Portal:Current events/2017 April 6

Current events of April 6, 2017 (2017-04-06) (Thursday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• 2017 Saint Petersburg Metro bombing
  • Russian authorities discover and deactivate an explosive device in a Saint Petersburg flat, during ongoing raids occurring in response to the bombing. (BBC)
• Battle of Mosul
  • Two Iraqi Army pilots are killed when their Mi-24 helicopter is shot down by ISIS over the city of Mosul. (Reuters)
• An Israeli soldier is killed during a car ramming attack near Ofra, in the West Bank. Another Israeli soldier was injured. A Palestinian suspected of committing the attack is taken into custody. (Haaretz)

Business

• Seven & I Holdings Co., the parent company of the 7-Eleven convenience store chain, agrees to acquire the retail operations of Sunoco for $3.3 billion. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• Severe flooding caused by Cyclone Debbie forces the evacuation of Edgecumbe, New Zealand, and nearby areas. (BBC)

Law and crime

• The Alabama Ethics Commission finds there is probable cause that Governor Robert Bentley violated the state's ethics and campaign finance laws, and refers the case to Montgomery County District Attorney Daryl Bailey. (USA Today)

Politics and elections

• Thai King Vajiralongkorn signed into law a new Constitution of Thailand that paves the way for democratic reforms while allowing the Royal Thai Army to retain its influential role in Thai politics. (BBC)
• United States House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Rep. Devin Nunes recuses himself from the committee’s probe into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election; Rep. Mike Conaway will take the lead in this investigation. (BBC) (The Washington Post)
• Gambian parliamentary election, 2017
  • Voters in the Gambia go to the polls for an election, the country's first legislative election since longtime President Yahya Jammeh resigned and left the country. (Al Jazeera)

Sports

• In athletics, Jemima Sumgong, a Kenyan gold medallist in the women's marathon at the 2016 Summer Olympics, tests positive for the banned substance EPO. (Reuters via ABC Australia)