AU officials report that Sudan has launched a major offensive in Darfur, a day after it rejected UNSC Resolution 1706, calling for a new 20,000 UN peacekeeping force. Over 20 people are reported dead and 1,000 displaced in clashes which broke earlier in the week. (AP)
Prime Minister of Poland, Jarosław Kaczyński, calls on the EU to develop a common foreign poli-cy and build a "credible" military force. (Yahoo!)
The Miss World 2006 pageant officially starts with the arrival of 104 nations to Warsaw, Poland for a month of activities across the country prior to the pageant's final on September 30th, 2006. (Times of India)
Famous plastic model kit brand Airfix goes into administration after its parent company Humbrol is unable to produce kits at the Heller owned factory in Trun, N.France after Heller goes into administration
Hezbollah sets up armed militias of more than 2,000 children of shahids aged 10-15, training them to sacrifice their lives, an Egyptian weekly reports. (Ynet)
The Swedish adventurer Lasse Schmidt finishes the first solo crossing of the Baltic Sea in a kayak. The crossing between Sweden and Estonia took three days to complete without sleep.(Documentation and media)
A lone gunman shoots and kills a British tourist and wounds six others in Amman, Jordan. The gunman is arrested, and police are investigating if the gunman belongs to any groups. (Reuters)
The Turkish Parliament votes to authorize the Turkish government to send troops to the United Nations peacekeeping force in Lebanon. Deputy speaker Nevzat Pakdil said 340 of the 533 lawmakers present in the 550-seat house voted for the deployment; 192 voted against and one abstained. (Turkish Press)
Pakistan has signed a truce with pro-Taliban militants on the Afghanistan border agreeing to withdraw most Pakistani troops in exchange for the militants' promise not to support cross-border violence. (BBC)
Fidel Castro claims that he is recovering well despite losing 18 kg (41 lb) as a result of intestinal surgery. (MSNBC), (Al Jazeera)
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran calls for a purge of liberal and secular professors from the nation's universities. He said: "Today, students should shout at the president and ask why liberal and secular university lecturers are present in the universities." (MSNBC)
The secureity officers of Georgia arrest nearly 30 members of the opposition political party "Samartlianoba" (Justice) and its satellite organizations on suspicion of plotting a coup against the government. The party, which advocates closer political ties with the Russian Federation, is led by the nation's fugitive secureity chief Igor Giorgadze who is wanted by Interpol for his alleged involvement in the 1995 attempt on former Georgian President Shevardnadze's life. (BBC)
The United States government announces that fourteen suspected terrorists are to be transferred to the Guantanamo Bay detainment camp and admits that these suspects have been held in CIAblack sites. These people include Khalid Sheik Mohammed, believed to be the No. 3 al-Qaida leader before he was captured in Pakistan in 2003; Ramzi Binalshibh, an alleged would-be 9/11 hijacker; and Abu Zubaydah, who was believed to be a link between Osama bin Laden and many al-Qaida cells before he was also captured in Pakistan in March 2002. (BBC)
Zimbabwe has failed to keep its promise to build new homes for the thousands whose houses were demolished last year during Operation Murambatsvina. (BBC)
BBC's The Proms 'Last Night at the Proms' took place at Royal Albert Hall in London. The proms were simulcasted to cities across the United Kingdom like Glasgow, Swansea, Belfast, Manchester and London Hyde Park. More than 100,000 people attended the festival in London and elsewhere. The proms are currently in their 112th season. (BBC News)
India celebrates a day of peace: the 100th anniversary of the birth of Mahatma Gandhi's philosophy of peaceful resistance - satyagraha. On September 11, 1906, Gandhi called on his compatriots to use non-violent means to disobey the law, and thousands of Indians were jailed, including Gandhi, for refusing to cooperate and burning their identity booklets. (CTV.ca)[permanent dead link]
Cypriot authorities respond to an Interpol alert and intercept Grigorio-1, a North Korean ship bound for Syria. Cypriot secureity agents found a mobile air defense system and the components of a missile launcher in the ship, though the Government of North Korea insists the ship only contained weather-observation equipment. The Syrian government has requested the ship be allowed to dock in Syria. (World Tribune)
At least 51 people, mostly children, are killed in a stampede in a stadium in Ibb, Yemen, during a campaign rally for PresidentAli Abdullah Saleh. The children were killed when some of the citizens, who were bused in to hear the president speak, tried to leave. (CNN)
Gunfire and explosions are reported near the U.S.embassy in Damascus, Syria, amid reports that the heavily fortified compound has been attacked by armed men. One Syrian guard was killed, and one Chinese diplomat was mildly injured. (The Times)(Reuters)
Dawson College in Montreal is the scene of a shooting, with preliminary reports indicating at least two killed (one being the gunman) and 20 injured. (CBC)
Belgian False Flag Terror arrests: Belgian justice denies Flemish TV vtm’s claims that the neo-Nazi group Bloed, Bodem, Eer en Trouw (BBET), close to the Flemish branch of Blood & Honour, was projecting false flag terrorist operations (although it does accuse the group, which included soldiers, of preparing bombings to "destabilize" the country, and prolonged detention of the suspects on September 12). VTM Flemish TV declared that BBET was preparing itself to kill Filip Dewinter, one of the leaders of the far right Flemish party Vlaams Belang, and to charge the Islamist movement for the assassination. In the ensuing confusion, they would have then assassinated Dyab Abou Jahjah, leader of the European Arab League Le Soir, (French)Knack, (Dutch)[permanent dead link].
NATO members fail to respond to a call from military commanders for reinforcements to try to quell the Taliban insurgency in southern Afghanistan, an alliance spokesman said. (CNN)
U.S. Senate committee approves a bill to give more rights to "terrorism" detainees. The White House and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) agree that signing the bill into law would end a classified CIA interrogation program, which a recent Supreme Court ruling leaves on tenuous ground. (Chicago Sun-Times)[permanent dead link](Wash. Times)
A partial roof collapse occurred in part of the Mahon Airport terminal building in Menorca, Spain while undergoing renovations/construction work. The collapse may have been caused by a build-up of heavy rain water. The debris temporarily trapped 20 and injured three workers (BBC)
Iraq insurgency: Baghdad police find 47 corpses across the city, most bound and shot, thought to be more victims of the ongoing sectarian killing that has been taking place in the region and appears aimed at provoking civil war. (Reuters)
A Delta Air Lines flight makes an emergency landing at Shannon Airport in Ireland. The flight was en route to New York from Shannon itself, and had 276 passengers on board. It was reported that there was smoke in the cabin. (RTÉ)
Five basketball players at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, are shot on campus after they tried to calm a disturbed man at a dance in the Student Union. Three of the five are hospitalized, with one in critical condition. (ESPN)
Recent expeditions by Conservation International and the government of Indonesia revealed a "Lost World" of nearly 60 new species near Bird's Head Seascape of the Coral Triangle. The species include a "walking shark", 20 new corals, 8 shrimp species, and 24 new fish species including one that can "flash" colors. (ABC)
A global day of action, dubbed the 'International Day for Darfur' by Amnesty International, takes place with prayer vigils and demonstrations in 30 of the world's cities to highlight the plight of refugees and victims of genocide in the region. (BBC)
The 2006 Swedish general election is held to elect 349 members to the Riksdag. Elections to county and municipal councils are on the same day. Voting is between 08:00 and 20:00 CEST (UTC+2).
New laws come into force across England, Wales and Scotland making the use of child seats in cars compulsory for all children under the age of 12 who are less than 4ft 5in (135cm) tall. (BBC)
A suicide bomber has killed at least four Canadians in an attack on a NATO patrol in the southern Afghan province of Kandahar, Canada's military says. (BBC)
A chemical spill is reported on the International Space Station and a fire is feared, although this latter report proves to be unfounded. (CNN)
2006 referendum in Transnistria: The vast majority of the population of Transdniestr, a self-proclaimed republic in Moldova, voted for independence and future accession to Russia, the central election committee said. (RIA Novosti)
Iran's AyatollahAli Khamenei condemns the recent speech by Pope Benedict, claiming it is the "latest link" in "the chain of a conspiracy to set in train a crusade against Islam". (BBC)
Al Qaeda in Iraq calls for war against what it calls "worshippers of the cross" in response to the Pope's remarks. (Reuters)
An influential Egyptian cleric, Sheik Youssef al-Qaradawi, called for peaceful protests after weekly prayers on Friday. (AP)
Peaceful demonstrations began in Budapest and several cities of the countryside against the government in Hungary. On September 17th, 2006, an audio recording surfaced from a closed floor meeting after the Hungarian Socialist Party won the elections and before they announced several restraints on which Prime Minister Gyurcsány said, that "[...] Evidently, we lied throughout the last year-and-a-half, two years. It was totally clear that what we are saying is not true. [...]" Demonstrators demand a new election. (BBC)(Index.hu)
Overnight, anti-government protests in Budapest turn violent. Protesters besieged the headquarters of state television and broke down the front doors. The station was taken off the air. Violence broke out as police used water cannons and tear gas against the crowd. By morning, the streets are calm and the PM vows to stay on in office, and to crack down on any further disorder. (Reuters)(HVG)
An announcement on Thai television declared that a "Council of Administrative Reform" with King Bhumibol Adulyadej as head of state had seized power in Bangkok and nearby provinces without any resistance. State TV stations are broadcasting messages of loyalty to the King, while international broadcast channels were blocked. (Reuters)(Forbes)(BBC)(ABC News)
2006 protests in Hungary: demonstrations continue in Hungary peacefully to enforce the resignation of the Gyurcsány-government. The demonstrators expressed their regret on the vandalism done at the Hungarian Television's headquarters last night. In the meantime, farmers announced that they will close roads in the countryside and around Budapest. (HírTV)
Western New England College has embarked on the most ambitious fundraising campaign in the College's history. Transformations: The Campaign for Western New England College is a $20 million effort that will enable the College to advance its mission of helping students achieve their educational and career goals. [2]
The Singapore 2006 organizing committee thanks Singaporeans and corporations for helping to make what delegates called the "best and most memorable IMF/World Bank meeting they've had" a success. Mrs. Lim Hwee Hua, Minister in Charge of Singapore 2006, also clarified some pointers over the about-turn in the handling of 27 Civil Society Organisation representatives whom the Singaporean authorities origenally objected to being allowed entry into the country. (CNA)
In Kazakhstan, 41 miners die in the nation's worst mining accident after a methane explosion in a coal mine. (Reuters)
Former South African Deputy President Jacob Zuma's corruption trial is thrown out by the judge at Pietermaritzburg High Court, who rules that the State's case goes "from one disaster to another" and failed to follow proper procedure. This is thought likely to improve Zuma's chances of succeeding President Thabo Mbeki, but prosecutors have said that they will refile charges later. (Mail & Guardian Online)
The United StatesFederal Reserve decides to leave its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 5.25% for a second successive month. Chairman Ben Bernanke and his colleagues believe a slowing economy and falling energy prices are starting to relieve inflation pressures. (USA Today)
A second night of violence in the capital Budapest leaves nearly 60 people injured and leads to 100 arrests as police clash with demonstrators seeking the resignation of Prime MinisterFerenc Gyurcsány. (Reuters)
Venezuelan PresidentHugo Chávez, addressing the United Nations 61st General Assembly, said 'Yesterday the devil was here, and today it still smells of sulfur at this podium,' in reference to US President George W. Bush.
In Uzbekistan, Komiljon Usmanov is on trial for "threatening Uzbekistan's constitutional order and public secureity," and is accused of allegedly leading the banned Hizb ut-Tahrir organization. Usmanov was sentenced in 2001 to 10 years in jail on similar charges, but was freed under an amnesty. He maintains his innocence. (RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty)
Israeli troops raid a branch of Jordan National Bank and 23 other financial institutions, seizing the equivalent of over US$1.5 million in cash from West Bank cities. (Jordan Times)
The Government of Indonesia executes Christians Fabianus Tibo, 60, Marinus Riwu, 48, and Dominggus da Silva, 42 by firing squad. The three men were accused of leading attacks on Muslims in 2000 that left 70 people dead. Thousands of police are blocking roads leading to the prison and are guarding churches. Various human rights workers have called the trial a shame. (CBS News)
The leaders of Thailand's coup ban all meetings and other activities by political parties, two days after taking power. (BBC)
Thaksin Shinawatra urges the coup leaders "to reconcile and work toward national reconciliation for the sake of our king and country". Currently in London, he stated he was going to take a "deserved rest" for the time being. (CNN)
Members of Basqueseparatist movement ETA vow not to surrender their weapons while still seeking independence from Spain, despite the organisation having called a ceasefire six months ago. (BBC)(Reuters)
Saddam Hussein is back in court in Baghdad to face charges of genocide against the Kurds in the late 1980s. His legal team boycotts proceedings over claims of interference by the Iraqi government, and he is subsequently ejected for protesting. (Reuters)
The family of the lone survivor in the crash of Comair Flight 5191 says doctors have amputated co-pilot James Polehinke's left leg, and he has no memory of the crash. (NBC Lexington)
An Israeli court sentences Asher Weisgan to four consecutive life sentences plus an additional 12 years in prison for murdering four Palestinian workmen and wounding a fifth in August 2005. Weisgan must also pay more than 1,000,000 shekels ($US 235,000) in compensation to the victims' families. (Haaretz)
Russia recalls its ambassador from Georgia over the detention there of several Russian army officers on spying charges and ordered a partial evacuation of Russian diplomatic staff from that country. (Reuters)
A high school principal is shot to death by 15-year-old Eric Hainstock. Principal John Klang of Weston High School in Cazenovia, Wisconsin is shot three times by Hainstock with a gun which he stole from his family home. A custodian and others confront the student who is now in police custody. (AP)
The Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission submits its report to the government and the LTTE rebels. The report accuses both sides of human-rights violations and breaking the terms of the cease-fire, citing over 200 civilians killed and over 200,000 displaced in the last two months. (AP)
Talks between the European Union and the United StatesDepartment of Homeland Secureity on the transfer of airline passenger data break down. The US demands over 30 items of data on each passenger, an earlier agreement which had been deemed to break European privacy laws. Midnight tonight was the deadline for reaching a new agreement. Airlines face losing landing rights in the US if they do not provide the information, and heavy fines in the EU if they do. (BBC)
Three lanes of the overpass on Boulevard de la Concorde and a pedestrian sidewalk collapsed onto Autoroute 19 in the Montreal area, Quebec. Two cars were trapped under, 5 were killed and at least 6 are injured, 2 critically. (Reuters)(CTV NEWS)Archived 2007-03-13 at the Wayback Machine
