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Worldwide current events
Sports events

Topics in the news

Geraint Thomas

In cycling, Geraint Thomas (pictured) wins the Tour de France.
A 6.4 magnitude earthquake strikes Lombok, Indonesia, killing at least 16 people.
Following allegations of sexual misconduct, American Archbishop Theodore McCarrick becomes the first cleric to resign from the College of Cardinals since 1927.
The longest total lunar eclipse in the 21st century occurs.
21st Century Fox shareholders approve the $71.3 billion acquisition by The Walt Disney Company.

July 31, 2018 (Tuesday)

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Disasters and accidents

2018 California wildfires
- Fires raging across California have killed at least eight people, stretching the state's funds and resources thin as firefighters try to gain control. (Upi)

Law and crime

Three journalists, one Russian and two Ukrainian are killed in an ambush near Sibut, Central African Republic, while filming a documentary about mercenaries. (TASS) (Reuters)
Special Counsel investigation (2017–present)
- Former Donald Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort was in court for the opening day of his criminal trial on bank and fraud charges brought by special counsel Robert Mueller. (The Hill)

July 30, 2018 (Monday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian Civil War
- 2018 Southern Syria offensive
  - The Syrian Army seizes control of Al-Shajara, described as ISIL's "main bastion" in the Daraa Governorate. (The New Arab)
- The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reports that ISIL militants are holding more than 30 Druze women and children hostage following last week's attacks on Druze villages in the As-Suwayda Governorate. (BBC)

Business and economy

Economy of Iran
- The Iranian rial hits another record low against the US dollar ahead of August 7, when the first round of fresh United States sanctions against Iran begin. (Al Jazeera)

Disasters and accidents

15 people are killed and over 25,000 are affected after heavy floods hits Nigeria. (All Africa)
11 people died and 54,000 others are displaced when floods hits Myanmar. (DNA India)
13 people are killed and four others are injured in a road accident involving a car and a truck in Quang Nam, Vietnam. (VietnamPlus)
A man died and 12 others were hospitalized when the West Nile virus spread across Italy. (Fidelity News)

International relations

Italy–United States relations
- U.S. President Donald Trump hosts Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte at the White House. (USA Today)

Law and crime

Cannabis in Georgia
- Following a campaign led-by Georgian politician Zurab Japaridze, the Constitutional Court of Georgia legalizes cannabis for recreational use. Georgia is the first former Soviet Republic to fully legalize the drug, with it also being decriminalized in Russia, Ukraine and Estonia. (Georgia Today) (RFE/RL)
Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb calls for the General Assembly to pass a hate crimes bill after a suburban Indianapolis synagogue is defaced with anti-Semitic graffiti. (SFgate)
Australian Archbishop Philip Wilson announces his resignation after being convicted for his role in covering up sexual abuse. He is the most senior Roman Catholic official convicted to date. (BBC)

Politics and elections

Zimbabwean general election, 2018
- Voters in Zimbabwe go to the polls to elect a new president and members for both houses of the Parliament, the first election to not involve longtime former president Robert Mugabe. (The Guardian)
Macedonian constitutional referendum, 2018
- Lawmakers in Macedonia approve a government proposal to set September 30 as the target date of a referendum to change the country's name. (RFE/RL)

July 29, 2018 (Sunday)

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Disasters and accidents

2018 Pacific typhoon season
- Typhoon Jongdari hits central and western Japan, injuring at least 21 people and cutting power to tens of thousands of homes. The typhoon is the latest in the series of weather events to affect the country, following devastating floods and a fatal heat wave earlier in the month. (BBC)
2018 Attica wildfires
- The death toll from the fires in Greece rises to 91 while 25 other people are still missing. (AP)
List of people who disappeared mysteriously
- TeNiya Elnora Jones, a University of Kentucky student studying abroad in the Middle East, is reported missing after a swimming accident over the weekend in Tel Aviv, Israel. (USA Today)

International relations

Israeli–Palestinian conflict, 2018 Gaza border protests
- Palestinian teenager Ahed Tamimi is released from an Israeli prison. (NBC News)

Law and crime

Four cyclists, two Americans, one Dutch national and one Swiss national, are killed in the Khatlon Region, Tajikistan by a hit-and-run driver while three others are injured. A 21 year old male suspect has been arrested. (RFE/RL), (NU.nl)

Politics and elections

Malian presidential election, 2018
- Malians go to the polls to elect a president. (The Globe and Mail)

Sports

2018 Tour de France
- Geraint Thomas of the United Kingdom wins the Tour de France. (BBC)

July 28, 2018 (Saturday)

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Arts and culture

Groundbreaking on the Barack Obama Presidential Center in Jackson Park, Illinois, is pushed back again until all federal approvals are completed, which will not be until 2019. (Chicago Sun Times)

Disasters and accidents

2018 Lombok earthquake
- A magnitude 6.4 earthquake hits Lombok, Indonesia, destroying several houses. At least 16 people are killed and 160 others are injured. (BBC)
Heavy monsoon rains in northern India leave 58 people dead. (ABC)
A bus crashes in Dapoli, India, killing thirty people and leaving one sole survivor. (Bendigo Advertiser)

Law and crime

Former Armenian President Robert Kocharyan is arrested and taken into police custody on charges of being involved in the crackdown on protests in 2008 that resulted in ten deaths following a disputed presidential election. (RFE/RL)
A court in Egypt sentences 75 supporters of former president Mohammed Morsi to death, as part of a trial of more than 700. (BBC)

Politics and elections

Australian federal by-elections
- Five separate by-elections are held for five seats in the Australian House of Representatives, namely Braddon, Fremantle, Longman, Mayo and Perth, four of which were triggered by the dual citizenship crisis. (The Guardian)
Basic Law: Israel as the Nation-State of the Jewish People
- Israeli Arab MP Zouheir Bahloul resigns over the "nation-state" law. (BBC)

July 27, 2018 (Friday)

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Business and economy

Proposed acquisition of 21st Century Fox by Disney
- 21st Century Fox share holders approve a $71.3 billion merger with The Walt Disney Company. (Variety)

Disasters and accidents

2018 California wildfires
- The Carr wildfire threatening Redding, California, U.S., kills two firefighters, as many residents flee their homes. (New York Times)

International relations

North Korea–United States relations
- North Korea returns what it says are the remains of 55 U.S. servicemen killed during the Korean War on the 65th anniversary of the signing of the Korean Armistice Agreement. The repatriation was agreed at the June summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in a bid to improve relations. (Sky News) (Vox)

Science and technology

July 2018 lunar eclipse
- The longest total lunar eclipse of the 21st century colours the moon reddish orange in parts of Africa, Asia and Europe for about one hour and 42 minutes. (ABC News)

July 26, 2018 (Thursday)

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Business and economy

Facebook stocks drop 20% (US$118 billion), setting a record as the biggest single stock market loss in one day, and marking the first time that a stock lost over $100 billion in one day. (CNBC)
Disney announces plans to eliminate all plastic straws and plastic stirrers from their parks by mid-2019. (NOLA)

International relations

European migrant crisis
- Hundreds of Sub-Saharan African migrants storm a border fence in Spain's North African enclave of Ceuta, using home-made flamethrowers and other improvised weapons. The Spanish Civil Guard reports that 602 people succeeded in reaching Ceuta, of whom 586 were taken to a temporary reception centre, while 16 others are being treated in a hospital. Fifteen border guards were also hurt. (The Guardian)

Law and crime

Capital punishment in Japan
- The six remaining cult members of Aum Shinrikyo who perpetrated the 1995 Tokyo subway sarin attack and were on death row are executed by hanging. (Japan Today)
Cannabis in the United Kingdom
- The UK Home Secretary Sajid Javid announces that medicinal cannabis products are to be legalized by the end of this year, allowing cannabis treatments to be legally prescribed by specialist doctors following several high profile cases. (BBC) (Reuters)
A bomb explodes outside the U.S. Embassy in China, wounding the lone assailant. (Reuters)

Science and technology

A team of Russian scientists in collaboration with Princeton University announce in a new report that they have brought two female nematodes frozen in permafrost from around 42,000 years ago back to life. The two nematodes are now the oldest confirmed living animals on the planet. (The Siberian Times)
Astronomers say they have observed Albert Einstein's theory of gravitational redshift for the first time while observing a star known as S2 interact with a supermassive black hole using the Very Large Telescope (VLT). (BBC)

July 25, 2018 (Wednesday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian Civil War
- 2018 As-Suwayda attacks
  - Coordinated suicide bombings and shootings carried out by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in As-Suwayda, Syria, kill 215 people and injure more than 200 others. (Reuters)
2018 Quetta suicide bombing
- A blast outside a polling station in Quetta, Pakistan, kills 31 people and wounds several more on election day. (Hindustan Times)

Business and economy

United States–European Union relations, Trump tariffs
- U.S. President Donald Trump and European leaders agree to halt their trade war over vehicles and say they will open talks on removing trade barriers between the United States and the European Union. (AP via Yahoo! Finance)

Disasters and accidents

2018 Attica wildfires
- The death toll from the wildfires in Greece rises to 80 people while many others are still missing. (BBC)
2018 Laos dam collapse
- The death toll from a dam collapse in Laos that caused heavy floods rises to 26, while more than 130 remain missing. (Channel NewsAsia)
A Legionella outbreak in Bresso, Italy, kills three people while 17 others are hospitalized. (Corriere Della Sera)
Paraguay's Minister of Agriculture, Luis Gneiting, and three others are killed in a plane crash near Ayolas. (Reuters)

Law and crime

Kidnapping of Joshua Boyle and Caitlan Coleman
- Caitlan Coleman, the wife of former Taliban hostage Joshua Boyle, returns to the United States with her children after a family law court in Ottawa approved her request. (CTV News)

Politics and elections

Pakistani general election, 2018
- Voters in Pakistan go to the polls to elect the members of the National Assembly and the four Provincial Assemblies of Pakistan. (Reuters)

Science and technology

Water on Mars
- Scientists at INAF announce the discovery of a liquid water lake beneath a polar ice cap on Mars. The discovery was made using MARSIS, a radar instrument on board the European Space Agency's Mars Express orbiter. (BBC)

More July 2018 events...

Time: 19:54 UTC|Day: 31 July