Portal:Current events/June 2011

See also: June 2011 in sports

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June 2011 was the sixth month of that common year. The month, which began on a Wednesday, ended on a Thursday after 30 days.

Portal:Current events

This is an archived version of Wikipedia's Current events Portal from June 2011.

June 1, 2011 (2011-06-01) (Wednesday) Armed conflicts and attacks Arab Spring: Syrian civil war: The torture and eventual killing of a 13-year-old child held in custody causes further outcry among the people of Daraa. (Al Jazeera) 2011 Yemeni uprising: At least 41 people are killed in fighting between Government of Yemen forces and tribal groups in the capital Sana'a. (AP via Google News) (BBC) Libyan Civil War: NATO extends its mission on Libya for an additional 90 days. (NATO) Sudan agrees to demilitarize its border with South Sudan. (Al Jazeera) Business and economy Australia's economy shrinks 1.2 per cent in the first quarter due to various disasters. (AP via The Guardian) An earthquake occurs in Blackpool, Lancashire: a company, Cuadrilla Resources, suspends gas drilling operations. (The Guardian) Disasters An explosion at an oil storage tank in Gibraltar closes the port and injures workers and cruise ship passengers. (Gibraltar Chronicle) Haitian officials stand by their own death and homeless toll figures as the U.S. government claims fewer people were affected by last year's earthquake than previously believed. (BBC) A United Nations nuclear safety team looking into the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster claims that Japan underestimated the potential threat of tsunamis to nuclear power plants. (Reuters) The cleanup efforts begin in the U.S. city of Joplin, Missouri, after the recent 2011 Joplin tornado with the death toll confirmed at 134. (KSPR), (News Leader) German health officials report 365 new cases of the E. coli outbreak as it continues to spread throughout Europe. (Sky News) 2011 New England tornado outbreak One tornado hits the US city of Springfield, Massachusetts, with injuries reported and significant property damage. (WWLP)(Boston Globe). The tornado eventually went on to Monson, causing devastation. (CT Now) The tornado traveled thirty-nine miles from Westfield to Charlton, Massachusetts.(NECN) The Governor of Massachusetts Deval Patrick declares a state of emergency following the impact of the tornadoes. (CNN) At least four deaths have occurred, with one person reported dead in a car that overturned in West Springfield as a result of the tornados. (The Herald), (CBS Local Boston) A United Nations report states that there are 2 million adolescents in the world living with HIV with 86 per cent of them living in sub-Saharan Africa. (Xinhua) International relations South Korea reissues an invitation to North Korean leader Kim Jong-il to a nuclear summit next year. (Yonhap) The U.S. government states that it will boycott a United Nations anti-racism conference because of concerns over anti-Semitism. (AP via Washington Post) Law and crime The Committee to Protect Journalists claims that there have been 251 murders of journalists in 13 countries where the murderer has remained unpunished in the past decade with Iraq, Somalia, the Philippines and Sri Lanka being considered the worst environments for journalists. (BBC) Politics and elections Lieutenant General David Hurley of the Australian Army is announced as the successor to Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston as the Chief of the Australian Defence Force. (ABC News Australia) Iran's parliament finds that the President of Iran Mahmoud Ahmadinejad acted illegally by appointing himself as Oil Minister and refers it to the Judiciary, increasing pressure on him to resign. (Reuters) Japan's Opposition lodges a no-confidence motion in the Diet against Prime Minister Naoto Kan. (AP via Washington Post) Badri Bitsadze, husband of Nino Burdzhanadze, a former Speaker of Parliament, is arrested and charged with attempting to orchestrate a government takeover using paramilitary groups during the 2011 Georgian protests. (GeorgianDaily Forum) Science The Space Shuttle Endeavour finishes its final mission. (AP via Google News) (Reuters via Times South Africa) (BBC) Sport Sepp Blatter is to be elected unopposed as the Head of FIFA at its 61st Congress despite an ongoing bribery scandal and calls by the English Football Association to delay the election. (The New York Times) (Daily Mail) (The Guardian) (BBC Sport) CONCACAF general secretary Chuck Blazer survives attempts by FIFA to fire him after Blazer blew the whistle on alleged corruption within the world football governing body. (BBC Sport) Murray McCully, the New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs, advises that the NZ Government ban on all members of the Republic of Fiji Military Forces entering the country for the 2011 Rugby World Cup means that several members of the Fiji national rugby union team will have to sit out the competition. (3 News) Veteran US National Basketball Association star Shaquille O'Neal announces his retirement by Twitter. (Shaquille O'Neal), (USA Today) The Vancouver Canucks beat the Boston Bruins 1-0 in the first game of the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals with Raffi Torres scoring the winning goal. (AP via Atlanta Journal Constitution) June 2, 2011 (2011-06-02) (Thursday) Armed conflicts and attacks Almost 100 civilians are killed in the disputed Abyei region between North and South Sudan since northern troops seized the area on 21 May. (Reuters) Syrian civil war: At least 13 people are killed in a continuing crackdown by security forces in Syria; opposition leaders meeting in Turkey call for President Bashar al-Assad to step down. (Al Jazeera) Twenty-five Pakistan Army soldiers die after an attack by Afghan militants on a border post in the Dir District. (Reuters) 2011 Yemeni uprising A freelance reporter claims that snipers are shooting at protesters in the Yemeni capital Sana'a. (Al Jazeera) Reports also claim that flights have been cancelled at Sana'a International Airport due to heavy fighting. (Al Jazeera) The FBI investigate claims that hackers in China attacked the Google email accounts of officials in the United States and Asian countries, as well as Chinese pro-democracy activists. (BBC) (Global Times) (Calcutta Telegraph) Arts and culture Julian Assange of Wikileaks wins the 2011 Martha Gellhorn Prize for Journalism. (journalism) The finals of the Scripps National Spelling Bee are held in the US town of Oxon Hill, Maryland with Sukanya Roy of South Abington, Pennsylvania. (NPR), (AP via San Jose Mercury News) Business and economy Following the PlayStation Network outage, the Sony website SonyPictures.com has been hacked, with unencrypted passwords and personal information of Sony customers within the website's database being discovered by the hackers. (BBC) Canada Post workers prepare to start a mail strike as last minute talks fail. (CBC) The 2011 Large Cities Climate Leadership Group "C40" summit concludes in São Paulo. (New York Times) Disasters Four people die after an explosion and fire at a Chevron oil refinery in Pembroke Dock, Wales. (Sky News), (Press Association via The Guardian) 42 people are injured and 13,000 people evacuated from settlements in Russia's Udmurt Republic following an ammo depot fire. (RIA Novosti) Approximately 250 people fleeing from the Libyan Civil War to Europe may have died as their ship sinks off the coast of Tunisia. (Al Jazeera) International relations South Korea and the United States launch an investigation into allegations by former United States Army soldiers that chemicals including Agent Orange were dumped at Camp Carroll near the city of Daegu. (Yonhap News) WikiLeaks releases secret documents on Egypt's nuclear power plant. (Al-Masry Al-Youm) Law and crime Five people are killed and one person injured in a multiple shooting at Yuma County, Arizona. (Yuma Sun) Philip and Nancy Garrido are given life sentences in the US state of California for the Kidnapping of Jaycee Lee Dugard. (AP via Daily Breeze) Politics and elections Presidential elections in Latvia. Andris Bērziņš won the election. [1] Japanese politics Prime Minister of Japan Naoto Kan survives a no-confidence motion in the Diet (Bloomberg via Business Week), (AP via Seattle PI) Kan states that he will step down when the country has achieved some recovery from the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. (Reuters), (Kyodo News) Mitt Romney announces plans to seek the Republican Party nomination as President of the United States. (Time), (Washington Post) Science The World Health Organization states that the strain of E. coli responsible for the 2011 E. coli O104:H4 outbreak had never "been isolated from patients before." (Reuters) Sport The Dallas Mavericks beat the Miami Heat 95-93 in the second game of the 2011 NBA Finals to tie the series. (NBC Dallas) June 3, 2011 (2011-06-03) (Friday) Armed conflicts and attacks Yemeni uprising: A rocket attack on the presidential palace in Sana'a during the Battle of Sana'a leaves president Ali Abdullah Saleh lightly injured and seven other top government officials wounded, including Prime Minister Ali Muhammad Mujawar. Four presidential guards and Sheikh Ali Mohsen al-Matari, an imam at the mosque, were killed. (CNN) (Deseret News) Syrian uprising: At least 34 more protesters are killed by Syrian security forces in protest marches dedicated to children who have died during the demonstrations. (The Telegraph) (The New York Times) U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says that more than 1,000 people have now died in Syria since the conflict began. (CNN) Libyan Civil War: At least 150 people drown when an overcrowded boat carrying about 850 refugees fleeing Libya capsized off the Tunisian coast; scores more are still missing as a search for survivors by Tunisian authorities continues. (CNN) Sudanese government troops and Sudan Liberation Army rebels clash in the western Darfur region; two SLA rebels are reported killed. (Reuters) More than 200 Afghan militants cross over into Pakistan and attack a security checkpoint in northwest Pakistan, sparking a clash in which 28 Pakistani security forces and six civilians die, along with 45 Afghans. (CNN) Somali government forces and African Union troops expel al Qaeda-linked militants from their last outpost in the western part of Mogadishu, opening up a main road in the city. (CNN) In two bombing attacks in Iraq, 17 people are killed and 50 others wounded in a blast outside of the Presidential Palaces Mosque in central Tikrit, Iraq; and later by a suicide bomber in a Tikrit hospital treating the wounded from the first attack, killing six people and injuring ten at the hospital. (CNN) 2011 Egyptian revolution: A female journalist is attacked in Cairo's Tahrir Square while covering a demonstration demanding an immediate trial for former President of Egypt Hosni Mubarak. (RIA Novosti) Arts and culture American actor James Arness, best known for playing Marshal Matt Dillon in Gunsmoke, dies in Brentwood, California, aged 88. (Los Angeles Times) Business and economy Greek prime minister George Papandreou presents a plan for further austerity-measure privatizations in return for more international aid to avoid defaulting on its debt following a 110 billion Euro bailout last year that has so far failed to resolve the Greek economic crisis; Greece's main labor unions have called for a general strike on June 15. (CNN) Barack Obama, the President of the United States, announces the sale of the US government's stake in Chrysler to Italian automaker Fiat at a visit to a plant at Toledo, Ohio. (Detroit Free Press) Australian airline Qantas announces plans to offer 350 flight attendants voluntary redundancies. (AAP via Courier-Mail) Workers for Canada Post start a mail strike. (CBC) Disasters 57 people are injured, and 28,000 people have been forced to evacuate, following an explosion at an army munitions depot in Russia's western Ural Mountains region. (CNN) Four people are killed and one seriously injured in an explosion at a Chevron Corporation storage tank at a refinery in western Wales; it is not immediately clear what caused the explosion. (CNN) 2011 Missouri River floods Residents in North Dakota and South Dakota evacuate due to flooding of the Missouri River. (Reuters) Flooding disables the Monroe Pumping Station in Omaha, Nebraska, resulting in raw sewage being discharged into the river. (WOWT) The United States Coast Guard closes 734 miles of the river to recreational boating from St. Louis, Missouri, to Sioux City, Iowa. (KDSK) International relations A South Korean report claims that South Korea and the United States sprayed Agent Orange on the Demilitarized Zone in 1968–1969 in order to prevent infiltrations from North Korea. (Yonhap News) The United Nations Security Council expresses "grave concern about the ongoing violence and rapidly deteriorating situation in Abyei in southern Sudan. (US UN Delegation) Law and crime Bosnian Serb genocide suspect Ratko Mladić makes his first appearance at the war crimes tribunal in The Hague, Netherlands, and dismisses charges against him as "obnoxious." (CNN) Politics and elections John Edwards, former United States presidential candidate and Senator representing North Carolina, is indicted on charges of conspiracy and violating campaign finance laws in connection to his affair with Rielle Hunter; Edwards denies he broke any laws. (CNN) (USA Today) (Los Angeles Times) The United States House of Representatives votes in favour of a non-binding resolution asking the Obama administration to seek Congressional authorization for the intervention in Libya. (ABC News), (AP via MSNBC) American right-to-die activist Jack Kevorkian dies in Royal Oak, Michigan, of pneumonia and kidney problems. (Toronto Star) Science Copenhagen Suborbitals fire the world's largest privately-built rocket, HEAT 1X Tycho Brahe into the Baltic Sea, 30 km east of Nexø. June 4, 2011 (2011-06-04) (Saturday) Armed conflicts and attacks Arab Spring: NATO begins using attack helicopters for the first time in air operations over Libya. (NATO) The Syrian human rights group Sawasiah claims that at least 63 protestors were killed on Friday. (Reuters via Haaretz) Yemeni uprising: Several senior Yemeni officials injured in yesterday's attacks are taken to Saudi Arabia for treatment. (Reuters) President Ali Abdullah Saleh is also flown to Saudi Arabia for treatment after being wounded. (BBC) Russia evacuates its diplomats from the capital Sana'a. (UPI) United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urges dialogue in Bahrain after protests. (UPI) At least seven people are killed in an exchange of fire between pro-government forces and mutineering soldiers in Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso. (BBC) North Sudan dismisses calls by the United Nations Security Council to leave the disputed Abyei region on the border with South Sudan. (Reuters) Tens of thousands of people gather in Hong Kong to remember the victims of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests. (CNN) (Washington Post) (Japan Today) (Times of India) Two terrorist suspects wanted in connection with the shooting of two Indonesian police officers are killed in a raid in Poso, Central Sulawesi. (Jakarta Post) Senior Islamic militant Ilyas Kashmiri, the leader of Harkat-ul-Jihad al-Islami, is killed in a US drone attack in South Waziristan in Pakistan. (BBC) (Al Jazeera) Business and economy Bangladesh receives a loan from the World Bank to strengthen regional co-operation on wildlife protection. (Straits Times) Disasters Thousands of people are evacuated in Chile ahead of a possible eruption of the Puyehue-Cordón Caulle volcano. (CNN Chile - Spanish) International relations The Philippines accuses China of intimidating rival claimants to areas of the South China Sea, and violating its territorial waters. (AFP via Google News) Japan and the People's Republic of China agree to resume defense relationships suspended since a disagreement over the Senkaku Islands. (NHK World) Law and crime The Cairo Criminal Court sentences former finance minister Youssef Boutros Ghali to 30 years imprisonment in absentia for abuse of power. (Xinhua) Politics Indian guru Swami Ramdev starts a hunger strike against corruption in the Government with thousands joining in but the camp is broken up. (Al Jazeera), (Hindustan Times) Former United States Secretary of State Lawrence Eagleburger dies. (AP via MSNBC) Sports In horse racing, Pour Moi wins the Epsom Derby. It is the first French horse to win the Derby since 1976. (BBC) Li Na of the People's Republic of China becomes the first Asian tennis player to win a major title winning the 2011 French Open. (Bloomberg) June 5, 2011 (2011-06-05) (Sunday) Armed conflicts and attacks Arab Spring 2011 Yemeni uprising: Two people are killed and fifteen injured in a hand grenade attack on a pro-opposition military facility in Sana'a, Yemen. (Sky News) Gunmen attack the Presidential palace in Taiz resulting in the death of four soldiers. (AP via Yahoo News) 2011 Syrian uprising: Residents in the city of Hama strike in memory of those killed in the pro-democracy protests. (AFP via Google News) 25 people are killed by security forces during a large demonstration in Jisr al-Shaghour, northwest Syria. (CNN) Pakistan terrorism: Six people are killed and 15 injured by an explosion at a bus stand in Matni, northern Pakistan. (CNN) A suicide bomber attacks a bakery in Nowshera, killing at least 18 people. (AP via Houston Chronicle) (BBC) Israeli forces fire on pro-Palestinian protesters attempting to breach the Syrian–Israeli border in the Golan Heights on Naksa Day, marking the anniversary of the 1967 Six-Day War; Syrian sources claim that close to 20 people are killed and over 325 injured, while Israeli officials confirm at least 12 injures. (Al-Jazeera) (The Telegraph) (Ynetnews) (The Jerusalem Post), (AP via Forbes) A NATO helicopter crashes in eastern Afghanistan resulting in at least two deaths, with the Taliban claiming to have shot it down. (Reuters) Nearly 30 people are injured in an explosion in the Kenyan capital Nairobi. (Reuters) Fighting breaks out in Sudan's South Kordofan region. (Reuters) (AFP via Google News) Arts and culture Pope Benedict XVI celebrates Mass in the Croatian capital Zagreb. (UPI) (Vatican Radio) Disasters Evacuations are ordered in town of Hamburg in the US state of Iowa as the Missouri River partially breaches levee banks. (AP via Google), (CNN) At least one person is dead and 29 are injured after an underground fuel pipe explodes in Nairobi, Kenya. (AP via Atlanta Journal Constitution) International relations Hundreds of people in Vietnam take part in a rare demonstration against Chinese naval operations in disputed waters in the South China Sea. (BBC) (Philippine Inquirer) Politics and elections Voters in Portugal go to the polls for the Portuguese legislative election after months of a caretaker government and financial problems that led to a request for an international bailout - the opposition Social Democrats led by Pedro Passos Coelho won. (CNN) (AFP via France24), (AP via Yahoo), (The Guardian) Voters in the Republic of Macedonia go to the polls for parliamentary elections. (AFP via Manilla Bulletin) Voters in Peru go to the polls for the second round of the Peruvian general election with Ollanta Humala claiming victory over Keiko Fujimori. (Washington Post), (Reuters), (Bloomberg via SFGate), (Reuters via Yahoo News) Shops and schools are closed in Bangladesh due to an anti-government strike. (AP via MSNBC) Tens of thousands of people protest outside the Parliament of Greece in Athens against budget cuts. (AP via CNBC) Sport Rafael Nadal wins the men's singles at the 2011 French Open for a sixth time defeating Roger Federer, tying with Björn Borg for most French Open titles won at Roland Garros. (NBC Sports), (New York Times) In North American basketball, the Miami Heat beat Dallas Mavericks 88-86 in game 3 of the 2011 NBA Finals. (Dallas Morning News) June 6, 2011 (2011-06-06) (Monday) Armed conflicts and attacks 2011 Libyan civil war: Rebels retake the town of Yafran in the west of the country. (New York Times) (al Jazeera) 2011 Syrian uprising: At least 120 members of the Syrian security forces are killed in clashes in the northern town of Jisr al-Shughour, according to state media. (AP via Google News) (BBC) (Syrian Arab News Agency) Syrian blogger Amina Abdallah is kidnapped by armed men in Damascus. (The Guardian) 2011 Bahraini protests: Medical staff who treated anti-government demonstrators are charged with attempting to overthrow the monarchy. (Al Jazeera) Two United States drone missiles kill 14 people in Pakistani Taliban compounds near Wana in South Waziristan. (Dawn). (AAP via Herald Sun) 2011 Yemeni uprising: Armed men affiliated with al-Qaeda kill seven soldiers and injure 12 others near the city of Zinjibar. (Reuters) Shooting takes place in Kaduqli in Sudan's South Kordofan state, where armed groups allied to South Sudan are based. (Reuters) 2011 Xilinhot incident Around 100 people are detained after ethnic unrest in the Inner Mongolia region of China. (Hong Kong Standard) Business and economy North Korea is to establish a special economic zone on two islands close to the Chinese border. (Straits Times) Bloomberg reports Italian company Prada SpA is planning an initial public offering for the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. (Bloomberg) The Tokyo Metropolitan Government changes working hours of its staff in order to conserve energy from the shortages caused by the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster. (AP via Washington Post) Hacker group Lulz Security claims to have again compromised Sony's online security system and posted the results online. (Reuters) Apple Inc. launches its new iCloud service at the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference. (Sydney Morning Herald) Disasters At least 21 people die as two coal mines in the People's Republic of China flood. (AFP via Inquirer) Test results will confirm whether the German E. Coli outbreak came from vegetable sprouts grown in the Uelzen area. (Sky News) Residents of three Western United States towns - Springerville, Arizona, Eagar, Arizona and Luna, New Mexico - are warned to prepare for evacuation ahead of the Wallow Fire. one of the biggest in Arizona history. (Arizona Daily Star) At least seventeen people are dead and another 15 remain missing after a speedboat sinks in Banjarmasin, the capital of the Indonesian province of South Kalimantan. (Jakarta Post) International relations A European Union delegation visits North Korea to investigate claims of food shortages. (Yonhap News) The People's Daily, a Chinese stated-owned newspaper, accuses Internet search engine giant Google of becoming a "political tool" after it claimed that computer hacking aimed at it came from China. (Reuters) The United Nations Committee Against Torture calls for the Government of Ireland to set up a statutory inquiry into allegations of poor treatment of women committed to the Magdalene Laundries. (Irish Times) Law and crime The Supreme Court of India calls on the Indian government to explain why police were sent in to disperse a peaceful anti-corruption demonstration. (Straits Times) Abu Bakar Bashir, a prominent Indonesian cleric, rejects his terrorism trial as "outside Islamic law." (Al Jazeera) Former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn will be arraigned on sexual assault charges in the US state of New York. (The Telegraph) The sodomy trial of Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim is delayed after the presiding judge Mohamad Zabidin Diah dismisses the defence's efforts to have him replaced. (AP via MSNBC) (Bernama) The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation announces that it has arrested 13 members of the Mafia in the city of Philadelphia in relation to an illegal gambling operation. (NBC Philadelphia) Politics and elections The outgoing speaker of the House of Representatives in Nigeria, Dimeji Bankole, is arrested on fraud charges. (Daily Nation) (The Africa Report) France announces that it will stop teaching indigenous languages in schools in all of its Overseas departments and territories of France. (RNZI) Ollanta Humala is elected President of Peru in the Peruvian general election, defeating opposition leader Keiko Fujimori. (BBC), (Reuters via Yahoo News) U.S. House Representative Anthony Weiner of New York admits sending a risqué picture of himself to a college student on Twitter. (Associated Press) Austan Goolsbee announces plans to leave the position of Chairman of President of the United States Council of Economic Advisers by September. (New York Times) Sports The Golden State Warriors in the North American National Basketball Association appoints Mark Jackson as the new coach. (NBA) in the North American National Hockey League Stanley Cup Finals, the Boston Bruins beat the Vancouver Canucks 8-1 in Game 3 with the Canucks leading 2-1 overall. (Boston Globe) June 7, 2011 (2011-06-07) (Tuesday) Armed conflicts and attacks Syrian civil war: The Syrian ambassador to France resigns in protest at the violence in a statement on French television; a denial claiming to be from the diplomat later airs on Syrian state TV. (Wall Street Journal) (Syrian Arab News Agency) (CNN) Residents of the town Jisr al-Shughour flee ahead of a suspected army assault, with some crossing the border into Turkey. (BBC) (Al Jazeera) A Syrian-American blogger who calls herself "Gay Girl in Damascus" and who has become a prominent opposition voice has allegedly been abducted by Syrian security agents. (CNN) (USA Today) British Foreign Secretary William Hague says that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is losing legitimacy and should reform or resign, and that Britain was trying to win support for a United Nations Security Council resolution condemning repression in Syria and exploring the potential for further European Union sanctions on Syria if the violence continues. (The Jerusalem Post) Yemeni uprising: Fighting resumes in the Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula held city of Zinjibar with at least 15 people dead. (Reuters) Rebel gunmen are reported to have taken control of the city of Ta'izz. (CNN) Royal Marines are on standby off the coast of Yemen to evacuate British citizens as violent protests continue. (Sky News) Libyan Civil War: Tripoli is hit by successive NATO air strikes, including a rare daytime strike. (The Daily Mail) Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi vows not to surrender even as NATO air strikes target his compound in Tripoli and the Libyan government says that at least 29 civilians have been killed and dozens more wounded. (CNN) (Al Jazeera) (The Jerusalem Post) The United Nations warns of an "aid crisis" in the country. (Reuters) Three explosions and gunfire are heard in the northeastern Nigerian town of Maiduguri after suspected Islamist sect Boko Haram attack police stations. (Reuters) Fighting in Sudan's South Kordofan state between northern and southern-allied rebels kills six people. (Reuters) Jewish settlers are accused of attacking a mosque in the West Bank, setting alight carpets and daubing Hebrew graffiti on its walls; Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu strongly condemns the act. (Reuters) (BBC) (The Jerusalem Post) Business and economy Nintendo unveils its new video game system, Wii U, featuring a touch-screen display designed to be a bridge between console video games and portable and tablet-based games, to be released next year. (USA Today) Disasters 14 people die and 53 are missing after floods affecting Guizhou province in southwest China that have also damaged thousands of homes. (CNN) European Union Agriculture Ministers meet in Luxembourg to discuss the continuing 2011 E. coli O104:H4 outbreak that has so far killed 23 and for which no cause has yet been found; a 150 million euro compensation fund is proposed, but no Europe-wide bans on produce. (BBC) (CNN) A massive wildfire burning in the US state of Arizona already covering almost 500 square miles remains completely uncontained and is sending dense smoke billowing across several other states; evacuations have been ordered for several communities. (USA Today) Rainstorms in southern Haiti trigger floods and mudslides, resulting in at least 23 deaths with the capital Port-au-Prince worst affected. (USA Today), (BBC News) Tropical Storm Adrian forms in the eastern Pacific Ocean becoming the first tropical storm of the 2011 Pacific hurricane season. (AP via Google News) Minor earthquake (4.2) in St. Louis, Missouri area within New Madrid Seismic Zone, one of the few intraplate zones. (Reuters) International Relations NATO and Russia conduct first-ever joint military exercises, codenamed 'Vigilant Skies 2011', to improve cooperation to protect passenger flights between NATO member states and Russia and to prevent hijackings such as the September 11 attacks. (AFP) (Reuters) (NPR) At a news conference with visiting German Chancellor Angela Merkel, US President Barack Obama says the United States and its allies may impose additional sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program, after Iran says that no offer could halt its enrichment of uranium. (Reuters) Law and crime Two gunmen attack a drug rehabilitation facility in the Mexican city of Torreon in Coahuila. (AP via Washington Post) The former Governor of Chiapas state in Mexico Pablo Salazar is arrested on charges on embezzling more than $90 million from hurricane relief funds. (AP via Sun-Sentinel) Politics Students at four South Korean universities Korea University, Sogang University, Sookmyung Women's University and Ewha Womans University go on strike for a day in favour of reduced tuition fees.(Yonhap News) The President of Brazil Dilma Rousseff accepts the resignation of her Chief-of-staff Antonio Palocci following the publication of reports that he became wealthy as a consultant while serving as a member of the National Congress of Brazil. (Reuters) Sport The American television network NBC buys the rights for four Olympic Games from 2014 onwards for $4.3 billion. (New York Times) In North American basketball, the Dallas Mavericks beat the Miami Heat 86-83 to tie the 2011 NBA Finals at 2 games all. (Dallas Fort Worth NBC) June 8, 2011 (2011-06-08) (Wednesday) Armed conflicts and attacks Libyan Civil War: NATO aircraft conduct a bombing attack on Muammar Gaddafi's compound in Tripoli. (AFP via News Limited) NATO Ministers hold meetings on the Libyan campaign. (Sky News) South Korea's Yonhap News agency reports that North Korea has test-fired a KN-06 missile. (Yonhap) Syrian residents from the town of Jisr al-Shugur flee from a threatened reprisal from the government of President Bashar al-Assad. (ABC News) The Chinese Navy announces that it is building its first aircraft carrier in the city of Dalian to be launched later in 2011. (BBC) The New York Times reports that the United States is intensifying a covert war in Yemen as instability worsens. (New York Times) Arts and culture Serbian-American author Téa Obreht becomes the youngest author to win the Orange Prize for Fiction for her debut novel The Tiger's Wife. (The Telegraph) Disasters The rate of increase in cases of the 2011 E. coli O104:H4 outbreak that started in Germany appears to be slowing down. (Euronews) Hurricane Adrian becomes the first hurricane of the 2011 Pacific hurricane season. (National Hurricane Center) Residents in the US towns of Eagar and Springerville, Arizona are ordered to fully evacuate ahead of the Wallow Fire. (Arizona Republic) 260 miles (420 km) of the Missouri River are closed to boaters as residents of the US states of Iowa, Nebraska and Missouri continue to prepare for heavy flooding, with rain in Montana making the situation worse. (Reuters) Floods in the People's Republic of China kill 52 people with 32 people missing with more heavy rain expected. (Xinhua) International relations Australia announces a ban of live cattle exports to Indonesia of up to six months following recent reports of cruel treatment in Indonesian abattoirs. (The Australian) The United Kingdom and France prepare a draft United Nations Security Council resolution on the 2011 Syrian uprising. (BBC) In New York, representatives of Morocco and Western Sahara conclude UN-backed talks on resolving the conflict between the two countries without reaching an agreement that was satisfactory to both parties. (Scoop) Politics Indian social activist Anna Hazare begins a second hunger strike against corruption. (Al Jazeera) The British government has indicated it is rethinking its controversial proposal to offer 50% sentence cuts to criminals in England and Wales who enter early guilty pleas. (BBC) Science Major websites, such as Google, Facebook, and others, participate in World IPv6 Day. (World IPv6 Day), (PC World) The Russian Federal Space Agency successfully launches a Soyuz TMA-02M carrying a Russian, American and Japanese astronaut towards the International Space Station. (Channel 6 News) June 9, 2011 (2011-06-09) (Thursday) Armed conflicts and attacks 2011 Syrian uprising: The United Nations Security Council considers a resolution condemning the crackdown on Syrian protesters by security forces. (Al Arabiya) A video emerges appearing to show the torture of Thamer al-Sahri, a 15-year-old boy, by security forces. (Al Jazeera) Thousands of refugees from Syria cross into Turkey and Lebanon. (Al Jazeera) The Government of Somalia claims to have killed a Canadian member of the al-Shabab terrorist organization. (The Globe and Mail) The United States intensifies air raids against suspected Al-Qaeda members in Yemen amid anti-government protests. (Al Jazeera) At least nine people die in Afghanistan after a gunman attacks a wedding party in the Dur Baba District of Nangarhar Province. (BBC News) 2011 Libyan civil war: Turkey sets up a US$100 million fund to support the Libyan rebel National Transitional Council. (Reuters) The International Criminal Court accuses Muammar Gaddafi's regime of using rape as a weapon of war. (The Guardian) The President of Senegal, Abdoulaye Wade, calls on Gaddafi to step down. (Reuters) 2011 Yemeni uprising: President Ali Abdullah Saleh undergoes surgery in Saudi Arabia for injuries sustained in a bomb blast. (UPI) Business and economy The Financial Times reports that computer hackers may have gained access to details of Citigroup bank card customer details. (Reuters) The U.S. Supreme Court upholds a 2009 jury verdict in a patent dispute at the expense of software giant Microsoft in favor of Canadian company i4i. (Cornell University Law School) Disasters Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster: The Government of Japan submits a report to the International Atomic Energy Agency calling for revision of nuclear reactor design standards in the wake of the disaster.(Yomiuri Daichiri) Shares in Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), the operator of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, fall to a record low due to continuing concerns over its viability and ongoing problems at the plant. (AFP via Google News), (Kyodo News) International relations China denies claims by the United Nations that 300 Tibetan monks have forcibly disappeared over the past three months. (BBC) (AP via Google News) The International Atomic Energy Agency votes to report Syria to the United Nations Security Council over its alleged covert nuclear programme. (BBC) Law and crime Eritrea accuses four Britons of espionage and terrorism. (Reuters) Five Saudi women are arrested for practising driving. (Press TV) Extradition of Cesare Battisti: Italian communist militant Cesare Battisti is freed from jail in Brazil after the Brazilian Constitutional Court rules against extraditing him to face charges in Italy. (AFP via News 24) Italy announces it is to sue Brazil at the International Court of Justice over this breach of their bilateral extradition treaty. (BBC) The Australian Federal Police are called in to quell another riot at the Christmas Island Immigration Reception and Processing Centre. (News Limited) Four Mapuche activists give up a hunger strike after 86 days to protest their arrest under Chile's anti-terrorism laws. (AP via Washington Post) Politics and elections Voters in the UK parliamentary constituency of Belfast West go to the polls for a by-election to replace Gerry Adams, who is now serving in the Parliament of Ireland representing Louth. (RTE) Science Cheaper new meningitis vaccinations reduce cases in Africa, with Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger recording the lowest number of cases. (Reuters) Scientists announce the discovery of more than 1,000 new species resulting from a 2006 survey conducted on Espiritu Santo island in Vanuatu. (RNZI) Sport The 2011 Bahrain Grand Prix is officially cancelled due to continuing unrest. (Autosport) In North American basketball, the Dallas Mavericks beat the Miami Heat 112-103 to win Game 5 of the 2011 NBA Finals and take a 3-2 lead in the series. (Los Angeles Times) June 10, 2011 (2011-06-10) (Friday) Armed conflicts and attacks 2011 Syrian uprising: The Syrian Army begins operations to "restore security" to Jisr al-Shughour and the surrounding area. (BBC) Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan describes the crackdown as "inhumane". (Al Jazeera) Thousands protest across the country, with at least 23 deaths reported. (Al Jazeera) (Trend News Agency Azerbaijan) Sudan's military bombs a village in Unity State, amid increasing tensions with South Sudan. (BBC) The Somali interior minister, Abdi Shakur Sheikh Hassan, is killed by a female suicide bomber at his house in the capital Mogadishu. (BBC) 2011 Libyan civil war: Fresh NATO airstrikes take place over the capital Tripoli. (Al Jazeera) The African Union calls for Muammar Gaddafi to step down and leave Libya. (All Africa) Business and economy The People's Republic of China's only ratings house that grades sovereign entities, the Dagong Global Credit Rating Company, states that the United States is already defaulting on its debt by allowing the U.S. dollar to devalue against other currencies, diminishing the wealth of China as a U.S. creditor. (AFP via Yahoo!) The South Korean Central Bank raises its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 3.25 percent. (Dow Jones via The Australian) Disasters At least 14 people are killed as a van falls into a canal in Azad Kashmir in Pakistan. (Xinhua) Radioactive cesium above Japanese legal limits is found in tea from the Shizuoka Prefecture, located 300 kilometres from the earthquake-damaged Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. (NHK) The British Environment Agency declares drought in five English counties – Lincolnshire, Cambridgeshire, parts of Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire and Norfolk – following a dry spring. (Sky News) International relations Iran has reportedly been caught on 10 separate occasions trying to send arms to terrorist groups, including Hamas and the Taliban. (Jerusalem Post) South China Sea dispute: Vietnam said that a Chinese fishing boat had purposefully torn away a seismic research cable laid by Vietnam's Petrovietnam oil company inside Vietnam’s 200 nautical mile exclusive economic zone. (RIA Novosti) (BBC) In response, China warns Vietnam to stop all activities in the disputed waters. (RIA Novosti) (BBC) After that, Vietnam announces a live-ammunition military drill in the area. (Forbes) Law and crime Yuri Budanov, a Russian colonel convicted of strangling an 18-year-old Chechen girl during the Chechen War, is shot dead in Moscow. (AFP via Google News) (RIA Novosti) Hundreds of Mainland Chinese and Taiwanese people are arrested in several countries across Asia during a crackdown on a telephone scam network. (AFP via Google News) Politics and elections Sinn Fein's Paul Maskey wins the West Belfast by-election. (BBC) Sports The Vancouver Canucks defeat the Boston Bruins by a score of 1–0 in Game 5 of the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals, to take a 3–2 series lead. (NHL) Persepolis F.C. win their fifth title in the Iranian Hazfi Cup after defeating Malavan F.C. in the final. (Varzesh3) June 11, 2011 (2011-06-11) (Saturday) Armed conflicts and attacks At least 4,300 Syrians flee into Turkey amid a government crackdown on protests. (Al Jazeera) 2011 Bahraini protests: More than 10,000 people join an opposition rally for the first time in months calling for reform. (Al Jazeera) Fazul Abdullah Mohammed, mastermind of the 1998 United States embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania, is killed in Somalia. (Reuters) (Xinhua) 2011 Yemeni uprising: Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh's health is in poor condition a week after a bomb blast injured him and killed several others. (AFP via Google News) 2011 Libyan civil war: Rebels make further gains west of Tripoli, battling in Zawiya just 30 miles from the capital. (Forbes) Arts and culture South Korea welcomes the return of ancient Korean royal books looted by French troops in 1866, during an invasion of Ganghwa Island in retaliation for Koreans' persecution of French Catholic missionaries. (Yonhap) Entertainer Bruce Forsyth is knighted in the Queen's Birthday Honours. Others recognised for their contribution to society include actor Colin Firth, and the team which secured England's Ashes victory over Australia. (BBC) Law and crime Media censorship laws in Burma relating to sport, entertainment, lottery and fairytales are eased slightly, though restrictions on news titles remain. (Bangkok Post) (Australia Network News) Politics Over half a million people demonstrate in Rome, Italy, demanding same sex rights. (AGI) (RIA Novosti) Two officials are detained in China after 1,500 people clashed with riot police over the death of a local legislator in police custody. (Bangkok Post) (Times of India) June 12, 2011 (2011-06-12) (Sunday) Armed conflicts and attacks 2011 Syrian uprising: Syrian forces raid the town of Jisr al-Shugur where troops allegedly fought army defectors. (Al Jazeera) (Today's Zaman) 2011 Iranian protests: Iranian authorities disperse and arrest protesters in the capital Tehran marking the second anniversary of the re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as President. (AFP via Google News) A second opposition activist and journalist on hunger strike dies in prison. (CBC) 2011 Libyan civil war: Fighting erupts in the west of the country, as rebels attempt to take more towns from forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi. (Daily Star Lebanon) (Al Jazeera) 2011 Yemeni uprising: Talks to end the political crisis in the country fail as the deputy to wounded President Ali Abdullah Saleh refuses to speak to those demanding he cede power. (Reuters) Clashes between Islamist militants and government forces kill 40 in southern Yemen. (Arirang News) The International Monetary Fund is hit by a major cyber attack. (The Telegraph) A bomb is detonated outside a local government headquarters in Tianjin, northeastern China. This is the third explosion outside government facilities in three weeks. (Wall Street Journal) Business and economy The leaders of the Southern African Development Community, the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa, and the East African Community signed an agreement in South Africa to develop a joint free trade bloc to stretch from Cape Town to Cairo, to encompass 26 countries. (Reuters) (Business Week) Disasters and accidents Ash clouds from the erupting Puyehue-Cordon Caulle in Chile disrupt and cancel international flights, leaving thousands stranded. (CNN) (Financial Times) Over 600 people are poisoned by lead in Zhejiang, eastern China. (Xinhua) (Indian Express) A series of moderate magnitude 4-5 earthquakes hit eastern Eritrea, preceding reports of a possible volcanic eruption. (The Lincoln Tribune) (Earthquake Report) International relations Italian MEP and diplomat Mario Borghezio is expelled and given a bloody nose during an attempt to access the Suvretta House luxury hotel hosting the Bilderberg Group's secretive annual conference in the Swiss resort of St. Moritz. (Business Insider) An anti-China protest takes place in Hanoi, Vietnam, for the second weekend in a row, amid a territorial dispute between the two countries. (Voice of America) (AFP via Google News) The United Nations Security Council reports that Iran is buying foreign banks and money-exchange bureaus to sidestep economic sanctions. (Jerusalem Post) Politics and elections Indian activist Swami Ramdev ends a hunger strike against corruption. (Times of India) A second nationwide strike takes place in Bangladesh over changes to the electoral system. (Straits Times) Voters in Turkey go to the polls for a general election. (Today's Zaman) (PressTV) Sports The Dallas Mavericks win their first NBA title 4-2 over the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals. June 13, 2011 (2011-06-13) (Monday) Armed conflicts and attacks 2011 Jordanian protests: The motorcade of King Abdullah II of Jordan is attacked by bottles and stones thrown by protesters in Tafilah. (BBC) (The Guardian) 2011 Bahraini uprising: Bahrain's rulers commence the trials of 48 medical professionals, including some of the country's top surgeons, a move seen as the hounding of those who treated injured protesters during the popular uprising which was crushed by the military intervention of Saudi Arabia. (Al Jazeera) Tunisian revolution: It is announced that the trial of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, ousted from power during the popular revolution, is to begin on 20 June. (BBC) 2011 Syrian uprising: The Syrian regime claims to have retaken Jisr al-Shughour, while residents who fled speak of fighting, divisions and defections among government troops as police and workers arm themselves to defend the town against the army. (Al Jazeera) (The Guardian) Russia and China boycott a meeting of the United Nations Security Council where a resolution condemning the Syrian government is being debated. (AFP via Google News) Egyptian officials report the arrest of the 27-year-old Israeli-American Ilan Grapel on suspicion of espionage for Israel. Israeli officials have rejected the Egyptian accusations.(BBC) 2011 Spanish protests: The Anonymous group is reported to have successfully knocked the website of the Spanish national police force offline. (BBC) (The Guardian) 2011 Zengcheng riot: Police in Xintang Town, Zengcheng, Guangzhou area, Guangdong, fire tear gas and use armoured vehicles on workers, including Sichuan migrant workers protesting what they consider the abuse of a pregnant Sichuanese colleague by security guards, after protesters flipped over and burned police vehicles. (BBC) (The Associated Press) (China Daily) (Reuters) (Chicago Tribune) 2011 Libyan civil war: The German foreign minister Guido Westerwelle, speaking in Benghazi, announces that his government officially recognises the country's rebels as "the legitimate representatives of the Libyan people". (BBC) (Deutsche Welle) 2011 Yemeni protests: The opposition and Vice President Abd al-Rab Mansur al-Hadi meet for talks to end the crisis. (CNN) North and South Sudan agree to demilitarise the disputed Abyei region. (AP via Google News) Disasters Eruption of the Nabro Volcano: The long-dormant Nabro Volcano erupts in Eritrea. (Reuters) (IOL) United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton flees the volcano, cutting short her visit to the region. (BBC) Tens of thousands of people in Christchurch, New Zealand, are left without power as the city is hit by powerful aftershocks of the 2011 Christchurch earthquake. (ABC Online) The US National Weather Service issues a flash flood warning after the Missouri River breaches a levee near Hamburg, Iowa. (AP via The Republic) Flights in the Southern hemisphere from Australia to Argentina are disrupted by the Puyehue volcanic eruption. (Bloomberg via Business Week) An earthquake of between 6.2 and 6.9 occurs near Indonesia, southeast of Tahuna island and six miles (10 kilometers) beneath the sea.(Time Magazine) International relations Vietnam holds a live fire drill in the South China Sea amid a dispute with China. (Jakarta Post) The South African Development Community urges opposing parties in Zimbabwe to settle differences to enable elections to be held. (Reuters) The South African Development Community calls on Madagascar to allow political exiles, including former President Marc Ravalomanana to return to end the political deadlock. (Reuters) (AllAfrica.com) The American destroyer USS McCampbell is reported to have asked to board a North Korean cargo vessel south of Shanghai; the vessel's crew refused and later returned home after what The New York Times described as "several days of pressure" from the U.S. warship. (BBC) Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu, speaking alongside Silvio Berlusconi in Italy where he is rallying opposition to the possible recognition of a Palestinian state, expresses a wish for improved relations with Turkey after last year's killing of Turks by Israeli commandos during the Gaza flotilla raid in international waters of the Mediterranean Sea. (The Hindu) Israel's deputy foreign minister Danny Ayalon tells public radio that he wants re-elected Prime Minister of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to block what Ayalon considers a "provocative flotilla" of activists bound for Gaza "entering dangerous zones". (Al Arabiya) Politics and elections Prime Minister of Lebanon Najib Mikati announces his new cabinet. (Al Jazeera) Prime Minister of Italy Silvio Berlusconi is defeated in several referendums. He admits "we must probably say goodbye to... nuclear power" after his attempts to have people boycott a referendum on the issue prove unsuccessful. (BBC) (The Guardian) Rep Michele Bachmann announces mid-debate that she will seek the Republican Party nomination for President of the United States. (Roll Call) A report by an independent panel of experts has recommended the British government rethink its controversial plans for reform of the National Health Service in England. (BBC) Sport The Boston Bruins defeat the Vancouver Canucks 5-2 to force the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals into a seventh game. (AP via Boston Herald) June 14, 2011 (2011-06-14) (Tuesday) Armed conflicts and attacks 2011 Syrian uprising: Security forces widen an operation in the north of the country as part of a crackdown on protests. (Al Jazeera) Iraq War: Time reports that a Federal Grand Jury is investigating claims of war crimes and torture by the US Central Intelligence Agency at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison in 2003. (Time Magazine) A series of attacks on the town of Baqubah result in at least seven deaths and 17 injuries. (AFP via Yahoo! News) Canada recognises the rebel National Transitional Council of Libya as the country's legitimate government with the Canadian House of Commons voting to extend its mission in Libya by three and a half months. (CBC), (CBC) Pakistan's Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence has arrested Central Intelligence Agency informants who contributed to the raid on Osama bin Laden. (New York Times) Arts and culture A new diary by Che Guevara of his time fighting in the Cuban Revolution between 1956 and 1958 is published. (The Guardian) Business and economy Gaza's unemployment rate was among the world's highest, at 45.2% in late 2010 according to the UN. (BBC) Air Canada services face disruption as customer service agents affiliated with the Canadian Auto Workers start a strike. (Financial Post) Disasters Airspace restrictions are in place in East Africa after the Nabro Volcano erupts in Eritrea. (Al Jazeera) An elderly man dies following aftershocks to the 2011 Christchurch earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand, with additional buildings to be demolished. (New Zealand Herald), (TV New Zealand) At least two people die as a building collapses in Nairobi, Kenya. (Capital FM) The first child dies during the 2011 E. coli O104:H4 outbreak in Germany with a total of 36 deaths in Germany and one in Sweden. (Xinhua) Arizona fires Small communities near the US town of Sierra Vista, Arizona are evacuated due to a wildfire that started in Coronado National Memorial. (Arizona Daily Star) The Wallow Fire becomes the largest wildfire in Arizona history. (Incident Information) International relations The United Nations declares Nepal free of land mine fields after the last remaining land mine is destroyed. (AP) The United States issues a terrorist-related travel warning for the Philippines. (CNN) Law and crime In the first case of its kind to be heard in the United Kingdom, a former juror who admitted contacting a defendant via Facebook has been convicted of contempt of court. (BBC) Another land campaigner is shot dead in Brazil's Amazon basin with five activists shot dead in the past month. (BBC) Politics British Prime Minister David Cameron has announced major changes to plans for reforms of the NHS in England saying that the government has made mistakes, but he insists it has not made "a humiliating U-turn". (BBC) Members of the United Kingdom's two main teaching unions, the National Union of Teachers and the Association of Teachers and Lecturers have voted to take industrial action over changes to their pensions. They are first expected to walk out on 30 June. Other public sector workers may join them on that day. (BBC) June 15, 2011 (2011-06-15) (Wednesday) Armed conflicts and attacks 2011 Greek uprising: Greek unions initiate a general strike, with protesters vowing to surround the Hellenic Parliament as it prepares to discuss its plans for financial cuts. (Reuters via France 24) (Xinhua) (euronews) Greek and Spanish flags fill parliament square alongside banners reading "Resist" and ¡no pasarán! (they shall not pass), dating from the Spanish Civil War. (DAWN) The protesters call themselves the "indignants" in solidarity with their Spanish counterparts who camped against cuts in Madrid and Barcelona until the Spanish police forced them out. (Sofia Echo) (BBC) Police descend in droves on the parliament building, blocking the protesters from forming a human ring around it, firing water cannon at the protesters and barricading their path. (Deutsche Welle) Police fire tear gas on Greek people protesting against cuts being implemented by their government in co-operation with the European Union and International Monetary Fund. (BBC) (Al Jazeera) (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty) Police detain 10 protesters to prevent them disrupting lawmakers as they slip into parliament by car. (Taiwan News) Some Greek journalists' unions cancel their strike in order to provide coverage of the protests. (AP via The Guardian) 2011 Spanish protests: Protesters blockade parliament buildings in Barcelona, in a protest simultaneous with events in Greece, to express their annoyance with government cuts after camping outside overnight. The Presidents of Catalan Government and Parliament avoid the protesters by flying in on helicopters. (BBC) Bank of Ireland chairman Pat Molloy and chief executive Richie Boucher, gathered for a meeting at University College Dublin (UCD), are attacked with eggs amid calls to have them all "taken out and bloody shot". (The Guardian) (The Irish Times) (The Wall Street Journal) (RTÉ) (BBC) 2011 Libyan civil war: Rebels make fresh gains against forces of Muammar Gaddafi in the east and west of the country. (Al Jazeera) A group of U.S. lawmakers files a lawsuit against President Barack Obama over U.S. military operations in Libya. (Politico) (CNN) 2011 Yemeni uprising: The Associated Press claims that the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency is building an airbase in the Persian Gulf to target terrorists in the event of a terrorist element taking control of Yemen. (AP via Richmond Times-Dispatch) Islamic militants seize parts of the southern city of Houta in Lahij province in a surprise dawn raid. (AP via USA Today) Admiral Kim Sung-chan, the head of the Republic of Korea Navy, vows a stronger response to aggression from North Korea. (Yonhap News) Arts and culture Colum McCann wins the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, the world's richest literary award, for his novel Let the Great World Spin. (The Irish Times) (BBC) Mario Vargas Llosa, last year's recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature, speaks out against authoritarian governments and calls on all citizens to participate in political life while addressing students at Shanghai International Studies University. (BBC) The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences changes the rules regarding the Academy Award for Best Picture at the 84th Academy Awards, allowing anywhere from five to ten nominees, provided that each receives a minimum of 5% of the nominating votes. (Variety) Dexter Isaac, a convicted killer, claims responsibility for an attempted assassination of rapper Tupac Shakur in 1994. (New York Post) Business and economy Canada Post closes down operations after a campaign of rolling strikes by the Canadian Union of Postal Workers. (CBC) TerreStar Networks, a mobile-communications company that has been in bankruptcy since October 2010, picks Dish Network as the stalking horse bidder for an upcoming auction. (The Wall Street Journal) British public-owned bank Northern Rock is to be privatised by the coalition government. (BBC) Disasters New South Wales floods: Thousands of people living on the Mid North Coast of the Australian state of New South Wales face a flooding risk, with the town of Kempsey under particular threat and with ten thousand people isolated. (ABC News Australia) (Daily Telegraph) One man dies near the town of Taree, after a tree hits his car. (ABC News) 2011 Puyehue eruption: Australian airlines QANTAS and Virgin Australia suspends flights to Perth, Western Australia, due to ash from the eruption in Chile, with flights to Tasmania and New Zealand also cancelled. (BBC News) (NineMSN) Flights remain canceled in Argentina and Uruguay. (AFP via Google News) International relations The Yonhap news agency reports that nine North Koreans have defected to South Korea across the Yellow Sea. (Yonhap) Liberia suspends diplomatic ties with Libya, after United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called on countries to sever ties with Libya. (Liberianobserver) Law and crime The Australian Broadcasting Corporation reports that the son of the acting Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea Sam Abal has been arrested on murder charges. (AP via Google News) Politics and elections The General Assembly of the U.S. state of North Carolina votes on a motion to veto override by the Governor Bev Perdue of the state budget. (News and Observer) Members of the United Kingdom's Public and Commercial Services Union agree to join teachers and lecturers in strike action planned for 30 June. (BBC) Science The first lunar eclipse of the year occurs with it being the first central lunar eclipse since 1990. (The Australian) Sport The Caribbean Football Union accuses FIFA whisteblower Chuck Blazer of "slander" after making allegations of corruption against members of the FIFA committee. (Sky News) 2011 Stanley Cup Finals/2011 Vancouver Riot The Boston Bruins defeat the Vancouver Canucks 4-0 in Game 7 to win the Stanley Cup Finals in the North American National Hockey League. (National Post) (New York Times) (Boston Globe) Canuck fans riot in Vancouver following the loss. (CTV British Columbia) The Vancouver Police Department declares parts of Vancouver as an "illegal assembly" area and use tear gas to get the crowds to disperse as the riot continues. (The Province) (Reuters via ABC News Online) "Anarchist" rioters smash windows, loot stores and burn vehicles, while some Canucks fans bring garbage bags to clean up the streets following the destruction; at least nine police officers and 150 residents are injured, including stabbing victims. (The Globe and Mail) (The Vancouver Sun) (CP24) June 16, 2011 (2011-06-16) (Thursday) Armed conflicts and attacks Ayman al-Zawahiri is selected as the successor of leadership of al-Qaeda succeeding Osama bin Laden (CNN) Web sites associated with the Government of Malaysia are hacked according to a deadline set by the Anonymous group. (Malaysia Star) Sections of the British media report that Prince Harry has been cleared to return to service in the Afghan War. (Sky News) Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's compound in Tripoli is hit by a NATO bombing raid. (Al Jazeera) (BBC) Arts and culture The BBC apologises to clothing retailer Primark for a Panorama documentary showing boys in a Bangalore clothing workshop. (BBC) The auction record for a painting by Sir Stanley Spencer is broken twice in quick succession at Sotheby's in London. (BBC) British comedians Matt Lucas and David Walliams end their partnership which led to successful television shows Come Fly With Me and Little Britain. (The Herald-Sun) Business and economy Software company Oracle announces that it is looking for damages "in the billions of dollars" from Google in an ongoing patent law action over the smartphone. (Reuters) Disasters Australian airlines QANTAS and Virgin Australia cancel flights to New Zealand and postpone flights to Argentina due to the continued presence of volcanic ash from the 2011 Puyehue eruption. (Marketwatch) A strong earthquake of 6.6 magnitude occurs off the coast of New Britain in Papua New Guinea but no tsunami warning is issued. (AP) International relations Traces of dioxin are found in stream waters near the United States Army base Camp Carroll in South Korea where drums of Agent Orange were allegedly dumped three decades ago. (Yonhap) Law and crime An Indonesian court delivers a guilty verdict in the terrorism trial of radical Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Bashir in the Sοuth Jakarta District Court and sentenced to 15 years in prison. (ABC News Online) (Jakarta Post) (Sydney Morning Herald) Simon Overland resigns as the Chief Commissioner of Police in the Australian state of Victoria following the release of a damning Ombudsman's report on the release of dodgy crime statistics before the 2010 Victorian election. (Herald Sun) Authorities in the Ivory Coast set up a national commission to investigate crimes committed during the 2010–2011 Ivorian crisis. (BBC) A senior aide and consultant to former Governor of the U.S. state of Maryland Bob Ehrlich are indicted in connection to robocalls in the 2010 Maryland gubernatorial election. (Washington Post) Politics Both houses of the Parliament of Australia vote to condemn a proposal to send asylum seekers to Malaysia. (ABC News Australia) U.S. Representative Anthony Weiner of New York resigns his office amidst pressure from Democratic leadership and President Barack Obama after admitting to sending lewd photos via Twitter. (NPR) June 17, 2011 (2011-06-17) (Friday) Armed conflicts and attacks The Yonhap news agency reports that South Korea has deployed precision-guided missiles capable of hitting the North Korean capital, Pyongyang. (Yonhap News) Business and economy Reuters quotes commodities traders who have observed in recent months that "violent, often inexplicable price moves" are becoming a good deal more common, especially in energy commodities such as natural gas. (Reuters) Disasters More than 16,000 people remain isolated and 3,350 are waiting to return to their homes due to continued flooding on the Mid North Coast of the Australian state of New South Wales. (Sydney Morning Herald) International relations The U.N. Human Rights Council issues its first condemnation of discrimination against gays, lesbians and transgender people. (AP via Forbes) Law and crime An internal Chinese government report, mistakenly made public, shows that more than ten thousand corrupt officials transferred US$123 billion worth of embezzled funds out of the country over 15 years. (The Times via The Australian) (The New York Times) (Wall Street Journal) Politics The Government of Japan says it will double sales tax over four years to fund rising social security costs. (Reuters) Danny Alexander, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury of the United Kingdom, announces that the retirement age for British civil servants will be increased to 66, with the exception of the police, armed forces and fire service. (Sky News) King of Morocco Mohammed VI announces constitutional reforms with a referendum to be held on July 1. (Al-Jazeera) Sports The head coach of the South Korean marathon team is under investigation for alleged doping of his athletes, including an Asian Games gold medallist. (Yonhap) June 18, 2011 (2011-06-18) (Saturday) Armed conflicts and attacks Burma accuses the Kachin Independence Army of starting deadly fighting near the Chinese border. (AFP via Google News) (Asian Correspondent) (BBC) South Korean troops mistakenly fire on a Chinese passenger plane as it flies near the disputed Northern Limit Line on the border with North Korea; there are no casualties. (Yonhap) (Reuters) Syrian troops raid the town of Bdama near the Turkish border in an attempt to crush a nationwide uprising. (BBC) Arts and culture American musician Clarence Clemons, best known for his work with Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, dies from complications of a stroke. (Bruce Springsteen) Business and economy Oil prices hit a four-month low, with oil now at USD $93 per barrel. (Reuters) Politics Former Zambian President Frederick Chiluba dies aged 68. (AP via Google News) (IOL) Pro-democracy activists in Morocco call for renewed demonstrations, saying reforms proposed by King Mohammed VI are not enough. (Al Jazeera) Some Saudi Arabian women challenge a ban on female drivers, posting accounts and pictures of themselves driving automobiles. (The Guardian) (Gulf NEWS) (Sky News) (The New York Times) (Reuters) Mike Rawlings is elected as the Mayor of the US city of Dallas, Texas, with Betsy Price elected as the Mayor of Fort Worth, Texas and Beth van Duyne elected as the mayor of Irving Texas. (NBC Dallas Fort Worth) Russian human rights activist Yelena Bonner, the widow of Soviet dissident and Nobel Peace Prize winner Andrei Sakharov, dies in the city of Boston, MA, USA. (RIA Novosti) Science NOAA states that 2011 is already one of the most extreme weather years on record. (Scientific American) June 19, 2011 (2011-06-19) (Sunday) Armed conflicts and attacks 2011 Libyan civil war: NATO confirms it killed civilians in an airstrike on a residential neighborhood in Tripoli, as Gaddafi's forces uses artillery fire to kill rebels and civilians in Misrata.(Khallej Times) 2011 Spanish protests: More than 100,000 people, the "indignant", march on Madrid and other Spanish cities to protest government cuts, unemployment and the policies of the European Commission. (The Age) (The Financial Times) (Press TV) (Reuters Africa) (BBC) Monitors say the northern Sudanese army is massing in South Kordofan, amid fighting with southern-aligned groups in the state. (Reuters) 16 people are killed in clashes between the army and militants in southern Yemen. (Reuters) (China Radio International) Arts and culture The Philippines commemorates the 150th birth anniversary of José Rizal with the unveiling of the world's tallest statue of him in his hometown of Calamba, Laguna. (Philippine Daily Inquirer) Alyssa Campanella, Miss California, is crowned as Miss USA. (NPR) Business and economy The Boeing 747-8 makes its international debut at the 2011 Paris Air Show. (Kuwait Times) Disasters More than two million people are reported to have been displaced or otherwise affected by flooding in the Chinese province of Zhejiang. (AP via MSNBC) International relations Hundreds of Vietnamese citizens protest outside the Chinese embassy in Hanoi for the third straight week as tensions escalate over disputed areas of the South China Sea. (Taiwan News) Law and crime Six foreigners including two Britons and an American are jailed for lengthy terms in Somalia after the seizure of a plane containing $3.6 million in ransom for pirates. (AFP via France24) An Indonesian woman is beheaded in Saudi Arabia for killing a Saudi woman. (Jakarta Post) Politics and elections Members of the Parliament of Iran sign a scroll to impeach Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi following the appointment of Mohammad Sharif Malekzadeh as deputy foreign minister.(PressTV) The Somali Prime Minister, Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo, resigns. (BBC) Russian human rights activist Yelena Bonner dies aged 88. (RIA Novosti) (CNN) Burmese opposition figure Aung San Suu Kyi celebrates her first birthday in freedom for more than 10 years. (Al Arabiya) (AP via Google News) (Hindustan Times) Sports Northern Ireland golfer Rory McIlroy wins the 2011 U.S. Open. (Washington Post) June 20, 2011 (2011-06-20) (Monday) Armed conflicts and attacks Arab Spring: Tunisian revolution: Ousted former President of Tunisia Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali and his wife are sentenced to 35 years in prison for misappropriating public funds, with the trial held in absentia. (Al Jazeera) (BBC) 2011 Egyptian revolution: Ousted former President of Egypt Hosni Mubarak has been diagnosed with stomach cancer, says his lawyer, though the head of his medical team says this is not true. (BBC) (Al Jazeera) 2011 Yemeni uprising: The regime says it has made progress in its fight against rebels holding the city of Zinjibar. (Reuters via The Irish Times) 2011 Libyan civil war: Libyan officials say NATO airstrikes on Tripoli kill 15 civilians, including children; this is the second claimed collateral damage incident in two days, with NATO blaming a "weapons failure" for the first attack. (BBC) 2011 Syrian uprising: President of Syria Bashar al-Assad is due to make a speech about "current circumstances" in Syria. (Los Angeles Times) Bashar al-Assad's speech fails to please the people as nationwide protests against his regime continue. (Al Jazeera) (Al Jazeera) 2011 Spanish protests: The "indignados" launch protest marches intended to culminate in a major rally in Madrid on 24 July. (RTÉ) Sudan and South Sudan sign a pact to demilitarise the disputed Abyei region and to permit the presence of Ethiopian peacekeeping forces. (Al Jazeera) Two suspected militants are killed in Khar Dand in Pakistan as a result of a drone attack. (AP via WVEC) Masked men in camouflage gear attack homes in the mainly nationalist Short Strand area of East Belfast, with pipe bombs and Molotov cocktails being thrown. (BBC) General Walter L. Sharp, the Commander of United States Forces Korea, warns that North Korea is likely to launch more attacks but states that US and South Korean forces are prepared. (AFP via Inquirer) Arts and culture Nepal experiences its first lesbian wedding ceremony as a lawyer and a college professor tie the knot. (BBC) The Anglican Church in the United Kingdom considers guidelines allowing openly homosexual clergy to become bishops. (AFP via Google News) London Assembly Member Jenny Jones urges Westminster Council to consider a blue plaque for veteran peace campaigner Brian Haw following his recent death at the age of 62. (BBC) American Jackass star Ryan Dunn dies in a high-speed accident on U.S. Route 322 in West Goshen Township, Pennsylvania. (NBC Philadelphia) Business and economy European sovereign debt crisis: Eurozone finance ministers agree to seek a voluntary rollover of Greek debt by private bondholders in order to meet a substantial part of Greek funding needs. (Reuters) Eurozone finance ministers postpone a final decision on Greece's $17 billion emergency loans extension until Greece introduces further cuts. (Al Jazeera) British Labour MP and former foreign secretary Jack Straw says the eurozone "will collapse" and that the euro will succumb to a "slow death". (BBC) Afghan finance minister Omar Zakhilwal is reported to be "running out of patience" with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) over the IMF's rejection of a plan to deal with Kabul Bank. Zakhilwal is also reported to have said that further talks with the IMF would be "a waste of time". (BBC) Financial group and banking firm PNC Financial Services is to acquire RBC Bank from the Royal Bank of Canada for US$3.45 billion. (Forbes) Disasters Residents of Greer, a small town in the U.S. state of Arizona, are allowed to return home after the Wallow Fire is slowly brought under control. (ABC Arizona) The Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre in Darwin warns that Australian travellers face more disruption from ash from the 2011 Puyehue-Cordón Caulle eruption in Chile. (WA Today) The Korea Meteorological Administration issues a heat wave warning for inland South Korean cities including Seoul, Suwon and Chuncheon. (Yonhap) A RusAir Tupolev Tu-134 passenger jet crashes near Petrozavodsk Airport in Russia's Karelia region with 45 people dead. (ITAR-TASS) (AP) Hurricane Beatriz becomes the second hurricane of the 2011 Pacific hurricane season. (National Hurricane Centre) International relations U.S. magazine Foreign Policy releases its index of "failed states", with the editor labeling Somalia as an "unequivocably failed state". (Al Jazeera) President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev practically rules out supporting a United Nations Security Council resolution condemning a crackdown by the Government of Syria on protestors. (Reuters) France prepares to attempt to extradite Manuel Noriega back to Panama. (BBC) (Reuters via The Irish Times) Taoiseach Enda Kenny arrives in London for a six-monthly meeting of the British–Irish Council, including talks with Nick Clegg, the deputy prime minister of Britain, and Alex Salmond, the recently victorious Scottish first minister. (The Irish Times) Law and crime The United States Supreme Court overturned 8-0 a U.S. appeals court ruling against five big power utility companies, brought by U.S. states, New York City, and Land trusts, attempting to force cuts in United States greenhouse gas emissions regarding global warming. The decision gives deference to reasonable interpretations of the United States Clean Air Act by the Environmental Protection Agency. (Scientific American) (CBS News) (USA Today) (Reuters) (MLive.com) (PBS NewsHour) People are hospitalised after sectarian clashes in East Belfast in Northern Ireland. (UTV) New Zealand businessman Allan Hubbard is to face fraud charges in relation to the collapse of his company Aorangi Securities Limited. (New Zealand Herald) Science The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers votes to allow the creation of new website domain suffixes by private companies. (AFP via The Sydney Morning Herald) (Al Jazeera) Sport Jack Warner resigns his post as vice-president of FIFA, the world governing body of association football, amid corruption allegations. (BBC Sport) Transportation Damai LRT station opened along the East Loop of the Punggol LRT line and was the last station along the Punggol LRT line East Loop to be opened. Woodleigh MRT station opened along the North East MRT line, having been unopened since the opening of the line eight years earlier on 20 June 2003. June 21, 2011 (2011-06-21) (Tuesday) Armed conflicts and attacks 2011 Yemeni uprising: 2,000 Ethiopian migrants are evacuated from the country. (BBC) 2011 Syrian uprising: Security forces kill seven people during clashes between opposition and pro-government supporters in three cities. (Al Jazeera) 2011 Libyan civil war: NATO's command centre in Naples loses contact with an MQ-8 Fire Scout drone during reconnaissance operations over Libya. (BBC) At least 20 people are killed when a car bomb explodes outside a local governor's house in Al Diwaniyah in Iraq. (Reuters via MSNBC) Business and economics European sovereign debt crisis: Greece: The Greek parliament holds a vote of confidence in government cuts associated with a new €12 billion loan from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund. (BBC) The International Monetary Fund calls on eurozone countries to provide more money for Greece and to stop what the IMF regards as "unproductive" arguments about burning bondholders. (Irish Independent) Civilians peacefully protest en masse outside parliament against government cuts in Greece, though riot police armed with tear gas circulate nearby. (Al Jazeera) Some of the protesters have been camping for weeks in front of the parliament building in Syntagma Square, asking why they have to pay while politicians are not pursued. (Reuters Africa) Prime Minister of Greece George Papandreou narrowly survives a confidence vote in parliament, signifying further cuts which are to be voted on June 28. (Al Jazeera) Spain: The IMF issues an annual report calling on the Spanish government to continue to reduce public spending and increase liberalisation of its jobs market. (BBC) Italy: Prime Minister of Italy Silvio Berlusconi easily wins a parliamentary vote on the economy thought to be a test of his coalition's stability. (BBC) Disasters Pilot error is suspected to be the cause of the crash of RusAir Flight 9605 in Petrozavodsk, Russia, which killed 44 people on 20 June.(Al Jazeera) Flights in Australia are again disrupted due to volcanic ash from the 2011 Puyehue-Cordón Caulle eruption in Chile. (WA Today) At least 28 children die mysteriously in the Indian state of Bihar. (BBC) (One India) Central United States storms More than 270,000 people in the US city of Chicago, Illinois, are left without power due to thunder storms with some reports of funnel clouds. (Chicago Tribune), (NBC Chicago) More than 300 flights are cancelled from O'Hare International Airport and passengers are stuck on Chicago passenger trains for three hours. (AP via Houston Chronicle) More than 114,000 people in the city of Knoxville, Tennessee, are without power due to storms. (Knox News) International relations A 2014 deadline that would have moved a U.S. airbase opposed by politicians and civilians off Okinawa is cancelled following last year's resignation of Prime Minister of Japan Yukio Hatoyama over his own inability to remove the base. (BBC) Politicians and civilians in Indonesia protest after Saudi Arabia used a sword to behead a maid without telling them they were planning to execute her; Indonesia recalls its ambassador to express its fury and civilians gather outside the Saudi embassy in Jakarta wearing t-shirts with the slogan "corrupt government, workers are beheaded". (BBC) (Jakarta Post) At the United Nations General Assembly in New York City, Secretary-General of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon wins a second five-year term by acclamation through applause without a vote after the United Nations Security Council fails to put forward another candidate. (Al Jazeera) (BBC) (news.com.au) First Lady of the United States Michelle Obama begins a six-day visit to southern Africa with her daughters; they are granted an audience with Nelson Mandela. (BBC) Law and crime A Chinese court sentences a forklift driver to death for killing a protester in an incident that started unrest in Inner Mongolia. (Straits Times) A French court upholds a life sentence for Yvan Colonna, a former shepherd and Corsican separatist convicted of fatally shooting police prefect Claude Érignac near a concert hall in Ajaccio in 1998. Colonna has denied killing Érignac. (BBC) Former French minister Georges Tron, who resigned last month due to allegations of sexual assault, is arrested by police. (BBC) British Prime Minister David Cameron confirms that controversial plans to allow sentence reductions of up to 50% for criminals who plead guilty in England and Wales have been scrapped. (BBC) Politics and elections In a rare House of Commons procedure, British MPs have voted by a majority of 73 to have parts of the controversial Health and Social Care Bill re-examined by the Health Select Committee. (BBC) Science An Emperor Penguin is sighted on a New Zealand beach, the first time this has happened in 44 years. (BBC) (AP via The Guardian) Sport In tennis, John Isner and Nicolas Mahut meet again following last year's record-breaking epic at Wimbledon. (ESPN) (The New York Times) (USA Today) June 22, 2011 (2011-06-22) (Wednesday) Armed conflict and attacks 2011 Bahraini uprising: The Bahraini government sentences 10 pro-democracy activists to life in prison for their role in the uprising. (The Guardian) (Al Jazeera) (BBC) 2011 Libyan civil war: Denmark officially recognizes the National Transitional Council of Libya as the "sole legitimate representative of the Libyan people" in the current transition period. (Berlingske) China receives the leader of the opposition National Transitional Council of Libya. (Xinhua) Philippine Army soldiers capture five suspected members of the terrorist group Abu Sayyaf in a raid on Basilan Island. (AP via The Guardian) A photographer is shot during violence in east Belfast in Northern Ireland. (BBC) War in Afghanistan (2001–2021): The President of the United States Barack Obama announces that 33,000 US troops will be withdrawn from the War in Afghanistan by the northern summer of 2012. (Sydney Morning Herald) (The New York Times) (AFP via France 24) (CNN) Arts and culture U.S. country music singer Glen Campbell is diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. (BBC) Art experts conclude that a Vincent van Gogh painting previously believed to be a self-portrait is in fact a portrait of van Gogh's brother, Theo. (BBC) Indigenous Australian Kim Scott wins the Miles Franklin Literary Award for his book That Deadman Dance. (ABC News Australia) Business and economics 2010–2011 Greek protests: Nationwide protests continue as Prime Minister of Greece George Papandreou attempts to pass new cuts in public spending. (BBC) Rolls-Royce and Qantas announce an out-of-court settlement of their dispute over an Airbus engine explosion over Indonesia in November 2010. (Reuters) Disasters Flights resume in southeast Australia as the volcanic ash cloud from the 2011 Puyehue-Cordón Caulle eruption clears although flights to Tasmania and New Zealand are still affected. (The Sydney Morning Herald) Officials from the People's Republic of China warn that the 2011 China floods will have a negative impact on food prices. (Yonhap News) The death toll from RusAir Flight 9605 in Petrozavodsk, Russia, rises to 45. (RIA Novosti) A tornado touches down in the US city of Louisville, Kentucky near the University of Louisville Belknap campus, damaging some buildings at the Churchill Downs horse racing track. (The Courier-Journal) International relations Indonesia bans its domestic servants from working in Saudi Arabia following the execution of a maid who was beheaded with a sword. (BBC) South Korea announces that it will build a new resettlement centre for refugees from North Korea. (AFP via Channel News Asia) President of Sudan Omar al-Bashir threatens to cut off pipelines carrying Southern Sudanese petroleum (oil) on July 1 unless a deal is done. (BBC) Law and crime Chinese artist and dissident Ai Weiwei is freed on bail. Under the terms of his bail agreement, he is not permitted to disclose the reason for his arrest and detention. (BBC) (Al Jazeera) (China Daily) Ireland is sued for compensation over a measles vaccination that caused serious brain injury. (RTÉ) Journalist Anatoly Bitkov, the chief editor of the Kolyma Plus TV channel, is found dead in his apartment in the town of Magadan in the Russian Far East. (RIA Novosti) In the United Kingdom, the first coordinated, nationwide Police National Database is launched, making information easier to share between forces (PublicService) (The Daily Telegraph) Fugitive alleged Boston crime boss James J. Bulger is arrested in the US city of Santa Monica, California. (Los Angeles Times) Politics A vigil is held in London to demand the release of journalist Urunboy Usmonov, imprisoned by authorities in Tajikistan last week. Usmonov is reported to be in ill health. (BBC) Some 450 people are arrested in Belarus after protests against the Government's economic policies. (RIA Novosti) The Japanese Diet votes to extend its session until August 31 so that it can consider key legislation. (NHK World) Sports Sports fans will find out in the next few days if they have been successful in obtaining tickets for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, England. (Press Association via The Guardian) Australian water polo player James Stanton is banned for two years from competition for using the banned substance Clenbuterol. (ESPN) June 23, 2011 (2011-06-23) (Thursday) Armed conflict and attacks 2011 Syrian uprising: Syrian forces mass along the Turkish border near where thousands of refugees are camped. (Reuters) (BBC) 2010–2011 Senegal protests: Thousands of people gather outside parliament in Dakar to protest changes to the constitution and are dispersed with tear gas and rubber bullets by riot police. (BBC) France announces plans to withdraw troops from Afghanistan in a similar timeframe to that announced for United States forces by President Barack Obama yesterday. (AAP via The Courier-Mail) After Hamas rejects a call from the International Red Cross for access to Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, held incommunicado since he was captured nearly five years ago, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel will reduce Palestinian prisoners' privileges in response. (Los Angeles Times) (The Jerusalem Post) Arts and culture Dozens of gay and lesbian couples tie knots under the new same-sex union laws in Brazil in a world record attempt for mass gay weddings. (BBC) J. K. Rowling's new project Pottermore is to be officially launched, with details of its identity to be revealed for the first time in an announcement by the writer at the Victoria and Albert Museum in South Kensington. (The Guardian) (BBC) US actor Peter Falk, best known for his role as Columbo, dies at the age of 83. (USA Today) Business and economy Fuel prices including petroleum (oil) prices drop sharply as 28 industrialized nations (International Energy Agency members), including the United States, agree to release 60 million barrels of crude oil from their strategic oil reserves. (Los Angeles Times) (Bloomberg) (USA Today) (CNN Money) Australia's National Broadband Network and telecommunications company Telstra reach an A$11 billion dollar deal to allow the network to use Telstra's existing network and infrastructure. (ABC News Australia) Greek labour unions declare a 48-hour general strike next week to protest new austerity measures set to be voted on by the Greek parliament. (CNN) The U.S. Supreme Court rules on freedom of speech grounds against a state's effort to block pharmaceutical companies from selling information about the prescription records of particular doctors. (AP) Disasters An earthquake of 6.7 magnitude occurs off the coast of Japan's Iwate prefecture. (Reuters) The fourth tropical storm of the 2011 Pacific typhoon season, Tropical Storm Haima (Egay), makes landfall in southern Guangdong Province in the People's Republic of China. (Xinhua) 2011 Missouri River floods: U.S. nuclear regulators say two nuclear power plants at the Fort Calhoun plant, about 20 miles north of Omaha, Nebraska, have protected critical equipment from the rising waters of the Missouri River even though flooding has already reached the grounds of one of them. (CNN) 12,000 residents are evacuated from Minot, North Dakota, as officials warn that river crest will come sooner and be higher than expected. (CNN) A 7.3 magnitude earthquake offshore from the US northern state of Alaska leads to a tsunami warning being issued but it is later cancelled. (NOAA) 2011 China floods: An 'unprecedented' flash flood hits Beijing, leaving streets and many areas including Tiananmen Square and the Beijing Subway system underwater. (Xinhua) International relations The Japanese national broadcasting company NHK captures images of the Chinese Navy navigating the high seas between the islands of Japan's Okinawa prefecture. (NHK) The President of Indonesia Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono condemns the beheading of an Indonesian maid in Saudi Arabia and condemns the Saudi Government of breaking the "norms and manners" of international relations. (Straits Times) Computer firm Apple removes an application from its App Store that called for a "Third Intifada" against Israel. (BBC) Law and crime Four policemen are sentenced to death and another is sentenced to life imprisonment for last year's assassination of activist Floribert Chebeya in Democratic Republic of the Congo. (BBC) A Dutch court acquits politician Geert Wilders of hate speech charges for statements against Islam in the Geert Wilders trial. (AP via Huffington Post) (CNN) The United Nations says more cocaine is consumed in Scotland than any other country in the world, not the first time this has happened. The country also consumes more heroin than anywhere else in the United Kingdom. (BBC) Hacker group LulzSec releases material belonging to the Department of Public Safety in the US state of Arizona in response to immigration law SB 1070. (Tech Crunch), (Wall Street Journal) Accused fraudster and US TV pitchman Don Lapre is arrested in Tempe, Arizona. (Fox Phoenix) Levi Bellfield – three years into a life sentence for the murder of two young women and the attempted murder of a third – is found guilty of the 2002 murder of Milly Dowler in Surrey, United Kingdom. (BBC) Politics The President of the United States Barack Obama states that gay and lesbian couples "deserve the same legal rights as every other couple in this country" at a function for LGBT people in New York City. (NY1) The New Jersey General Assembly passes a bill overhauling the health and pension benefits of public employees. (New Jersey) Science A study finds that the 2011 E. coli O104:H4 outbreak was a mix of two dangerous E. coli strains. (AP via USA Today) Sport In tennis, wild card Sabine Lisicki defeats French Open champion Li Na 3-6 6-4 8-6 in the women's singles at Wimbledon. (BBC Sport) (CNN) (Sky Sports) The 2011 NBA Draft is held in Newark, New Jersey, with Duke's Kyrie Irving as the #1 pick. (CBS News) June 24, 2011 (2011-06-24) (Friday) Armed conflicts and attacks The New York Times reports that a cell phone belonging to Osama bin Laden's courier contains contacts with Harakat-ul-Mujahedeen indicating possible ties with Pakistan's intelligence agencies. (The New York Times) Hillary Clinton, the United States Secretary of State, warns of a possible escalation of the 2011 Syrian uprising as Syrian Army forces mass near the border with Turkey. (Sky) Three explosions hit the Myanmar cities of Naypyidaw, Mandalay and Pyin U Lwin. (Reuters) Business and economy Italian Mario Draghi is appointed as the next President of the European Central Bank, replacing Jean-Claude Trichet on November 1. (Reuters via France 24) Disasters Mudslides isolate 1,200 in Japan's Nagano Prefecture. (Kyodo News) Tropical Storm Meari hits the Philippines, leaving 11 people missing and over 40,000 displaced. (Xinhua) The Souris River floods to record levels and overflows levee banks in the US town of Minot, North Dakota. (MSNBC) At least two people are killed and dozens injured after a tractor-trailer truck collides with the California Zephyr Amtrak train on US Route 95 in Nevada. (Reuters) Law and crime The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda passes judgement on six suspects in relation to massacres in the former Butare Province including Pauline Nyiramasuhuko, former Minister for Family and Women Affairs with Nyiramasuhuko receiving a life sentence. (The New Times) (CNN) United States District Court judge Tanya Walton Pratt halts enforcement of an Indiana state law cutting funding for Planned Parenthood and other organisations that provide abortions. (Indianapolis Star) Canadian business man Conrad Black is sentenced to another 13 months in jail in the United States for fraud. (The Globe and Mail) Levi Bellfield is sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of Milly Dowler. (BBC) Movies Cars 2 Bad Teacher Double Dhamaal A Better Life Politics The New York Senate votes to legalise same-sex marriage in New York, assuring passage of the legislation and making New York the largest state to approve such legislation since California reversed its legalization in 2008. (Washington Post) Sport Applications begin for second chance tickets for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, England. (The Daily Telegraph) June 25, 2011 (2011-06-25) (Saturday) Armed conflicts and attacks Arab Spring: 2011 Syrian uprising: Over 1,000 Syrians flee into Lebanon to escape the unrest. (Al Jazeera) Syrian forces attempt to reinforce the border with Turkey. (The Guardian) The Syrian military moves into two villages, one on the border with Turkey and the other on the border with Lebanon, with civilians reportedly being shot in the village near Lebanon. (BBC News), (AFP via Al Jazeera) Syria's deputy foreign minister says anti-regime protests have been ignited and fueled by "extremist" groups with religious affiliations while a human rights group says 1,337 protesters have been killed since anti-regime protests began. (CNN) 2011 Egyptian revolution: Dozens of people are injured in Cairo in clashes between supporters and opponents of putting former President of Egypt Hosni Mubarak on trial for corruption. (The Jerusalem Post) 2011 Libyan civil war: Seventeen top footballers, some former members of the national team, defect to the side of the rebels, arriving to cheering crowds in the rebel stronghold of Zintan in western Libya. (CNN) (BBC) War in Afghanistan (2001–2021): 35 people are killed in a suicide car bomb attack in Afghanistan's Logar Province. (Reuters) At least 10 people are killed in clashes in northern Kenya amid a severe drought affecting East Africa. (Al Jazeera) Computer hacking group LulzSec announces that it is disbanding. (Business Insider) Forces from Mauritania and Mali clash with Al-Qaeda militants in Mali, destroying a base; several bodies are later found. (Modern Ghana) (Focus Information Agency) (CNN) Five people are killed and 25 injured in clashes with police in the Puno region, Peru, in protests over mining projects. (CNN) Disasters 10 people are killed in Vietnam by storms, seven of which were struck by lightning. (Times of India) A strengthening tropical storm affects parts of eastern China, causing flooding, while a prolonged drought plagues the northwest of the country. (UPI) (Xinhua) The death toll from the California Zephyr Amtrak train colliding with a truck in the U.S. state of Nevada rises to six, with two dozen passengers unaccounted for. (RGJ), (AP via Forbes) Law and crime Alleged personal details of former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Tony Blair are published online by computer hackers. (Daily Telegraph) Former Egyptian trade minister, Rashid Mohamed Rashid, is convicted in absentia of profiteering and unlawfully taking money from the country's Export Development Fund and is sentenced to five years in prison and fined nearly 9.4 million Egyptian pound ($1.6 million). (CNN) Politics Release of Chinese dissidents: Activist Hu Jia is released after serving three and a half years in jail for criticising human rights conditions in China. (Al Jazeera) (AFP via Google News) (Voice of Russia) Four associates of Chinese artist and dissident Ai Weiwei are released. (BBC) New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signs New York State's Marriage Equality Law, legalizing same-sex marriage in New York, and making New York the largest U.S. state to approve such legislation since California reversed its legalization in 2008. (CNN) Science The number of adults with diabetes in the world has more than doubled since 1980, according to a new study. (BBC) June 26, 2011 (2011-06-26) (Sunday) Armed conflicts and attacks Arab Spring: 2011 Syrian uprising: A Syrian military spokesman says more than 400 members of security forces have been killed in the months-long unrest as videos surface allegedly showing children killed in the violence. (CNN) French newspaper Le Figaro reports that Hezbollah has transferred hundreds of missiles from Syria to Lebanon, fearing the fall of the Syrian government in the ongoing Syrian uprising. (Haaretz) 2011 Libyan civil war: Rebels and regime forces clash about 80 km (50 miles) south-west of the capital, Tripoli as rebels make a push towards the capital. (BBC) Israeli–Palestinian conflict: Following accusations by the Foreign Press Association that Israel is intimidating journalists on the 10-ship flotilla due to sail to the Gaza Strip, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that the journalists will not to be sanctioned. (The Guardian) (The Jerusalem Post) Israeli troops begin to dismantle part of the controversial West Bank barrier near the Palestinian village of Bilin, four years after a court ordered it to be re-routed. (BBC) A bomb causes a large explosion near the United Nations compound in Gaza City on the Gaza Strip. (BBC) Vietnamese protesters march in the capital Hanoi for the fourth successive week calling on the People's Republic of China to stop entering Vietnamese territorial waters on the South China Sea. (AP via MSNBC) At least 25 people are killed and many others are wounded after a bomb explodes in Maiduguri. (BBC) (The Guardian) Arts and culture More than one million people participate in São Paulo's 15th Gay Pride March following the recent improvement in the legal rights afforded to the country's gay community. (BBC) It is confirmed that Daniel Craig, the current James Bond, has married the Academy Award-winning actress Rachel Weisz at a private ceremony in the U.S. state of New York. (BBC) Glastonbury Festival 2011 in Pilton, Somerset: Beyoncé makes her debut at the Glastonbury Festival, becoming one of only a small number of women to have headlined. (BBC) (The Guardian) Christopher Shale, a senior member of British Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservative constituency association, is found dead in a portaloo; Shale died hours after a critical strategy document credited to him was published in a Sunday newspaper. (BBC) (The Guardian) Disasters Eruption of Puyehue-Cordón Caulle in Chile: Ash cloud from the 2011 Puyehue-Cordón Caulle eruption continues to disrupt flights between Australia and New Zealand. (The Sydney Morning Herald) The Chilean airline LAN cancels 39 flights in Chile and Argentina due to ash cloud from the 2011 Puyehue-Cordón Caulle eruption. (AP via AM 1150) The bodies of six mountaineers are found on Neige Cordier in the French Alps after apparently having been killed by an avalanche. (BBC) (The Guardian) (CNN) Law and crime The so-called "LulzSec" hackers have reportedly disbanded after a final data dump including information from AOL Inc. and AT&T. (Reuters) The sentence for a drug possession conviction of the nephew of deposed Tunisian President, Zine el Abidine Ben Ali, is increased after he appeals it. (CNN) Politics The Senate of Canada passes a back-to-work bill imposing a labour contract for 48,000 Canada Post employees resulting in a return-to-work by Tuesday. (CBC) Science The strain of E. coli blamed for 46 deaths in Germany appears to have resurfaced in France, sickening eight people, who have been hospitalized in Bordeaux. (CNN) Sports In association football, Club Atlético River Plate of Argentina are relegated for the first time in their 110-year history. The result enrages River Plate hooligans, who riot inside and outside the stadium; at least 35 police and 55 civilians are reported to be injured. (Associated Press via USA Today) In car racing, Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull wins the European Grand Prix in Valencia. (BBC Sport) (The Sunday Business Post) (The Guardian) A former goalkeeper for the South Korea national football team turns himself in for involvement in a match fixing scheme for K-League matches. (Yonhap News) June 27, 2011 (2011-06-27) (Monday) Armed conflicts and attacks Arab Spring: 2011 Syrian uprising: Dozens of dissidents, some of whom were previously imprisoned by the regime, attend a conference in Damascus. It is the first such conference. (BBC) Syrian President Bashar al-Assad announces that his government will invite opposition figures to talks to be held in July to set the framework for a national dialogue that he has promised, and that constitutional changes would be on the agenda. (The Jerusalem Post) 2011 Libyan civil war: The International Criminal Court at The Hague issues an arrest warrant for Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, and two of his relatives, his son Saif al-Islam Gaddafi and intelligence chief Abdullah Senussi for alleged "crimes against humanity". (AFP via France 24) (CBS News) (CNN) Bahraini uprising: The trial of 47 medical personnel, accused of working against the government during large protests in Bahrain earlier this year resumes and is immediately adjourned; human rights groups say Bahrain is targeting medical professionals for treating protesters. (CNN) War in Afghanistan: Seven civilians, including children, are killed by two separate roadside mines in Afghanistan's eastern Ghazni Province; an 8-year-old girl was killed when militants gave her a remote-controlled explosive in a bag and told her to give it to police officers in Oruzgan Province. (CNN) Afghanistan says the Pakistani military is behind recent deadly rocket attacks in Kunar Province that killed at least 20 civilians; Pakistan says it is not responsible. (CNN) Conflicts in Pakistan: The Pakistani Taliban said two of the three suicide bombers who killed 10 police officers Saturday in northwestern Pakistan were a married couple; 15 policemen were taken hostage by other miltants before security forces killed six of them. (CNN) A suspected U.S. drone attack in the South Waziristan, Pakistan, bordering on Afghanistan, kills six militants. (CNN) One person is killed during an attack on a train in Sudan. (BBC) Iran announces plans to conduct a military exercise and test the Sajjil long-range missile, which is reportedly capable of striking Israel or southeastern Europe. (The Jerusalem Post) Arts and culture Overseas artists are "poorly treated" by the UK's "absurd visa bureaucracy" according to a letter signed by dozens of prominent artists, including David Hare, Tom Stoppard, Salman Rushdie, Hanif Kureishi, Philip Pullman, Antonia Fraser, Michael Morpurgo and Sarah Waters. The letter suggests Abbas Kiarostami and Grigory Sokolov have already been "dissuaded from future visits". (BBC) (The Guardian) (The Daily Telegraph) (The Economic Times) The University of York purchases a tonne of material relating to Alan Ayckbourn for £240,000 and plans to make it available to the general public and online. (The Guardian) Old people are using Facebook in the United Kingdom more and more according to Nielsen. (BBC) Business and economy Greek economic crisis: The Parliament of Greece begins debate on unpopular austerity measures designed to avert the threat of bankruptcy through a 78-billion-euro rescue package. (Reuters via Yahoo News) (Bloomberg) The governor of the central bank of Greece, George Provopoulos, criticizes the government's latest austerity measures, saying it does not emphasize cutting expenditure sufficiently. (CNN) The Los Angeles Dodgers file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. (ESPN.com) A leak is detected in a PTT Public Company Limited pipeline in the Gulf of Thailand; the leak will cut natural gas supplies in Thailand and affect power generation. (Bangkok Post) The Premier of China Wen Jiabao signals that the People's Republic of China will have trouble meeting its inflation target of 4 per cent in 2011. (Reuters) Disasters Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster: Tests conducted last month show radioactive cesium has been found in small quantities in residents in the towns of Iitate and Kawamata, Fukushima, located about 25 miles (40 kilometers) from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. (CNN) Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) begins the pumping of decontaminated water in an attempt to cool damaged reactors. (BBC) Nicolas Sarkozy of France plans to invest €1 billion in nuclear power despite the devastation caused by the ongoing Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster in Japan. (BBC) 2011 Pacific typhoon season: Tropical Storm Meari leaves at least nine people dead and three missing as it strikes the west coast of South Korea, with heavy rains and strong winds causing flooding and the suspension of sea traffic around the Korean Peninsula.(CNN) 17 people are killed by Tropical Storm Haima in northern Vietnam. (AP via Boston Globe) 1 person is killed and 17 others are injured in a gas station explosion in Urfa, Turkey. (Xinhua) Las Conchas Wildfire The Los Alamos National Laboratory in the U.S. state of New Mexico is temporarily closed due to a wildfire burning nearby. (CNN) A state of emergency is declared in Los Alamos County with mandatory evacuations. (Los Alamos Monitor) Trains in England are cancelled due to extreme heat. (BBC) International relations The United States Government publishes the Trafficking In Persons report, naming those countries that are not meeting minimum standards against human trafficking and slavery, and which may be subject to US sanctions as a result. (CNN) Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir, the subject of an International Criminal Court arrest warrant for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity in the region of Darfur, unexpectedly delays his visit to China without official explanation, after he had already departed for an anti-terrorism conference hosted by Iran. (CNN) Philip Morris International, the world's largest tobacco corporation, threatens to sue the Australian government in relation to its introduction of plain, brandless cigarette packing. (BBC) Pakistan expels British military advisers following the United States Navy Seals raid that resulted in the death of Osama bin Laden. (The Daily Telegraph) (CNN) Gaza Flotilla II: Israel denies pressuring Greece to stop the ships participating in the flotilla from departing; Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu's inner cabinet instructs the Israel Defense Forces to stop it. (CNN) (Haaretz) (The Jerusalem Post) Israel agrees with Egypt's military council to permit flotilla ships to unload at el-Arish ahead of an overland transfer to Gaza. (Xinhua) Law and crime Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association: In a 7-2 decision, the Supreme Court of the United States strikes down a 2005 California law prohibiting minors' access to violent or offensive video games, citing them as protected speech under the First Amendment. (AP via Chicago Sun-Times) A United Nations-backed tribunal in Cambodia holds its first hearings in the trial of four former senior Khmer Rouge officials, including former head of state Khieu Samphan and Pol Pot's deputy Nuon Chea. (BBC) (AFP via France 24) Chinese human rights activist Hu Jia is released after serving a 3 1/2-year sentence, for "inciting to subvert state power." (CNN) Police clash with local residents who object to Italian government plans to build a European Union-funded rail link with France near their homes in the Italian Alps. The police intervention follows a peaceful candlelight nighttime prayer vigil featuring thousands of people. (BBC) A jury convicts former Governor of the US state of Illinois Rod Blagojevich on seventeen charges of corruption. (Chicago Tribune) Justin Cannon, a former Blackwater Worldwide (now called Xe Services LLC) employee, is sentenced to thirty months in jail for involuntary manslaughter of an Afghan civilian in a shooting in 2009. (Virginian Pilot) Politics Up to 750,000 teachers and civil servants in the United Kingdom are set to strike on Thursday after talks aimed at averting the action failed to broker an agreement. (BBC) More than 30 activists are held in detention in Malaysia ahead of a mass rally in Kuala Lumpur asking for an end to fraud. The government declares the rally "illegal". (BBC) Lawmakers in the US state of Texas pass a healthcare bill imposing further restrictions on abortion. (AP via The Houston Chronicle) Rep Lynn Woolsey, a California Democrat, announces her retirement from the United States House of Representatives at the end of the 112th United States Congress. (Roll Call) Science Near-Earth Asteroid 2011 MD passed within 12,000 kilometres (7,500 miles) of the Earth's surface at about 13:00 EDT flying over the South Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of Antarctica. (ABC Australia) (LiveScience.com) June 28, 2011 (2011-06-28) (Tuesday) Armed conflict and attacks U.S. drone attacks on North Waziristan: Two U.S. drone missile attacks are reported to have killed at least 15 people in North Waziristan in a late night attack by the U.S. on the region. (BBC) Tribal sources later indicate that the death toll from the U.S. strikes has increased to 26. (The News International) A report from Refugees International blames NATO's air strikes, its arming of militias, and home raids for the displacement of more than 250,000 people in Afghanistan, a problem which is increasing. (Al Jazeera) (Refugees International) Attack on Kabul InterContinental Hotel: Afghan militants attack the Kabul InterContinental Hotel resulting in the deaths of nine Taliban members and five or six hotel workers or guests. (CNN) (Al Jazeera) (AP via Atlanta Journal Constitution) NATO helicopters fire on the hotel roof. (BBC) 2010–2011 Greek protests: Greek trade unions go on a general strike with transport links including airline flights being cancelled. (AFP via France 24) Police fire tear gas and stun grenades on the anti-austerity protest in Athens, causing injuries and breathing difficulties. (BBC) The protesters include doctors, ambulance drivers, journalists and actors plying their trade at a state-funded theatre. (Al Jazeera) Freedom Flotilla II: The propeller house and propeller shaft of the pro-Palestinian flotilla's Swedish ship Juliano are damaged by "hostile divers" in the Greek port of Piraeus, with participants suggesting sabotage. (Al Jazeera) (CBC News) Arab Spring: 2011 Libyan civil war: Hospitals in Benghazi are reported to be running low on vital supplies. (BBC) People in Misrata celebrate on the streets as news reaches them that arrest warrants have been issued by the International Criminal Court for Muammar Gaddafi, Saif al-Islam Gaddafi and Abdullah Senussi. (Al Jazeera) 2011 Syrian uprising: Syria's ambassador to the United Kingdom is summoned to answer to allegations that a diplomat is intimidating U.K.-based Syrians. (BBC) The opposition meets in Damascus to call for democracy and to support the "peaceful uprising". (Al Jazeera) 2011 Egyptian revolution: A Cairo court rules in favour of calls by anti-regime protesters and rules Egypt's local councils elected under the ousted regime of Hosni Mubarak are to be dissolved. (Al Jazeera) Egyptian protesters clash with police in Cairo's Tahrir Square. (Al-Jazeera) Iran tests 14 surface-to-surface missiles on the second day of war games. (Ynet News) Arts and culture Myanmar deports and blacklists actress Michelle Yeoh who is due to depict Opposition Leader Aung San Suu Kyi in an upcoming movie. (AFP via Asia One) (BBC) (The Guardian) (The Daily Telegraph) Chinese authorities order artist Ai Weiwei, released from his 80-day imprisonment last week, to pay more than 12 million yuan in unpaid taxes and fines thought by those who know him to be related to his activism. (BBC) BBC reporter Urunboy Usmonov, imprisoned in a Tajikistan jail in Dushanbe, is reported to be "frail". (BBC) Business and economy Christine Lagarde, France's finance minister since 2007, is named the new head the International Monetary Fund (IMF) following the resignation of Dominique Strauss-Kahn. (BBC) (Al Jazeera) The Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco) incurs wrath from shareholders at its first annual meeting since the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, with a motion asking the company to abandon nuclear power being defeated. (BBC) The New York Court of Appeals rules that insurance policyholders opposed to a restructuring plan undertaken by MBIA in 2009 with the approval of its primary regulator, New York's insurance authorities, may sue for fraudulent conveyance in a trial court in that state. (Wall Street Journal) Disasters The crew of the International Space Station rush to a rescue shuttle amid concern of the need for a possible emergency evacuation back to Earth as a piece of space debris hurtles dangerously close. (BBC) Los Alamos National Laboratory, a major U.S. nuclear weapons research facility, is shut down and is to remain closed as fire fighters battle a raging wildfire nearby. (BBC) The United Nations reports the worst drought in six decades is affecting more than 10 million people and forced people in Somalia to flee to Kenya and Ethiopia as they starve to death. (BBC) At least 12 people are injured in a gas explosion and fire at the Surgut-1 Power Station in the Russian city of Surgut, Tyumen Oblast. (ITAR TASS) (RIA Novosti) (Reuters) Tropical storm Arlene, the first of the 2011 Atlantic hurricane season, forms in the southwestern Gulf of Mexico. (Houston Chronicle) A ferry sinks off the coast of Haiti near Port-au-Prince resulting in at least five deaths and seven people missing. (AP via Washington Post) Fourteen people die following a flash flood in Davao City in the Philippines. (Manila Bulletin) International relations The President of Sudan Omar Hassan al-Bashir arrives in Beijing for talks with Hu Jintao, the President of the People's Republic of China to discuss the recent partition with Southern Sudan. (Al Jazeera) Germany and the People's Republic of China hold a joint cabinet meeting in Berlin with many lucrative contracts signed. (AFP via Google News) Law and crime Six police officers are found guilty of crimes against the security of the state as a result of last September's attempted coup against President of Ecuador Rafael Correa who was tear gassed and imprisoned in a hospital. (BBC) Saudi Arabia approves a law regulating marriages between Saudi citizens and citizens of other countries. (Emirates 24/7) The TechCrunch web publication reports that the Anonymous computer hacking group has declared war on the U.S. city of Orlando, Florida, in supposed retaliation for the arrest of members of Food Not Bombs. (Tech Crunch) Politics and elections Sir Michael Somare, veteran Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, resigns due to ill-health according to his family. (The Australian) (ABC News Australia) Opposition parties boycott the swearing-in of the new parliament in Ankara after judges ban nine elected MPs. (BBC) (Al Jazeera) Ireland's parliament is involved in controversy amid newspaper reports that thousands of phone calls were made from Dáil Éireann to help TD Michael Healy-Rae win a charity reality TV show four years ago. Taxpayers then picked up the bill. (Irish Independent) (The Irish Times) (TV3) (Newstalk) The California State Legislature passes a 2011-12 budget containing significant increases in taxes. (AP via KCRA) Science Anti-pi groups mark Tau Day. (BBC) Sport In baseball, a judge in the U.S. state of Delaware authorizes the Los Angeles Dodgers to enter into a $150 million bankruptcy financing deal after the club addresses concerns of Major League Baseball. (AP via News 3) In association football, 8 players from the Mexico national football team's Copa América squad are suspended for six months. (BBC Sport) June 29, 2011 (2011-06-29) (Wednesday) Armed conflicts and attacks Arab Spring: 2011 Egyptian revolution: At least 66 people are injured in violent clashes between protesters and security forces in Cairo's Tahrir Square. (Al Jazeera) (McClatchy via Sacramento Bee) Protesters demand the resignation of the head of the military council General Mohamed Hussein Tantawi and interior minister Mansour Essawi over the violence blamed on police, the worst the country has seen in weeks since the toppling of the Hosni Mubarak-led regime. (BBC) 2011 Libyan civil war: The French military reports France air-dropped weapons to anti-regime Berber rebels trying to bring down Muammar Gaddafi in the west's Nafusa Mountains in early June. Le Figaro suggests rocket launchers and anti-tank missiles were among the weapons dropped. (BBC) (Al Jazeera) 2011 Syrian uprising: At least 4 people are killed by government troops in the northwestern province of Idlib.(Al Jazeera) 2011 Bahraini uprising: King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa orders an independent investigation into the protests. (Al Jazeera) 2011 Omani protests: A court jails 13 people who had demanded better jobs in protests in the city of Sohar. (The Times of India) Freedom Flotilla II: The international flotilla sets sail one year after the deadly raid on a previous flotilla by Israeli commandos in international waters of the Mediterranean Sea. (Asia Times Online) (The Globe and Mail) Greek protests against government cuts: Barriers, batons and tear gas are in use as hundreds of riot police engage with demonstrators around the Greek parliament building over the government cuts. (The Guardian) Greek MPs call this "chemical warfare" against civilians "outrageous" and state that it has "assumed lethal dimensions", with a chorus of complaints rising against the police for overreacting violently and hitting protesters. (The Guardian) BBC correspondent in Athens calls riot police response brutal and of the kind that would not be tolerated in other European nations, as police threw stones and pieces of marble at the protesters and even threw tear gas inside a metro station. (BBC) At least 5 people are killed during a gunfight in Lubumbashi in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with President Joseph Kabila in town to view Independence Day ceremonies on Thursday. (BBC) The International Organization for Migration (IOM) expresses concern about thousands of Chadian people, mainly women, children and the elderly, stranded on dangerous territory on the border between Chad and Libya. (BBC) (IOM) Research by Brown University finds the U.S. wars on Iraq and Afghanistan are expected to cost at least $3.2 trillion, and maybe as much as $4.4 trillion, higher than previously expected. (Al Jazeera) A curfew is imposed on Abuja by the Nigerian government due to recent deadly attacks. (BBC) The President of Colombia Juan Manuel Santos condemns a FARC ambush that killed a senior police officer. (BBC) Arts and culture Pope Benedict XVI launches a new Vatican website, news.va, and performs the first tweet by a pope. (AFP via Herald-Sun) Rick Gekoski, the chairman of the Man Booker International Prize judging panel, admits they were "animated by disagreement" over the controversial decision to give the 2011 award to Philip Roth amid fears that it would offend women after one of the female judges resigned in disgust. (BBC) Chinese artist Ai Weiwei's wife says he is to challenge a bill of more than 12 million yuan in unpaid taxes and fines which the Chinese government, of which he is a critic, has charged him with. (BBC) Business and economy The Greek parliament votes in favor of austerity measures to deal with the country's economic crisis; global markets rise as a result. (The Guardian) (The Wall Street Journal) (Al Jazeera) Approximately 750,000 workers in the United Kingdom commence strike action over pension reform plans. (Sky News) The Alderney Gambling Control Commission suspends Full Tilt Poker's gaming license prior to a hearing over an indictment by the United States Department of Justice. (Las Vegas Review Journal) Media conglomerate News Corporation sells MySpace to Specific Media. (BBC) Disasters A wildfire worsens near major U.S. nuclear weapons research lab Los Alamos National Laboratory in the U.S. state of New Mexico; residents express concern about contamination. (BBC) The death toll from a tropical storm kills 22 people in Vietnam. (The Straits Times) 18 children - 15 girls and 3 boys - are killed when lightning strikes a primary school in Masindi in the Western Region of Uganda. (BBC) (Uganda Monitor) International relations South Sudan accuses Sudan of supporting rebels. (Christian Science Monitor) North Korea accuses South Korea of slander and threatens "a retaliatory sacred war". (AFP via Channel News Asia) Omar al-Bashir of Sudan and Hu Jintao of the People's Republic of China meet. (BBC) Law and crime A lawsuit of $25 million is brought by the mother of a U.S. teen, who was kidnapped, bound and forced to consume alcoholic substances before his death at a fraternity house, against the group responsible for his ordeal in the U.S. state of New York. (BBC) Six members of a paramilitary force and a civilian are charged with murder in relation to the death of unarmed Sarfaraz Shah in Karachi, whose 8 June shooting was filmed and later broadcast on television. (BBC) A court ruling restricting the powers of police bail throws thousands of cases in England and Wales into disarray. (BBC) Politics and elections Malaysia arrests 14 people ahead of a planned pro-reform rally. (The Straits Times) New pictures and video footage of a fit Hugo Chávez chatting to Fidel Castro are shown on Cuban state television after concerns were expressed for the President of Venezuela's health following recent surgery. (BBC) (Taiwan News) Burma's government asks Aung San Suu Kyi and her party to stop its political activities. (BBC) (Zee News) Some United Kingdom Border Agency staff begin industrial action ahead of tomorrow's strike involving several hundred thousand civil servants in protest at changes to their pensions. (BBC) Irish senator Ned O'Sullivan admits making "around a dozen" of the thousands of phone calls originating from Dáil Éireann to help TD Michael Healy-Rae win a charity reality TV show four years ago. Taxpayers then picked up the bill. (RTÉ) (BBC) The Rhode Island General Assembly passes legislation allowing same-sex couples in the US state to enter civil unions. (ABC 6) Sport In association football, Choi Sung-Kuk, a former forward with the South Korea national football team, admits involvement in a K-League match fixing scheme. (AFP via France 24) In tennis, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga comes back to defeat Roger Federer at Wimbledon, the first loss Federer has sustained from being two sets ahead at a Grand Slam. (BBC Sport) (Al Jazeera) (Reuters) (The Denver Post) Carson Yeung, president of England's Birmingham City F.C., is quizzed by police in Hong Kong over criminal investigations. (BBC News) June 30, 2011 (2011-06-30) (Thursday) Armed conflicts and attacks Arab Spring: 2011 Syrian uprising: The Syrian army kills a man and his 1 year old infant son after they attack his house in the village of al-Bara. (CNN) Al Jazeera reports that there have been many arrests in the southern town of Deraa with people fleeing to either Damascus or Jordan. (Al Jazeera) 2011 Libyan civil war: France's dropping of arms for tribal fighters in Libya is a "crude violation" of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1970 according to Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov, echoing African Union concerns that it risks "a Somalia-sation" of Libya". (BBC) The UK Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs William Hague announces that Britain would supply body armour, police uniforms and communications equipment to Libyan National Transitional Council police forces. (AP via San Jose Mercury News) 2011 Egyptian revolution: A court says that it will issue a ruling on the murder case of two policeman allegedly involved in the death of Khaled Mohamed Saeed on August 24, rather than today as was expected, in a case that helped spark the revolution. (Reuters via Alertnet) (Al Jazeera) Afghanistan: Two freed French journalists, Herve Ghesquiere and Stephane Taponier, return to France after being held captive in Afghanistan by the Taliban for 18 months. (AFP via France 24) The International Security Assistance Force blames the Pakistani Haqqani network for a recent attack on the Kabul Inter-Continental and claims to have killed the organiser of the attack in a targeted strike on Wednesday. (CBS News) At least five private security contractors are killed and nine others are injured in a U.S. airstrike in Afghanistan. (Press TV) The Pakistani media reports Defence Minister Ahmad Mukhtar as claiming that the United States will no longer be able to use the Shamsi Airfield to launch drone attacks on militants. (Reuters) (Al Jazeera) Official records on the 2002 Gujarat violence, which killed more than 1,000 people, are reported to have been destroyed in line with regulations. (BBC) The United Nations extends MONUSCO, its mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, for a thirteenth year, with 5 million people dead so far. (Al Jazeera) Amnesty International calls on the People's Republic of China to stop the harassment, arbitrary detention and torture of human rights lawyers. (Reuters via Alertnet) Al-Shamukh, a popular jihadist Internet forum, is knocked off the Internet by a fairly sophisticated cyberattack. (CBS News) Iraq War: The United States has lost a total of 15 troops in Iraq this month, making it the deadliest month for U.S. forces in Iraq since June 2009, when 14 soldiers were killed fighting the Iraqi insurgency. (AP via Kansas City Star) Arts and culture Glenn Beck hosts his final program on the US Fox News Channel. (New York times) Business and economy The Beijing–Shanghai High-Speed Railway commences commercial operation in the People's Republic of China. (Economic Times of India) The Japanese auto industry begins designated weekday shutdowns as part of an effort to save energy as a result of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster. (Kyodo) Samsung Electronics lodges a claim with the US International Trade Commission to stop Apple Inc. importing six products including the iPhone, iPod and iPads for alleged patent infringements. (Yonhap) Italy's government attempts to bring in its own austerity measures to calm turbulent markets and reassure investors. (AFP via Google News) (Reuters) (The Financial Times) In the United Kingdom, the cheque guarantee card scheme – which ensures some cheques are honoured even if the account holder does not have sufficient funds in their account – is being withdrawn today after operating for over 40 years. (BBC) Disasters According to a study by a team of epidemiologists and physicians, evidence "strongly suggests" that United Nations peacekeepers brought a cholera strain to Haiti that has killed thousands of people. (AP via Google News) (Press TV) The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the European Food Safety Authority announce investigations suggest that fenugreek seeds imported from Egypt are implicated in the E. coli outbreaks. (Reuters) Tropical Storm Arlene, the first tropical storm of the 2011 Atlantic hurricane season, makes landfall near Cabo Rojo bringing heavy rain to Mexico and southern Texas. (Houston Chronicle), (National Hurricane Centre) A 5.4 magnitude earthquake hits Nagano Prefecture in Japan, resulting in at least seven injuries. (Kyodo) A heavy thunderstorm hits the midwestern United States of Illinois and Wisconsin leaving thousands of homes without power and causing transport problems in Chicago. (WISN), (Chicago Tribune) International relations Saudi Arabia stops issuing permits for workers from Indonesia and the Philippines as the row over the beheading of an Indonesian maid by Saudi Arabia continues. (BBC) The inaugural meeting of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States due to be held in Venezuela next week is deferred due to a slow recovery of President of Venezuela Hugo Chavez from an operation in Cuba. (AFP via Google) (Al Jazeera) (Press TV) Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge start a nine-day 2011 royal tour of Canada. (Canadian Press via Winnipeg Free Press) (BBC) United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is in Budapest today. (BBC) Freedom Flotilla II: Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu says that Israel is "fully entitled to work against" attempts by the Gaza-bound "provocation flotilla" to smuggle arms into the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip. (The Jerusalem Post) Ireland's Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore expresses concern over reports that €15,000 worth of damage to the flotilla's Irish ship MV Saoirse may have been caused by sabotage, after similar damage was caused to the Greek ship. (RTÉ) (Haaretz) (Press TV) (BBC) It is later confirmed that the ship will be unable to participate with other members of the flotilla. (Newstalk) (Al Jazeera) (Evening Herald) (The Daily Telegraph) Law and crime Taiwanese media reports that former President Lee Teng-hui has been indicted on charges of embezzlement from a state diplomatic fund. (The Washington Post) A man who attempts to knock down President of France Nicolas Sarkozy in Brax is arrested by officers. (AP via MSNBC) Carson Yeung, the Hong Kong businessman who owns English Football League Championship side Birmingham City F.C., is formally charged with money laundering and released on bail. (Reuters) The United Nations-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon investigating the killing of Lebanon's former prime minister and business tycoon Rafic Hariri in 2005 issues 4 arrest warrants. (BBC) (Al Jazeera) Head of Naples police intervention brigade Vittorio Pisani is investigated in Italy after coming under suspicion of leaking information to the mafia. (Press TV) Englishman Neil Entwistle is appealing his murder conviction of his wife and daughter in Massachusetts, USA. (Guardian.co.uk) Thomas Masuku, a senior judge in Swaziland, is suspended over allegedly insults to King Mswati III. (BBC) Politics and elections Protests against austerity in Greece: The Greek parliament in Athens holds a second vote on cuts, this one to put in place pay cuts, tax increases, privatisations and redundancies. (BBC) Protests continue outside parliament as MPs consider this the second part of their austerity package. (Al Jazeera) Greece's rulers pass the second austerity bill asked for by the European Union (EU) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) by a margin of 155 in favour of it, 136 against it and 5 abstaining. (Al Jazeera) Protests against austerity in the UK: Hundreds of thousands of people go on strike across the United Kingdom in relation to worsening pension conditions being discussed by the government and opposition, while MPs from both the government and opposition condemn them for going on strike. (BBC) (Press TV) (Al Jazeera) 26 people are arrested while protesting their government's pension cuts in London as clashes and the controversial police tactic of kettling get underway. (Press TV) 2011 Spanish protests: Riot police in full gear surround scores of "indignados" protesting against austerity, political corruption and rising unemployment and evict them from their six-week encampment in Barcelona's Plaza de Catalunya. (AFP via Google News) (Expatica Spain) The Indonesian National Police arrests at least one suspect in connection to the alleged forgery of documents associated with the 2009 legislative elections. (Jakarta Post) Bangladesh's parliament overturns a requirement, dating from the mid-1990s, that general elections be watched over by non-partisan caretaker governments; the opposition protests over fears that future elections could be rigged. (BBC) A by-election is held in the UK Parliament constituency of Inverclyde to elect a new MP following the death of the previous incumbent, Labour's David Cairns in May. (BBC) The President of Venezuela Hugo Chavez speaks on Venezuelan television that he is fighting cancer in Cuba. (AP via ABC News) Sport In tennis, Petra Kvitová defeats Victoria Azarenka to reach her first Grand Slam final at Wimbledon. (BBC Sport) Owners in the North American National Basketball Association are expected to start a lockout after failing to reach a new collective bargaining agreement. (Washington Post)

June 2011 S M T W T F S 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30  Ongoing events Disasters Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster Mississippi River floods Flooding in China Souris River flood Economic Global financial crisis European sovereign debt crisis Greek economic crisis Medical HIV/AIDS in Africa Haiti cholera outbreak E. coli outbreak Political Anti-austerity protests Greek protests Spanish protests UK protests Arab Spring Bahraini uprising Egyptian revolution Jordanian protests Libyan Civil War Syrian uprising Tunisian revolution Yemeni uprising Belgian political crisis Freedom Flotilla II Kurdish protests Wikileaks diplomatic cable releases Scientific Expedition 28  Recent deaths June 30: Sean Wight 27: Lorenzo Charles 27: Mike Doyle 27: Elaine Stewart 26: Duffy Lyon 25: Margaret Tyzack 23: Peter Falk 20: Ryan Dunn 18: Yelena Bonner 18: Frederick Chiluba 18: Clarence Clemons 18: Brian Haw 17: David Brockhoff 17: Betty Fox 17: Rex Mossop 12: Laura Ziskin 11: Seth Putnam 10: Patrick Leigh Fermor 10: Brian Lenihan 9: M. F. Husain 8: John Mackenzie 8: Fazul Abdullah Mohammed 8: Jim Northrup 8: Steve Popovich 8: Roy Skelton  Ongoing conflicts Global War on terror Terrorist incidents Operation Active Endeavour Operation Enduring Freedom War on drugs Africa Libyan Civil War Tunisian Revolution Maghreb insurgency OEF - Trans Sahara Casamance conflict Niger Delta conflict South Kordofan conflict Lord's Resistance Army insurgency Somalia: Civil war Somali Civil War (2009–present) Piracy OEF - Horn of Africa Europe Basque conflict Real IRA North Caucasus insurgency Ingushetia civil war Middle East Iraqi insurgency Iran-Jundallah conflict Fatah–Hamas conflict Arab–Israeli conflict Israeli–Palestinian conflict Israeli–Lebanese conflict Palestinian political violence and rocket attacks Yemen: Terrorism and al-Qaeda crackdown South Yemen insurgency Shia insurgency Kurdistan: Turkey–PKK conflict Iran–PJAK conflict Asia Afghanistan War Military operations Taliban insurgency Pakistan: Terrorism North-West War Balochistan conflict Drone attacks Sectarian violence India: Terrorism Jammu and Kashmir insurgency Naxalite–Maoist insurgency Northeast India insurgency Nagaland ethnic conflict Kashmir conflict Siachen conflict Korean maritime border incidents Southeast Asia: Laos insurgency Burma internal conflict Burma border clashes South Thailand insurgency Cambodian–Thai border dispute Philippines insurgency OEF - Philippines Papua conflict Americas Colombian conflict Plan Colombia FARC Mexican Drug War Mérida Initiative Peru internal conflict  Elections Recent: June 12: Turkey, General 12–13: Italy, Referendum 15: Laos, President (indirect) 17–19: Liechtenstein, Registered partnership referendum 22: Palau, Casino referendum Upcoming: July 1: Morocco, Constitutional referendum 3: Thailand, General 17: São Tomé and Príncipe, President 23: Latvia, Parliamentary dissolution referendum 25: Vietnam, President (indirect) Upcoming: August 7: Cape Verde, President 12: Guyana, Parliament 23: Liberia, Constitutional referendum 26: Abkhazia, President 29–30: Estonia, President (indirect)  Trials Recently concluded Cambodia: Kang Kek Iew Germany: John Demjanjuk Indonesia: Abu Bakar Bashir Netherlands: Geert Wilders United Kingdom: Levi Bellfield United States: Faisal Shahzad, Noshir Gowadia, Buju Banton, Barry Bonds, Raj Rajaratnam, Rod Blagojevich Ongoing Cambodia: Khmer Rouge Tribunal Canada: David Russell Williams China: Organized crime in Chongqing France: Church of Scientology Germany: Heinrich Boere Iraq: Supreme Criminal Tribunal Iran: Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani Malaysia: Anwar Ibrahim Netherlands: Thomas Lubanga (ICC), Radovan Karadžić (ICTY) Palau: Tommy Remengesau Peru: Joran van der Sloot Philippines: Andal Ampatuan Jr. Russia: Mikhail Khodorkovsky, Platon Lebedev Sierra Leone]]: Charles Taylor (SCFSL) Singapore: Tak Boleh Tahan Thailand: Thaksin Shinawatra Turkey: Ergenekon network United States: David Headley, Ahmed Ghailani, Jared Lee Loughner, Charles P. White, Casey Anthony Upcoming Egypt: Hosni Mubarak, Alaa Mubarak, Gamal Mubarak Sudan: Lubna al-Hussein Tunisia: Zine El Abidine Ben Ali United States: Viktor Bout, Allen Stanford, Nidal Malik Hasan, Conrad Murray, John Edwards  Holidays  and observances Recent