Portal:Current events/2018 April 22

April 22, 2018 (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

2018 Gaza border protests
- Rival Hamas and Fatah members clash in the Gaza Strip at a tent set up by the family of Mohammed Ayoub, 14, to receive condolences on his death in the protests. Hamas later dismantles the tent and orders all present to leave. (The Times of Israel)
War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
- April 2018 Kabul suicide bombing
  - The death toll from a suicide bombing in Kabul, Afghanistan, yesterday rises to 57, with the number of wounded reaching 119. (The Washington Post) (ITV)
Terrorism in Pakistan
- Police in Quetta, Pakistan, say gunmen shot at Shiites in the city, killing two and injuring one in the latest of a string of attacks on Shiites. (The Kansas City Star)
Second Libyan Civil War
- The Libyan National Army claims to have launched airstrikes destroying dozens of vehicles in Sadada allegedly used by Al-Qaeda linked militants. (The Kansas City Star)
Syrian Civil War
- Iraq claims airstrikes on Thursday in Syria killed 36 Islamic State militants. (Rudaw)
- Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad accuses the United Kingdom of faking evidence of a chemical weapons attack in Douma. (ITV)
Hamas fighter Thaer Nayef al-Zaraei of the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades dies in a tunnel collapse in the Gaza Strip. (i24 News)
Terrorism in Israel
- Israel's Defence Forces, Border Police, and Shin Bet jointly arrest nineteen suspected terrorists, fifteen of them Hamas members detained for links to Gazan Hamas activist Khaled al-Din Hamed, in Ramallah. Troops disable a Hamas printing press and seize money and a car. (Israel National News)
Terrorism in the United Kingdom
- Following recent attacks in Manchester and London, The Sunday Times says a leaked Home Office report reviewing the attacks proposes a new strategy increasing information sharing on terror suspects from MI5 to other organisations before they are considered to require surveillance. Also included are harsher sentences for terror offences, and additional attention on "communities where the threat from terrorism and radicalisation is highest". (BBC News)
2014–2018 Nicaraguan protests
- Reporter Ángel Gahona is shot dead during a live broadcast from Bluefields, Nicaragua, while reporting on antigovernment protests. (BBC News)
Terrorism in Egypt
- Cairo Criminal Court adds 2,833 Muslim Brotherhood members and supporters including ex-President Mohamed Morsi on an official list of terrorists for three years. (The Egypt Independent)
Terrorism in Russia
- Russian authorities say nine insurgents who were planning to launch an attack next month have been killed in a gunfight in Derbent, Dagestan. (Radio Free Europe / Radio Libery)
Terrorism in France
- Police evacuate Mont Saint-Michel abbey, a major tourist site, and launch a house-by-house search for a possible terrorist after a visitor is heard shouting "I'm going to kill a cop." The suspect is not found. (ABC Online)

Disasters and accidents

A coach carrying British Muslim pilgrims on an Umra trip from Mecca to Medina crashes near Al Khalas, Saudi Arabia. Four are killed and twelve more injured. (BBC News)
Two dragon boats capsize in the Taohua river in Guilin, China, resulting in at least 17 deaths. (The Guardian)
West Australian Premier Mark McGowan says he is willing to use state law to block livestock export ships on animal welfare grounds. The move comes as MV Awassi Express is detained in Fremantle undergoing ventilation upgrades mandated by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority after video emerged of 2,400 sheep dying on board during a voyage last August. MV Maysora left the port last week despite inspectors reporting water troughs that were empty or filled with faeces. (ABC)
Cracks are discovered in the core of Hunterston B nuclear power station in North Ayrshire, Scotland. The Office for Nuclear Regulation is investigating to determine if the reactor is now too dangerous to restart. (Herald Scotland)
Two Chinese crewmen aboard MV Feng Hui Hai are overcome by coal gas in Jamnagar, India after a voyage from Indonesia. Another crewman is hospitalised. (Splash 24/7)

International relations

Turkey–United States relations
- The United States warns Turkey of consequences if pastor Andrew Brunson isn't freed. (The Narco Path)

Law and crime

Nashville Waffle House shooting
- A partially naked man shoots and kills four people at a Waffle House restaurant in Antioch, Tennessee. (WLS-TV) (Vox)
Crime in Germany
- A report shows German crime rates fell by 10% in 2017, with crimes by foreigners down 22.8% amid controversy over crimes by migrants. Murder, drug offences, and burglaries were among the categories to rise. (Deutsche Welle)

Politics and elections

Makhosi Khoza, leader of South Africa's African Democratic Change party, resigns just five months after the party formed. (Herald Live)
Turkish general election, 2018
- Fifteen members of Turkey's Republican People's Party quit and join the İyi Party, allowing the İyi Party to satisfy eligibility requirements such as having 20 lawmakers in Parliament for upcoming elections. Party leader Meral Akşener, who defected from the Nationalist Movement Party, will run against incumbent Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for the presidency. (The Kansas City Star)
2018 Armenian protests
- Protest leader Nikol Pashinyan is detained by police shortly after a televised meeting with Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan who stormed out after three minutes, claiming he was being blackmailed to resign. (BBC News)
Andrea Nahles is elected as the first female leader of the Social Democratic Party of Germany. (The Guardian)
Paraguayan general election, 2018
- Colorado Party candidate Mario Abdo Benítez is elected President of Paraguay. (BBC News)

Science and technology

UK Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt writes to social media firms including Google and Facebook giving them until the end of the month to come up with ways to counter online bullying, underage usage, and unhealthy amounts of interaction online. He says they will face new legislation if they do not comply. (BBC News)
Tanzania's Communications Regulatory Authority issues a two week deadline for bloggers, Internet TV shows, and other online content creators and distributors to register with the government. (Xinhua)

Sports

2018 London Marathon
- Kenyan runners Eliud Kipchoge and Vivian Cheruiyot win the men's and women's events respectively. The event was the hottest since the inaugural race in 1981 with temperatures hitting 23.2 °C (73.8 °F). (Deutsche Welle)
2017–18 in English football
- Egyptian forward Mohamed Salah, who plays for Liverpool and is currently the top scorer in the Premier League with 31 goals, is named PFA Players' Player of the Year, while Manchester City winger Leroy Sané wins PFA Young Player of the Year. (Sky Sports)