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Worldwide current events
Sports events

Topics in the news

The solar eclipse

The Supreme Court of India rules that the practice of instant divorce is unconstitutional.
A total solar eclipse (pictured) crosses the contiguous United States for the first time since 1918.
At least 23 people are killed and 156 others are injured in a train accident in Khatauli, India.
A knife attack in Turku, Finland, kills 2 people and injures 8 others.
Three separate attacks in Catalonia, Spain, kill at least 15 people and injure more than 100 others.
The Hong Kong Court of Appeal sentences three prominent pro-democracy activists to jail.
At least 400 people are killed by mudslides in and around Freetown, Sierra Leone.

August 23, 2017 (Wednesday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Yemeni Civil War (2015–present)
- At least 35 people are killed in an air strike that hit a hotel near a Houthi run checkpoint north of the Yemeni capital Sanaa. (Reuters via Channel News Asia)

Disasters and accidents

Aftermath of the USS John S. McCain collision
- The United States Navy relieves Admiral Joseph Aucoin as Commander of the United States Seventh Fleet following the death of 12 sailors in four collisions in Asia. (New York Times)
Auraiya train derailment
- A passenger train collided with a lorry on the line at Auraiya, India and was derailed. Twenty five people were injured. (The Hindu)

Law and crime

Impeachment in the Philippines
- An impeachment complaint has been filed in the House of Representatives against Commission on Elections chairman Andres D. Bautista for betrayal of public trust and culpable violation of the Constitution, over recent allegations of ill-gotten wealth & graft and corruption. (Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Politics and elections

Angolan legislative election, 2017
- Voters in Angola go to the polls to elect 220 National Assembly members. The leader of the winning party will become the new President, following the retirement of José Eduardo dos Santos, who has held the role since 1979. (Al Jazeera)

August 22, 2017 (Tuesday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Renewed clashes between Islamist extremists and the Fatah-supported Joint Palestinian Security Force at the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugees camp, near Sidon, Lebanon, wound three more Palestinians. (Daily Star) (Naharnet)

Business and economy

Viacom International Media Networks has announced it will no longer pursue a Nickelodeon underwater theme park and resort in Palawan, Philippines. The project, announced last January, attracted controversy due to criticisms from environmentalist groups who fear the resort might destroy the area's marine eocsystem, home to two UNESCO World Heritage sites. (ABS-CBN News)

Law and crime

Triple talaq in India
- The "triple talaq", an Islamic practice allowing men to divorce instantly, is declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of India. (The Guardian)

Sports

2017–18 NBA season transactions
- In the NBA, the Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics swap All-Star point guards, with Isaiah Thomas going to the Cavaliers and Kyrie Irving to the Celtics. The Celtics also send the Cavaliers forward Jae Crowder, center Ante Žižić, and a 2018 first-round draft pick that they had previously obtained from the Brooklyn Nets. (ESPN)

August 21, 2017 (Monday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Aftermath of the 2017 Barcelona attack
- Spanish police hunting the chief suspect in last Thursday's van attack in Barcelona shoot dead a man to the west of the city who appeared to be wearing an explosive belt. (BBC)
A ceasefire brings calm after heavy fighting between Fatah and extremists that left two people dead at the Palestinian refugees camp of Ain al-Hilweh, Lebanon. (Daily Star)

Arts and culture

The famed clock tower Big Ben chimes for the final time until 2021 before undergoing repairs. (USA Today)

Disasters and accidents

Shipwrecks in 2017
- The United States Navy's USS John S. McCain collides with the Liberian-flagged Alnic MC near Singapore. Rescue efforts are underway with ten sailors reported as missing. (Reuters)(AP)
- The U.S. Navy orders an investigation into its Pacific Fleet following the collision, which is the fourth crash involving a U.S. Navy ship in the past two years and the second in the past two months. (BBC)
Earthquakes in 2017
- A magnitude 4.0 earthquake strikes the Italian island of Ischia, leaving one person dead and 25 others injured. Italian media report 10 others are unaccounted for after several buildings collapsed in Casamicciola Terme. (BBC)

International relations

North Korea–United States relations
- In a video interview posed on the state-run website Uriminzokkiri, the two sons of James Joseph Dresnok (the last remaining American defector to North Korea) have confirmed that their father has died of a stroke last November 2016. (The Guardian)
Syria chemical weapons program, Sanctions against North Korea
- Two North Korean shipments to a Syrian government agency of its chemical weapons program were intercepted in the past 6 months, according to a confidential United Nations report on violations of North Korea's sactions. (Reuters)

Science and technology

Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017
- Millions of United States residents and visitors are able to witness a total solar eclipse that crosses through North America. It is the first total solar eclipse visible across the entire contiguous United States since the solar eclipse of June 8, 1918. (CBS)

August 20, 2017 (Sunday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Iraqi Civil War
- Tal Afar offensive (2017)
  - Iraqi security forces, along with Shi'ite volunteers and Kurdish Peshmerga fighters, launch a ground offensive to take the city of Tal Afar back from Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant militants. The city has been isolated from the rest of the ISIL-held territory since the recent Mosul liberation. (Reuters) (Al Jazeera)
Syrian Civil War
- A rocket hits and injures several people at the Damascus International Fair. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says five people have died. (Daily Mail) (BBC)

Arts and culture

American comedian and Muscular Dystrophy Association chairman Jerry Lewis dies in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the age of 91. (Yahoo!)

Disasters and accidents

An explosion at a South Korean shipyard owned by STX Offshore & Shipbuilding kills four workers. (Reuters via The Australian)

Law and crime

Death of Jennifer Laude
- The Court of Appeals of the Philippines has junked U.S. Marine Joseph Scott Pemberton's motion for reconsideration, re-affirming its decision last April upholding the 2015 homicide ruling of the Olongapo City Regional Trial Court; citing the defendant's arguments as mere "rehash of issues". The Court of Appeals also upheld the payment of ₱ 4.32 million to Jennifer Laude's family for "loss of earning capacity". Pemberton faces 10 years in prison. (Rappler)

Politics and elections

Politics of Iran
- Iranian MPs approve 16 out of 17 cabinet members nominated by recently re-elected President Hassan Rouhani. (Washington Post)
Media of North Korea
- The director of the BBC World Service says it is prepared for the North Korean government's reaction over the targeted launch of a radio service on North Korea in September, despite the recent international tensions. The North Korean embassy in London has already told the BBC "in no uncertain terms" that Pyongyang does not want any such service. (The Guardian)

August 19, 2017 (Saturday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Terrorism in Russia
- A 23-year-old stabs and injures eight people in the Russian city of Surgut, before being killed by police. ISIL claims responsibility for the attack. (South Front) (Reuters)
Syrian Civil War
- A day after a Russian sponsored ceasefire with a rebel group agreed a halt of fighting in the last opposition enclave in the capital, Syrian government airplanes and artillery strike rebel-held eastern Damascus suburbs and Ghouta with barrel bombs, killing at least five civilians in the towns of Hamouriya and Zalamka with several case of suffocation from rockets filled with chlorine that were fired at the front lines of Jobar and Ain Terma. (US News) (Reuters) (SN4HR)
- Syrian Civil War spillover in Lebanon
  - The Lebanese Armed Forces launches operation Fajr al-Joroud, and on the first day recaptures 30 km of territory near the Lebanon–Syria border formerly occupied by ISIS militants. Twenty ISIS militants were killed and 10 Lebanese soldiers were wounded. (The Daily Star)

Arts and culture

Religion in Pakistan
- Pakistan holds a state funeral for German-born Catholic nun Ruth Pfau, known as "Pakistan's Mother Teresa," who devoted her life to eradicating leprosy in the South Asian country. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

Earthquakes in 2017
- A magnitude 6.4 earthquake strikes west of the Pacific Island of Tonga. There are no immediate reports of casualties or damage. (Reuters)
2017 Khatauli train derailment
- A train derails near Khatauli, Uttar Pradesh, India, resulting in at least 23 deaths and 156 injuries. (Reuters), (Reuters via ABC News Australia)
US Navy losses in World War II
- The wreckage of the USS Indianapolis heavy cruiser, torpedoed by the Imperial Japanese Navy submarine I-58 and sunk in 1945 after delivering parts for the Little Boy atomic weapon, is discovered on the floor of the North Pacific Ocean. Only 317 of the U.S. Sailors/Marines who survived the sinking were finally rescued after 4–5 days in shark-infested waters. (CNN)

Politics and elections

2017 Australian constitutional crisis
- Australian Senator Nick Xenophon is discovered to hold dual citizenship with Britain. (News.com.au)
Politics of Nigeria
- Nigerian state television reports that President Muhammadu Buhari is back in the country after a three-month sick leave in Britain. (Reuters)
Political appointments by Donald Trump
- Pastor A.R. Bernard becomes the first religious leader to resign from the president's evangelical advisory board. (CNN)

August 18, 2017 (Friday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Aftermath of the 2017 Barcelona attack
- Catalan police in the coastal town of Cambrils kill five suspected terrorists in a counter-terror operation to stop a second van attack. The police reported the attackers were wearing explosive vests, however they were later discovered to be fakes. (BBC)
2017 Turku stabbing
- At least two people are reportedly killed, and several others wounded in a stabbing in Turku, Finland. Police said they arrested one person after a shootout and had launched a manhunt for other possible attackers. (Reuters), (HS)

Arts and culture

Removal of monuments and memorials
- The 145-year-old Roger B. Taney Monument outside Maryland State House in Annapolis, Maryland, is removed overnight by authorities. Maryland Governor Larry Hogan called on Wednesday for the monument to be taken down immediately. (Reuters)
Repatriation of cultural heritage
- Two Joseon Dynasty-era royal seals which were repatriated last July from the U.S. after being illegally taken out by an American soldier during the Korean War, are on exhibit at the National Palace Museum of Korea. (The Korea Times)

Business and economics

McDonald's
- Workers at two British McDonald's restaurants overwhelmingly vote to authorize a strike over working conditions and the use of zero-hour contracts, which would be the first such labor action against the fast-food chain in the U.K. (The Guardian) (Bloomberg)

Disasters and accidents

August 2017 Nepal and India floods
- Flooding in South Asia has displaced tens of thousands of people and resulted in an estimated 500 deaths across India, Bangladesh, and Nepal. (BBC)

Politics and elections

Political appointments by Donald Trump
- Steve Bannon resigns as President Donald Trump's White House Chief Strategist. (ABC News) (NYT)
- Carl Icahn steps down as special advisor to the President. (CNN)
- All 17 members of the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities, including actor Kal Penn and artist Chuck Close, resign. (AP via Miami Herald) (India-West) (UPI)
2017 Venezuelan constitutional crisis
- The controversial National Constituent Assembly votes unanimously to assume the powers of the opposition-led National Assembly of Venezuela. (BBC)

August 17, 2017 (Thursday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

2017 Barcelona attack
- A van drives into crowds of people in La Rambla, Barcelona, in what Spanish police are calling a terrorist attack, killing at least 12 people. Two suspects are taken into custody, and ISIL claims responsibility. (The Washington Post)

Disasters and accidents

A large fire continues to burn at the Peter Pan Seafoods fish processing plant in Port Moller, Alaska, on the Alaska Peninsula. Much of the facility has been destroyed, and the plant is out of commission. Power is out in the village. (King 5)
USS Fitzgerald and MV ACX Crystal collision
- The US Navy has announced that about a dozen sailors of the USS Fitzgerald are to be disciplined in the aftermath of the collision with a container ship last June, where 7 crew members died. (BBC)

International relations

2017 China–India border standoff
- An English-language Chinese propaganda video from Xinhua, entitled The Spark: 7 Sins of India about the Doklam stand-off involving China, India and Bhutan, goes viral and sparks anger within India. (BBC)
South Africa–Zimbabwe relations
- The South African Police Service issues a red alert at the country's borders to prevent First Lady of Zimbabwe Grace Mugabe from leaving the country. She is wanted on charges of "assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm" on a 20-year-old woman in a hotel room in Johannesburg. (BBC)

Law and crime

Philippine Drug War
- At least 25 people are killed and 48 are arrested by the Philippine National Police Manila Police District in consecutive anti-drug operations in Manila within 24 hours. (Manila Times)
- Shooting of Kian Loyd delos Santos
  - Kian Loyd delos Santos, a 17-year old Grade 11 student, was shot deae by police after trying to escape an antidrug operation in Caloocan. (GMA News)
Politics of Hong Kong
- Hong Kong opposition activists Alex Chow, Joshua Wong, and Nathan Law are sentenced between six to eight months in prison and barred from holding office until 2022 as the Hong Kong government imposes harsher punishments on the individuals for their role in the Umbrella Movement. (South China Morning Post)
International Criminal Court investigation in Mali
- The International Criminal Court has ruled that Ahmad al-Faqi al-Mahdi is liable for about € 2.7 million in personal damages for the destruction of Timbuktu's heritage sites, and that the victims (including Mali itself and the international community) be paid "individual, collective, and symbolic" reparations. The Trust Fund for Victims is to decide until 16 February 2018 how the amount will be paid (the Court has also recognized that the penniless al-Mahdi would be unable to pay). (AFP)

Politics and elections

Presidency of Donald Trump
- President Donald Trump has ended his planned Presidential Advisory Council on Infrastructure after only a month, coming a day after two other advisory councils, the Strategic and Policy Forum and the American Manufacturing Council, were scrapped. No reason was given. (CNN) (Bloomberg)

Science and technology

Aftermath of the Unite the Right rally
- Internet firm CloudFlare ceased CDN support for the neo-Nazi, white supremacist website The Daily Stormer, after The Daily Stormer claimed that the company supported their cause. The Daily Stormer website had already lost web-hosting services by the domain register GoDaddy and Google (Cloudflare's Official Blog) (CNN Money)

More August 2017 events...

Ongoing events
Disasters Atlantic hurricane season California wildfires Oklahoma earthquake swarms Pacific typhoon season Politics 1MDB scandal China–India border standoff European migrant crisis (timeline) Philippine Drug War Purges in Turkey Qatar diplomatic crisis South China Sea disputes Venezuelan protests (timeline) More details – ongoing conflicts edit sidebar

Sport
Association football 2017–18 UEFA Champions League 2017–18 UEFA Europa League 2017–18 Premier League 2017–18 La Liga 2017–18 Serie A 2017–18 Bundesliga 2017–18 Ligue 1 2018 FIFA World Cup qual. Baseball 2017 Little League World Series Tennis 2017 ATP World Tour 2017 WTA Tour Cycling 2017 UCI World Tour 2017 Vuelta a España 2017 UCI Europe Tour Motorsport 2017 Formula One season 2017 MotoGP season 2017 World Rally Championship 2017 NASCAR Cup Series 2017 IndyCar Series Rugby union 2017 Women's Rugby World Cup Sports seasons 2017 AFL season 2017 LPGA Tour 2017 MLB season 2017 MLS season 2017 PGA Tour 2017 WNBA season 2017–18 snooker season More details – current sports events edit sidebar

Elections and referendums
Recent July 30: Republic of the Congo, National Assembly (2nd round) 30: Senegal, National Assembly 30: Venezuela, Constitutional Assembly August 4: Rwanda, President 5: Mauritania, Constitutional referendum 8: Kenya, President, Senate, National Assembly Upcoming August 23: Angola, National Assembly September 11: Norway, Storting 17: Macau, Legislative Assembly edit sidebar

Recent deaths
August 2017 20: Jerry Lewis 20: Colin Meads 19: Dick Gregory 18: Arthur J. Finkelstein 18: Bruce Forsyth 18: Zoe Laskari 18: Liz MacKean 17: Sonny Landham 17: Mohamed Refaat El-Saeed 17: Fadwa Soliman 15: Gunnar Birkerts 15: Kasatka 14: Frank Broyles 14: Franklin Cleckley 13: Joseph Bologna 12: Bryan Murray 11: Segun Bucknor 11: Yisrael Kristal 10: Ruth Pfau 8: Barbara Cook 8: Glen Campbell 8: Ken Kaiser 8: Rius 7: Don Baylor 7: Chantek 7: Haruo Nakajima 6: Betty Cuthbert 6: Darren Daulton 6: Dick Locher 6: Martin Roth 5: Dionigi Tettamanzi 5: Mark White 5: Ernst Zündel 3: Robert Hardy 2: Judith Jones 2: Ara Parseghian 1: Jeffrey Brotman July 2017 31: Jeanne Moreau 31: Les Murray 30: Anton Vratuša 29: Lee May 28: Charlie Gard 27: Sam Shepard 27: Marty Sklar 26: June Foray 25: Gretel Bergmann 25: Barbara Sinatra 25: John Wraw 25: Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu edit sidebar

Trials
Recently concluded Cambodia: Sam Rainsy China: Wan Qingliang, Wu Changshun, Zhao Liping Netherlands: Geert Wilders Philippines: Nur Misuari, Joel Villanueva Romania: Gheorghe Ștefan, Gabriel Sandu, Dorin Cocoş, Dumitru Nicolae Spain: Spanish Royal House United Kingdom: Chris Denning, Ched Evans, Thomas Mair, Fred Talbot, Rolf Harris United States: Pedro Hernandez, Paul Anthony Ciancia, Graham Spanier, Tim Curley, Gary Schultz, Bill Cosby, Martin Shkreli Ongoing China: Bai Enpei, Pan Yiyang, Yang Weize Germany: Beate Zschäpe Indonesia: Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, Mary Jane Veloso Kazakhstan: Mukhtar Ablyazov Pakistan: Waseem Azeem, Mufti Abdul Qawi Philippines: Andal Ampatuan Jr., Leila de Lima, Jovito Palparan Romania: Dan Șova, Elena Udrea, Radu Mazăre, Gheorghe Nichita Russia: Alexei Navalny, Alexey Ulyukaev South Korea: Park Geun-hye and Choi Soon-sil Spain: Gürtel case, Bárcenas affair, Operación Lezo, Ángel María Villar, Jordi Pujol, Palau de la Música Catalana, Case ERE United Kingdom: Barry Bennell International ICC: Laurent Gbagbo ICTY: Ratko Mladić Upcoming Australia: George Pell Egypt: Mohamed Morsi Estonia: Edgar Savisaar Israel: Faina Kirschenbaum Libya: Saif al-Islam Gaddafi Philippines: Benigno Aquino III, Alan Purisima, Getulio Napeñas United States: Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Bill Cosby edit sidebar

Ongoing conflicts
Africa Algeria and Tunisia Maghreb insurgency ISIL insurgency in Tunisia Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria Boko Haram insurgency Central African Republic Civil war Democratic Republic of the Congo Kivu conflict ADF insurgency Ituri conflict Lord's Resistance Army insurgency Libya Civil war Mali Northern Mali conflict Somalia Civil war South Sudan Ethnic violence (South Sudanese Civil War) Sudan War in Darfur South Kordofan conflict Sudanese nomadic conflicts Americas Mexico Mexican War on Drugs Peru Internal conflict in Peru Asia Afghanistan Afghanistan War China Xinjiang conflict India Naxalite–Maoist insurgency Insurgency in Northeast India India and Pakistan Kashmir conflict Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines Moro conflict Cross border attacks in Sabah Indonesia and Papua New Guinea Papua conflict Myanmar Internal conflict in Myanmar Pakistan War in North-West Pakistan Balochistan conflict Philippines CPP-NPA-NDF rebellion Thailand South Thailand insurgency Europe Armenia and Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict Georgia Abkhaz–Georgian conflict Georgian–Ossetian conflict Russia Chechen–Russian conflict North Caucasus insurgency Ukraine War in Donbass Russian military intervention in Ukraine Middle East Egypt Sinai insurgency Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, and Syria Arab–Israeli conflict Iran Iran–PJAK conflict Iraq American-led intervention in Iraq Iranian intervention in Iraq Iraq and Syria (map) Military intervention against ISIL Israel and Lebanon Israeli–Lebanese conflict Israel and Palestine Gaza–Israel conflict Israeli–Palestinian conflict Syria American-led intervention in Syria Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War Turkish military intervention in Syria Syrian Civil War spillover in Lebanon Turkey Turkey–PKK conflict Yemen Yemeni Civil War Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen Al-Qaeda insurgency edit sidebar