Portal:Current events/2012 February 23

Current events of February 23, 2012 (2012-02-23) (Thursday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• A series of attacks across Iraq leave at least 60 killed and more than 200 injured. (AP via MSNBC) (The Telegraph) (Reuters)
• Afghanistan:
  • The Taliban urges Afghans to target foreign bases and kill westerners in response to burnings of the Koran at a US base as a third day of violent protests occurs, with six people having been shot dead so far. (Reuters)
  • Afghan protesters attack a Norwegian base in Faryab province on the Turkmenistan border. (Reuters via Alertnet)
• The bombardment of Homs continues for the 20th successive day, with water and food supplies quickly dwindling for residents. (DPA via Sydney Morning Herald)

Law and crime

• Indonesian authorities evacuate foreign and female prisoners from Kerobokan Prison on Bali following a second night of unrest. (News Limited)
• Wikileaks suspect United States Army Private Bradley Manning is formally charged ahead of a court martial. (AFP via Yahoo News)
• The case against Gabe Watson in relation to the death of his newlywed wife Tina on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia is dismissed in the US state of Alabama. (CBS News)

Politics

• Eric Joyce, the Labour Member of Parliament for Falkirk, is arrested after an alleged brawl in a House of Commons of the United Kingdom bar. (Daily Mail)
• The Prime Minister of Australia Julia Gillard calls for a ballot of a caucus of the Australian Labor Party for Monday as a result of the resignation of Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd. (AAP via Sydney Morning Herald)
• Tens of thousands rally at Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium in support of the Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's candidacy for President of Russia in the upcoming election on March 4th. (RIA Novosti) (BBC)
• Crown Princess Victoria, the heir to the Swedish throne, gives birth to a baby girl who is second in line. (The Guardian)
• The Maryland State Senate approves a bill that would allow same-sex marriage in the state. (CNN)
• Elections Canada has traced allegations of fraudulent robocalls engaging in voter suppression in 18 ridings during the Canadian federal election, 2011 to Racknine Inc., a small Edmonton call centre that worked for the Conservative Party of Canada party's national campaign. (Ottawa Citizen) CBC