Worldwide current events
Sports events

Topics in the news

Summer Olympics opening ceremony

The Summer Olympics open (ceremony pictured) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
A firefighter is killed, but all 300 passengers and crew escape, after an Emirates Boeing 777 crash-lands and catches fire at Dubai International Airport.
Flooding in Assam, India, kills 28 people, affects 1.6 million others and submerges Kaziranga National Park, a World Heritage Site.
In golf, Jimmy Walker wins the PGA Championship.
American skydiver Luke Aikins performs a 25,000-foot (7,600 m) free fall from an aircraft and lands safely on a ground net.

August 8, 2016 (Monday)

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August 7, 2016 (Sunday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

2016 Charleroi attack
- ISIL claims responsibility for the machete attack in Belgium. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

2016 Macedonian floods
- Floods in Macedonia's capital, Skopje, kill at least 21 people with six others missing and dozens injured following torrential rain and strong winds late Saturday. (BBC) (AP)

Law and crime

Philippine Drug War
- President Rodrigo Duterte releases a list of politicians, police officers and military personnel involved in the illicit drug trade. (Rappler)
Oscar Pistorius is admitted to a Pretoria hospital after sustaining injuries to his wrists. Blades are subsequently found in a search of his cell. (News24)
Iran confirms it has executed nuclear scientist Shahram Amiri by hanging for treason. Iranian judiciary spokesman Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje'i says Amiri was charged with spying for enemies of the Islamic Republic of Iran and that U.S. officials had been unaware that Iran was monitoring Amiri's efforts for the West. His body was returned to his family with rope marks around his neck. (USA Today)

Politics and elections

Thai constitutional referendum, 2016
- Voters in Thailand go to the polls to vote on whether a new constitution, which would restore elections but empower the military, should it be adopted. The military junta has banned campaigning in opposition to the new constitution. (BBC)

Sport

After the men's 400-metre freestyle final of the 2016 Summer Olympics, Australian gold medalist Mack Horton says Chinese silver medalist Sun Yang is a "drug cheat", referring to Sun's three-month doping ban in 2014; Chinese netizens have swarmed Horton's online pages to demand an apology. (The Sydney Morning Herald) (ABC News)
2016 Summer Paralympics - The International Paralympic Committee bans all Russian athletes from the Paralympics due to state-sponsored sample doctoring to avoid the detection of the use of banned drugs. (BBC Sport)
In baseball, the Miami Marlins' Ichiro Suzuki becomes the 30th Major League Baseball player with 3,000 career hits, reaching the milestone with a seventh-inning triple against the Colorado Rockies. (ESPN)
Jim Furyk becomes the first golfer to shoot a round of 58 in an official PGA Tour event, doing so in the final round of the Travelers Championship. (ESPN)

August 6, 2016 (Saturday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian civil war
- The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights claims that 10 people have been killed in an air strike on a hospital in the town of Milis in Syria's Idlib province. (AFP via Yahoo! News)
2016 Charleroi, Belgium attack
- A man attacks two policewomen with a machete in Charleroi, Belgium, whilst reportedly shouting Allahu Akbar. The attacker was shot dead by another police officer. The policewomen are being treated in hospital for non-life-threatening wounds. The attack is being investigated as a possible act of terrorism. (Telegraph), (Bloomberg)

Business and economy

Reuters reports, based on sources "familiar with the matter," that Nissan is talking with Panasonic Corp. about the sale of Nissan's car battery manufacturing operation. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

2016 Rouen fire
- A fire kills at least 13 people in a bar in the French city of Rouen. (CNN)
2016 Atlantic hurricane season
- Tropical Storm Earl makes its final landfall near Veracruz in eastern Mexico, producing flooding rains that kill at least six. (EFE), (AP via New York Times)

International relations

Territorial disputes in the South China Sea
- China's People's Liberation Army Air Force says it has conducted "combat patrols" near the disputed Spratly Islands and Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea as part of an effort to normalize such drills and respond to security threats. Xian H-6 strategic bombers and Su-30 fighter jets took part in the patrols, according to Xinhua News Agency. (Reuters)

August 5, 2016 (Friday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

2016 Assam attacks
- Gunmen open fire in a market in Assam, India, killing 13 people and injuring 18. (India Today)
Iraqi Civil War, Military intervention against ISIL
- The United Nations reports that ISIL appears to have captured up to 3,000 fleeing Iraqi villagers from Hawija District headed to Kirkuk city. Militants reportedly executed 12 people. Earlier, the Iraqi Observatory for Human Rights said ISIL is using people for human shields against attacks by Iraqi security forces. (NRT News) (NBC News)
War in Afghanistan
- At least 10 people are killed by a pair of explosions in the Tsamkani District in the eastern Afghan province of Paktia. Spokesman Naqib Ahmad Atal says the Taliban are to blame. (AP)

Business and economy

A U.S. district court judge gives the go-ahead to a billion-dollar lawsuit against PricewaterhouseCoopers in connection with the losses at MF Global in October 2011. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

A Pakistani Mi-17 transport helicopter belonging to the Punjab government on route to Russia for repair, crashed on Thursday night in Logar Province, Afghanistan. The six people on board have been taken hostage by the Taliban. (The Express Tribune) (Pakistan Today)
- Army Chief General Raheel Sharif had called the U.S. Military Commander in Afghanistan, General John Nicolson, and asked him to help recover the crew. The Afghan government and Afghan Army have also been contacted for recovery of helicopter and crew.(Dunya News)

International relations

European migrant crisis
- Ventimiglian police commander Giorgio Marenco says the more than 100 migrants who crashed the Italian border town's police barriers and entered France remain, under French police surveillance, outside the French Riviera town of Menton. (Reuters)

Law and crime

A Swedish court orders the owner of the luxury cruise ship MV Ocean Gala that was due to house 1,800 asylum seekers before the Swedish Migration Agency pulled the plug to immediately leave its port. The local County administration says it intends to forcefully execute the ruling of the court if the vessel has not left the port by Monday morning. (Local)

Politics and elections

British activists with the Black Lives Matter movement from America block the road to Heathrow Airport and to streets in Manchester, Birmingham, and Nottingham, marking the fifth anniversary of the deadly police shooting of Mark Duggan in north London. Ten protestors are arrested. (NBC News) (Reuters)

Sports

The 2016 Summer Olympics held in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro officially start with the Opening Ceremony at Maracanã Stadium. (BBC)

August 4, 2016 (Thursday)

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Business and economy

As markets have expected, the Bank of England cuts the key interest rate to 0.25, the first cut since 2009. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

2016 Atlantic hurricane season
- Hurricane Earl makes landfall in Belize near Belize City early today. (NHC)

2016 Nevada wildfire
- Wildfires in seven U.S. states are keeping thousands of firefighters at bay. (Fox News)

International relations

China bans K-pop stars and South Korean actors from attending promotional events in retaliation for Seoul's deployment of the U.S. THAAD anti-ballistic missile system. (The Wall Street Journal)
Cross-Strait relations
- China is blocking Taiwan's efforts to join the International Civil Aviation Organization despite 58 million air passengers passing over Taiwan's flight information region annually, citing the One-China principle. (Focus Taiwan) (Taipei Times)

Law and crime

Philippine Drug War
- Rodrigo Duterte says that the Sinaloa cartel and the Chinese triad are active in the Philippine narcotic trade. (The Manila Standard)

Politics and elections

South African municipal elections, 2016
- With more than half the vote counted, the ruling African National Congress (ANC) is ahead on 53.2 percent of the vote which, if this trend continues, will be the first election since the end of apartheid in 1994 that the ANC receives less than 60 percent. The opposition Democratic Alliance, with about 28 percent of the vote nationally, has gained the lead in three major cities: Pretoria, Johannesburg, and Port Elizabeth. Final results are expected Friday. (Press TV) (Financial Times)
In Nepal, Pushpa Kamal Dahal takes the oath of office and secrecy as Prime Minister. (The Himalayan Times)

Science

China's unmanned lunar rover Yutu shuts down after exploring the Moon for 31 months. (BBC)

Sport

2016 Summer Olympics
- The International Olympic Committee rules that 271 of the 389 athletes nominated by the Russian Olympic Committee will be eligible to participate in the 2016 summer Olympics. (IOC)

August 3, 2016 (Wednesday)

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Business and economy

The European Banking Authority supports retaining a 3% leverage ratio for most banks within the European Union. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

The search continues for survivors of a bridge collapse on the Mumbai-Goa highway over the flooded Savitri River in western India. Twenty two people and two buses are believed to be missing. (AP via The Washington Post), (Times of India)
An Emirates Boeing 777-300, flight EK521 from Thiruvananthapuram in India, crash lands at Dubai International Airport and bursts into flames. All 282 passengers and 18 crew evacuate safely, although one firefighter is killed during the rescue. (BBC) (CNN) (Al Jazeera)
2016 Atlantic hurricane season
- Tropical Storm Earl, now about 265 miles (425 km) east-southeast of Belize City with top sustained winds of 70 mph (110 KM/H), becomes Hurricane Earl that could produce up to 16 inches of rain by the time it hits Belize. On Sunday, then a tropical wave, Earl was responsible for nine deaths, with four people still missing, in the Dominican Republic. (NBC News) (NHC public advisory)
2016 Pacific typhoon season
- Nida, the strongest typhoon to hit the Chinese coast in 33 years with winds of up to 145 kilometers per hour (90 mph), affects about 500,000 people; led to the cancellation of over 180 flights at the Hong Kong International Airport; caused 2,100 people to need emergency living assistance; destroyed over 300 houses; and, damaged about 2,400 houses and 19,600 hectares (48,433 acres) of crops. (News Nation) (CNN)

International relations

North Korea and weapons of mass destruction
- North Korea launches two ballistic missiles, one of which explodes immediately after its launch while the main part of the other lands in Japan's economic exclusion zone. (Reuters)

Law and crime

Manus Island
- A court in Papua New Guinea orders the closure of the facility housing migrants. (The Guardian)
The United States Supreme Court grants a Virginia school board's emergency request to stop implementation of the federal government policy that calls for student use of the bathroom consistent with their gender identity in order to allow the board to appeal the Fourth Circuit Court ruling that upheld this policy. (Reuters) (The Wall Street Journal) (Los Angeles Times) (Metro Weekly)
2016 Russell Square knife attack
- At least one person is dead and several injured as a result of a knife attack in London's Russell Square. (BBC)

Science and technology

The United States Federal Aviation Administration approves private startup company Moon Express landing a robotic craft on the Moon, according to the Mountain View, California, company. (The New York Times) (SpaceNews)

Sports

2016 Summer Olympics
- Competition begins with six matches in women's football. (ESPN)

August 2, 2016 (Tuesday)

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Armed conflicts

Syrian Civil War
- A Syria Civil Defence volunteer search and rescue team says 33 people, mostly women and children, were affected by toxic gas dropped from a helicopter on Saraqeb in rebel-held Idlib Governorate. (Reuters)
Libyan Civil War
- A car bombing in the Al-Quwarsha area on the outskirts of Benghazi claims at least 23 lives. The Shura Council of Benghazi Revolutionaries says it is responsible. (AP via The New York Times) (The Irish Times)

Disasters and accidents

2016 Pacific typhoon season
- Typhoon Nida makes landfall near Hong Kong with Category 1 hurricane strength. (Weather.com)
At least five people are killed and dozens injured when a charter bus swerved into a support pole on California Highway 99 near the town of Livingston in Merced County. The bus was headed to Pasco, Washington. (NBC News) (Los Angeles Times)

Politics and elections

Three top staffers leave the Democratic National Committee 100 days before elections in early November as a result of the email leak. (Washington Examiner)
Territorial disputes in the South China Sea
- The Chinese Supreme Court warns people caught fishing in Chinese waters could be jailed for up to a year. (Reuters)
United States elections, 2016
- Incumbent Republican congressman Tim Huelskamp, an active Tea Party favorite with a confrontational, anti-establishment approach running for a fourth term, is defeated (56.5 - 43.5 percent) in the Kansas primary by obstetrician Roger Marshall. (AP) (McClatchy Washington Bureau via The Wichita Eagle)
South Sudan President Salva Kiir fires six ministers allied to his long-time rival Riek Machar, replacing them with people linked to a breakaway faction of Machar's SPLM-IO party. (Reuters)

More August 2016 events...

Ongoing events
Business Bangladesh Bank heist Brexit Panama Papers Venezuelan protests State of emergency in Venezuela Culture Pokémon Go phenomenon Disasters 2016 California wildfires 2016 Fort McMurray wildfire 2016 Pacific typhoon season 2016 Atlantic hurricane season Health Flint water crisis Zika virus outbreak Law Philippines v. China Political War in Afghanistan Boko Haram insurgency Brazil protests Burundian unrest European migrant crisis (timeline) Iraqi and Syrian Civil War (map) Military intervention against ISIL Israeli–Palestinian conflict Lebanese political deadlock Libyan Civil War Moldova protests Nagorno-Karabakh conflict Armenian–Azeri border conflict Philippine Drug War PKK rebellion Sinai insurgency South China Sea disputes Turkish coup d'état attempt Turkish purges War in Donbass Yemeni Civil War Zimbabwe protests More details on ongoing conflicts below Sports 2016 Summer Olympics 2016 Formula One season 2016 ATP World Tour 2016 Major League Baseball season 2016 WTA Tour edit sidebar

Recent deaths
August 6: Helen Delich Bentley 6: Pete Fountain 5: Shamim Ara 5: Mahim Bora 4: Jean Antoine 4: David Dudley Dowd, Jr. 4: Albert Nicholas 3: Chris Amon 3: Mel Hurtig 2: Forbes Carlile 2: David Huddleston 2: Franciszek Macharski 2: Ahmed Zewail 1: Queen Anne of Romania 1: Frank Blas 1: Dai Dower 1: Andre Hajdu 1: Jim Northrup July 31: Fazil Iskander 31: Bobbie Heine Miller 31: Chiyonofuji Mitsugu 31: Seymour Papert 31: Sylvie Roy 30: Patrick Lalor 29: Antonio Armstrong 29: Lucille Dumont 28: Mahasweta Devi 28: Vivean Gray 28: Doug Griffin 27: Piet de Jong 27: Jack Davis 27: Jerry Doyle 27: James Alan McPherson 27: Einojuhani Rautavaara 27: Richard Thompson 26: Miss Cleo 26: Jacques Hamel 26: Mohamed Khan 26: Per G. Malm 26: Forrest Mars Jr. 26: JT McNamara 26: Sandy Pearlman 26: Sylvia Peters 25: Artur Correia 25: Halil İnalcık 25: Dwight Jones 25: Tim LaHaye 25: Mollie Lowery 25: James M. Nederlander 25: Tom Peterson 24: Frank Hodsoll 24: Marni Nixon 24: Chris Costner Sizemore 23: Carl Falck 23: Thorbjörn Fälldin 23: Kate Granger 22: S. H. Raza 22: Bernard Dufour 22: Ursula Franklin 22: Walid Juffali 22: Shawshank tree 22: Luo Yinguo 20: Radu Beligan 20: György Kéri 20: Pavel Sheremet 20: Mark Takai 20: Betsy Bloomingdale 19: Carlos Gorostiza 19: Garry Marshall 18: Bloeme Evers-Emden 18: Billy Name 18: Chief Zee 17: Wendell Anderson 17: Gary S. Paxton 16: Robert Burren Morgan 16: Nate Thurmond 16: Alan Vega 15: Qandeel Baloch 15: Karl E. Case 15: Erik Petersen 14: Michael J. Elliott 14: Péter Esterházy 14: Lisa Gaye 14: Sharon Runner 13: Héctor Babenco 13: Garry N. Drummond 13: Bernardo Provenzano 13: Carolyn See 12: Goran Hadžić 12: Peter Johnson 11: John Brademas 11: Sally Beauman 9: Gladys Hooper 9: Maralin Niska 9: Silvano Piovanelli 9: Sydney Schanberg 8: Abdul Sattar Edhi 8: William H. McNeill 8: Goldie Michelson 8: Sally Beauman 7: Tom Marr edit sidebar

Ongoing conflicts
Africa Algeria and Tunisia Maghreb insurgency ISIL insurgency in Tunisia Central African Republic Civil war Democratic Republic of the Congo Kivu conflict ADF insurgency Ituri conflict Lord's Resistance Army insurgency Libya Civil war Mali Northern Mali conflict Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad, and Niger Boko Haram insurgency Somalia Civil war South Sudan Ethnic violence (South Sudanese Civil War) Sudan War in Darfur South Kordofan conflict Sudanese nomadic conflicts Americas Colombian conflict Internal conflict in Peru Mexican War on Drugs Asia Afghanistan Afghanistan War China Xinjiang conflict India Naxalite–Maoist insurgency Insurgency in Northeast India India and Pakistan Kashmir conflict Pakistan War in North-West Pakistan Balochistan conflict Philippines CPP-NPA-NDF rebellion Moro conflict Moro conflict in Sabah Southeast Asia Internal conflict in Burma Papua conflict South Thailand insurgency Europe Georgia Abkhaz–Georgian conflict Georgian–Ossetian conflict Chechen–Russian conflict North Caucasus insurgency Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Nagorno-Karabakh conflict Ukraine War in Donbass Russian military intervention in Ukraine Middle East Arab–Israeli conflict Gaza–Israel conflict Israeli–Lebanese conflict Israeli–Palestinian conflict Egypt Sinai insurgency Iran Iran–PJAK conflict Iraqi civil war American-led intervention in Iraq Iranian intervention in Iraq Syrian Civil War American-led intervention in Syria Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War Syrian Civil War spillover in Lebanon Turkey Turkey–PKK conflict Turkey–ISIL conflict Yemeni Crisis Yemeni Civil War Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen Houthi rebellion Al-Qaeda insurgency South Yemen insurgency edit sidebar

Elections and Referendums
Recent July 9: Nauru, Parliament 10: Japan, House of Councillors 17: São Tomé and Príncipe, President (1st round) August 7: São Tomé and Príncipe, President (2nd round) 7: Thailand, Constitutional referendum Upcoming August 11: Zambia, National Assembly, President, Constitutional referendum 27: Gabon, President edit sidebar

Trials
Recently concluded Australia: Brett Peter Cowan, Craig Thomson, Robert Hughes, Roger Rogerson, Glen McNamara Brazil: Mensalão scandal Canada: Luka Magnotta China: Ji Jianye, Li Chuncheng, Jiang Jiemin, Liao Shaohua, Ni Fake, Ling Jihua, Chen Baihuai, Zhou Yongkang, Gu Junshan Croatia: Ivo Sanader Egypt: Hosni Mubarak, Peter Greste, Mohamed Morsi Germany: Bernie Ecclestone, Uli Hoeness, Christian Wulff Iran: Mohammad Reza Rahimi Israel: Hussam Qawasmeh Jordan: Abu Qatada Philippines: Gloria Macapagal Arroyo Romania: Liviu Dragnea, Dan Diaconescu, Gheorghe Ștefan, Gabriel Sandu, Dorin Cocoş, Dumitru Nicolae Russia: Leonid Khabarov, Eston Kohver, Vladimir Kvachkov South Africa: Shrien Dewani, Oscar Pistorius Turkey: Kenan Evren, Tahsin Şahinkaya United Kingdom: Michael Adebolajo and Michael Adebowale, Kevin Hutchinson-Foster, Derek Rose, Mick Philpott, Mairead Philpott, Paul Mosley, Stuart Hazell, Mark Bridger, Andrew Lancel, Dale Cregan, Ray Wilkins, Liam Adams, R v Grillo and Grillo, Ian Watkins, William Roache, Dave Lee Travis, Nicholas Jacobs, Nigel Evans, Max Clifford, Stuart Hall, Dappy, Rebekah Brooks, Andy Coulson, Rolf Harris, Tulisa Contostavlos, Chris Denning, Ray Teret, Gary Glitter, Fred Talbot, Adam Johnson United States: Abu Hamza al-Masri, Michael Grimm, Jesse Jackson Jr., Bob McDonnell, Vilma Bautista, Jared Lee Loughner, Kermit Gosnell, George Zimmerman, Chelsea Manning, Ariel Castro, Whitey Bulger, Robert Bales, Nidal Malik Hasan, Jodi Arias, Anas al-Libi, Chris Brown, Justin Bieber, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, James Eagan Holmes, Sheldon Silver, Dylan Quick International ECCC: Nuon Chea, Khieu Samphan ICC: Germain Katanga ICTY: Momčilo Perišić, Mladen Markač, Ante Gotovina, Zdravko Tolimir, Radovan Karadžić Ongoing China: Yao Mugen, Guo Youming, Yang Weize, Zhu Zuoli Germany: Beate Zschäpe Iran: Babak Zanjani Netherlands: Geert Wilders Philippines: Andal Ampatuan, Jr., Jovito Palparan Romania: Darius Vâlcov, Dan Șova, Elena Udrea, Radu Mazăre, Gheorghe Nichita, Marian Vanghelie, Cătălin Voicu, Relu Fenechiu Russia: Alexei Navalny South Korea: MV Sewol crew members Spain: Lionel Messi United States: Dean Skelos International ICTY: Ratko Mladić Upcoming China: Wu Changshun Estonia: Edgar Savisaar Libya: Saif al-Islam Gaddafi United Kingdom: Max Clifford, Rolf Harris, Ched Evans United States: Paul Anthony Ciancia, Javaris Crittenton, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Aaron Hernandez, Graham Spanier, Tim Curley, Gary Schultz, Rick Perry, Bill Cosby International ICC: Laurent Gbagbo edit sidebar