Portal:Current events
Topics in the news
Aurora borealis seen from Southern England
- A series of solar storms impact Earth, creating aurorae (pictured) at lower latitudes than usual.
- Former prime minister of Fiji Frank Bainimarama is sentenced to one year in prison for attempting to pervert the course of justice.
- Mahamat Déby is declared the winner of the Chadian presidential election.
- Flooding in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, leaves more than 110 people dead and at least 140 others missing.
- Kyren Wilson wins the World Snooker Championship.
May 12, 2024 (Sunday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Russian invasion of Ukraine
- 2024 Kharkiv offensive
- The Russian Defence Ministry states that its forces have captured several villages in Kharkiv Oblast. (CNN)
- Attacks in Russia during the Russian invasion of Ukraine
- At least thirteen civilians are killed and 20 others are injured when pieces of a downed Ukrainian Tochka missile hit an apartment block in Belgorod. (AP) (Reuters)
- President of Russia Vladimir Putin reassigns Defence minister Sergei Shoigu to the National Security Council and replaces him as Defense minister with Deputy Prime Minister Andrey Belousov. (The Washington Post)
- 2024 Kharkiv offensive
- War in Sudan
- Battle of El Fasher
- Fighting during RSF attacks on eastern El Fasher, over the weekend kill at least 38 civilians and injure 189 others amid fears of an all out RSF assault on the city. (The Washington Post)
- Battle of El Fasher
Disasters and accidents
- 2024 Afghanistan–Pakistan floods
- The death toll from the ongoing flooding in northern Afghanistan increases to 315, with more than 1,600 people injured, and more than 1,000 houses destroyed. (Reuters)
- 2024 Rio Grande do Sul floods
- A shopping mall in Warsaw, Poland, is destroyed in a suspected arson. (Puls Biznesu)
- Western Canada wildfires force thousands to evacuate. (CNN)
International relations
- Egypt–Israel relations, Rafah offensive
- Egypt announces it will intervene on South Africa's side in the South Africa v Israel case in response to Israel's growing assault on Rafah. (Reuters)
Politics and elections
- 2024 Catalan regional election
- The Socialists' Party of Catalonia wins the regional election with its best result since 2003. Pro-independence parties lose their absolute majority in the Parliament. (Reuters)
- 2024 Lithuanian presidential election, 2024 Lithuanian constitutional referendum
- Lithuanians elect the President of Lithuania and vote on a constitutional amendment that would allow dual citizenship. (ABC News) (lnk.lt)
- 2024 North Macedonian presidential election
- Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova is sworn in as the first female President of North Macedonia. (Bloomberg Macedonia)
- Forty-nine Vatican Museums employees start an unprecedented labor dispute over unfair and poor working conditions against the Vatican's Pontifical Commission. (Reuters)
- Hundreds of protesters march in Tunis, Tunisia, to demand the release of imprisoned journalists, activists, and opposition figures. (Reuters)
Sports
- Bayer Leverkusen extend their record unbeaten streak in European football to fifty matches. (Bundesliga)
May 11, 2024 (Saturday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
Arts and culture
- Eurovision Song Contest 2024
- Switzerland's entry, "The Code" by Nemo, wins this year's Eurovision contest. (DW)
- Dutch musician Joost Klein is disqualified from the Eurovision final over reported verbal threats, which are under investigation by Swedish authorities. This is the first time that a performer has been disqualified during the festival. (Aftonbladet)
- The Norwegian announcer for Eurovision, Alessandra Mele, announces that she will withdraw from announcing votes while declaring support for Palestine in the ongoing war. (Times of Israel)
Disasters and accidents
- 2024 Afghanistan–Pakistan floods
- The death toll from the ongoing flooding in northern Afghanistan increases to 300, with more than 1,000 houses destroyed. (AP)
- 2024 Rio Grande do Sul floods
- At least 28 people are killed after heavy rains in the Agam and Tanah Datar districts in West Sumatra, Indonesia, which triggered a flash flood and cold lava flow from Mount Marapi. (Al Jazeera)
- Eleven people are killed and 53 others are injured when a bus crashes in West Java, Indonesia. (AP)
Politics and elections
May 10, 2024 (Friday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Russian invasion of Ukraine
- 2024 Kharkiv offensive
- Russian forces launch an attack on Ukraine's Kharkiv Oblast, near the town of Vovchansk, opening up a new front. (Reuters)
- A Ukrainian strike against oil infrastructure kills three in Luhansk. (Reuters)
- 2024 Kharkiv offensive
- Insurgency in Cabo Delgado
- Hundreds of Islamic State-linked fighters attack the town of Macomia, Cabo Delgado Province, Mozambique. (Al Jazeera)
- Naxalite–Maoist insurgency
- Indian security forces kill 12 Maoist rebels in Chhattisgarh. (Reuters)
Disasters and accidents
- 2024 Afghanistan–Pakistan floods
- Over 200 people are killed by floods in Baghlan Province, Afghanistan. (NDTV)
- 2024 Rio Grande do Sul floods
- Seven people are killed and six others are injured when a passenger bus plunges from the Potseluev Bridge into the Moyka river in Saint Petersburg, Russia. (Reuters)
- At least 60 people are injured when a passenger train collides with a locomotive in Buenos Aires, Argentina. (Reuters)
Health and environment
- Demographics of Italy
- Amid record low birth rates and an aging population, Pope Francis urges Italians to have more children. The Italian government also expands a campaign to encourage at least 500,000 births annually by 2033. (AP)
International relations
- Palestine and the United Nations
- United Nations General Assembly Resolution ES-10/23
- The United Nations General Assembly votes 143–9 with 25 abstentions to approve a resolution granting Palestine new rights and privileges, and to reconsider Palestine's request to become a UN member. The nine countries that opposed the resolution were Argentina, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Israel, Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea and the United States. (AP) (The National)
- United Nations General Assembly Resolution ES-10/23
Law and crime
- Colombian conflict
- Catatumbo campaign
- A Colombian court in Bogota grants conditional release to former paramilitary leader Salvatore Mancuso. He was held at La Picota prison while being accused of war crimes and human rights violations. (Reuters)
- Catatumbo campaign
- Arrest of Arvind Kejriwal, 2024 Indian general election
- The Supreme Court of India grants Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal interim bail for 21 days in connection with the Delhi liquor policy money laundering case, thereby permitting Kejriwal to campaign in the ongoing general election. (The Hindustan Times)
- A Pennsylvania jury orders ExxonMobil to pay $725.5 million to a former mechanic who claimed that the company's gasoline and solvents caused him to develop leukemia. (Reuters)
- Peruvian authorities launch an investigation into President Dina Boluarte for disbanding a police force that was investigating her brother Nicanor Boluarte, who was arrested for alleged influence peddling. (Reuters)
Politics and elections
- Israel–Hamas war protests
- 2024 pro-Palestinian protests on university campuses
- Police dismantle encampments and arrest dozens of students protesting at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Reuters)
- Academic staff of The New School in New York City hold the first faculty-led solidarity encampment in the United States. (The Guardian)
- 2024 pro-Palestinian protests on university campuses
- 2024 United States presidential election
- Robert F. Kennedy Jr. 2024 presidential campaign
- Robert F. Kennedy Jr. qualifies to appear on the ballot in Oklahoma for the 2024 United States presidential election as an independent candidate. (Yahoo! News)
- Robert F. Kennedy Jr. 2024 presidential campaign
- 2024 Polish farmers' protests
- Thousands of protesters march through Warsaw, Poland, against the European Union's environmental regulations. (Euronews)
- Emir of Kuwait Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah dissolves the National Assembly and suspends some articles of the Constitution. (Reuters)
- Eight hundred protesters storm the Tesla plant in Grünheide, Germany, in protest of the environmental impact of the company's expansion. (Reuters)
Science and technology
- May 2024 solar storms
- A geomagnetic storm hits Earth, reaching G5 intensity and causing widespread aurorae, with NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center issuing its first G4-level storm watch since 2005. (NOAA)
May 9, 2024 (Thursday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Israeli–Palestinian conflict
- Israel–Hamas war
- Rafah offensive
- United States support for Israel in the Israel–Hamas war
- U.S. President Joe Biden threatens to withhold weapons from Israel if it launches a major invasion of Rafah. (Reuters)
- Spillover of the Israel–Hamas war
- Red Sea crisis
- The Houthis claim responsibility for attacks on three container ships in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. (Al Jazeera)
- Red Sea crisis
- Israeli far-right extremists launch two arson attacks on the perimeter of the UNRWA headquarters in East Jerusalem, forcing it to temporarily close down. (The Guardian)
- Israel–Hamas war
- Russo-Ukrainian War
- Assassination attempts on Volodymyr Zelenskyy
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy fires the head of the state guards Serhiy Rud after allegations that two members of the guards were involved in an assassination plot against Zelenskyy. (Al Jazeera) (Reuters)
- Assassination attempts on Volodymyr Zelenskyy
- Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, Iran–Israel relations
- Iran warns that it will build a nuclear weapon if Israel continues to target its nuclear facilities. (Al Jazeera)
Business and economy
- Air India Express cancels 85 flights due to staff calling in sick at the last minute, which is related to a protest against working conditions imposed by the airline's new owner Tata Group. (Al Jazeera)
- Air Vanuatu cancels all of its flights as the Vanuatu Government considers putting the airline into voluntary administration. (ABC News Australia)
Disasters and accidents
- 2024 Rio Grande do Sul floods
- Two Boeing 737 planes are involved in accidents involving takeoff and landing in Senegal and Turkey. (Al Jazeera)
International relations
- Australia–Tuvalu relations
- Australia and Tuvalu sign a new security agreement, whereby Australia agrees to protect Tuvalu during natural disasters, pandemics, or military aggression. (AP)
Law and crime
- Former Fijian prime minister Frank Bainimarama is sentenced to one year in prison for perverting the course of justice. (ABC News Australia)
Politics and elections
- Israel–Hamas war protests
- Thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters march in Malmö, Sweden, against Israel's participation in the Eurovision Song Contest. Among the protesters is Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg. (AP)
- Trade unions in Argentina launch a general strike against President Javier Milei's planned reforms and budget cuts. (Reuters)
Sports
- Bayer Leverkusen breaks Benfica's record of 48 undefeated games in modern European men's club association football. (The Athletic)
May 8, 2024 (Wednesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Israel–Hamas war
- Al-Shifa Hospital siege
- A third mass grave holding at least 49 bodies is discovered in Gaza City's al-Shifa Hospital. (Al Jazeera) (The Hill)
- Humanitarian aid during the Israel–Hamas war
- Israel reopens the Kerem Shalom border crossing, allowing humanitarian aid into Gaza. However, the UN states that no aid has entered. (AP)
- Rafah offensive
- Israeli troops reach the outskirts of Rafah with Hamas saying that heavy fighting is underway. The Israeli military says that it has "uncovered terrorist infrastructure" and killed a number of Hamas militants as it advances. (BBC News)
- Al-Shifa Hospital siege
- Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Russian strikes against Ukrainian infrastructure
- Russia launches missile and drone strikes across Ukraine, injuring three people and damaging critical infrastructure. Ukraine says that it shot down 39 of 55 missiles and 20 of 21 drones. (AP) (Bloomberg News)
- Kharkiv strikes
- Russia occupies the villages of Novokalynove in Donetsk Oblast and Kyslivka in Kharkiv Oblast. (Anadolu Agency)
- Russian strikes against Ukrainian infrastructure
- Islamic State–Taliban conflict
- A motorcycle bombing kills three Taliban security personnel in Badakhshan Province, Afghanistan. The Islamic State – Khorasan Province claims responsibility for the attack. (Reuters)
Arts and culture
- A statue of the late African American civil rights leader Daisy Bates is unveiled at the U.S. Capitol's National Statuary Hall Collection in Washington, D.C., representing the state of Arkansas. (Reuters)
Disasters and accidents
- Tornadoes of 2024
- Tornado outbreak of May 6–8, 2024
- Dozens of tornadoes strike the United States over the past three days, killing five people and leaving multiple others injured. (The New York Times)
- Tornado outbreak of May 6–8, 2024
- 2024 Rio Grande do Sul floods
- Rolling blackouts occur in several cities in Mexico amid an ongoing heatwave in the country. (The New York Times)
- A Boeing 767 operated by FedEx is forced to make an emergency landing at Istanbul Airport after the front landing gear fails to deploy. (The Guardian)
- A Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) F-16C fighter jet crashed at Tengah Air Base after the pilot experienced issues during take-off. The pilot ejected successfully and is receiving medical attention. The RSAF has temporarily suspended training for the F-16 fleet until investigations show that it is safe to resume. (The Straits Times) (MINDEF Singapore)
Health and environment
- COVID-19 vaccine
- AstraZeneca withdraws its marketing authorizations in Europe and withdraws its COVID-19 vaccines worldwide due to low demand, after finding that the vaccines can very rarely lead to blood clots. (The Telegraph)
Law and crime
- Human trafficking in India
- The Indian Central Bureau of Investigation arrests four people linked to a network of human traffickers who have been luring young men to go to Russia with the promise of jobs or university admission, then forcing them to fight in the war in Ukraine. The Ministry of External Affairs is working with Russia to secure discharges for 20 Indian nationals in the Russian Army. (Al Jazeera)
- Two Cambodian and Chinese people are deported from Singapore after being convicted of laundering over S$3 billion (US$2.2 billion), Singapore's largest ever money laundering case. (VnExpress)
Politics and elections
- Elected British politicians who have changed party affiliation
- British Conservative MP Natalie Elphicke defects to the opposition Labour Party, citing the Sunak government's failure to stop the English Channel migrant crisis. (Reuters)
- The United States House of Representatives vote 359–43 to keep Mike Johnson as House Speaker, defeating an initiative by Marjorie Taylor Greene to have him removed. (Al Jazeera)
Science and technology
- Researchers at Google DeepMind announce the development of AlphaFold 3, an AI model that can predict the structures of almost all biological molecules and model the interactions between them. (Time) (Nature)
Sports
- 2024 Summer Olympics torch relay
- The ship Belem arrives in Marseille, France, with the Olympic flame. (AP)
May 7, 2024 (Tuesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Assassination attempts on Volodymyr Zelenskyy
- The Security Service of Ukraine says that it detained two Ukrainian government protection unit colonels recruited by Russia's Federal Security Service who were planning an assassination of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other top Ukrainian officials. (Reuters)
- Ukrainian forces launch a missile strike on an oil terminal in Luhansk, causing a large fire and injuring at least five workers. (Reuters)
- Assassination attempts on Volodymyr Zelenskyy
- Israel–Hamas war
- Rafah offensive
- Israeli forces enter Rafah in a "limited" operation, taking control of the Rafah Border Crossing on the Egypt–Gaza border. (Haaretz) (AP) (Reuters)
- At least 27 people are killed by Israeli airstrikes in Rafah. (Al Jazeera) (AP)
- Rafah offensive
- M23 offensive
- The death toll from rocket strikes on an IDP camp in Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo, increases to 18. (Reuters)
Arts and culture
- The Boy Scouts of America announces the renaming of the organization to Scouting America on February 8, 2025, in an effort to make girls feel more welcome. (AP)
Disasters and accidents
- Tornadoes of 2024
- Tornado outbreak of May 6–8, 2024
- A FedEx warehouse in Portage, Michigan, United States, is destroyed by a tornado. (Detroit Free Press)
- Tornado outbreak of May 6–8, 2024
- 2024 Rio Grande do Sul floods
- The death toll from ongoing heavy flooding in southern Brazil increases to 90, with more than 150,000 people left homeless. (Reuters) (Reuters 2)
International relations
- International recognition of the State of Palestine
- The Bahamas formally recognizes Palestine as an independent nation. (Eyewitness News Bahamas)
Law and crime
- Russian undesirable organizations law
- Russia declares American nonprofit organization Freedom House an "undesirable organization", effectively outlawing the group, after accusing the group of "discrediting the Russian Army" and advocating sanctions against Russia. (Reuters)
- Two people are killed and 21 others are injured in a mass stabbing at a hospital in Zhenxiong County, Yunnan, China. A suspect has been detained. (AP)
- TikTok and its parent company ByteDance sue the United States government over the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, alleging that the law is unconstitutional. (AP)
Politics and elections
- Israel–Hamas war protests
- 2024 pro-Palestinian protests on university campuses
- Dutch police end a pro-Palestinian occupation at the University of Amsterdam. (Reuters)
- 2024 pro-Palestinian protests on university campuses
- Fifth inauguration of Vladimir Putin
- Russian President Vladimir Putin is inaugurated for a fifth six-year term. (Reuters)
- Premiership of John Swinney
- The Scottish Parliament votes to elect John Swinney as First Minister of Scotland with 64 votes in favour and seven abstentions from the Scottish Greens. (BBC News)
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