Portal:Current events/2018 April 15

April 15, 2018 (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Poisoning of Yulia and Sergei Skripal
- UK Leader of the Opposition Jeremy Corbyn of Labour asks to see "incontrovertible evidence" before accepting Russia was responsible. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson responds, saying it is "quite extraordinary" to question Russian involvement. (BBC News)
Afghanistan–Pakistan skirmishes
- Afghan and Pakistani forces exchange cross-border fire on the Durand Line, killing two Pakistan Army troops and injuring five others. (Voice of America)
Sinai insurgency
- ISIL claims responsibility for an attack on a military base in the Sinai peninsula, Egypt, yesterday that killed eight soldiers and injured fifteen. The Egyptian Military said 14 militants were killed in the attack. (The Washington Post)
2018 Gaza border protests
- Gazans launch a kite carrying a firebomb over the Israeli border near Kibbutz Kissufim, starting a fire in a field. It is the fourth such incident this week. Local authorities alert residents to be vigilant for potential repeat attacks. (The Times of Israel)
Iraqi insurgency (2017–present)
- A car bomb in Kirkuk, Iraq, kills and injures several civilians. The blast follows a bombing at Hor Rajab, Baghdad, earlier in the day that wounded one civilian. (Iraqi News)
Israel Defense Forces announce the destruction of a Gaza-Israel tunnel thought to belong to Hamas, with Defence Minister Avigdor Liberman claiming it to be the longest tunnel found to date. (Jerusalem Online)
Militants disguised as United Nations troops attack two military bases near Timbuktu, Mali, using rockets and two car bombs. At least one soldier at the bases, used by France and the UN, is killed and more than twelve others are wounded. (BBC News)
Russia sends landing ship Nikolai Filchenkov, chartered civilian vessel MV Alexander Tkachenko, and transport ship Orsk to Syria laden with military equipment. (Metro)

Arts and culture

Destruction of cultural heritage by ISIL
- Deputy tourism and antiquities minister Qais Hussein Rashid unveils a United Nations-brokered plan for "re-constructing touristic, archaeological and heritage sites" damaged by ISIL in Mosul. (Iraqi News)
Prominent New York LGBT and environmental lawyer David Buckel commits suicide by setting himself on fire with petrol in Prospect Park. He leaves and circulates a suicide note indicating his death is in protest against the use of fossil fuels. (BBC News)
Theology of Pope Francis
- Pope Francis comforts a crying boy in San Paolo della Croce, Rome, by telling him his recently-deceased father, an atheist, will have ascended to heaven on the basis his father had "a good heart". (A.N.S.A.)

Disasters and accidents

Shipwrecks in 2018
- Fire and Emergency New Zealand announce they hope the fire aboard Korean ship FV Dong Won 701 is extinguished seven days after catching light in the Port of Timaru, New Zealand. Firefighters say they plan to board the vessel tomorrow to confirm. (Stuff)
2017–18 Australian bushfire season
- A state of emergency is declared in New South Wales, Australia, as a bushfire continues to burn out of control. More than 500 personnel from the New South Wales Rural Fire Service, Fire and Rescue NSW and the Australian Defence Force are tackling the bushfire, which has torn through the Holsworthy Barracks and threatens the suburbs of Sydney. (The Guardian)
2017 M1 motorway crash
- The UK Department of Transport rejects a call by road safety campaign NGO Brake for tougher legislation on licencing for commercial drivers in response to a crash that killed eight last year. (BBC News)

Health and environment

Rose Acre Farms recalls around 207 million eggs from a farm in North Carolina after 22 people fell ill with suspected Salmonella braenderup. It is the largest recall of eggs in the United States since 2010. (Reuters)
Former U.S. First Lady Barbara Bush declines further medical treatment for serious ongoing health issues. (KFOR-TV)

International relations

Syria–United States relations, 2018 bombing of Damascus and Homs
- U.S. President Donald Trump warns Syria's government that the U.S. is "locked and loaded" to strike again if Syria were to carry out new chemical attacks. (BBC News)
Bangladesh–Tajikistan relations
- Tajikistan foreign minister Sirodjidin Aslov meets with Bangladesh State Minister of Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam. (Bdnews24.com)
2018 Arab League summit
- The Arab League summits in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, their first meeting since the Qatar diplomatic crisis, focused on Jerusalem and Iran. (Al Jazeera)

Law and crime

Israeli authorities release 207 African migrants from Saharonim Prison after a Supreme Court ruling ordering their release amid deportation negotiations. The migrants had refused to leave the country voluntarily. (The Times of Israel)
An improvised explosive device damages a shopfront in Limassol, Cyprus. (The Cyprus Mail)
A court in Somaliland jails poet Nacima Qorane for three years for bringing the state into contempt by writing a poem calling for reunification with Somalia. (BBC)
Hundreds of ultra-Orthodox Jews riot outside the Israel Defense Forces draft office in Jerusalem after rumours emerge of a female draft dodger being arrested in Har Nof. Police open fire with water cannons and stun grenades. (The Times of Israel)
Inmates at E Wing of HMYOI Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire, England, riot, injuring four prison officers. A woman claiming to be an inmate's partner says the riot was in response to the inmates being housed en masse in solitary confinement without association with other prisoners for at least a week. (BBC News)
Turkmenistan bans the import of bikinis, shorts, and swimsuits. (RadioFreeEurope / Radio Liberty)
Boston Marathon bombing
- Boston marks the fifth anniversary of the April 2013 bombing with a private ceremony inside the Boston Public Library. The bells at a local church rang at 2:49 p.m. to mark the exact time the two bombs exploded seconds apart near the marathon's finish line. (AP News)

Politics and elections

Politics of Guatemala
- Guatemalan territorial dispute referendum, 2018
  - Millions of Guatemalans are summoned to participate in a referendum in which they will determine if they submit to the International Court of Justice the territorial, insular and maritime dispute with Belize. (teleSUR)
- The election of the candidates for Attorney General of Guatemala and successor of Thelma Aldana has concluded and 14 candidates have obtained the necessary qualifications to participate. President Jimmy Morales will appoint the Attorney General in the coming days. (teleSUR)
Montenegrin presidential election, 2018
- The Presidential election begins in Montenegro, with Milo Đukanović of the hegemonic Democratic Party of Socialists of Montenegro and independent candidate Mladen Bojanić being the favorites in the polls. (Foreign Brief)
2017–18 Spanish constitutional crisis, Catalan independentism
- 315,000 demonstrators in Barcelona demand the freedom of jailed separatist leaders and freedom of speech. (The Guardian)
Efforts to impeach Donald Trump
- Former FBI Director James Comey doesn’t believe Donald Trump should be impeached, despite saying that he’s “morally unfit” to be president. (CNN)

Science and technology

Asteroid close approaches to Earth in 2018
- An asteroid, 2018 GE3, sized between 37 and 138 metres (121 and 453 ft) passes 193,000 kilometres (120,000 mi) from Earth, possibly the largest known asteroid to ever pass that close in observational history. (Minor Planet Center)
- Another asteroid, 2018 GY₃, which had passed 301,000 kilometres (187,000 mi) from Earth on April 10, is identified as the lost asteroid 2008 GY₂₁, which had passed similarly close to Earth in 2008. (Minor Planet Center)
Scientists say that they have identified genes that cause deadly heart condition pulmonary arterial hypertension which kills 50% of those affected within five years. (BBC News)
USS Portland, a new United States naval ship costing $1.6 billion, arrives and docks in Portland, Oregon, ahead of being formally commissioned later this month. (KGW)

Sports

Athletics at the 2018 Commonwealth Games – Men's marathon
- Scottish athlete Callum Hawkins collapses twice and strikes his head. Journalists, fellow athletes, and Commonwealth Games Scotland criticise a delay in him receiving medical assistance. (The Telegraph) (BBC Sport) (Herald Scotland)
2017–18 Premier League
- Football team Manchester United lose 1-0 to West Brom, handing rivals Manchester City the Premier League title. (BBC Sport)
2018 NBA Playoffs
- The Indiana Pacers defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers 98–80 in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference first-round series in Cleveland, snapping LeBron James' personal streak of 21 consecutive wins in the first round. (The Star)