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Ural Airlines Airbus A321 in 2013

At least 63 people are killed in a bombing at a wedding in Kabul, Afghanistan.
All 233 people on board Ural Airlines Flight 178 (aircraft pictured) survive a crash following bird strikes in both engines of an Airbus A321.
Typhoon Lekima impacts the Philippines, the Ryukyu Islands, Taiwan and East China, killing at least 80 people.
At least 75 people are killed and more than 50 others injured in a fuel tanker truck explosion in Morogoro, Tanzania.

August 20, 2019 (Tuesday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian Civil War, 2019 Northwestern Syria offensive
- The Al-Qaeda-linked faction Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) acknowledges "a redeployment" south of the strategic town of Khan Shaykhun. (AP News)
- Pro-government media reports that the Syrian Army has entered the northern sector of the town of Khan Shaykhun, following the reported HTS withdrawal. (Al-Masdar)

Health and enviornment

The Spanish Ministry of Health declares an outbreak of listeriosis in Andalusia as a national health alert after cases are reported in Asturias, Madrid, Catalonia and Extremadura, including one death. (RTVE)

Law and crime

Crime in Brazil
- Thirty-seven passengers on a bus over Rio–Niterói Bridge, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, are held hostage before police shoot dead the armed hijacker. After closer inspection, police discover the hijacker used a fake plastic gun. (BBC), (Extra)
Former professional basketball player Mateen Cleaves is acquitted of several sex crimes in a court in his hometown of Flint, Michigan. (MLive), (WJRT-TV)
A modification of the Volcker rule is approved by the OCC and the FDIC. The new version eases rules on proprietary trading by Wall Street banks but is criticized by consumer groups who see risks for the protections on taxpayer money. (Reuters)
The Texas Department of Information Resources reports the computer systems of 23 towns in the state were hit by a ransomware attack on August 16. "One single threat actor" is suspected. (Insider)

Politics and elections

Politics of Italy, Conte Cabinet
- The President of Italy accepts Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte's resignation. (Reuters)

Science and technology

List of unmanned aerial vehicles
- The Russian Ministry of Defence announces that the six-tonne satellite-controlled reconnaissance drone Altius-U has performed its maiden flight. (TASS)

August 19, 2019 (Monday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian Civil War; 2019 Northwestern Syria offensive
- Syrian Air Force warplanes repeatedly strike a Turkish military convoy driving through the rebel-held region of Idlib, reportedly causing several casualties and forcing it to stop. Turkey claims the convoy was aiming to supply observation posts, while Syria accuses it of carrying weapons and ammunition to rebel groups. (BBC) (The National)
- The Syrian Army enters the strategic town of Khan Shaykhun in the Idlib Governorate for the first time since losing control of the town to rebels in 2014, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. (Middle East Monitor)

Arts and culture

The biggest multi-storey bicycle parking in the world, with a capacity of 12,500 bikes, opens near Utrecht Centraal railway station, the Netherlands. (SmartCitiesWorld) (The Guardian)

Disasters and accidents

Deforestation in Brazil
- After fifteen days of raging fires in the Amazon Forest in Rondônia, thick smoke clouds cover the Brazilian city of São Paulo in darkness. Street lamps had to be lit in the city around 2PM. The fires, suspected to be intentional, are still burning the forest. (G1)

International relations

2019 Hong Kong anti-extradition bill protests; Cross-Strait relations
- China condemns Taiwan after President Tsai Ing-wen offered support and asylum to Hong Kong protesters facing prosecution in Hong Kong courts. (Al Arabiya)
- Twitter says it has suspended more than 200,000 automated accounts on the social media site that it believes were part of a Chinese government-run campaign to spread misinformation about the protests in Hong Kong. (ABC News)

Law and crime

2016–present purges in Turkey
- Turkey's Ministry of the Interior tweets that 418 people in 29 provinces are detained by police, for suspected links with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). The authorities have also announced that they "replaced" the mayors of three major southeastern cities. (Reuters)
Former President of Sudan Omar al-Bashir appears in court for the first time at a Khartoum court to face corruption charges. (Al Arabiya)
Women's rights in El Salvador
- Evelyn Hernández is acquitted of murder after her newly-born child was found deceased in a toilet. The ruling is being held as a landmark case decision for women's rights in El Salvador, which has one of the strongest anti-abortion laws in Central America. (BBC)

Politics and elections

The Palestinian Authority bans LGBT activities in the West Bank in anticipation of an upcoming Al Qaws event. (Jerusalem Post)

Science and technology

Astronomers led by a team from McGill University in Montreal announce the detection of eight new repeating fast radio bursts (FRBs) using the Canadian Hydrogen Intensity Mapping Experiment (CHIME) radio telescope. The astronomers report they also found complex morphologies and downward-drifting sub-bursts in some of the eight new FRBs. (Phys.org)

August 18, 2019 (Sunday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

War in Afghanistan
- 17 August 2019 Kabul bombing
  - ISIL claims responsibility for a terrorist attack against a wedding party in Afghanistan the day prior, which left 63 people dead and over 200 injured. (The Guardian)

International relations

Iran–United States relations; United Kingdom–United States relations
- Gibraltar authorities reject the request by the U.S. to seize the Iranian oil tanker Grace 1. They argue that EU, not U.S. law, is applicable in Gibraltar. The tanker is also renamed. (Al Arabiya)

Politics and elections

2019 Hong Kong anti-extradition bill protests
- The organizers claim that at least 1.7 million people join a peaceful rally in Victoria Park, Hong Kong. Protesters spill into nearby streets, with train service intermittently suspended due to the sheer number of people. (The Guardian)

August 17, 2019 (Saturday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

War in Afghanistan
- 17 August 2019 Kabul bombing
  - 63 people are killed and 182 wounded in a suicide attack at a wedding party in Kabul, Afghanistan. The attacker set off explosives among the invitees. (Al Arabiya)

Politics and elections

Aftermath of the 2018–19 Sudanese protests
- The ruling military and the civilian opposition formally sign a power-sharing deal establishing a three-year transition period towards the election of a civilian government. (Al Jazeera)
2019 Hong Kong anti-extradition bill protests
- Thousands of school teachers join the 11th weekend of anti-government protests in Hong Kong. (Reuters)
A rally of far-right groups such as the Proud Boys and Patriot Prayer is met by left-wing Antifa in Portland, Oregon. (The New York Times)
The Argentinian Treasury Minister, Nicolás Dujovne, resigns after incumbent President Mauricio Macri's loss in a primary vote saw Argentina's peso fall to record lows. (Bloomberg)

Science and technology

China announces the successful first launch of the Smart Dragon-1 [fr; de] carrier rocket. (Reuters)

August 16, 2019 (Friday)

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International relations

Denmark–United States relations
- In response to reports that U.S. President Donald Trump expressed interest in the United States acquiring Greenland, Greenland's Foreign Minister Ane Lone Bagger dismisses the idea, noting on Twitter that "a better and more equal partnership with Denmark should be the way forward for a stronger and longer-term free Greenland". (BBC News) (Reuters)
Israel–United States relations
- According to Israel's Interior ministry, U.S. Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib sends a letter to Israeli Interior Minister Aryeh Deri, asking for permission to visit her elderly grandmother in the West Bank. Tlaib's request was approved on the condition that she "not advance boycott activities for the duration of her visit". Tlaib later declines to come, saying she won't let Israel impose "oppressive conditions" on her. (CNN)

Law and crime

Death of Jeffrey Epstein
- The death of accused sexual trafficker Jeffrey Epstein is ruled a suicide by hanging by the New York City Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. Epstein's attorneys say they will be conducting their own investigation into his death. (CNN)

August 15, 2019 (Thursday)

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Disasters and accidents

Ural Airlines Flight 178
- A Ural Airlines Airbus 321 crash lands in a field near Zhukovsky International Airport in Moscow Region, Russia. The event is dubbed the "Miracle over Ramensk", as only 23 passengers had minor injuries, similar to US Airways Flight 1549. Preliminary reports say the aircraft struck a flock of seagulls. (CNN)
A Cessna Citation carrying former NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt Jr., his wife and infant daughter crashes on landing at Elizabethton Municipal Airport in Elizabethton, Tennessee. All occupants survive without serious injury. (CNN)

International relations

Colombia–Venezuela relations
- Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro gives a speech wherein he accuses former Colombian President Álvaro Uribe, Uribe's Vice President Francisco Santos Calderón, and Venezuelan politician Lester Toledo [es] of planning to kill him. (Reuters)
Iran–United Kingdom relations; Iran–United States relations
- Gibraltar says the United States has applied to seize the Iranian oil tanker Grace 1, which is being held by the United Kingdom territory for an alleged breach of European Union sanctions against Syria. (Reuters)
- The UK releases Grace 1 back to Iran after receiving written assurance that the oil would not be sent to Syria. (BBC)
Israel–United States relations
- Two American Muslim congresswomen, Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib, are barred from entering Israel before a planned visit to the country due to their support of the BDS movement, a decision which was encouraged by U.S. President Donald Trump. (CNN)
Denmark–United States relations
- Press sources report that U.S. President Donald Trump repeatedly expressed interest in buying Greenland. (The Wall Street Journal) (AP News)

Law and crime

Belgian Federal Police confirm that fugitive Belgian large weapons smuggler and arms trafficker Jacques Monsieur was arrested in Portugal yesterday. (Het Laatste Nieuws) (Le Soir)

Politics and elections

2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries
- Former Colorado governor John Hickenlooper announces that he is suspending his presidential campaign. (UPI)

August 14, 2019 (Wednesday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian Civil War, 2019 Northwestern Syria offensive
- A Syrian Air Force Sukhoi Su-22 jet is shot down by rebel forces near the town of Khan Shaykhun in the Idlib Governorate, Syria. Hayat Tahrir al-Sham jihadists say they have captured the pilot. (BBC) (Al Masdar News)

Business and economy

Economy of Germany
- The Federal Statistical Office of Germany discloses that Germany's gross domestic product shrank by 0.1% in the second quarter. (The Guardian)
The Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition, a U.S.-based organization that aims to keep educational materials broadly accessible, has asked the Antitrust Division of the Justice Department to halt a planned merger between two large textbook companies, McGraw-Hill and Cengage, a merger it claims will cause students "irreparable harm". (Reuters)

Health and environment

California regulators announce a ban on chlorpyrifos, an organophosphate nerve agent used as a pesticide. (Los Angeles Times)
France bans electric pulse fishing. (AFP via Yahoo News}

Law and crime

August 2019 Philadelphia shooting
- Six police officers are shot, sustaining non-life threatening injuries, by a gunman in Philadelphia; a seventh officer is injured in a related automobile accident nearby. (CNN) (NBC News)
Nisour Square massacre
- In a third trial, Nicholas Slatten is sentenced to life in prison. (AFP via VoA)

Politics and elections

Crisis in Venezuela
- Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro creates a new government ministry, the Ministry of Tourism and Foreign Trade. (Venezuelanalysis)
- Tarek William Saab strips the parliamentary immunity of the opposition politicians Juan Pablo García, Tomás Guanipa and José Guerra. (Venezuelanalysis)
- A Norwegian delegation arrives in Venezuela to restart dialogues to end the presidential crisis. (Reuters)

More August 2019 events...

Time: 23:33 UTC|Day: 20 August