Portal:Current events/2018 April 30

April 30, 2018 (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
- List of journalists killed during the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
  - BBC Pashto reporter Ahmad Shah is shot dead in the eastern province of Khost. (BBC)
- 30 April 2018 Kabul suicide bombings
  - Twin suicide bombings in Kabul, Afghanistan, kill at least 25 people, including prominent Agence France-Presse photographer Shah Marai and three Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty journalists who were covering the first bombing. ISIL's Afghan branch claims responsibility. (BBC)
- A suicide attack on a foreign military convoy in Kandahar kills at least eleven nearby children and wounds sixteen including five Romanian soldiers. (The Times of India)
- Two rush hour bombings hit Kabul, killing four and injuring five. (The Times of India)
2018 Gaza border protests
- The Israel Defense Forces say they shot dead three Palestinians in two incidents yesterday. The IDF says one was killed trying to breach the Israeli-Gazan border fence while a second was wounded and arrested. They say the second incident saw two men shot dead after bypassing the fence and throwing explosives at IDF soldiers. (The Wire)
Iran–Iraq War
- Amnesty International and Justice for Iran accuse Iran of building over at least seven mass graves in six provinces containing thousands of bodies from executions of suspected Mujahedeen-e Khalq towards the end of the 1980-88 war. (RFE/RL)
Operation Inherent Resolve
- The U.S.-led coalition in Iraq declares an end to major combat operations against ISIL in Iraq and closes the Coalition Forces Land Component Command headquarters. The U.S.-led coalition says in a statement that it would transition "from supporting and enabling combat operations to the training and development of self-sufficient Iraqi security-related capabilities". (Reuters)
Syrian Civil War
- Iran's Tasnim News Agency denies reports that yesterday's missile attack in Hama and Aleppo Governorate hit an Iranian military base and says that no Iranian soldiers were killed in the attack. (Reuters)
- A Syrian military source cited by pro-Syrian government news outlet Al-Masdar News says that an Israeli F-35 killed more than 30 soldiers yesterday in an attack that completely destroyed the Syrian government's Brigade 47 missile base in Hama. (Al-Masdar News)

Business and economy

Economy of the United Kingdom
- British supermarkets Asda and Sainsbury's agree terms on a £13 billion merger, which could form the largest UK supermarket company. (Sky News)
The Central Bank of Iraq holds a currency auction, raising US$174,367,874. (Iraqi News)
Marathon Oil purchases Andeavor for $23.3 billion, creating the biggest oil refining firm in the United States. (Bloomberg)

Disasters and accidents

The Mezhegei coal mine in Tuva, Siberia, Russia, suffers a collapse. A total of 79 miners are rescued but one remains missing. (The Moscow Times)

Health and environment

Euthanasia in Australia
- David W. Goodall, an Australian scientist aged 104, announces his intention to travel assisted by Exit International to Switzerland to end his own life. Goodall is not terminally ill but says his quality of life has deteriorated with age. (The Guardian)

International relations

Foreign relations of Uzbekistan
- Uzbekistan agrees to formally join the Turkic Council following a meeting between Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Tashkent. (APA)
South Korea–United States relations
- South Korean president Moon Jae-in suggests that U.S. president Donald Trump should receive the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to help denuclearize the Korean Peninsula. (The Washington Post)
China–North Korea relations
- Chinese diplomat Wang Yi will travel to North Korea to meet with Kim Jong-un following the summit. (Upi)
Ukraine–United States relations
- The U.S. State Department confirms the U.S. has completed a delivery of FGM-148 Javelin anti-tank missile systems to Ukraine. (RFE/RL)
2018 North Korea–United States summit
- The summit is considering to take place at the Peace House at the DMZ, where the North-South Korea summit was also held. (CBN)
Human rights in Vietnam
- The German daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reports that last year’s visit of the Vietnamese public security minister and his entourage to Slovakia was used to cover for the abduction of a dissident Vietnamese entrepreneur Trịnh Xuân Thanh who had previously emigrated to Germany. (The Slovak Spectator)
Poland in the European Union
- Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz says the nation will oppose European Union budget rules set to be introduced on May 2 by the European Commission. The proposals would see funding in the 2021-2027 budget cut for countries where democratic principles and the rule of law are deemed under threat. (The Washington Post)
Japan–United States relations
- Japan lodges a formal complaint after footage appears on YouTube of a US F-16 fighter jet based at Misawa Air Base in Aomori flying at high speed and low altitude through mountains in an apparent breach of regulations. Japanese law prohibits aircraft from descending below 150 feet in non-residential areas. (The Telegraph)
Brexit negotiations
- The UK House of Lords approves amendments to the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill in defiance of the government, adding requirements for Parliament to have a final say on negotiations with the European Union and provisions for the families of existing migrants to join them in the UK. (BT)

Law and crime

Terrorism in Sweden
- SAPO arrests three in the greater Stockholm area suspected of plotting a terror attack. SAPO says the case has an international connection; local media reports one of the detainees is an Uzbekistani citizen. (ABC News)
Terrorism in the United Kingdom
- ISIL terror suspect Husnain Rashid appears before Woolwich Crown Court in London. Rashid pleads not guilty to planning and encouraging terrorism, distributing terrorist material, and breaching a notice issued under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act. The charges include an allegation he posted details of Prince George's school and encouraged an attack against him. (ITV)
2008 Mumbai attacks
- Pakistan's Interior Ministry removes chief prosecutor Chaudhry Azhar from the case, which concerns the murders of 166 people. The Interior Ministry said Azhar did "not take the government line". Seven alleged Lashkar-e-Taiba members have been facing charges since 2009 but nobody has yet been convicted in Pakistan. (The Times of India)
The United Nations suspends Miriam Maluwa as director of the UNAIDS programme in Ethiopia. Maluwa is a key witness in allegations of sexual assault against a programme director, Luiz Loures. Loures is accused of attacking colleague Martina Brostrom in a lift and is due to leave his post today. Brostrom today said she has no confidence the UN will deliver justice as it reopens its investigation. (The Times of India) (The Times of India)

Politics and elections

Politics of the United Kingdom
- Sajid Javid becomes the United Kingdom's Home Secretary following the resignation of Amber Rudd over the Windrush scandal. He is the first Home Secretary from an ethnic minority background. (BBC)
The Palestinian National Council, the legislative arm of the Palestinian Liberation Organisation, convenes for the first time in nine years in Ramallah. The agenda includes voting in a new eighteen-member PLO Executive Committee, transforming the Palestinian Authority into a state with its own institutions and monetary system, and cessation of ties with Israel. Gazan rivals Hamas are not invited. (al-Jazeera)

Science and technology

Russian floating nuclear power station
- Russia’s first floating nuclear power plant, the Akademik Lomonosov, sets sail across the Baltic Sea from St. Petersburg. (Alphr)
The world's oldest known spider, a trapdoor spider known as "Number 16", dies of a wasp sting at the age of 43. (Yahoo! News via AFP)