Portal:Current events/November 2013

Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian civil war:
- Israeli aircraft carry out a strike near the Syrian coastal city of Latakia targeting Russian-made S-125 air defense missiles allegedly intended for use by the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. (BBC)
War in North-West Pakistan:
- A U.S. drone strike kills Hakimullah Mehsud, the leader of the Pakistani Taliban (whom the United States had a reward for $5 million) and five others. (BBC) (Reuters)
2013 Tiananmen Square attack:
- China's top security official blames the East Turkestan Islamic Movement for a suicide attack that killed five people at the Tiananmen Gate in Beijing on Monday. (AP)

Business and economy

Fannie Mae files a lawsuit for $800 million against nine different banks, including Citigroup and Bank of America, for manipulating the Libor benchmark interest rate. (Bloomberg via SFGate)

Disasters and accidents

Flash floods and heavy rains sweep across central Texas, United States, killing 2 people. (AP via Fox News)

Law and crime

2013 Los Angeles International Airport shooting: A gunman opens fire at Los Angeles International Airport, killing a US Transportation Security Administration employee, and wounding several other people. It prompts a terminal evacuation. (NBC Los Angeles) (Fox News)
Two people, members of the far-right Greek political party Golden Dawn, are killed in a drive-by shooting, outside the offices of Golden Dawn in Neo Iraklio, Athens. (Reuters) (Kathimerini)

Science and technology

Scientists discover three new species of marsupial Antechinus in Queensland, Australia. (News.com.Au)
A person claiming to be a member of Anonymous takes down the website for Singaporean newspaper The Straits Times. (BBC)
The smartphone wars are re-ignited, as Rockstar Consortium, a company owned by companies including Apple and Microsoft, starts wide-ranging legal action against Google, Samsung, and other makers of Android phones. (Reuters) (Ars Technica)

November 2, 2013 (Saturday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Two French journalists working for RFI are kidnapped and killed in the town of Kidal in northern Mali. (BBC)

Disasters and accidents

Two planes carrying skydivers collide in mid-air in northern Wisconsin with no deaths or serious injuries reported. (National Post)

Law and crime

Paul Anthony Ciancia is charged with murder of a federal officer and commission of violence in an international airport in relation to the 2013 Los Angeles International Airport shooting. (CNN)

Politics and elections

2013 Tunisian protests:
- Tunisian government and opposition leaders are deadlocked during talks over the determination of a new PM tasked with steering the country out of a months-long political crisis. (Gulf News)
Georgian Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili, due to leave office this month, names Interior Minister Irakli Garibashvili as his successor. (Reuters)

November 3, 2013 (Sunday)

Disasters and accidents

An overcrowded ferry with 200 passengers on board sinks off Pattaya, Thailand, killing at least six people. (BBC)
A small turboprop plane carrying 18 people crashes while trying to land in bad, rainy weather in the Andes Mountains of northern Bolivia, killing 8, and injuring 10, including the pilot and co-pilot, on a trip from Trinidad, Bolivia to Riberalta, Bolivia, in El Beni Department near Brazil. (NBC)

Politics and elections

Islamist protests in Egypt (July 2013–present):
- Ousted Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi's trial starts in Cairo's police academy. He faces charges of inciting violence and murder in connection with clashes at the presidential palace in Cairo in December 2012. (Reuters) (RTE)

Science

A solar eclipse sweeps across Africa, Europe and the Eastern United States. (CTV)

Sports

The NFL Houston Texans head coach Gary Kubiak collapses on the field at halftime of the Texans vs. Colts game Sunday night. (ESPN)

November 4, 2013 (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Syria civil war:
- Colonel Abdul Jabbar Akaidi, top rebel leader and chief recipient of U.S. aid, quits his position blaming recent losses on rebel infighting. (Washington Post)
A truck carrying four people hits a land mine on a road leading to Menaka in Mali, killing all of the occupants. (AP via Miami Herald)

Arts and culture

German magazine Focus reports the 2012 discovery of Nazi plundered art worth €1 billion in Munich, including lost works by Picasso and Matisse. (Deutsche Welle)

Law and crime

A man fatally stabs three people on a bus en route between Årdal and Tyin in Norway. (NBC News)
The company Johnson & Johnson agrees to pay $2.2 billion in regards to a U.S. probe of the drug risperdal. (Reuters)
A gunman opens fire inside the Westfield Garden State Plaza in Paramus, New Jersey, shooting out security cameras. Hours later, the gunman commits suicide near the mall. (CNN)
In Florida, United States, Eric Rivera Jr. is convicted of second-degree murder in the 2007 killing of NFL Washington Redskins player Sean Taylor during a burglary. (Fox News)

Politics and elections

Egyptian deposed president Mohamed Morsi's trial regarding charges of violence is postponed to 8 January 2014. (AllAfrica)

Science

Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works undertakes to build a successor to the SR-71 Blackbird capable of mach 6 speed flight by 2030. (Fox News)

November 5, 2013 (Tuesday)

Armed conflict and attacks

Post-civil war violence in Libya:
- Rival militias battle each other in firefights on the streets of Tripoli. No deaths are reported despite the use of rocket-propelled grenades and anti-aircraft artillery by the combatants. (Reuters)

Arts and culture

Chicago chef Charlie Trotter, who operated his namesake restaurant in Chicago (from 1987 until its closure in 2012), is found dead by his son at his Lincoln Park home. (Chicago Tribune)

Disasters and accidents

A 4-story building under construction collapses in Lagos, Nigeria, killing 4 people. (AP via Miami Herald)

Law and crime

Sports journalist Alberto Angulo Gerardo is killed in the Mexican state of Sinaloa. His death add ups to the death toll of more than 100 media workers killed in Mexico since the year 2000. (GlobalPost)
Thousands of protesters fill the streets of Bangkok, Thailand, after lawmakers pass a draft bill for political amnesty which could allow self-exiled Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra to re-enter the country. (Reuters via Voice of America)
American rapper DMX is arrested in South Carolina for driving with a suspended licence, and without a vehicle tag or insurance. (Reuters)
SAC Capital Advisors pleads guilty to insider trading and wire fraud and agrees to pay $1.8 billion in penalties to the United States. (Bloomberg)
152 people are sentenced to death in Bangladesh in connection to the 2009 Bangladesh Rifles revolt. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

Voters in the US states of New Jersey and Virginia go to the polls in their gubernatorial elections, while voters in cities across the country also vote to choose their next mayor. (CBS News) (Daily Mail) (CBS News) (Reuters) (CBS News)
- Chris Christie is re-elected Governor of New Jersey.
- Terry McAuliffe is narrowly elected Governor of Virginia.
- Bill de Blasio is elected Mayor of New York City.
Toronto Mayor Rob Ford admits that a year-old video does indeed show him smoking crack cocaine, a charge he had previously denied. Ford refused to resign from office and vowed to pursue re-election efforts. (CBC)

Science

The ISRO of India launches a PSLV-XL rocket carrying the Mars Orbiter Mission probe, which will eventually be sent to Mars. (The Times of India)

The discovery of the Hercules–Corona Borealis Great Wall, the largest known structure in the universe, is announced.[1]

Sports

In the NFL, Houston Texans head coach Gary Kubiak is released from a Houston hospital two days after suffering a transient ischemic attack during the Texans' loss to the Indianapolis Colts. He will not immediately resume coaching duties, but is expected to fully recover. (ESPN)

November 6, 2013 (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian civil war:
- A bomb explodes in the center of the capital, Damascus, killing at least 8 people and injuring more than 50 others. (BBC)
- A suicide bomber kills 8 people and injures 41 others in an attack against an intelligence building in the southern city of As-Suwayda. Among those killed is a Syrian Air Force major. (Reuters)
Several small bombs explode outside a provincial office of the Chinese Communist Party in the northern city of Taiyuan, killing at least one person and wounding eight others. (BBC) (Reuters)
M23 rebellion:
- The M23 rebel movement is defeated by Congolese troops, bringing an end to the armed conflict. (Al Jazeera)
Iraqi insurgency (post-U.S. withdrawal):
- A suicide bomber detonates a bomb in an oil tanker truck, killing 15 people in Baghdad, Iraq. (AFP via Ahram Online)

Law and crime

A Mexican federal court overturns a state court ruling that allowed the drug lord Rafael Caro Quintero to be released from prison earlier this year. This court response follows a decision by the U.S. Department of State to place a $5 million bounty against him. (Fox News)
Saudi police crackdowns on foreigners working illegally in the kingdom widen with more than 16,000 arrests. (ABC News)
A shooting at a barbershop in Detroit, Michigan, U.S. kills 2 people and injures 7 others. (CNN)
Pakistan's ex-president Pervez Musharraf is released on bail. (Xinhua)

Politics and elections

Voters in Tajikistan go to the polls for a presidential election. (BBC)

November 7, 2013 (Thursday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

War in North-West Pakistan:
- The Pakistani Taliban names Maulana Fazlullah as its new leader six days after Hakimullah Mehsud was killed in a drone attack in North Waziristan. (BBC)
M23 rebellion:
- M23 rebel chief Sultani Makenga, along with hundreds of rebels, surrenders to authorities in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park, Uganda. (BBC)
Syrian civil war:
- Turkey seizes a truck loaded with 1,200 rocket warheads and other weapons near the border with Syria and detain nine people. (Reuters)

Law and crime

A person of interest is arrested in connection with a shooting in Detroit, Michigan, USA, on November 6 that left 3 people dead and 6 others wounded. (AP via FOX News)

Politics and elections

Voters in the Falkland Islands go to the polls in their general election to elect members of the Legislative Assembly. (The Telegraph)

November 8, 2013 (Friday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

War in Somalia (2009–present):
- At least 11 people are killed in the Somalian capital Mogadishu after a bomb explodes in a carpark. (AFP via Yahoo News Australia)

Arts and culture

UNESCO suspends the voting rights of the United States and Israel after both countries refused to pay their dues as a protest to the membership of the State of Palestine. (BBC)

Disasters and accidents

Typhoon Haiyan, one of the strongest tropical cyclones in recorded history to make landfall, hits the Visayas in the Philippines, with at least three people dead. (BBC News) (AFP via Google) (Zee News)
A 90-car Alabama and Gulf Coast Railway train carrying crude oil derails and explodes in western Alabama. (Reuters)

Law and crime

A man is arrested for alleged involvement in the Wednesday bombing of the Chinese Communist Party in the city of Taiyuan in northern China. (The Telegraph)
Reports indicate that Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat had high levels of polonium in his body when he died. (BBC)
Thieves steal six antiques worth billions of VND ($94 thousand) displayed at Hòa Khiêm Palace in Tomb of King Tự Ðức in Huế, Vietnam. (Tuoitrenews)

Sports

Sheffield City Council announces plans to start the demolition of the Don Valley athletics stadium located in the city of Sheffield, England, on 21 November 2013. (BBC News)

November 9, 2013 (Saturday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

A gunman kills eight people in a bar in the Colombian city of Cali. (Reuters)
Islamist insurgency in Nigeria:
- Five members of the Nigerian Islamist group Boko Haram and two Nigerian Army soldiers are killed in fighting in the city of Kano. (Reuters)

Arts and culture

Venezuelan television presenter María Gabriela Isler is crowned Miss Universe 2013 in Moscow, Russia. (AFP via Yahoo News)

Disasters and accidents

Typhoon Haiyan:
- Philippines: The Red Cross says that 10,000 people are confirmed dead. It reported that at least 1,000 had been killed in Tacloban and 200 in Samar province. (RT) (The Guardian)
- Vietnam: The government mobilizes over 453,000 soldiers and militia members, and thousands of means of transport to cope with Typhoon Haiyan that is forecast to hit central region early Sunday. Roughly 20,000 people are evacuated from Da Nang. (The New York Times) (Tuoi Tre News)

International relations

British foreign secretary William Hague urged negotiatiors to "seize the moment" on talks about Iran's nuclear program. (BBC)

Law and crime

Authorities in Bangladesh arrest five leaders of the Opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party the day before the start of a nationwide strike. (AP)

Politics and elections

Voters in the Maldives go to the polls for the second round of a presidential election. (BBC)

Science

The United States Navy christened the USS Gerald R. Ford - the $15.5 billion aircraft carrier is the most technologically advanced ship ever built. (FOX News)

Sports

Guangzhou Evergrande win the AFC Champions League for the first time in their history, defeating FC Seoul in the final. (AFC) (Goal.com)

November 10, 2013 (Sunday)

Disasters and accidents

Typhoon Haiyan:
- Philippines: A Philippines police official estimates that 10,000 people have died in the central province of Leyte. (Weatherzone Australia)
- Vietnam: 600,000 civilians have been evacuated. (Bangkok Post)

Law and crime

Greek Coast Guard intercepts a Sierra Leone-flagged cargo ship, Nour M, with around 20,000 Kalashnikov assault rifles on board. The ship's Turkish captain and seven crew members were arrested. (RT) (The Sydney Morning Herald)

Sports

Egyptian football club Al Ahly SC wins the CAF Champions League with a record of eight titles after a 2-0 win secured a 3-1 aggregate victory over South Africa's Orlando Pirates in the final. (CAF) (Goal.com)
In motor sports, Marc Márquez of Spain becomes the youngest motorcyclist to win the 2013 MotoGP World Championship at the age of 20. (AFP via The Australia)

November 11, 2013 (Monday)

Business and economy

A general strike in Nepal against next week's election shuts down schools, markets and industries. (AP via New Zealand Herald)

Disasters and accidents

An international aid effort is underway to help the Philippines cope with the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan. (ABC News Online)
At least four people are killed and eight injured as a seven story building catches fire in Vikhroli, a suburb of the Indian city of Mumbai. (Zee News)
At least 100 people are killed in a tropical cyclone in Somalia's semi-autonomous Puntland region. (Reuters)

Law and crime

Three members of the Iranian rock band The Yellow Dogs are shot and killed in Brooklyn, New York by a member of a different band. The shooter then commits suicide. (CNN)

November 12, 2013 (Tuesday)

Armed conflict and attacks

Two people are killed and five others injured when a bomb explodes in Bedfordview, South Africa, near the Eastgate shopping mall. (SAPA via News24)

Arts and culture

British composer John Tavener dies at age 69. (BBC)

Business and economy

U.S. stock exchanges jointly announce a plan to improve the technical functioning of their markets, in the face of recent high-profile glitches such as the trading halt in Nasdaq in August. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

The Philippines faces a health crisis in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan with the official death toll at 1,774 and expected to rise quickly. (CNN)

Laws and crime

Hawaii becomes the 15th state in the United States to legalize same-sex marriage. (Washington Post)
A U.S. District Court judge, Victor Marrero, denies a motion by former New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine, the former CEO of MF Global, to dismiss investor litigation intended to hold him accountable for MF Global's blow-up in October 2011. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

The Senate of Thailand rejects an asylum bill that could have seen the return of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. (BBC)

November 13, 2013 (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Syria civil war:
- Syrian army retakes strategically important Damascus suburb of Hujaira from the rebels. (Reuters)
- Four Palestinians are killed in a bombing attack at the Yarmouk refugee camp. (Maan News)
- Syrian Kurds announce transitional autonomous authority amidst fighting with rebels. (BBC)
Iraqi insurgency (post-U.S. withdrawal):
- Bombs across Iraq detonate, killing 18 people. (Voice of America)
Israeli-Palestinian conflict:
- Israel cancels proposed plans to build new settlements in the West Bank after US and Palestinian opposition. (AP via Fox News)

Arts and culture

Francis Bacon's painting of his friend Lucian Freud, Three Studies of Lucian Freud (1969), is sold for $142.4 million. (BBC)
A 14.82-carat orange diamond sets a world record after it is sold at a Christie's auction in Geneva for $35.5 million. (Forbes)
At the same auction, a pink diamond is sold for US$83.2 million, setting a new world record. (BBC)
One World Trade Center becomes the tallest building in the United States. (CNN)

Business and economics

Poppy farmers in Afghanistan report record yields for their opium crops. (The Guardian)
Starbucks is ordered to pay Kraft Foods $2.76 billion in damages over a dispute about packaged coffee. (BBC)

Disasters and accidents

Typhoon Haiyan:
- The official death toll in the Philippines is actually reported that 2,500 people were killed. (Newsinfo)
- The total international aid for the typhoon victims reaches over $140 million. (CNN)
Four members of the United States Marine Corps are killed after ordnance accidentally explodes after a training exercise at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton in Southern California. (NBC News)

Politics and elections

The United States State Department designates Boko Haram as a "terrorist" group. (Reuters)
China, Russia, Cuba, Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, and Algeria are elected to the United Nations Human Rights Council. (The Washington Post)
Kevin Rudd announces his retirement from Australian politics. (Herald Sun)
Wikileaks publishes a secret draft chapter of the Trans-Pacific Partnership. (The Guardian)
The United States Government announces that 106,185 people signed up for health insurance through the Health Insurance Marketplace as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act during its first month of release on October. (The New York Times)

Science and technology

A gigantic iceberg is floating in the Southern Ocean after breaking off the Pine Island Glacier in Antarctica. (The Australian)
Scientists discover Panthera blytheae in Tibet, the oldest big cat fossil ever discovered. (Los Angeles Times)
WWF releases a photo, taken by a camera trap in a forest in central Vietnam in September, of one of Earth's rarest mammals, the saola, which hadn’t been seen in 15 years. (The Washington Post)

November 14, 2013 (Thursday)

Attacks and conflicts

Iraqi insurgency (post-U.S. withdrawal):
- 39 people are killed in Iraq in attacks against Shiites Muslims. (Daily Star)
A French priest is kidnapped in Cameroon near the border with Nigeria. (BBC)

Disasters and accidents

Typhoon Haiyan:
- Philippine President Benigno Aquino III is criticized by survivors, aid agencies, and international and local media for his inadequate response to the tragedy. (BBC)

International relations

Russian ministers led by Foreign Affairs Minister Sergei Lavrov including Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu arrive in Cairo and meet with their Egyptian counterparts including the head of Egypt's military General Abdel Fattah el-Sisi in talks over a new era of enhanced military co-operation. (BBC) (Reuters)
Protests are held in Albania against the proposal to bring Syria's chemical weapons stockpile to be destroyed in the country. (TIME) (The Washington Post) (Reuters)

Law and crime

Canadian police reveal that 348 people have been arrested internationally and 386 children rescued as a result of a three-year child pornography investigation called "Project Spade". (RT) (BBC)

Politics and elections

Following the heightened scrutiny from the April 2012 controversy, two U.S. Secret Service agents are relieved of duty from Barack Obama's security detail after charges of sexual harassment towards a female subordinate. (TIME)

Sport

In cricket, Indian player Sachin Tendulkar, the leading run scorer of all time, starts his 200th and final test match in Mumbai. (Sydney Morning Herald)

November 15, 2013 (Friday)

Armed conflict and attacks

Syrian civil war:
- North Korea denies giving military aid to Syria. (Al Jazeera)
- Hezbollah vows to keep fighters in Syria. (News.com)
- Albania says it will not allow the destruction of Syrian chemical weapons on its soil after days of protests. (BBC)

Disasters and accidents

Typhoon Haiyan:
- The United Nations tallies the death toll to around 4,400. The Red Cross estimates that around 20,000 are still missing, many of whom are feared dead. This is contrary to a previous estimate by Benigno Aquino III, who put the death toll to a low 2,000. (NBC News)
- The official death toll is now at 3,631. (The Huffington Post)
At least five people are killed and 10 injured after four coaches of the Mangala Lakshadweep Express derail near the Indian city of Nashik in Maharashtra state. (NDTV) (Times of India)
Two people die after a light aircraft crashes near the runway at Airbus Facilities in Broughton, Flintshire. (ITV News)
12 migrants drown off the coast of Greece. (Reuters)

International relations

Gambia cuts diplomatic relations with Taiwan. (BBC)
Police in Ethiopia arrest dozens of people outside the Saudi Arabian embassy in the capital Addis Ababa who were protesting against attacks on Ethiopians in Saudi Arabia. (Al Jazeera)

Law and crime

Prosecutors in the Australian state of Queensland drop manslaughter charges against American surgeon Jayant Patel, who pleads guilty to charges of fraud. (AP)
The U.S. Supreme Court says that it will hear a securities fraud case this term that arises out of the asbestos liabilities of Halliburton, an oilfield services company. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

China is to relax some elements of its one-child policy and announces it will end its "re-education through labour" camps. (BBC) (Xinhua)
Burma announces the release of 69 political prisoners in ongoing reform. (BBC)
The Australian Electoral Commission petitions the High Court of Australia for a new Senate election in the state of Western Australia due to the loss of 1,370 ballot papers and the closeness of the result. (The Australian)
The Brazilian Supreme Federal Court issues a long-time awaited order to arrest for bribery 12 former top officials who had served under ex-president Lula, in one of the nation's biggest corruption cases. (Bloomberg)

November 16, 2013 (Saturday)

Armed conflict and attacks

Syrian civil war:
- The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons agrees to a Syria arsenal destruction plan. (The Australian)
Post-civil war violence in Libya:
- Second day of fighting in Tripoli as death toll from violence at anti-militia protest topped 40. (Al Jazeera)
Islamist protests in Egypt (July 2013–present):
- Lawyers in the UK accuse Egypt's military of committing crimes against humanity after July's ouster of President Mohamed Morsi. (Al Jazeera)
War in Afghanistan (2001–present):
- Suicide car bombing in Kabul kills six people and injures twenty. (Al Jazeera)
Iraqi insurgency (post-U.S. withdrawal):
- A series of attacks in Baghdad and north Iraq kills four policemen and wounds dozens. (Daily Star)

Disasters and accidents

Typhoon Haiyan:
- David Cameron commits an additional £30 million to the victims. (BBC)

Law and crime

A San Diego, California family of four, who disappeared in 2010, is found buried in the desert; local authorities are now treating the case as multiple homicides. (CBS News)

International relations

The Brazilian Federal Police officially asks the Interpol to search and arrest in Italy the former Banco do Brasil marketing director chief, the italian Henrique Pizzolato, who has allegedly fled following a Supreme Federal Court order to arrest him for bribery, amongst others involved. (BBC) (GloboNews)
Aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya is commissioned into the Indian Navy at the Russian shipbuilding complex of Sevmash in Severodvinsk, ending a five-year delay to the $2.33 billion project. Russian deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin and Indian Defense Minister AK Antony attend the handing over ceremony. (Times of India) (RT) (Reuters)

Politics and elections

Voters in the Maldives go to the polls for a presidential election with Abdulla Yameen winning the election with 51.3% of the vote. (ABC News Australia)

Sports

Sachin Tendulkar retires from all forms of cricket following his final Test at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium, scoring 74 runs in his career's last innings. (ESPN Cricinfo)

November 17, 2013 (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Post-civil war violence in Libya:
- Libya's deputy intelligence chief Mustafa Noah is kidnapped outside Tripoli airport. (Reuters)

Arts and culture

British author Doris Lessing, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2007, dies at the age of 94. (The Independent)

Business and economy

Sony announces they sold one million PlayStation 4 units in the first day. (Joystiq)

Disasters and accidents

Typhoon Haiyan:
- The number of people displaced reaches 1.9 million people. Numbers vary between 1,000-20,000 for estimates about missing people. (NPR) (Voice of America)
- Flooding in Vietnam has killed at least 28 people with nine more missing and nearly 80,000 displaced. (Reuters)
Fifty people are killed after a passenger Boeing 737 crash lands in the city of Kazan in central Russia. (RT)
Following the issuance of a rare High Risk for severe weather (only the fifth documented such case in November and also extending to areas further north than any previous known high risk issued in the November through February timeframe), several midwestern states in the United States are placed under multiple tornado watches, with multiple tornadoes touching down, causing at least four deaths and up to 50 injured in the area; one leveled parts of a suburb of Peoria, Illinois. Around six dozen tornadoes occur in total with activity most concentrated in Illinois and Indiana but extending from Tennessee to Michigan. (Peoria Journal Star) (CNN) (NBC News)

Politics and elections

Abdulla Yameen is sworn in as the President of the Maldives following yesterday's election victory. (ABC News Australia)
Giorgi Margvelashvili is sworn in as the President of Georgia following the victory in the October election. (Civil Georgia)
Voters in Chile go to the polls for a general election of president, senators, deputies, and regional advisers. The presidential election looks likely to go to a runoff between former President Michelle Bachelet and Evelyn Matthei of the ruling Coalition. (BBC) (Reuters)

Sports

In motorsport:
- Sebastian Vettel wins an eighth consecutive Formula One race at the 2013 United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas breaking the record previously held by Michael Schumacher. (AFP via Sydney Morning Herald)
- Jimmie Johnson wins his sixth NASCAR Sprint Cup championship title, one title short of the all-time record of seven held by both Dale Earnhardt and Richard Petty. (USA Today)

November 18, 2013 (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

A gunman attacks the offices of the newspaper Libération and the bank Société Générale in Paris, three days after attacking the offices of the news channel BFM TV. (BBC)

Disasters and accidents

Typhoon Haiyan:
- Philippine President Benigno Aquino III encamps in Tacloban to oversee the rescue and relief operations after receiving criticism for his disorganized response early into the tragedy. (USA Today)
At least twenty people are dead after an Egyptian train collides with a minibus and other vehicles south of Cairo. (BBC)
Mounts Merapi and Sinabung erupt in Indonesia forcing residents of Central Java and North Sumatra to flee. (Fox News)

International relations

Destruction of Syria's chemical weapons
- Belgium ruled itself out as a candidate to host the destruction of Syria's chemical weapons stockpile and said it would prefer the arsenal to be eradicated close to Syria itself. (AP)
Indonesia recalls its ambassador to Australia and will "review" Australian diplomatic positions in Jakarta following revelations that Australia had tapped the phone of the President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his wife. (Sydney Morning Herald)

Science and technology

NASA successfully launches its MAVEN space probe on a mission to study Mars' atmosphere. (The Verge)

November 19, 2013 (Tuesday)

Armed conflict and attacks

Syrian civil war spillover in Lebanon, Iranian embassy bombings:
- Two suicide bombers target the Iranian embassy in the Lebanese capital Beirut killing at least 23 people. (Reuters via ABC News Australia)
- An Al Qaeda-linked group known as the Abdullah Azzam Brigades claims responsibility for the attacks. (Daily News Egypt) (France 24)
War in Somalia (2009–present):
- An African Union base in Beledweyne, Somalia, is stormed by armed attackers, resulting in the deaths of 19 people. (BBC)
Syrian Civil War, Battle of Qalamoun:
- The Syrian Army captures the town of Qarah. (AP via The Hindu)

Arts and culture

The United States commemorates the 150th anniversary of the Gettysburg Address. (Sydney Morning Herald)

Business and economy

Bombardier Aerospace, a Canadian manufacturer, signs a letter of intent to sell Iraq's national carrier five CSeries jets with options for 11 more. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

Typhoon Haiyan:
- The World Bank offers a US$500 million loan to the Philippines. (NBC News)
Cyclone Cleopatra:
- At least 18 people are dead after Cyclone Cleopatra hits the Italian island of Sardinia, causing heavy floods. (BBC)
- The Prime Minister of Italy, Enrico Letta, declares a state of emergency. (ABC Australia/Reuters)
An under construction shopping mall collapses in the South African town of Tongaat, KwaZulu-Natal, with 50 people trapped and at least one person dead. (AFP via the Melbourne Age)
Fort Lauderdale Air Ambulance crash:
- An Air Evac International Learjet 35 crashes shortly after take-off from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, on its way to Cozumel, Mexico, after calling mayday and during an attempt to return to the airport, possibly due to engine failure, leaving 2 persons dead and two missing as a result. (CNN)

Law and crime

Virginia State Senator Creigh Deeds was stabbed multiple times at his home by his son Austin "Gus" Deeds. His son, Gus was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in the home. (ABC News)
U.S. Representative Trey Radel is arrested and charged with cocaine possession. (CBS News)
George Zimmerman is accused of felony aggravated assault and other charges for interactions with his current girlfriend. (BBC)
In the largest-ever settlement with the U.S. government, banking giant JPMorgan Chase agrees to pay $13 billion and admits to making serious misrepresentations over mortgage-backed securities. (FOX Business)

Politics and elections

Voters in Nepal start voting to elect a Constituent Assembly to draw up a new Constitution. (Reuters)
The Venezuelan National Assembly votes to hand President Nicolás Maduro decree powers over the economy with the opposition concerned about a potential crackdown on political opponents. (Reuters)

November 20, 2013 (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

War in North-West Pakistan:
- A Taliban suicide bomber kills two Pakistan Army soldiers in the North Waziristan tribal district. (The Express Tribune)
Sinai insurgency:
- At least 11 Egyptian Army soldiers are reported killed and 37 are injured following a suicide bomb attack in the city of al-Arish. (BBC) (ITV)

Disasters and accidents

Typhoon Haiyan:
- China sends a 'peace ark' loaded with aid to the Philippines after it was criticized for not giving enough. (BBC) (Voice of America)

Law and crime

U.S. Representative Trey Radel (R–FL) pleads guilty on all charges of cocaine possession following his arrest yesterday and faces 1 year supervised probation. (The Washington Post)

Politics and elections

The Supreme Court of the Philippines abolishes the Priority Development Assistance Fund, otherwise known as the 'pork barrel', prompting Philippine President Benigno Aquino III to fly back to Manila. (Bloomberg)

Religion

The General Synod of the Church of England votes in favour of legislation to allow the ordination of women bishops by 2014. (BBC)

Sport

In baseball, the Canberra Cavalry from the Australian Baseball League wins the 2013 Asia Series defeating the Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions of Taiwan 14-4 in the final. (Sydney Morning Herald)

November 21, 2013 (Thursday)

Armed conflicts

Drone attacks in Pakistan:
- Pakistani officials claim that an American drone strike on an Islamic seminary has killed six people, including two Afghan Taliban leaders and a leader of the Haqqani network. (AP)
Iraqi insurgency (post-U.S. withdrawal):
- A truck bomb detonates in a vegetable market in northeastern Iraq, killing at least 31 people. (AP via ABC)

Disasters and accidents

2013 Riga Maxima superstore collapse:
- At least six people are killed and 35 injured as a Maxima superstore collapses in the Latvian capital Riga. (AFP via ABC Online)

International relations

2013 global surveillance disclosures:
- Indonesian protesters gather outside the Australian embassy in Jakarta and protesters burn Australian flags to protest alleged bugging of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's phone. (AAP via Weekly Times)

Law and crime

A Honduran Vice-minister of Defense states that the Sinaloa Cartel boss Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán, Mexico's most-wanted drug lord, may be hiding in Honduras. (InSight Crime)
Metropolitan Police arrested two suspects after three women are rescued from a residential address in Lambeth, South London, after thirty years of captivity. (BBC)
The parole board in the U.S. state of Alabama grants posthumous pardons to three members of the Scottsboro boys falsely accused of raping a white teenager. (Wall Street Journal)

Science

The Japanese Coast Guard claims that a volcanic eruption has created a new islet in the Bonin Islands south of Japan. (AP)

Sports

Sheffield City Council begins the demolition of the Don Valley Stadium athletics stadium in Sheffield, England. (BBC)

November 22, 2013 (Friday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Iraqi insurgency (post-U.S. withdrawal):
- 23 people are killed in bombing and shootings in Iraq. (Reuters)

Arts and culture

The United States commemorates the 50th anniversary of the day when John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. (ABC Online)

Disasters

2013 Riga Maxima superstore collapse:
- The death toll rises to at least 48, with others feared trapped and rescue efforts continuing. (BBC) (NBC News)
Typhoon Haiyan:
- The death toll in the Philippines tops 5000. (BBC)
2013 North Indian Ocean cyclone season:
- Cyclone Helen hits India's Andhra Pradesh state killing at least six people and knocking out power to thousands of villages. (AP via Miami Herald)
At least 35 people are killed in an explosion after a leaking oil pipeline caught fire in the city of Qingdao, China. (BBC)
At least two people are dead from windstorms in Northern California, U.S. (San Francisco Chronicle)

International relations

2013 global surveillance disclosures:
- The United States has snooped on the Netherlands since 1946, according to files published in NRC Handelsblad. (HLN) (NOS) (ANP via Volkskrant)

Law and crime

Crystal Mangum, the accuser in the 2006 Duke lacrosse case, is convicted of second-degree murder by a North Carolina jury in the 2011 stabbing death of her boyfriend, and is sentenced to serve between 14 and 18 years in prison. (AP via Fox News)

Sport

World Chess Championship 2013:
- Magnus Carlsen of Norway defeats defending champion Viswanathan Anand of India 6½–3½ in a series played in Chennai. (Reuters via SBS)

November 23, 2013 (Saturday)

Attacks and conflicts

Syrian civil war:
- Syrian government air strikes around the northern Syrian city of Aleppo kill 40 people. (Reuters)
Senkaku Islands dispute:
- China delimits an "air-defence identification zone" over an area of the East China Sea, covering Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands, also claimed by Japan. (BBC News)
Iraqi insurgency (post-U.S. withdrawal):
- A car bomb and a suicide bomber kills nine people and wounds 54. (Reuters)
Islamist insurgency in Nigeria:
- Gunmen kill 12 people in a raid on a Northeastern Nigerian village. (Reuters)

Arts and Culture

"The Day of the Doctor" premieres in 94 countries simultaneously to celebrate the 50th anniversary of British science-fiction show Doctor Who. (BBC News)
1D day premieres live all over the world for over seven hours to celebrate the release of One Direction's new album, Midnight Memories.

Disasters

Typhoon Haiyan:
- The Armed Forces of the United States scales back its operations. (Reuters)

International relations

P5+1 foreign ministers meet in Geneva for talks on Iran's nuclear program. (RIA Novosti)
Egypt expels the Turkish ambassador, citing "interference". (AP via Chron)

Sport

In boxing, Filipino Manny Pacquiao defeats American Brandon Rios to win the World Boxing Organization International Welterweight title. (Sports Illustrated via CNN)

November 24, 2013 (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

War in North-West Pakistan:
- Three people are killed in explosions in northwest Pakistan. (PTI via Business Standard)
Syrian civil war:
- More than 160 people have been killed in fighting between the Syrian Army and opposition forces in the suburbs of Damascus. (AP via USA Today)

Arts and culture

Ban of Islam in Angola:
- Angola becomes the first modern country to outlaw Islam, along with other religions unapproved by the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights. Mosques are being destroyed. (International Business Times)

Disasters and accidents

Over 12,000 people are evacuated in Indonesia's North Sumatra province after Mount Sinabung erupts. (Sky News)

International relations

Nuclear program of Iran:
- Iran signs an interim agreement with the P5+1 countries limiting its nuclear program in exchange for reduced sanctions. (CNN) (BBC) (AFP via Ahram)

Politics and elections

Honduran general election, 2013:
- Voters in Honduras go to the polls to select a new President, Congress, local government officials and representatives in the Central American Parliament. (Bloomberg)
Malian parliamentary election, 2013:
- Votes in Mali go to the polls for the first round of parliamentary elections with reports of low voter turnout and abuses. (Reuters)
Euromaidan:
- More than 100,000 people protest in Kiev, Ukraine, against the decision of Viktor Yanukovych's government to suspend preparations for signing of the association agreement with the European Union under pressure from Russia. (BBC)

Religion

Pope Francis venerates the purported remains of his first ever predecessor, as the Vatican gives a public display for what some claim are St Peter's remains. (Guardian)

Sports

In Canadian football, the Saskatchewan Roughriders defeat the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 45–23 to win the 101st Grey Cup. Kory Sheets is named the most valuable player, while Chris Getzlaf is named most valuable Canadian. (CBC)

November 25, 2013 (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Iraqi insurgency (post-U.S. withdrawal):
- Two bombs exploded outside a cafe in Baghdad in the district of Sadriya, home to mainly Shiite Muslims, killing at least 17 and wounding 37. (Reuters)
Post-civil war violence in Libya:
- Nine people are killed in clashes between the Libyan Army and militias in the city of Benghazi. (Reuters)

Arts and culture

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire becomes the biggest North American November film release, grossing $161 million in the U.S. and Canada over its first weekend. (CBS News).

Disasters and accidents

A cargo train laden with corn derails in São José do Rio Preto in southeastern Brazil, smashing into houses and killing at least eight and injuring another six. (AP via News24)

International relations

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, arrives in Bucharest, Romania, to attend the China-Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) leaders’ meeting as a guest of Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta. (tvz.tv)

Law and crime

Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine announces that four Steubenville, Ohio, City Schools employees, including Superintendent Michael McVey, have been indicted on felony and/or misdemeanor charges (obstruction, making false statements, etc.) relating to the 2012 Steubenville rape case. (CNN)
Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting:
- The official intermediate report on the shooting is released online, totaling 48 pages, and detailing no clear motive for the shooting. It states that perpetrator Adam Lanza had had an obsession with shootings like Columbine, had a strained and non-communicative relationship with his murdered mother Nancy, and had planned the shooting and the details in advance. It does say he had mental health issues, but does not indicate they were causative factors. (CNN) (News 12 Connecticut)
A Parsons, Kansas manhunt begins in the U.S. for David Cornell Bennett, Jr. who is alleged to have stalked and killed a mother and her three young children. (FOX News) (FOX News)

November 26, 2013 (Tuesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Central African Republic conflict (2012–13):
- France announces that it plans to intervene in the conflict in the Central African Republic. (Bloomberg)

Arts and culture

Typhoon Haiyan:
- 39 musicians, including The Beatles, U2, Madonna, Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, Katy Perry, Lorde, One Direction, and Justin Bieber, release a charity album to help the victims. (USA Today) (BBC)
An archaeological site is discovered in Nepal dating to 550 BC which is claimed to be a Buddhist shrine. If true, the birthday of the Buddha would be pushed back. However, not all experts agree on the significance of the site. (National Geographic)
2012 Benghazi attack:
- CBS suspends Lara Logan and her producer after she admitted that portions of her 60 Minutes report on the death of U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens were false. (BBC)

Business and economy

The U.K. Chancellor of the Exchequer asks the Bank of England whether it needs more power. The central bank's Financial Policy Committee will study the question. (BBC)
Ford recalls 140,000 Escape model cars from the United States and an additional 21,000 from other nations after 13 engine fires were reported. (The New York Times)

Disasters and accidents

At least 30 Haitian migrants die when a boat capsizes off the Bahamas. (The New York Times)

International relations

Islam in Angola:
- Angola denies it has banned Islam. (The Express Tribune)
Britain makes a protest to the Spanish authorities over the opening of a diplomatic bag at the border with Gibraltar on Friday 22 November 2013. (BBC)

Law and crime

Chinese police detain nine people for alleged negligence in relation to the November 22 Sinopec oil pipeline explosions in the eastern port city of Qingdao which killed at least 55 people. (Reuters)
P.C. Keith Wallis is charged as part of the investigation into the Plebgate incident at Downing Street. (BBC)
Lostprophets frontman Ian Watkins pleads guilty at Cardiff Crown Court to a range of child sex offences including the attempted rape of a baby. (Wales Online)
The U.S. Supreme Court agrees to hear certain major religious freedom cases that will decide whether a company that is for-profit (including family-run ones)- and other entities who are not themselves churches- can refuse to provide contraceptive coverage that would otherwise be required under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; lower courts are split. (NBC)

Politics and elections

2013 Thai protests:
- Protestors demand the resignation of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra who they believe is the puppet of her deposed brother Thaksin. (BBC News)
Scottish independence referendum:
- A White Paper is released regarding the effects of Scotland's secession. (The Telegraph)

Sports

In Canada, the National Hockey League (NHL) and Rogers Communications announce a 12-year, $5.2 billion deal that grants national television rights of the NHL to the Rogers-owned Sportsnet. The agreement includes a provision that allows CBC to continue airing Hockey Night in Canada on Saturday nights; however, Rogers will have creative and financial control of the program. TSN, which has held some national broadcast rights to the NHL since 2002, is shut out of the deal. [2]

November 27, 2013 (Wednesday)

Attacks and conflicts

Iraqi insurgency (post-U.S. withdrawal):
- 33 people are killed in bombings and shootings across Iraq. (BBC)

Business and economy

Dubai wins the right to host Expo 2020 (Khaleej Times)
Greece is the first developed market to be demoted into an emerging market by the MSCI Emerging Markets Index. (The Wall Street Journal)
In China, some second-tier cities such as Wuhan and Shenyang begin to enhance local housing price controlling policy, following all first-tier cities' controlling policy enhancement in the country. (ifeng.com)
U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Sean Lane, who is overseeing the case of the bankruptcy reorganization of American Airlines, gives his required approval to the American Airlines–US Airways merger, dismissing the objection of a passenger's group, clearing the way for it to go forward in December 2013 unless there is an appeal. (CNN Money)
The price of one Bitcoin breaks above $1,000 for the first time, and marks a rise of over 7,600 percent so far this year. (CNBC)

Disasters and accidents

A winter weather storm in the United States kills 11 people and causes major travel delays. (The Los Angeles Times)
Two people die after a crane collapses in the Arena Corinthians in the Brazilian city São Paulo which is due to host the opening ceremony of the 2014 World Cup. Parts of the grandstands also collapse. (BBC)

Law and crime

Three girls (two of whom eventually fled to a neighbor's house to escape their knife-wielding stepfather and notified police) held captive for several months or more in extremely dirty conditions (possibly up to two years), subjected to long barrages of loud music or static, fed only once a day and having gone up to four months without a bath, are rescued in Tucson, Arizona. (CNN)

Politics and elections

2013 Tunisian protests:
- Tens of thousands of Tunisians demonstrate over the economic crisis in three cities calling for greater investment in their impoverished regions. Clashes broke out in the town of Siliana between the police and protesters following general strikes. (ABC News) (Ahram Online)
- Protesters torch the ruling Islamist party's office in Gafsa. (The Daily Star) (The Voice Of Russia)
2013 Thai protests:
- As anti-government protests in Thailand continue to spread beyond the capital Bangkok, the parliament discusses a no-confidence motion against the Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. (AFP via Times of India)
The Prime Minister of Latvia Valdis Dombrovskis resigns due to the Riga supermarket roof collapse. (ABC News)
The Italian Senate votes to expel ex-Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi from parliament over his conviction for tax fraud. (CBC News) (CNN)
A Pakistani Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party official, Shireen Mazari, in connection with a police murder investigation into unnamed persons after a recent drone strike that killed five, reportedly outs the names of two CIA officials, Director John Brennan and the Pakistan Station Chief (U.S. and CIA officials have not yet given official confirmation). (CNN)

Science and Technology

Japan's self-driving Nissan Leaf car finishes the very first public road test on a highway in Japan.(Engadget)

November 28, 2013 (Thursday)

Armed Conflicts and attacks

Syrian civil war:
- Syrian Army forces capture Deir Atiyah while rebels capture Otayba. (AFP) (Daily Star) (ABC)
- Three million people are now refugees from the conflict, as estimated by the United Nations. (SBS)
- One Syrian is killed and nine others injured in mortar shelling of the Russian embassy in Damascus. (Reuters)
- The US offers to destroy Syria chemical weapons at sea using the US Navy auxiliary vessel MV Cape Ray (T-AKR-9679). (BBC) (One News)
Post-civil war violence in Libya:
- Four Libyan soldiers are killed in clashes between the army and Islamist militias in the eastern city of Benghazi. (Reuters)

Arts and culture

Italian sisters Francesca and Elisabetta Grillo accuse celebrity chef Nigella Lawson and businessman Charles Saatchi of treating them as "worse than Filipino slaves". (Sydney Morning Herald) (BBC)
In the United States the holidays of Thanksgiving and the first day of Hanukkah occur on the same day. The event, dubbed Thanksgivukkah, last happened in 1888, and will not occur again for another 70,000+ years. (TIME) (BBC)

Disasters and accidents

2013 Pacific typhoon season:
- The death toll in the Philippines from Typhoon Haiyan reaches 5,560. (ABS-CBN)
2013 Borazjan earthquake:
- A 5.6 earthquake in Iran kills seven people and injures 30. (Reuters) (Sky News)
Ten people are killed in a blast at a weapons depot in southern Libya. (BBC)

Law and crime

Vietnam passes a new Constitution that reaffirms the dominant position of the Communist Party. (AP)
Former United States Marine Itzcoatl Ocampo commits suicide by eating Ajax while awaiting trial for six murders from 2011 and 2012. (FOX News)

Politics and elections

2013 Thai protests:
- The Prime Minister of Thailand Yingluck Shinawatra survives a no-confidence vote in the Parliament amidst street protests. (BBC)

Science and Technology

China's first lunar vehicle is named 'YuTu' (Chinese:"玉兔", a pet rabbit of Moon goddess in Chinese myth see Jade rabbit) and is planned to launch from Xichang Satellite Launch Center before December 10, 2013. (NetEase)

November 29, 2013 (Friday)

Defence

Chief of Army Staff (Pakistan)
- Genral Raheel Sharif took over the command of army chief of Pakistan Army.(New Army Chief - Dawn News)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Iraqi insurgency (post-U.S. withdrawal):
- A wave of violence in Iraq kills 52 people, most of whom were kidnapped and then shot dead. (Dawn)
Syrian civil war:
- Four people are killed in a mortar attack on the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus. (Al Jazeera)
Senkaku Islands dispute:
- China deploys fighter jets to the Chinese Air Defense Identification Zone, as tensions escalate further over the disputed islands in the East China Sea. (Bloomberg)

Arts and culture

Three previously unpublished short stories by J. D. Salinger are leaked online against the late author's wishes. (BBC)

Business and economy

Joe Hockey, the Treasurer of Australia, rejects a proposed A$3.4 billion takeover bid by American company Archer Daniels Midland for agribusiness GrainCorp. (ABC)

Disasters and accidents

LAM Mozambique Airlines Flight 470 carrying 27 passengers and six crew members disappears in Namibia. (BBC)
An unknown number are dead as a result of a police helicopter that crashed into a crowded pub on the north bank of the River Clyde in Glasgow, Scotland. (BBC) (AFP via NineMSN)

Politics and elections

2013 Thai protests:
- Several opposition parties including the Civil Movement for Democracy hold a protest march on the headquarters of Thailand's ruling Puea Thai party in Bangkok. (Reuters) (IBN Live)
- A thousand protesters enter the headquarters of the Royal Thai Army. (RTE)
2013 Ukraine pro-European Union protests:
- With their demands not being met, protests are scheduled to continue until at least Sunday 1 December 2013. (Seven News)

Science and technology

At least part of Comet C/2012 S1 (also known as Comet Ison) emerged from behind the Sun's corona. (CNN)

November 30, 2013 (Saturday)