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Worldwide current events
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Mudflow damage in Santa Barbara County

Turkey begins a military offensive against US-backed Kurdish forces in Syria.
A bus fire in the Aktobe Region, Kazakhstan, kills 52 people.
The British construction and services company Carillion goes into compulsory liquidation.
The oil tanker MV Sanchi sinks with the loss of all 32 crew eight days after colliding with another ship.
At least 18 people are killed after mudflows (damage pictured) strike the area of Montecito, California, in the area affected by the recent Thomas Fire.

January 21, 2018 (Sunday)

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January 20, 2018 (Saturday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian Civil War
- Northwestern Syria campaign (October 2017–present)
  - The Syrian Army seizes control of the strategic Abu al-Duhur Military Airbase in the Idlib Governorate. (Reuters)
2018 Inter-Continental Hotel Kabul attack
- At least 4 gunmen launch an attack on the Intercontinental Hotel in Afghanistan's capital of Kabul. (CNN)

Business and economy

United States federal government shutdown of 2018
- The United States federal government shuts down after the United States Senate fails to pass a budget bill. (The New York Times)

Disasters and accidents

A bus crash in Turkey's northwestern Eskişehir Province kills at least 11 people and injures 46 others. (BBC)

International relations

South China Sea disputes, Philippines v. China
- China claims its sovereignty was violated when a United States Navy ship sailed close to the Scarborough Shoal near the Philippines. (The Japan Times)

Politics and elections

2017–18 Romanian protests
- Tens of thousands of Romanians protest in Bucharest and major cities against perceived corruption and changes to judiciary. Romanians in diaspora stage protests in dozens of cities worldwide in solidarity with the anti-corruption movement in the country. (Associated Press) (Balkan Insight)
2018 Women's March
- Thousands of women protest throughout the United States in support of women's rights. (The New York Times)

January 19, 2018 (Friday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian Civil War, 2018 Afrin offensive
- With a cross-border artillery bombardment into the Afrin Canton, Turkey starts its announced military campaign to "destroy" the Syrian Kurdish YPG group. (Reuters)

Business and economy

Protests against Rodrigo Duterte
- Journalists in the Philippines protest the government's decision to cancel the license of Rappler. (The Philippine Star), (Channel News Asia)

Disasters and accidents

Fifteen people are injured and an infant is killed after a car hits a group of pedestrians near Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The police report that the driver had an epileptic seizure. (BBC)
The bodies of ten Syrian men are found after a snowstorm on the Lebanon–Syria border. The Lebanese Army says they tried to enter Lebanon illegally. Two presumed people smugglers are arrested. (Daily Star)

Law and crime

Sudan's National Intelligence and Security Service arrests 7 journalists who were covering this week's economic protests in Khartoum. The charges are unclear. (The New York Times)
Outside the Fleury-Mérogis prison, French police clash with prison guards who are striking over the detention conditions in French jails. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

Politics of China
- Citing a national "fervor", the Communist Party of China proposes writing the Xi Jinping Thought into the state constitution, after it was already added to the party constitution. (Reuters)
Politics of the United States
- Presenting a new national defense strategy, the United States Secretary of Defense, Jim Mattis, says terrorism is no longer the focus of the national security of the United States. Now it is competition between great powers. (BBC)
Politics of the United Kingdom
- A spokesperson for Prime Minister Theresa May says the government has seen no plans for Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson's idea of building a road bridge across the English Channel between France and the United Kingdom. (CNBC)
Political appointments by Donald Trump
- Carl Higbie, Corporation for National and Community Service Chief of External Affairs, apologizes and resigns from his position with the agency that runs AmeriCorps after racist and anti-Muslim remarks he made in 2013 are reported by CNN. (NPR)

Science and technology

An Atlas V rocket successfully deployed the fourth SBIRS satellite for the United States Air Force. This launch completes the geosynchronous segment of SBIRS and provides a global missile detection system for the United States. (Spaceflight 101)

January 18, 2018 (Thursday)

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Business and economy

The Emirates airline announces an order for up to 36 Airbus A380s. Emirates is already the aircraft's largest operator, with a fleet of over 100. (BBC)

Disasters and accidents

2018 Aktobe bus fire
- A bus carrying Uzbek migrant workers catches fire in Kazakhstan's Aktobe Region, killing 52 people. Five people escape and are treated by rescue workers. (BBC)

International relations

French President Emmanuel Macron meets with British Prime Minister Theresa May at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. (Politico)

Law and crime

Police in Serbia arrest three Australians, one of them Rohan Arnold, a known businessman, for allegedly smuggling 1,280 kilograms (2,820 lb) of cocaine into Sydney in 2016. (Sydney Morning Herald)

Science and technology

In a world's first, a drone rescues two people off the coast of Lennox Head, New South Wales in Australia by dropping a safety device to them. John Barilaro, the Deputy Premier of New South Wales, praises the rescue as historic. (Channel News Asia) (BBC)

January 17, 2018 (Wednesday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Two Americans and two Canadians are abducted by unknown gunmen in Kaduna State, Nigeria. Two police officers are killed after engaging in a firefight with the abductors. (Reuters)
Boko Haram insurgency
- Suspected Boko Haram suicide bombers kill 12 people and injure 48 others, in Maiduguri, Nigeria. (Reuters)
Insurgency in the North Caucasus
- In Nazran, Ingushetia, arsonists set fire to the office of Memorial, a Russian human rights organization. (The Moscow Times)

Arts and culture

France–United Kingdom relations
- The Bayeux Tapestry, which depicts the Norman conquest of England, is to be displayed in the United Kingdom for the first time after French President Emmanuel Macron agreed to loan it out for the first time in 950 years. Subject to the outcome of tests, the loan is expected to happen somewhere after 2020. (BBC)

Disasters and accidents

2018 Sapphire Aviation Bell UH-1H Iroquois crash
- Zimbabwean politician Roy Bennett is killed in a helicopter crash near Raton, New Mexico, United States. (BBC)

International relations

North Korea–South Korea relations
- The South Korean Ministry of Unification announces that both North Korea and South Korea will march together under the Korean Unification Flag during the opening ceremony of the 2018 Winter Olympics. (CNN)
Visa policy of the United States
- The U.S. Department of Homeland Security discontinues the eligibility of citizens of Belize, Haiti, and Samoa to obtain H-2A and H-2B visas for temporary work. (Reuters)

Law and crime

Freedom of the press, Media of the Philippines
- Following the Securities and Exchange Commission of the Philippines' revocation of Rappler's license, the National Bureau of Investigation of the Philippines launches a probe into Rappler. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

2017–18 Spanish constitutional crisis
- The Parliament of Catalonia opens the new legislature. Roger Torrent (ERC) is named Speaker. Three parliamentarians in jail vote through proxies, the five parlementarians in exile in Belgium do not. Carles Puigdemont (PDeCAT, JuntsxCat), through his spokesman, considers it "perfectly plausible" for him to be president remotely. Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy says that he will not restore Catalonia's autonomous powers if the regional parliament permits Puigdemont to lead the government from exile. (BBC)
Freedom of the press, Fake News Awards
- Donald Trump tweets a link to the Republican National Committee's "Fake News Awards", won by ten stories and tweets that he considers misreported. The link also honors ten ways the President "has been getting results" thus far. (Politico)

January 16, 2018 (Tuesday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Aftermath of the Caracas helicopter incident
- The Venezuelan government confirms that Óscar Pérez, the rogue pilot responsible for the Caracas helicopter incident in June 2017, was killed in a firefight with the Venezuelan Army yesterday. Two police officers and seven people from Pérez's group were killed, and six members of Pérez's group were arrested. (CNN) (teleSUR)

Arts and culture

Animal welfare and rights in Europe
- The European Parliament approves a call to ban electric pulse fishing, seen by some as cruel. (U.S. News & World Report)
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon Church) names Russell M. Nelson as the 17th President of the Church. (NPR)

Business and economy

The Dow Jones Industrial Average reaches 26,000 points for the first time, after surpassing the 25,000-mark on January 4. (Chicago Tribune)
In a strategy claimed as "towards healthier products", Nestlé sells its United States confectionery business, number 4 on the market, to Ferrero SpA for $2.8 billion. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

A Colombian Army Mi-17 helicopter crashes near Segovia, Antioquia, in northern Colombia, killing at least ten people. (Reuters)

International relations

Palestine–United States relations
- The United States will withhold $65 million for Palestinian aid paid via the United Nations Relief and Welfare Agency stating that UNRWA needs to make unspecified reforms. The U.S. says it will provide $60 million, 48 percent of the regular payment. (Reuters)

Law and crime

Terrorism in Kosovo
- Oliver Ivanović, the head politician of the Kosovo Serb party Freedom, Democracy, Justice, is killed outside his office in North Mitrovica in a drive-by shooting. Aleksandar Vučić, the President of Serbia says his government treats this as an act of terrorism. (BBC)
Terrorism in Pakistan
- Over 1,800 muslim clerics in Pakistan issue a fatwa aimed at prohibiting the use of suicide bombing, declaring it haram. (Sputnik).

Politics and elections

Special Counsel investigation
- The New York Times reports that Special Counsel Robert Mueller subpoenaed Steve Bannon last week to testify before a grand jury. The House Intelligence Committee issues a second subpoena, via powers seldomly used by Congress, following Bannon's testimony today that, while he was willing to answer questions, the White House instructed him not to answer questions related to his White House tenure. (CNN) (NBC News) (The New York Times)

Science and technology

Climate of Russia
- Temperatures reach −67 °C (−89 °F) in Russia's Yakutia region, four degrees shy of the record low of −71 °C (−96 °F) recorded in 2013 in Yakutia's village of Oymyakon. (Channel NewsAsia)

January 15, 2018 (Monday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Iraqi Civil War (2014–present), January 2018 Baghdad bombings
- A double suicide bombing kills at least 35 people and injures over 90 in Baghdad, Iraq. (BBC)
India–Pakistan military confrontation (2016–present)
- Four Pakistani soldiers are killed in shelling by the Indian Army across the disputed Kashmir frontier. (Reuters)
Syrian Civil War
- Turkey threatens to "strangle" the United States-backed Syrian Border Security Force "before it's even born", while Syria vows to crush it and expel American military personnel from the country. Russia called the plans "a plot to dismember Syria". (Reuters)
Aftermath of the Caracas helicopter incident
- Two police officers and several gunmen are killed near Caracas in an operation to capture Óscar Pérez, the rogue pilot responsible for the Caracas helicopter incident on June 27, 2017, according to the Venezuelan government. Five people have also been arrested. (BBC)

Arts and culture

Weinstein effect, #MeToo
- American actress Eliza Dushku claims she was sexually assaulted by a stuntman when she was 12 years old. (The Guardian)

Business and economy

After talks between the company, its lenders, and the United Kingdom's government fail to reach a deal, British multinational facilities management and construction services company Carillion fails and is liquidated, threatening thousands of jobs. Carillion is currently involved in projects such as the high-speed rail in the United Kingdom, including the High Speed 2 rail line. (BBC)
List of largest rough diamonds
- A 910 ct "D colour Type II A" diamond is dug up in the Letseng diamond mine, Lesotho. (MiningMX)

Disasters and accidents

The mezzanine overlooking the main lobby of the Indonesia Stock Exchange in Jakarta, Indonesia, collapses, injuring at least 70 people. The Indonesian National Police ruled out terrorism as the cause. (The Australian), (Daily Express)
The Mayon volcano begins to erupt in the Philippines. (CNN)
Chirajara bridge collapse
- A partially completed bridge in Cundinamarca, Colombia, collapses, killing at least 10 workers. (Reuters)

International relations

2017–18 North Korea crisis, Korean War
- A meeting of senior officials from countries that backed South Korea in the Korean War begins today in Vancouver which will look at ways to better implement sanctions to push North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons. China and Russia, which backed the North in the war but have since agreed to U.N. sanctions on Pyongyang, will not be attending the meeting. (Reuters)
Israel–Palestine relations
- Nabil Shaath, the foreign affairs adviser of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, says that the Palestinian Central Council freezes its recognition of the state of Israel until Israel recognizes Palestine as a state. Palestine will freeze the Oslo accords. (Gulf News)

Law and crime

Aftermath of the 2013 Lahad Datu standoff
- Malaysia upholds death sentences for nine Filipino Tausūgs over 2013 incursion in Sabah by a faction of claimant to the Sultanate of Sulu throne. (Reuters)
A knife fight between students breaks out in a school in Perm, Russia. Twelve injured are reported, with three of them in serious condition. (BBC)
Two people are arrested in Perris, California, after 13 people aged between 2 and 29 years old are found being held captive at their house, including some "shackled to their beds with chains and padlocks". They are all believed to be siblings. (BBC)
CIA activities in China
- Jerry Chun Shing Lee, a former U.S. Central Intelligence Agency officer, is arrested at New York's Kennedy International Airport and held without bail by the Brooklyn federal court. He faces charges that, after he left his job, he kept notebooks filled with classified information about undercover agents and assets which he allegedly used to help China identify informants and dismantle a U.S. spying network. (Reuters) (The New York Times) (The Washington Post)

Politics and elections

Politics of Egypt
- The nephew of assassinated Egyptian president Mohamed Anwar al-Sadat announces that he will not run in March’s presidential election, blaming an environment of fear surrounding the vote. (The Guardian)
Politics of Romania
- Romanian Prime Minister Mihai Tudose resigns after losing the support of the Social Democratic Party. (Reuters)
Rohingya persecution in Myanmar
- Win Myat Aye, Myanmar's minister of social welfare, relief and resettlement, announced that his country would begin repatriating Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh beginning on January 23, 2018. Burmese officials also promised that a newly built camp for repatriated refugees would also be finished by that date. (The Washington Post) (ABC News)
Partition and secession in California
- A group of Californians criticize their state government and declare their desire to form a new U.S. state called New California. (U.S. News & World Report)
Politics of the United States
- Nine out of the twelve members of the U.S. National Park Service's advisory board resign out of protest over their treatment by Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke. (The Washington Post), (NPR)