Portal:Current events/2012 May 7

Current events of May 7, 2012 (2012-05-07) (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• At least 14 civilians are killed and at least 6 other civilians are wounded by a NATO air strike in Badghis Province. (Al Jazeera)
• The tomb of Muslim saint Sidi Mahmoud Ben Amar , part of the World Heritage Site in Timbuktu, Mali, is attacked and burned by Islamist fighters. (Al Jazeera)

Disasters

• The death toll from flash floods in Nepal reaches 17 with another 47 people missing and presumed dead. (AP via Mercury News)

Law and crime

• South Korea seizes thousands of smuggled drug capsules from China filled with powdered human flesh. (IOL)
• Clerics in Malaysia issue a fatwa against Muslims participating in "unproductive demonstrations". (Jakarta Post)
• The CIA announces it had foiled a plot by a Yemeni affiliate of al-Qaida to have a suicide bomber, using an improved version of the underwear bomb used by Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab in 2009, to blow up an American-bound airliner to mark the one-year anniversary of the killing of bin Laden; no lives were ever at risk. (MSNBC)

Politics and elections

• USL Leader, Victor Ponta, becomes Prime Minister of Romania. (Yahoo)
• Israel's prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu announces his desire to hold the country's general election on 4 September, more than a year early. (BBC)
• Vladimir Putin is sworn in for a third six-year term as President of Russia. (BBC)
• Voters in Syria go to the polls for parliamentary elections as the death tolls from the uprising continues to increase. (Al-Arabiya)
• Voters in The Bahamas go to the polls for a general election with a close result expected. (Bahamas Weekly)

Science

• Research published in Current Biology suggests that flatulence from dinosaurs may have warmed the Earth. (The Telegraph)

Sport

• Germany and the Republic of Ireland name their squads for UEFA Euro 2012. (Deutsche Welle) (Irish Examiner)
• Gaël Givet, troubled by a heart problem, suffers a further health scare during the live televised Premier League game between Blackburn Rovers and Wigan Athletic, prompting treatment from physios and paramedics. (Sports)