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Artist's impression of K2-18b orbiting red dwarf K2-18

The FIBA Basketball World Cup concludes, with Spain defeating Argentina in the final.
Drone attacks on two major oil facilities force Saudi Arabia to cut more than half of its oil production.
Astronomers announce the detection of water in the atmosphere of exoplanet K2-18b (artist's impression shown), the first such discovery for an exoplanet in the habitable zone around a star.

September 17, 2019 (Tuesday)

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Armed conflict and attacks

17 September Afghanistan bombings
- Multiple bombings in Afghanistan killed over 40 people including children, women, and soldiers. One attack took place at a rally for Ashraf Ghani, the president of Afghanistan. The other bombing happened in Kabul near a U.S. embassy. (NYTimes) (BBC)
Terrorism in Europe
- A knifeman was arrested after he tried to escape after stabbing a soldier in Milan, Italy. He shouted Allah Akbar after his arrest. (RT)

International relations

Foreign relations of Taiwan
- Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen regrets and strongly condemns the move by the Solomon Islands to cut ties with Taipei and establish relations with the People's Republic of China. (RNZ)

September 16, 2019 (Monday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

2019 Abqaiq–Khurais attack, Iran–Saudi Arabia proxy conflict, Iran–United States relations
- Iran labels the accusations of its being behind the Saudi Arabian oil facilities attacks as "unacceptable" and "baseless". (Al Arabiya English)
- Iraq says the United States has told them that the information the U.S. has "confirms the Iraqi government's statement that its territory was not used to carry out this attack". (Reuters)

Business and economy

Economy of China
- Figures released by the National Bureau of Statistics of China show that industrial production growth in August was at a 17-year low. (SCMP)

Law and crime

Aftermath of the Grenfell Tower fire
- Officers with the Metropolitan Police interview members of the London Fire Brigade under caution in connection with the disaster. The fire brigade is being treated as a corporation suspected of breaching health and safety legislation. (The Guardian)
One firefighter is killed and six others are injured after a propane gas leak leads to a large explosion at a non-profit organization in Farmington, Maine. (CNN) (WGME)

International relations

2019 Persian Gulf crisis, Iran–United Arab Emirates relations
- The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps of Iran says it has seized a vessel in the Persian Gulf which it claims was smuggling diesel fuel to the United Arab Emirates. (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)
Political status of Taiwan, Cross-Strait relations
- The Cabinet of the Solomon Islands votes to shift diplomatic ties from Taiwan to China. Taiwanese Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu says that, since the Solomon Islands decided to establish diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China, this prompts Taiwan to cut ties with the Solomon Islands per the "One-China policy". (Hong Kong Free Press) (Reuters)

Politics and elections

Brexit
- UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson pulls out of a press conference in Luxembourg due to a group of loud EU protestors. Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel attends the press conference, where he discusses Johnson's attitude to Brexit and the EU, blaming him for the political crisis in a lengthy speech. (The Guardian)
- At the Liberal Democrats conference, party leader Jo Swinson reaffirms that if elected, she would completely revoke Brexit, adding that in the case of a hung parliament she would not enter a coalition with either the Conservatives or Labour. (BBC)

September 15, 2019 (Sunday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

2019 Abqaiq–Khurais attack, 2019 Persian Gulf crisis, Saudi Arabia–United States relations
- During a phone call, U.S. President Donald Trump reportedly tells Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman that the "U.S. supports Saudi Arabia in its efforts to fight terrorism" and that the U.S. will cooperate in the aftermath of the oil facilities attacks. (Al Arabiya English)
- After accusations by U.S. and Saudi officials, Iran denies involvement in the attack and says it's "ready for war" against both the U.S. and Saudi Arabia after the Kingdom blamed Iran for backing the Houthis. (Reuters)
- An anonymous senior Iraqi intelligence officer says the drones that attacked Saudi Arabia were launched from Popular Mobilization Forces bases in southern Iraq. The drones on that flight path reportedly would have crossed Kuwait's airspace to carry out the strikes. Kuwait's government says it is investigating the sighting of a drone, reportedly flying low and hovering over Kuwait City on the day of the attacks. (Middle East Eye)
- An unnamed United States official says evidence suggests the drones approached Saudi Arabia from the northwest from Iraq or Iran, contrary to the Houthi militants' claim that the drones were launched from Yemeni territory. Three experts cited by CNN say the official's evidence is not conclusive. (Reuters) (CNN)
- Donald Trump says the U.S. military is "locked and loaded" after the attacks on its ally Saudi Arabia, but is awaiting confirmation from Riyadh on who launched the strikes before taking action. (CNBC)
Syrian Civil War
- 2019 al-Rai bombing
  - A car bomb in the Syrian town of al-Rai, close to the Turkish border, kills at least ten people after it explodes near a hospital. (Reuters)

Business and economy

Price of oil
- Following the drone attacks on Saudi Aramco facilities, the price of benchmark Brent Crude oil futures contracts surges as high as 19.5% at market opening, the biggest increase in percentage terms since the 1990 oil price shock in response to Ba'athist Iraq invading Kuwait. (Yahoo! Finance)
Donald Trump authorizes the use of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to "keep the markets well-supplied", following severe disruption to crude oil output in Saudi Arabia. (The Hill)
Opioid epidemic in the United States
- U.S. company Purdue Pharma files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Agreeing to contribute more than US$3 billion from the sale of a daughter company, the owners propose to settle thousands of lawsuits related to the risk of addiction to their narcotic painkiller Oxycontin. (The Guardian)

Disasters and accidents

A sightseeing boat capsizes on the Godavari River in India's East Godavari district, killing at least 12 people and leaving 35 others missing, all Indian nationals. (The Independent)
A Transpacifico airplane crashes shortly after departing an airport in Popayán, Colombia for a domestic flight. Seven of the nine occupants are killed. The remaining two on board are injured, as is a child on the ground. (al-Jazeera)

International relations

Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Israel–Turkey relations
- The Cabinet of Israel legalizes the outpost settlement of Mevo’ot Yericho, in the occupied West Bank. (The Jewish Press)
- Referring to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's proposed annexation of the West Bank, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu says Israel is turning into "a racist, apartheid regime." (Reuters)

Politics and elections

2019 Hong Kong protests
- Despite an official ban, thousands of people march from Causeway Bay to the center of town. Police use tear gas to disperse the protestors. (CNN)
2019 Tunisian presidential election
- Tunisians cast their vote in the first round of presidential elections. (Reuters)

Sports

2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup Final
- In basketball, Spain defeats Argentina 95–75 to win their second World Cup title. (news.com.au)

September 14, 2019 (Saturday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

2019 Abqaiq–Khurais attack, Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
- Two Saudi Aramco oil refineries, one in Abqaiq and one in Khurais, Saudi Arabia, are attacked by drones, resulting in massive fires. The fires are under control, according to the Saudi Arabian Interior Ministry. Houthi militants claim responsibility, saying that they used 10 drones for the attack. (Euronews)
- According to Al Jazeera, Saudi Aramco's exports and oil production are disrupted by 5 million barrels of oil a day, half of the entire Saudi Arabian oil exports. (Al Jazeera) (Al Jazeera)

Disasters and accidents

Seven people are hospitalized after a taxi drives onto the sidewalk outside Kanayama Station in Nagoya, Japan. (NHK)

Politics and elections

A charity ship, carrying 82 migrants rescued off the coast of Libya, is offered docking at the Italian island of Lampedusa. The migrants can be brought ashore after "several E.U. countries" agreed to take them in, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said on Thursday. (Reuters)

Sport

In Gaelic football, Dublin defeat Kerry 1–18 to 0–15 in the 2019 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final replay to become the first team in GAA history to win 5 All-Ireland titles in a row. (RTE)

September 13, 2019 (Friday)

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Business and economy

Transport in Paris
- Parisian metro workers launch a general strike, the largest of its kind since 2007, in protest at Emmanuel Macron’s pension reforms. Ten of the sixteen metro lines and two major regional train lines are shut down during morning rush hour. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

A fire in a hospital kills eleven people in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (G1)
Two students are killed when a bus rolls over east of Bamfield, British Columbia. (Global News)

International relations

Sanctions against North Korea, North Korea–United States relations
- The U.S. Treasury imposes sanctions on the Lazarus Group and two of its affiliates, accusing them of being responsible for several recent cyberattacks under direction from North Korea's RGB intelligence agency. (Washington Post)

Law and crime

Ponte Morandi collapse
- Three employees of infrastructure firm Atlantia are arrested by Italian police on suspicion of offences connected to falsification of safety documentations for motorway bridges. The probe follows the disaster which killed 43 in August 2018. (Reuters)
2019 college admissions bribery scandal
- American actress Felicity Huffman is sentenced to fourteen days in jail and fined US$30,000 for her role in the conspiracy. (Reuters)

September 12, 2019 (Thursday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Kulp bombing
- Seven civilians are killed and ten are injured in a roadside attack by the PKK in Kulp, Diyarbakir Province, Turkey. (Anadolu Agency)

Business and economy

The European Central Bank announces new monetary stimulus, with a second round of quantitative easing "for as long as it deems necessary" and lowering its already-negative main deposit rate. (CNBC)

Disasters and accidents

A train derails in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's Tanganyika Province, killing about 15 people and injuring many others. (The Independent)

Law and crime

The French National Assembly says its president, Richard Ferrand, is put under formal investigation in a "financial impropriety" case. Ferrand stepped down as a minister in President Emmanuel Macron's government in 2017 over the case related to property deals, eight years ago, by a health insurance fund he managed in Brittany. Prosecutors in Lille say he is charged with a conflict of interest. (Reuters via France 24) (AFP via The Straits Times)
Death of Sahar Khodayari
- Iran's judiciary issues a warrant to arrest actress Saba Kamali after she posted a text in her Instagram sympathizing with Sahar Khodayari, which was reported to be found "insulting" to the third Shiite Imam, Hussain ibn Ali. (Radio Farda)

Politics and elections

Tongan Prime Minister ʻAkilisi Pōhiva, age 78, dies one day after being taken to a New Zealand hospital from his native country. (RNZ)
2020 U.S. Democratic Party presidential debates and forums
- The third major Democratic Party televised debate takes place at the Health and Physical Education Arena in Houston, Texas, with a focus on health care in the United States. (BBC)

Science and technology

Interstellar objects
- C/2019 Q4 (Borisov), a second interstellar comet after ʻOumuamua in 2017, is discovered by an amateur astronomer. (BBC)
Social media use in politics
- Twitter suspends several Cuban government and state media accounts, including First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba Raúl Castro and his daughter Mariela Castro. The pro-government Union of Journalists of Cuba denounces the suspensions as "massive censorship". (The Guardian) (BBC)
- Facebook suspends a chatbot on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's official page for violating its hate speech policy. Netanyahu says the mistake was made by a volunteer employee. (The Guardian)

September 11, 2019 (Wednesday)

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Business and economy

China–United States trade war
- China publishes a list of 16 U.S. goods that will be temporarily exempted from its retaliatory import tariffs. (Reuters)
- China announces that it will allow the import of soybean meal from Argentina, to ensure livestock feed under the impact of the trade war with the U.S. Apart from Argentina, China has been increasing imports of soybeans and soymeal from other channels, such as allowing soybean meal, rapeseed meal and sunflower meal from Russia since September 6. (Global Times)
2019 Japan–South Korea trade dispute
- South Korea announces it will file a complaint with the World Trade Organization over Japanese government export controls. (Marketwatch)

Disasters and accidents

A crash of a twin-engine Convair 440 cargo plane near Toledo, Ohio, kills the two people on board. (CNN)
Effects of Hurricane Dorian in The Bahamas
- The Bahamian National Emergency Management Agency lists approximately 2,500 people as missing after Hurricane Dorian devastated the islands last week. (BBC)

International relations

Pastoral visit of Pope Francis to Africa
- At St. Peter's Square Pope Francis reviews highlights from his African visit to Mozambique, Madagascar and Mauritius on September 4-10. (Crux)

Politics and elections

Suffering from pneumonia, Tongan Prime Minister ʻAkilisi Pōhiva is rushed from hospital in Nukuʻalofa to one in Auckland, New Zealand, where he was treated for a liver condition earlier this year. According to a government spokesperson, Pōhiva is in a "very serious" condition. (RNZ)
B.J. Habibie, reformist Indonesian president, dies at 83, after spending more than a week in intensive care. (The Washington Post)
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe rearranges his government cabinet, naming replacements at the Defense, Foreign Affairs, Environment and Olympics ministries, among others. (Al Jazeera)
Politics of the United Kingdom
- Scotland's Court of Session rules that UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson violated the law by his suspension of Parliament from 9 September to 14 October, encouraging calls for MPs to get back to work immediately. (Reuters)
- The Johnson ministry releases the Operation Yellowhammer contingency plans in the event of a no-deal Brexit to the public. (BBC)
2019 Canadian federal election
- Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau calls a general election on 21 October. Governor General Julie Payette, the acting head of state, formally dissolves Parliament. (The Independent)

Science and technology

Scientists from Denmark and the United Kingdom report they have identified genetic information from a 1.7-million-year-old Stephanorhinus tooth enamel from Dmanisi, Georgia, making it the oldest genetic data ever recorded. (Cosmos)
Discoveries of exoplanets
- Water vapor is detected on exoplanet K2-18b, a super-Earth which is located about 111 light-years away from Earth. It is the first time water has been confirmed on an exoplanet within the circumstellar habitable zone of a star. (BBC) (Business Insider)