Portal:Current events/October 2019

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October 2019 was the tenth month of that common year. The month, which began on a Tuesday, ended on a Thursday after 31 days.

Portal:Current events

This is an archived version of Wikipedia's Current events Portal from October 2019.

October 1, 2019 (2019-10-01) (Tuesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• War in Donbass, Minsk Protocol
  • Ukraine agrees to the "Steinmeier formula", aimed at granting a special self-governing status to the Donbass and organising OSCE-validated elections according to Ukrainian law. (Kyiv Post) (TASS)
• 2015–19 Iraqi protests, New Arab Spring
  • At least two people are killed and 200 are injured at protests against unemployment and government corruption in Iraq. Protestors also try to enter the fortified Green Zone in Baghdad. (Reuters)
• Northern Mali conflict
  • Mali's government says jihadist militant attacks on military (FAMA) posts in Mondoro and Boulkessi, in the central Mopti Region, killed 41 troops and left 60 others missing, possibly captured, while also inflicting heavy equipment losses. (Reuters) (Deutsche Welle) (Bloomberg)
• 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests
  • An 18-year-old protestor is shot in the chest by police and taken to hospital for surgery during clashes between pro-democracy protesters and the police in Hong Kong on National Day of the People's Republic of China. Video footage shows the police officer shooting the protester as the protester tries to hit his arm with a metal pipe. This is the first reported injury from a live round. (BBC News)

Arts and culture

• 70th anniversary of the People's Republic of China
  • China celebrates its National Day with parades across the country, including a large military parade in the capital Beijing. (CNN)

Business and economy

• Belfast shipyard Harland and Wolff owner Dolphin Drilling announces it has found a buyer for the shipyard, infrastructure-based InfraStrata, saving it from closure. (Reuters)
• United Parcel Service announces that it has been designated as the first official, commercial, drone airline service by the Federal Aviation Administration. (Wired)
• In leaked audio from a meeting with employees in July, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg threatens to sue Senator Elizabeth Warren, who is running in the 2020 U.S. presidential election, if she is elected president and tries to "break up" large tech companies. (The Verge)
• Kristalina Georgieva succeeds Christine Lagarde as the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund. (The Wall Street Journal)

Disasters and accidents

• The Nanfang'ao Bridge, the only steel single-arch bridge in Taiwan, collapses on fishing boats in Su'ao. Ten people are injured and six are believed to have been trapped. (Reuters)
• Severe flooding affects Laxey, Isle of Man, with some residents evacuated from their homes. (Isle of Man Government)

Health and environment

• Climate change mitigation
  • Dutch farmers stage a protest in The Hague against proposals to halve livestock numbers in a bid to cut nitrogen emissions. Motoring group ANWB claims tractors on highways caused a total of 1,136km (700 miles) of traffic jams during morning rush hour, with tractors on one highway swerving back and forth to prevent traffic passing. (BBC News)

International relations

• North Korea–United States relations, North Korean missile tests, Japan–North Korea relations
  • North Korea says it will resume working-level nuclear talks with the United States, reviving a denuclearization process that has remained stalled since a February summit in Vietnam ended without a deal. (The Wall Street Journal)
  • North Korea fires a missile which lands in the exclusive economic zone of Japan, according to Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga. (Reuters)

Law and crime

• Kuopio school stabbing
  • A woman is killed and ten other people injured when a student attacks a teacher and students with a sword at a vocational school inside a shopping mall in Kuopio, Northern Savonia, Finland. Police disarm and arrest the suspect, who is one of the injured. (Evening Standard) (CNN) (NewsNow)
• A jury finds Amber Guyger, a former Dallas police officer, guilty of murder. Guyger was indicted last year after fatally shooting her unarmed neighbor, Botham Jean, in his own apartment, which she claims to have mistaken for her own. (The Sacramento Bee)
• A U.S. district judge in Boston, Massachusetts, upholds Harvard University's admissions process following a challenge from a group of Asian American applicants who believe the school discriminated against them. (CNN)
• In the United Kingdom, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announce they are suing The Mail on Sunday, as well as its parent company DMG Media, claiming the publisher's newspapers have been publishing "false and deliberately derogatory stories" about their lives. (Yahoo! News)
• Opioid epidemic in the United States
  • Johnson & Johnson announces it has reached a $20.4 million settlement with two Ohio counties over its role in the opioid epidemic in the United States. (The Washington Post)
• Aida Merlano, a former Congresswoman who is serving a fifteen-year sentence for buying votes and for firearms offences, escapes from prison in Bogotá, Colombia. (The Independent)
• Trump–Ukraine scandal
  • U.S. President Donald Trump's personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani hires Watergate scandal prosecutor Jon Sale to represent him in the impeachment inquiry investigating the president. (CNBC)
  • Steve Linick, the inspector general of the U.S. State Department, requests an "urgent" briefing with senior congressional staff members regarding Ukraine. The private meeting will be held tomorrow. (CNN)
• Immigration policy of Donald Trump
  • The New York Times reports that U.S. President Donald Trump suggested shooting migrants in the legs in order to slow them down after they crossed the Mexico–United States border during a meeting in March. He also reportedly suggested digging a moat to fortify a border wall and filling it with "snakes or alligators", and wanted the wall "electrified, with spikes on top that could pierce human flesh". (Business Insider)
• Tax returns of Donald Trump
  • A U.S. federal judge in California blocks a state law requiring presidential candidates to disclose income tax returns before their names can appear on the state's primary ballot. The ruling is considered a win for President Donald Trump, who has resisted releasing his tax returns. (CNN)

Politics and elections

• Impeachment inquiry against Donald Trump
  • U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo accuses House Democrats of attempting to "intimidate" and "bully" five State Department officials whom key congressional committees have asked to interview as part of an impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump. The House Democrats in turn issue a warning to Pompeo to stop "intimidating" witnesses, telling Pompeo that it "is illegal and will constitute evidence of obstruction of the impeachment inquiry" into President Trump. (ABC News), (CNN)
• 2019 Peruvian constitutional crisis
  • The Vice President of Peru Mercedes Aráoz, who was named by the Congress as the acting president, resigns from both offices to facilitate the snap general election. (BBC News)
• Donald Trump 2020 presidential campaign
  • The Republican National Committee and the 2020 U.S. presidential election campaign to reelect President Donald Trump raised $125 million between July and September, setting a new presidential fundraising record, the Associated Press reports. (Axios)
• Politics of San Marino
  • Luca Boschi and Mariella Mularoni begins the term as Captain Regents. (San Marino TV)

October 2, 2019 (2019-10-02) (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• 2018–19 Arab protests
  • At least five people are killed in a second day of spontaneous protests against unemployment, government corruption and lack of basic services in Iraq. Police say they have "lost control" of the city of Nassiriya after exchanging gunfire with protesters. Curfews are imposed on the Iraqi cities of Baghdad, Nassiriya, Amarah and Hillah. (AP) (Reuters)

Business and economy

• The World Trade Organization authorizes the United States to impose about US$7.5 billion in tariffs on goods from the European Union every year. The WTO started the probe in 2005 after the United States complained that European subsidies to Airbus damage Boeing airplane sales. (NPR)
  • The United States announces a tariff of 10% on European-made Airbus planes and 25% on a range of goods, set to take effect on 18 October. (Reuters)
• American retailer Bed Bath & Beyond announces it will close 60 stores by the end of the year due to declining profits. (USA Today)
• A foreign exchange trader, Rohan Ramchandani, has filed a lawsuit against Citigroup. Ramchandani won acquittal last year after criminal charges of market manipulation. He claims that the charges were instigated by his former employer in order to mitigate the regulatory consequences for its own misbehavior. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• Following yesterday's collapse of Nanfang'ao Bridge in Su'ao, Taiwan, onto fishing boats, rescuers recover four bodies. Three are identified as foreign fishermen, with a fourth corpse unidentified. Two people remain missing. (Deutsche Welle)
• 2019 Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress crash
  • A World War II-era B-17 crashes near Bradley International Airport in the U.S. state of Connecticut, killing at least seven of the 13 people on board. (NBC)
• Schoharie limousine crash
  • The National Transportation Safety Board of the United States, as part of its investigation, issues a series of recommendations to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration asking it to mandate improved seatbelt and construction standard for stretch limousines. (Reuters)
• At least 14 people are killed after an illegal gold mine collapses in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's Maniema province. Search efforts are underway for others who could be trapped. (BBC News)
• Star City fire
  • A fire razed Star City, an amusement park in Pasay, Philippines in a suspected arson attack early morning. (Yahoo! News UK)

International relations

• Japan–North Korea relations, North Korean missile tests
  • Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe condemns in the strongest terms the latest North Korean missile tests and says they clearly violate United Nations Security Council resolutions. (BBC News)
  • North Korean state media says the country has successfully tested a new type of submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) off the coast of Wonsan. (Deutsche Welle) (Reuters)
• U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks out about China's religious freedom violations during a visit to the Vatican. (Catholic News Agency)

Law and crime

• Corruption in Israel
  • Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces a pretrial hearing regarding the charges against him in Case 4000, one of the three corruption cases in which the Israeli Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit decided to indict him, pending a hearing. (The Guardian)
• Internet censorship in Singapore
  • The Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA), a law giving the Singaporean government more powers to stop the spread of designated falsehoods and fake news, goes into effect. Rights groups like Human Rights Watch and journalists worry the law could be used to stifle dissent and free expression. (NPR)
• Trump–Ukraine scandal, Impeachment inquiry against Donald Trump
  • A whistleblower who filed a complaint against U.S. President Donald Trump over a phone conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky sought guidance from the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence prior to the filing, Representative Adam Schiff's office says, but denies seeing the complaint in advance. (CNN)
• Immigration policy of Donald Trump
  • The Donald Trump administration says it is preparing to broadly expand DNA collection from migrants in U.S. detention. (NBC News)

Politics and elections

• 2020 United States presidential election, Bernie Sanders 2020 presidential campaign
  • U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders suspends campaigning for the 2020 U.S. presidential election "until further notice" after the discovery of artery blockage during a medical evaluation for chest discomfort results in surgery. (CNN)

October 3, 2019 (2019-10-03) (Thursday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Paris police headquarters stabbing
  • A man stabs five people at the central police headquarters in the French capital of Paris, killing three officers and an administrative worker. The attacker, who was shot dead by other officers, was an admin worker at the station. (BBC News)

Disasters and accidents

• The Marine Accident Investigation Branch of the UK Department for Transport issues a report on the grounding of cargo vessel MV Priscilla on the Pentland Skerries off the coast of Shetland, Scotland. The investigation concludes the lone crewmember on the bridge was distracted by watching music videos during the nighttime accident. The grounding triggered changes in procedures by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency. (BBC News)
• Three people are killed and three others injured in a plane crash at Capital Region International Airport in Lansing, Michigan. (WNEM-TV) (WLNS-TV)

Health and environment

• 2019 United States outbreak of lung illness linked to vaping products
  • The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announces that the number of deaths caused by vaping-associated pulmonary injury ("vaping illness") linked to electronic cigarettes has risen to 18, with an additional 1,080 injuries reported. The CDC says the cause is still under investigation. (USA Today)

Law and crime

• A shooting in Vancouver, Washington, United States leaves at least one dead, and several more injured. (The Columbian)
• Foreign interference in the 2020 United States elections
  • Amid an impeachment inquiry against him, U.S. President Donald Trump says "China should start an investigation" into presidential candidate Joe Biden. Chair of the Federal Election Commission Ellen Weintraub again explains that "it is illegal for any person to solicit, accept, or receive anything of value from a foreign national in connection with a U.S. election". (NBC News)
• Trump–Ukraine scandal
  • Sources for The New York Times allege that two American diplomats presented a statement for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to sign wherein Ukraine would commit to investigate Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden. (ANP via Het Laatste Nieuws) (The New York Times)

October 4, 2019 (2019-10-04) (Friday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• 2018–19 Arab protests
  • On the third day of protests in Iraq, the death toll reaches 100. The government imposes near-total internet blackout. (BBC)
  • The Iraqi military says "unidentified snipers" have shot four people dead on the streets of Baghdad amid protests, including two police officers, with dozens of others wounded by sniper fire. Reuters reporters witness at least one protester being shot in the head by a sniper, killing him. (Reuters) (BBC News)

Disasters and accidents

• An Antonov An-12 cargo plane operated by Ukraine Air Alliance runs out of fuel and crashes as it approaches Lviv International Airport in Ukraine. Five of the seven occupants are killed, and the airport closes. (BBC News)

Law and crime

• 2019 Hong Kong protests
  • Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam invokes the colonial-era Emergency Regulations Ordinance and bans the use of face masks in public gatherings. (RTHK Hong Kong English)
• Crime in Italy
  • Two police officers are killed and another is wounded after a Dominican suspect opens fire on them at a police station in Trieste, Italy. (La Repubblica)
• A woman in Florida is arrested and charged with explosives offences after a police raid on her home finds 24 pipe bombs and bomb-making material and several other weapons. She admits constructing the devices to harm people. Police were notified of the problem by the 27-year-old's parents. (CNN)
• 2019 college admissions bribery scandal
  • A parent is sentenced to five months in prison, a fine of $100,000 and 500 hours of community service for his involvement in the college admissions scandal. (CNN)
• Hwaseong serial murders
  • Police in South Korea receive confessions from convicted murderer Lee Chun-jae to the serial rapes and murders, which occurred between 1986 and 1991 and left at least nine dead. He denies a tenth murder, now believed to be perpetrated by a copycat. The investigations inspired the movie Memories of Murder and saw 21,000 people investigated. Lee, who is serving life for the 1994 rape and murder of his sister in law, cannot be prosecuted because the statute of limitations has expired. He had been linked to three victims earlier this month by DNA. (CNN)

Politics and elections

• 2019 Argentine general election
  • At a conference in Washington, D.C., Sergio Massa, candidate for the Argentine Chamber of Deputies for Frente de Todos, the coalition of candidate Alberto Fernández, says Fernández's position on Venezuela is clear and that keeping silent about the situation in Venezuela is to "become an accomplice of the government [of Maduro]". He also is the first member of Fernández's party to describe Venezuela as a "dictatorship". (Infobae in Spanish)
• 2019 Ecuadorian protests
  • Ecuadorian President Lenín Moreno declares a state of emergency amid nationwide protests against a hike in fuel prices. The protests have crippled the country's transport network with all major roads and bridges blocked in the capital Quito. (BBC News)

Science and technology

• Foreign interference in the 2020 United States elections, Cyberwarfare and Iran
  • Microsoft says a network of hackers linked to the Iranian government has attempted to access the email accounts of people associated with a 2020 presidential election campaign, as well as prominent Iranian expatriates in the United States. Microsoft has not named the specific campaign which was targeted by Iran. (NBC News)

October 5, 2019 (2019-10-05) (Saturday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Syrian Civil War, Kurdish–Turkish conflict (2015–present), Northern Syria Buffer Zone
  • Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan threatens to invade SDF-held areas in Northern Syria "today or tomorrow", after dubbing joint US-Turkish patrols per the buffer zone agreement a "fairy tale". (Reuters) (Daily Sabah)
• Paris police headquarters stabbing
  • Counter-terror investigators confirm the man who killed four people at Paris police headquarters two days ago was a convert who adhered to Islamist extremism and had contact with Salafists. (BBC News)

Disasters and accidents

• 2019 Totnes bus crash
  • A major incident has been declared in Devon, England, after a double-decker bus overturned near the town of Totnes while operating a busy passenger service between the English Riviera coast and the city of Plymouth. (BBC News)
  • More than fifty people, including the bus driver, have been injured; eight people have serious injuries. Local hospitals have been overwhelmed with patients attending from the bus crash and forced to close to non-emergency care. (ITV)
• Ukraine–European Union relations
  • The European Aviation Safety Agency revokes its authorisation of Ukraine Air Alliance, effectively banning the airline from all airspace in the European Union. The move results from yesterday's crash of an Antonov An-12 owned by the airline, after it ran out of fuel near Lviv, Ukraine. (The Aviation Herald)

International relations

• Russia–Venezuela relations
  • Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov visits ally Venezuela, reiterating Russia's support of disputed president Nicolás Maduro and announcing new trade deals with the economically crippled country. (Reuters)

Law and crime

• In Lower Manhattan, New York City, four homeless men are beaten to death and a fifth severely injured while sleeping. A 24-year-old man, also believed homeless, is in custody. (CNN)
• After acquitting five Muslim men of murder, Thai judge Kanakorn Pianchana gives a speech complaining of corrupt pressure upon the judiciary, including in this case, to convict without sufficient evidence. He then shoots himself in the chest in court in Yala, but survives. Criticism from judges of the Thai legal system is rare, but rights groups claim Muslims often face trumped-up charges in the region, which is Muslim-majority and suffers from insurgency. (BBC News)

Politics and elections

• 2019 Emirati parliamentary election
  • A pool of citizens of the United Arab Emirates heads to the polls in the country's fourth parliamentary election. (Gulf News)

Sports

• 2019 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships
  • In the floor exercise, Simone Biles lands a triple-twisting double backflip in a tucked position. The new skill will be named "Biles 2", the third element named after her, and will have an FIG difficulty value of J. (PopSugar via Yahoo!)

October 6, 2019 (2019-10-06) (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Syrian Civil War, Kurdish–Turkish conflict (2015–present), Northern Syria Buffer Zone
  • Following a phone call between U.S. President Donald Trump and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the White House says that Turkish Armed Forces will launch an incursion into Syrian Democratic Forces-held northern Syria, and that United States Armed Forces will be withdrawing from the region to avoid clashing with its NATO ally. (The Guardian)

Law and crime

• List of mass shootings in the United States in 2019
  • Police in Kansas City, Kansas, are seeking two unnamed suspects after two men opened fire at a bar, killing four people and wounding another five. (BBC News)
• Crime in Austria
  • An Austrian man kills five people in the town of Kitzbühel, Tyrol: his ex-girlfriend, her brother and parents, as well as her new boyfriend. He gives himself up at the police station. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

• The Jordanian government announces it has struck a deal with the teachers' union to end a month-long strike that affected at least 1.5 million students. The strike was instigated over pay in light of new austerity measures. (Reuters)
• 2019 Kosovan parliamentary election
  • Following the resignation of Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj in July, voters in Kosovo cast their ballots to elect the new members of the Assembly of the Republic of Kosovo. Opposition party, Vetëvendosje, lead by Albin Kurti wins in an unprecedented victory. (DW)
• 2019 Portuguese legislative election
  • Portuguese voters head to the polls to elect a new session to the Assembly of the Republic. In line with opinion polls, exit polls show the incumbent Socialist Party winning the most seats, but likely not quite enough to form a majority. (euronews) (Reuters)
• 2019 Tunisian parliamentary election
  • Tunisian citizens gather to vote in the country's latest parliamentary election. (DW)

Science and technology

• Fermi bubbles
  • Scientists say that, using data from the Hubble Space Telescope, they have found evidence of a 300,000-year-long burst of radiation originating 3.5 million years ago from or near the center of our galaxy, erupting through both galactic poles, with effects on the Magellanic Stream, 200,000 light-years away. (EarthSky)

October 7, 2019 (2019-10-07) (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• A 32-year-old Syrian man rams a stolen truck into eight cars in Limburg an der Lahn, Hesse, causing eight injuries. German police believe it was intentional, but the motive is yet to be determined. (The Guardian)
• 2019 Jalalabad suicide bombing
  • A bomb on a rickshaw detonates as a minibus carrying new army recruits passes in Jalalabad, Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan. A military spokesperson says ten, including a child, were killed and a further 27 wounded. (The Washington Post)
• Syrian Civil War, Kurdish–Turkish conflict (2015–present), International military intervention against ISIL, Northern Syria Buffer Zone
  • U.S. forces begin to withdraw from northern Syria. (Foreign Policy)
  • The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces calls the U.S. withdrawal a "stab in the back". (BBC News)
  • A U.S. Department of Defense spokesperson says Turkey has been pulled off the Combined Air Operations Centre's air tasking order and that the U.S. has halted sharing aerial surveillance information with Turkey. (Middle East Monitor) (Military Times)
  • U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham strongly criticizes President Trump's decision, describing the event as "a big win for Iran and Assad [and] a big win for ISIL". Former American envoy Brett McGurk mentions the 60,000 SDF-held ISIL detainees, saying that the State Department and inspectors general at the Department of Defense warn they are the "nucleus for a resurgent ISIL". (The Guardian)

Arts and culture

• Censorship in China
  • China bans American animated sitcom South Park in response to the episode "Band in China" which parodied censorship in China and Chinese influence on Hollywood. (New York Post) (CNN) (Global News)

Business and economy

• Economic effects of Brexit
  • Holger Bingmann, head of the Federation of German Wholesale, Foreign Trade and Services, tells journalists German businesses have lost €3.5 billion so far this year due to Brexit. (Deutsche Welle)
• Pizza Express, a UK-based chain with 470 restaurants, including 150 overseas, reportedly hires financial advisors ahead of talks with its creditors. The business is £1.1 billion in debt and has made a loss for two consecutive years. It employs around 14,000 people. (BBC News)
• China–United States trade war
  • Citing human rights issues, the United States Department of Commerce puts 20 Chinese public security bureaus and eight high tech companies, such as HikVision, SenseTime and Megvii, on the Export Administration Regulations entities blacklist. Like Huawei, which was sanctioned on an identical blueprint for national security reasons, the entities will need U.S. government approval before they can purchase components from U.S. companies. (Reuters) (American Shipper)

Disasters and accidents

• The Ukrainian Ministry of Transport announces it has revoked the air operator's certificate of Ukraine Air Alliance, effective from October 5. The move results from the October 4 crash of an Antonov An-12 owned by the airline, after it ran out of fuel near Lviv, Ukraine. The decision was taken the same day. (The Aviation Herald)
• A North Korean fishing boat collides with a Japanese Fisheries Agency vessel and sinks off Japan. At least 20 North Koreans are pulled from the water. The Japanese ship had been attempting to warn the North Korean vessel away from Japanese territory. (Bloomberg) (The New York Times)
• An overloaded ship carrying migrants capsizes and sinks off the island of Lampedusa, Italy, in rough conditions in the Mediterranean Sea. Search and rescue is underway; of at least 50 on board, 22 survivors have been saved and 13 bodies found. The deceased and missing both include pregnant women. The International Organization for Migration states the boat had departed from Tunisia. (Deutsche Welle)

Law and crime

• King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden decides that the children of Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia, and the children of Princess Madeleine and Christopher O'Neill will no longer be members of the Royal House of Sweden. The purpose of the decision is to establish which members of the Royal House may be expected to perform official duties incumbent on the Head of State or related to the function of the Head of State. (Swedish Royal Court)
• In Lower Manhattan, New York City, a 24-year-old homeless man is charged with murdering four other homeless men and attempting to murder a fifth in random attacks. Authorities identify one of the deceased as an 83-year-old man, but release no further details about the victims. (The Independent)
• Two protestors who were arrested in Rostov-on-Don in 2017 while holding signs seeking resignations from the Russian government, and have been in custody since, are sentenced to over six years each in high-security prisons. They were charged with planning violent mass disturbances, and said that they confessed during torture. (The Times)
• The Supreme Court of the United States opens its 2019–2020 nine-month term with eight of its nine justices present. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who underwent a number of medical procedures for cancer throughout the past year, was present, but Justice Clarence Thomas was absent "due to an unspecified illness." (Reuters)
• 2019 Hong Kong protests
  • The first people are charged with breaking the ban on wearing face masks in Hong Kong. The government of Hong Kong says the prohibition of face masks is needed to end months of violent protests. (The Guardian)
• Tax returns of Donald Trump
  • A judge rules against U.S. President Donald Trump, ordering him to release eight years of state tax returns to New York officials. The defense makes an immediate appeal to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, and is granted a temporary stay "pending expedited review." (BBC News)

Science and technology

• The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine is awarded to Peter J. Ratcliffe, William Kaelin Jr. and Gregg L. Semenza for their discoveries of how cells sense and adapt to oxygen availability. (The New York Times)
• Astronomers announce the discovery of 20 new moons around Saturn, adding to the 62 previously known. The new moons comprise 17 retrograde moons in the Norse group and three prograde moons, two of which belong to the Inuit group. (Phys.org)

October 8, 2019 (2019-10-08) (Tuesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Turkish involvement in the Syrian Civil War, Northern Syria Buffer Zone
  • Turkish officials say that Turkish Air Force jets have begun bombing the Syrian-Iraqi border on Monday night, ahead of an imminent invasion of northern Syria. That region is controlled by Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, whom Turkey regards as terrorists. (The Hill)
• War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
  • A bomb explodes in a classroom at Ghazni University in Afghanistan, wounding at least nineteen students. The same university was targeted last month with a bomb attached to a university minibus. That bomb killed one person and injured five others. (Gulf News)
• Two sappers die and four more are wounded trying to defuse World War II shells in Poland. The last such casualties occurred in 1982. (Xinhua) (TVN24)

Health and environment

• Pacific Gas and Electric shuts off power to 800,000 customers in Northern California, citing safety concerns over an elevated fire risk caused by weather conditions. (CBS 13 Sacramento)

International relations

• Brexit negotiations in 2019
  • President of the European Council Donald Tusk tells Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Boris Johnson that "what's at stake is not a stupid blame game," after a UK source said that talks were "close to breaking down" following a reported argument in a phone call between Johnson and German chancellor Angela Merkel about the post-Brexit status of Northern Ireland. (CNN)
• China–United States relations, China–United States trade war
  • The U.S. State Department imposes visa restrictions on numerous Chinese government officials whom it believes responsible for the detention or abuse of Muslim Uighurs and other ethnic minorities in Xinjiang province. On Monday the Department of Commerce added twenty-eight Chinese firms and bureaus to its "trade blacklist" for similar reasons. (Reuters)

Law and crime

• Thirteen men are arrested in the United Kingdom for drug smuggling. The authorities believe that over several years, the suspects imported approximately 50 tonnes of illegal drugs from the Netherlands, valued at several tens of millions of pounds. The National Crime Agency called it “the biggest ever [drug] conspiracy that we've seen in the UK”. (BBC News)

Politics and elections

• 2019 Ecuadorian protests
  • The Government of Ecuador, headed by President Lenín Moreno, moves to Guayaquil as the Carondelet Palace in Quito is taken over by protesters and chaos persists in the capital. (The Guardian)
  • As the situation in the country worsens, Moreno denounces a "coup attempt" by incumbent President Nicolás Maduro of Venezuela and former Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa. (Chicago Tribune)
• Politics of Italy
  • Italian lawmakers vote to reduce the number of seats in the Chamber of Deputies from 630 to 400, and the number of seats in the Senate of the Republic from 315 to 200, at the next Italian general election. (Reuters)
• Politics of Azerbaijan
  • Prime Minister Novruz Mammadov presents his resignation as President appoints Ali Asadov to the office. (Al Jazeera) (Eurasianet)

Science and technology

• The Nobel Prize in Physics is awarded to Jim Peebles for theoretical discoveries in physical cosmology, and to Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz for the discovery of 51 Pegasi b, an exoplanet orbiting a solar-type star. (BBC News)

October 9, 2019 (2019-10-09) (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Halle synagogue shooting
  • Two people are killed and two others are injured in attacks by a man wearing military camouflage near a synagogue and at a kebab shop in Halle, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Shots are also reported in nearby Landsberg. A suspect, 27-year-old Stephan Billiet, is arrested. The attack had been livestreamed on Twitch for 35 minutes citing anti-Semitic and racist motivations. (BBC News) (DW) (The Guardian)
• 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria, Turkish involvement in the Syrian Civil War, Kurdish–Turkish conflict (2015–present)
  • Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan says his country has launched a military invasion of northern and eastern Syria. The Kurdish YPG-led Syrian Democratic Forces say that Turkish fighter aircraft strike targets and "civilian areas". Syrian state television says the Turkish artillery shelling of Ras al-Ayn, al-Hasakah Governorate, is "random", and Ayn Issa, Raqqa Governorate, is also being shelled. (Deutsche Welle) (Al Jazeera) (Xinhuanet)
  • The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces requests urgent air support from the United States, and a no-fly zone over northern Syria to protect it from Turkish air raids. U.S. President Donald Trump has ordered U.S. forces to not intervene in the conflict. (Reuters) (BBC News)
  • Women at the SDF-controlled Al-Hawl refugee camp, which holds around 74,000 refugees, mostly the wives and children of ISIL fighters, riot and burn their tents according to a Kurdish security official. (Kurdistan24)
  • The U.S. military takes two militants of the Beatles ISIL cell previously held by Kurdish forces to face trial in the United States. (Reuters) (ABC News)
  • Multiple reports that ISIL has committed multiple suicide bombings in the Syrian city of Raqqa. (Time)
• Military activity of ISIL
  • President of Niger Mahamadou Issoufou claims that American hostage Jeffery Ray Woodke is still alive and being held by a jihadist group affiliated with ISIL. Woodke was kidnapped in October 2016. (ABC News)

Business and economy

• The OECD releases a set of proposals, for the 134 countries which accepted the principle, to discuss and negotiate a change in international taxation of the big digital and consumer goods companies' global profits. (Reuters)
• International sanctions during the Venezuelan crisis
  • Adobe cuts access to its software and cancels all Creative Cloud memberships in Venezuela, to comply with U.S. President Donald Trump's trade restrictions. (BBC News)
• European debt crisis
  • Greece issues new three-month debt at a negative interest rate. (Financial Times)

Law and crime

• 2019 Tunisian presidential election
  • An appeals court in Tunisia releases candidate Nabil Karoui from prison, days before the second round of the presidential election. (Al Jazeera)

Politics and elections

• 2019 Ecuadorian protests
  • Ecuadorian President Lenín Moreno says that he will not resign "under any circumstance" and continues with his government in Guayaquil. (Infobae)

Science and technology

• The Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded to John B. Goodenough, M. Stanley Whittingham and Akira Yoshino for the development of lithium ion batteries. (CNN)

October 10, 2019 (2019-10-10) (Thursday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria, Kurdish–Turkish conflict
  • Heavy fighting between the Turkish Land Forces and the Syrian Democratic Forces along the Syria–Turkey border reportedly leaves hundreds dead. The International Rescue Committee says 64,000 people in northern Syria have fled since the Turkish offensive began, leaving the border towns of Ras al-Ayn and al-Darbasiyah largely deserted. (Reuters)
• Syrian Civil War
  • The Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister, Faisal Mekdad, blames the Turkish offensive on the Kurdish forces, saying Syria will not be negotiating with them "on the terms of separatism". (Xinhua)
• Yemeni Crisis (2011–present)
  • The White House confirms that Ibrahim al-Asiri, suspected chief bomb maker for terrorist group Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, was killed in an American counter-terrorism operation in Yemen in 2017. (The New York Times)
• 2019 Ecuadorian protests
  • Anti-government protesters parade captured police officers in the Ecuadorian capital Quito, which is de facto under the control of protesters and the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador. The officers were not harmed, though they were forced to address a large crowd calling on President Lenín Moreno to step down, which was broadcast live by several private broadcasters after being ordered to do so by indigenous leaders. (The Guardian)
  • Protest groups issue a statement demanding that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) leave Ecuador, saying that civil unrest won't stop until they leave. (Bloomberg) (Pastebin)
• Terrorism in Indonesia
  • An ISIL radical stabs multiple people, including Indonesia's security minister Wiranto. Two suspects were later arrested. (BBC News)

Arts and culture

• The Swedish Academy awards the 2018 Nobel Prize in Literature to Olga Tokarczuk, "for a narrative imagination that with encyclopedic passion represents the crossing of boundaries as a form of life", and the 2019 prize to Peter Handke, "for an influential work that with linguistic ingenuity has explored the periphery and the specificity of human experience". The 2018 prize is awarded only now because last year it was postponed due to a scandal. (The Guardian)

Disasters and accidents

• A highway bridge collapses onto cars in Wuxi, China, trapping multiple vehicles. Search and rescue operations commence. (The Straits Times)

Health and environment

• 2019 United States outbreak of lung illness linked to vaping products
  • The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports the number of deaths caused by vaping-associated pulmonary injury has risen to 27, with an additional 1,299 cases of non-fatal injuries. (The New York Times)

International relations

• 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria, European Union–Turkey relations
  • Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan threatens to send 3.6 million Syrian refugees into Europe if the European Union labels the country's recent offensive in northeastern Syria an "occupation". (The Guardian)

Law and crime

• Michael Drejka, a 47-year-old white Florida man who shot and killed Markeis McGlockton, an unarmed 28-year-old African American man, in a parking space dispute, is sentenced to 20 years in prison. Drejka had cited Florida's stand-your-ground law in his defense and was not initially charged until the case was handed over to State Attorney Bernie McCabe, who charged Drejka with one count of manslaughter. (ABC News)
• Crime in Alaska
  • A murder case from Anchorage, Alaska makes national news, after it is revealed that the killer recorded the killing in both video and still photographs on an SD card, which was later found by a local woman on a street and turned over to police. Local police arrested Brian Steven Smith and charged him with the murder, after identifying him from the content of the memory card. (The New York Times) (Yahoo News) (KTUU-TV)
• Trump–Ukraine scandal
  • Two associates of Rudy Giuliani have been arrested for campaign finance violations in connected to efforts to discredit presidential candidate Joe Biden, according to a spokesman for the District Court for the SDNY. (CNN)

Politics and elections

• Politics of Romania
  • Romanian Prime Minister Viorica Dăncilă and her government is ousted after the approval of a vote of no-confidence. She will hold the office acting until new Prime Minister is elected. (BBC News)

Science and technology

• 2019 Hong Kong protests
  • A source for CNN confirms that a note posted anonymously on Pastebin.com is by Apple CEO Tim Cook. In the note, Cook defends Apple's decision today to bin the HKmap.live iOS app because, he says, its use endangers "law enforcement and residents in Hong Kong." (CNN)

Sports

• Women's rights in Iran, 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC Second Round
  • In a men's football match attended by women supporters for the first time in decades, Iran beats Cambodia 14–0. (Al Jazeera)

October 11, 2019 (2019-10-11) (Friday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Iran–Saudi Arabia proxy conflict
  • The Pentagon announces the deployment of 1,000 to 3,000 U.S. troops to Saudi Arabia to deter Iranian aggression. (CNN) (ABC News)
  • Iran claims one of its oil tankers was hit in the Red Sea, likely by missiles. The Saudi Ports Authority confirms an incident with a tanker near the port of Jeddah overnight. (Reuters)
• Syrian Civil War, 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria
  • A car bomb detonates in the Syrian city of Qamishli, killing three and injuring nine. The Islamic State claims responsibility for the attack. (Reuters)
  • Five ISIL prisoners escape a Syrian Democratic Forces-run prison near Kobanî, Syria, after being shelled by Turkey. (Reuters) (Metro)
  • Turkish artillery mistakenly hits a contingent of United States special operations forces on Mashtenour hill in the Kurdish-majority city of Kobanî, according to a senior Department of Defense official. (Newsweek)
  • A YPG mortar and rocket attack on the Turkish town of Nusaybin kills eight civilians and injures 35 others, according to the governor of Mardin Province. (Reuters)
• Burkina Faso mosque attack
  • Gunmen kill 16 people during prayers in a northern Burkina Faso mosque. (Reuters via India Today)

Arts and culture

• Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed wins the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to make peace between Ethiopia and neighbouring Eritrea. (Reuters)

Business and economy

• Thierry Bolloré is fired with immediate effect as the number two of the Renault group, reportedly after a power struggle with its president Jean-Dominique Senard. (Libération) (BBC News)
• 2019 Japan–South Korea trade dispute
  • Japan and South Korea hold the first round of talks in Geneva to address a South Korea complaint with World Trade Organization over Japanese export controls. (Yonhap)
• China–United States trade war
  • China and the United States announced a tentative agreement for the "first phase" of a trade deal, with China agreeing to buy up to $50 billion in American farm products with the United States agreeing to suspend new tariffs scheduled for October 15. (Wall Street Journal)

Disasters and accidents

• A cargo plane carrying presidential staff crashes in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, killing all eight passengers and crew onboard. The Russian embassy in Kinshasa says "preliminary information" indicates Russians were on the aircraft. (Reuters)
• Saddleridge Fire
  • A wildfire destroys 25 homes, displaces 100,000 people and burns over 7,500 acres of forest in and around Los Angeles. (NPR)

Law and crime

• Manchester Arndale stabbing
  • Four people are stabbed and injured, one critically, in a mass stabbing at the Manchester Arndale shopping centre in the Northern Quarter, Manchester, United Kingdom. Another person was injured but not stabbed. A man in his early 40s is arrested. He was arrested under the Mental Health Act. (BBC News)
• One Dutch person and two Afghans are remanded in custody for manslaughter and assistance to illegal immigrants staying in France, after they sold places in inflatable boats for them to reach Great Britain, causing the death of an Iranian woman on 9 August. (La Voix du Nord)
• Uganda announces the plan to pass a bill within weeks which potentially broadens the criminalisation of same-sex relations to include the death penalty. (The Independent) (Fox News)
• Censorship in Turkey, Erdoğanism
  • Turkey's Minister of the Interior Süleyman Soylu says almost 500 people were investigated and 121 have been detained for "insulting" the Turkish offensive in Syria on social media and characterizing Turkey as an "invading" force. (AP via Al-Arabiya)

Politics and elections

• Foreign relations of Argentina, 2019 Venezuelan presidential crisis
  • Argentina announces it has severed diplomatic ties with the disputed Nicolás Maduro-led Government of Venezuela in favour of explicit recognition of opposition leader Juan Guaidó as interim president of Venezuela in the context of the 2019 Venezuelan presidential crisis. (Clarín)

October 12, 2019 (2019-10-12) (Saturday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria
  • Senior SDF official Redur Xelil says defending ISIL prisons is not a priority anymore due to the conflict with Turkey. (BBC News)
  • Prominent Kurdish Syrian politician Hevrin Khalaf is dragged from her vehicle on the M4 Motorway and summarily executed along with her driver and eight civilians by Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army militants. The killings were recorded by the militants, which has since been spread on social media. (The Guardian)
• Terrorism in Kenya
  • A homemade bomb strikes a Kenyan military vehicle, killing 10. (Reuters)
• 2019 Ecuadorian protests
  • President Lenín Moreno orders curfew and the militarisation of the capital as civil unrest worsens. (Deutsche Welle)
• Sinai insurgency
  • Shelling in Bir Al Abd, Egypt kills nine members of the same family. A further six people are wounded. (Gulf News)

Disasters and accidents

• A Hard Rock Hotel and Casino under construction in New Orleans partially collapses, killing one person and injuring at least 18. (The New York Times)
• Typhoon Hagibis makes landfall in Japan, the biggest storm to hit the region in decades, with over seven million people urged to evacuate. (BBC News)

International relations

• 2019 Venezuelan presidential crisis
  • Argentine Foreign Minister Jorge Faurie announces, the day after Argentina severs diplomatic ties with the government of Nicolás Maduro, that visas granted to the diplomats appointed by Maduro have been revoked and they will be expelled from Argentina; the country now recognizes only Juan Guaidó appointees. (Clarín)
  • Border control refuses entry to Venezuela for the Guatemalan President-Elect Alejandro Giammattei, who was to visit Juan Guaidó on a diplomatic tour. Giammattei is rerouted to Panama. (Financial Times)

Law and crime

• Shooting of Atatiana Jefferson
  • In Fort Worth, Texas, a woman is shot dead in her bedroom by a policeman sent to check on her welfare. (BBC News)

Sports

• Eliud Kipchoge finishes a marathon in Vienna in 1 hour, 59 minutes and 40 seconds, assisted by a car and using a fleet of pacemakers. (CNN)

October 13, 2019 (2019-10-13) (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria, NES–Syria relations
  • The Syrian Democratic Forces agree to allow the Syrian Army to enter the SDF-held cities of Manbij and Kobani in an attempt to deter Turkey from attacking the towns. (Defence Post) (Reuters) (Al Arabiya)
  • As many as 700 ISIL family members escape an Ayn Issa camp. (CNN)
  • A thousand U.S. soldiers are to be pulled out of Syria because of the Turkish offensive. (BBC News)
  • Fourteen people are killed and ten are injured by Turkish airstrikes targeting a convoy in the Syrian town of Ras al Ain. Five are identified as civilians. (Reuters)
• Somali Civil War (2009–present)
  • Multiple mortars hit Mogadishu Airport, wounding at least six people. Al-Shabaab claims responsibility for the attack. (VOA News) (Reuters)
• Russian–Syrian hospital bombing campaign, Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War
  • The New York Times claims it can prove Russian aircraft bombed four Syrian hospitals in a matter of hours in May, using a combination of logbooks from planespotters, recorded radio transmissions, and eyewitnesses. (The Independent)

Disasters and accidents

• Forty-eight people are confirmed dead, about 100 others are injured and 17 are missing after Typhoon Hagibis makes landfall in Japan. (Sky News)
• The 90-metre cargo ship MV Rhodanus, with a crew of seven, runs aground in the Mouths of Bonifacio nature reserve in the Strait of Bonifacio off Corsica. French maritime police say the vessel did not respond to calls for around an hour before grounding, and that fuel was not thought to be leaking. (France 24)
• A gas explosion kills nine people in a restaurant in Wuxi, China. (The Independent)

International relations

• At Saint Peter's Square, Vatican City, Pope Francis canonizes the 19th-century Anglican convert John Henry Newman, who was a unifying figure in both the Anglican and Catholic churches. (ABC News)

Law and crime

• California becomes the first U.S. state to ban the sale of fur products. The law goes into effect on January 1, 2023. (CNN)

Politics and elections

• 2019 Tunisian presidential election
  • Voters in Tunisia go to the polls to elect a new president. Conservative academic Kais Saied wins more than 70% of the votes. (Al Jazeera) (The Guardian)
• 2019 Polish parliamentary election
  • Voters in Poland go to the polls to elect a new government. The incumbent right-wing Law and Justice is expected to slightly increase its plurality. (Reuters)

October 14, 2019 (2019-10-14) (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Syrian Civil War, 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria, NES–Syria relations
  • In the early hours of the morning, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces hands over control of Tabqa, and the nearby Tabqa Airbase in the Raqqa Governorate to the Syrian Army. (Reuters) (Al Jazeera)
• Insurgency in the Maghreb
  • A French tourist is stabbed to death while a Tunisian soldier is wounded by an Islamist in Bizerte, Tunisia. (Xinhua)
• Mexican Drug War
  • Fourteen state police officers are killed in an ambush in Aguililla, Michoacán; crime-scene evidence points to the involvement of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel. (BBC News) (El Universal)

Arts and culture

• A stone statue is discovered in the walls of a church in England. Officials believe the statue had been hidden inside those walls for about 400 years since the Restoration period. (MSN) (Daily Mail)

Business and economy

• The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences selects Abhijit Banerjee, Esther Duflo and Michael Kremer as laureates for this year's Nobel Prize in Economics, "for their experimental approach to alleviating global poverty". (NPR)

Law and crime

• Trial of Catalonia independence leaders, 2017–18 Spanish constitutional crisis
  • The Supreme Court of Spain sentences the twelve Catalan independence leaders between 9 and 13 years in prison and disqualification from holding public office for sedition and misuse of public funds. While it proves the existence of violent outbreaks, it judges they are not sufficient to convict for rebellion. (BBC News) (The New York Times)
  • Former Catalan Vice President Oriol Junqueras receives the highest penalty with 13 years in prison and disqualification, while former councilors Meritxell Borràs, Santi Vila and Carles Mundó are sentenced to one year and eight months disqualification for disobedience. (El País)
  • Demonstrations and cut roads take place throughout Catalonia, with the largest taking place in Barcelona. The Committees for the Defense of the Republic calls for disobedience and popular revolt. (El Periódico) (El Mundo)
  • President of Catalonia Quim Torra requests a meeting with King Felipe VI of Spain and Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and calls the sentence as an act of "revenge". Sánchez, in a special press conference, guarantees compliance with the sentence and calls for dialogue and coexistence, as well as ensures that Spain is a democratic state. (El Confidencial) (El Mundo)
  • Judge Pablo Llarena issues a European Arrest Warrant against former Catalan President Carles Puigdemont. (El Confidencial)
  • Clashes erupts between Mossos d'Esquadra and the protesters that occupied the Barcelona–El Prat Josep Tarradellas Airport. Several flights are cancelled. (ABC.es)
• Convicted British serial sex offender and paedophile Richard Huckle, who sexually abused dozens of children in Malaysia, is found stabbed to death in his cell at HM Prison Full Sutton. (BBC News)
• The IRGC say they captured Ruhollah Zam, an Iranian journalist-activist exiled in Europe, accusing him of having stoked anti-government unrest in early 2018 using social media. (Reuters)
• 2018 Westminster car attack
  • At the Old Bailey in London, Salih Khater is sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of fifteen years. (BBC News)
• Shooting of Atatiana Jefferson
  • Aaron Dean, the Fort Worth, Texas police officer who shot a woman to death in her bedroom during what was intended to be a welfare check, resigns his position, and later that day is arrested and formally charged with murder in the case. (Fox News)

October 15, 2019 (2019-10-15) (Tuesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Syrian Civil War, 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria
  • The Russian Ministry of Defence says the Syrian Army has gained control over Manbij and the surrounding area, adding, "Cooperation with the Turkish side has been arranged". The U.S. military spokesperson for Operation Inherent Resolve announces the United States has withdrawn their forces from Manbij. (TASS) (Military Times)

Business and economy

• The Turkish lira rises after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened 50% steel tariffs and a halt to trade negotiations in retaliation for the Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria. Analysts describe the sanctions as "relatively light" and "window dressing". (CNBC)
• Wells Fargo, the fourth-largest bank in the United States, misses its third quarter profit estimates due to interest rate declines and the shrinkage of its mortgage lending business. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• The number of people confirmed killed in central and eastern Japan by Typhoon Hagibis rises to 66, with 15 people still missing and more than 200 injured. (Reuters)
• A chemical plant used to manufacture Bakelite explodes in Guangxi, China; at least four are killed and six more are injured. (The News and Observer)
• A seven-storey apartment block collapses in Fortaleza, Brazil. One person is confirmed dead with seven more rescued; a further ten people are believed to be trapped in the wreckage. (BBC News)
• An irregular gas company explodes and kills four people in Boa Vista, Brazil. (MBS)
• A 4.5 magnitude earthquake, with a preliminary depth of 14.0 kilometers (8.7 miles), shakes the San Francisco Bay area. Residents reported minor damage. (USA Today) (U.S. Geological Survey)
• At least one person is killed and 70 people hospitalized as more than 100 wildfires break out across Lebanon for the second day. The Chouf and Matn regions are especially hit hard. The Lebanese Civil Defense labels it the worst firestorm in decades. (Al Jazeera)

Law and crime

• Climate activists continue Extinction Rebellion protests at the transport ministry in central London after the Metropolitan Police Service yesterday banned Extinction Rebellion protests in London, United Kingdom. Following the ban, police cleared a protester camp occupying Trafalgar Square. Almost 1,500 arrests have been made since last week. (BBC News) (Reuters)
• Notre-Dame de Paris bombing attempt
  • A court in France sentences five women to prison terms for their roles in the failed bombing. A Syrian man, thought to have been killed in Iraq in 2017, is sentenced to life in absentia. (BBC News)
• Papua New Guinea police issue an arrest warrant for former Prime Minister Peter O'Neill for corruption. (RNZ)
• Trial of Catalonia independence leaders, 2019 Catalan Protests
  • After a second day of mobilizations in Catalonia after the sentence of the independence leaders with cutroads and railways cuts, violent clashes take place in Tarragona, Barcelona, Girona, Sabadell and Lleida. (RTVE)
  • The Government of Spain issues a statement acknowledging that there is "widespread and coordinated violence in Catalonia" and that its objective is "to guarantee security and coexistence [...] following its commitment of firmness, proportionality and unity". (la Sexta)
• 2019 Río Piedras shooting
  • Five men and a woman are killed in a mass shooting Monday night at the Río Piedras housing project in San Juan, Puerto Rico. A group of people with large guns showed up before the shooting, according to the police commissioner. Sunday, two people were killed in Guaynabo in the northern section of the San Juan metropolitan area. Governor Wanda Vázquez Garced convened an emergency meeting of her security team Tuesday. (CNN via MSN.com) (AP via The Washington Post)

Politics and elections

• 2019 Mozambican general election
  • Voters in Mozambique go to the polls to elect both their president and the members of the legislature. (DW)
• Migrant rescue ship MV Ocean Viking is granted permission to dock by Italy and heads to Taranto, carrying 176 migrants rescued at sea off the Libyan coast on Sunday. (Reuters)

October 16, 2019 (2019-10-16) (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
  • A Taliban truck bomb in eastern Afghanistan kills three police officers and injures 36 other people, including twenty children. (Al Jazeera)
• Syrian Civil War, 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria
  • Following the withdrawal of troops, U.S. F-15s bomb a CJTF–OIR ammunition depot bunker at the Lafarge cement factory in Aleppo Governorate, Syria, to prevent the munitions and other equipment from being used by Turkish-led forces or Syrian government forces. (CNN) (The Independent)

Business and economy

• General Motors and the United Auto Workers announce that they have reached a tentative deal to end a month-long strike that cost the company US$2 billion. It will be sent to union members tomorrow for final approval. If approved, workers will receive a pay raise and temporary workers will be granted a more simplified path to full-time employment. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• 2019 Mindanao earthquake
  • A magnitude 6.3 earthquake strikes the province of Cotabato, Philippines, at 19:37 local time (11:37 UTC), killing at least 5 people and injuring 53 others. (GMA News)

Law and crime

• 2019 Hong Kong protests
  • Jimmy Sham, a leader of the Hong Kong protests, is attacked by a group of hammer-wielding men in the Mong Kok District of the Kowloon Peninsula, and is taken to hospital with severe head injuries. (BBC News)
• Trial of Catalonia independence leaders, 2019–2020 Catalan protests
  • The nine pro-Catalonia independence politicians jailed earlier this week issue a joint plea for an end to violent protests across the region. Meanwhile, the Spanish government says it will meet protestors with a "firm, proportional and united" response. (The Guardian)
  • The violence of the protests in Tarragona, Girona, Lleida and Barcelona increases, while there are clashes with Mossos d'Esquadra in Reus. Four protesters and one policeman are injured in a pro-independence protest in Madrid. (El Mundo) (El País)
  • The Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez advises in a press conference that the Government will act with moderation but not concrete exceptional measures yet. (El País)
• Around 337 people in a dozen countries are arrested for participating in a child pornography network that hosted up to 250,000 videos depicting child sexual abuse. Officials in the United States, United Kingdom, and South Korea called it one of the largest child pornography operations to date. (Reuters)

International relations

• Japan–South Korea relations, 2019 Japan–South Korea trade dispute
  • Foreign ministry officials from Japan and South Korea meet in Seoul to discuss wartime forced labor and trade dispute (NHK World)

October 17, 2019 (2019-10-17) (Thursday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria
  • After meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, U.S. Vice President Mike Pence says Turkey has agreed to a five-day ceasefire in Syria while the United States helps facilitate the withdrawal of Kurdish fighters. (The Washington Post)

Disasters and accidents

• The number of people confirmed killed in central and eastern Japan by Typhoon Hagibis rises to 77, while nine other people are still missing. (NHK World)
• A Peninsula Air passenger plane carrying 42 people crashes at an airport in Unalaska, Alaska. One passenger on the Saab SB20 is killed, and at least one more is seriously injured. (KTUU)
• A double-decker bus carrying pilgrims crashes and catches fire near Medina, Saudi Arabia. The disaster kills at least 35 foreigners. (BBC News)

Health and environment

• 2019 outbreak of lung illness linked to vaping products
  • Electronic cigarette maker Juul announces it will stop producing most of its flavored cartridges, excluding mint and menthol. (Arstechnica)

International relations

• Brexit negotiations, Brexit
  • The United Kingdom and the European Union agree on a new Brexit withdrawal agreement deal following talks in Brussels. Current coalition partner the Democratic Unionist Party subsequently announces they will oppose the deal. (BBC News)

Law and crime

• Murder of Kathleen Jo Henry
  • Police in Anchorage, Alaska charge Brian Steven Smith, who was arrested on October 8 for the murder of Kathleen Jo Henry, with a second murder, that of Veronica Abouchuk. Smith reportedly confessed to killing Abouchuk and told authorities where her body could be found. (KTLA Los Angeles)
• The New York City Council votes to close Rikers Island, the city's main prison, by 2026. The complex's infrastructural deterioration and excessive abuses were the cited reasons. (Reuters)
• The fourth night of violence in the streets of Catalonia in protest of the sentence of the Catalan independence leaders leaves 33 arrested and 80 injures. In Tarragona, the main door of the city hall is burnt. (El País) (La Vanguardia)

Politics and elections

• Representative Elijah Cummings, Maryland Democratic Congressman and House Oversight Committee Chair, dies at age 68. (ABC News)
• List of Trump administration dismissals and resignations
  • U.S. Secretary of Energy Rick Perry announces he will resign by the end of the year. (NPR)
• Trial of Catalonia independence leaders, 2019 Catalan Protests
  • The Catalan president Quim Torra, in a special plenary session at the Parliament of Catalonia, announces that he will convene a third independence referendum and a Constitution throughout the legislature. (El Periódico)

Science and technology

• NASA announces that the InSight Mars lander's heat probe had successfully dug 3 centimetres (1.2 in) into the ground after becoming stuck 35 centimetres (14 in) in the ground in February 2019, confirming that the probe had not hit a rock and instead simply didn't have enough friction in the soil to dig much deeper. The vehicle landed near the Martian equator in November 2018. (Space.com)

October 18, 2019 (2019-10-18) (Friday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Mexican Drug War
  • The Mexican National Guard arrests Ovidio Guzmán López, one of former cartel leader Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán's sons, in Culiacán. He is later released after government forces come under intense attack and are overpowered by Sinaloa Cartel gunmen, according to Security Minister Alfonso Durazo. (BBC News) (CNBC)
  • According to a later statement, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and government authorities ordered officers to let Guzmán López go free to avoid a "bloodbath" and "preserve the lives of our officers and bring calm back to the city". (Clarín)
  • Eight people are confirmed killed in the failed raid. More than twenty others were injured. (AP News)
• Haska Meyna mosque bombing
  • Multiple explosions inside a mosque in Haska Meyna District of Afghanistan's Nangarhar Province kill at least 62 people and severely damage the building. (Reuters)
• 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria
  • The Kurds say that Turkey is already violating the ceasefire agreement by shelling the border town of Ras al-Ain. (CNN)
  • Turkish airstrikes kill five civilians in the village of Bab al-Kheir. (Times of Israel)

Arts and culture

• The wreck of Japanese warship Kaga, sunk in the Battle of Midway during World War II, is discovered on the seabed in the Pacific Ocean. It is only the second vessel sunk during the battle to have been found. (Live Science)

Business and economy

• UK clothing retailer Bonmarché collapses into administration. The chain employs 2,900 people and operates 318 stores. (iNews)

Disasters and accidents

• Seattle crane collapse
  • Washington State authorities find a crane collapse earlier this year in Seattle was caused when workers removed securing pins too early during the crane's dismantling. Four people were killed in the accident. Three firms are issued fines. (NBC News)

International relations

• Japan says it will not join the U.S.-led International Maritime Security Construct to protect international shipping in the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz amid Iranian aggression, but will instead deploy its own Maritime Self-Defense Force to the region to guard merchant vessels "related to Japan". (Reuters)
• The Financial Action Task Force, an international counter-terrorism finance taskforce, tells Pakistan to improve its counter-terror funding operations by next February or face being added to the group's blacklist. (The Hindustan Times)

Law and crime

• Trial of Catalan independence leaders; 2019 Catalan protests
  • Catalonia goes to a general strike in protest of the prison sentence of the Catalan independentists leaders. Thousands of demonstrators arrive walking to Barcelona from the whole region. (The Guardian)
  • After a peaceful demonstration involving more than 500,000 people in Barcelona, violent clashes erupt, with more clashes in Tarragona and Girona. (El Periódico) (Tarragona Digital)
  • In Barcelona, a water cannon is used for the first time against protesters in Spain. (La Vanguardia)
• Former President of Catalonia Carles Puigdemont is released with charges by the Brussels prosecutor's office after surrendering on Thursday to the Belgian authorities following the issuing of the European Arrest Warrant on Monday. (The Guardian) (Euronews)

Politics and elections

• 2019–20 Lebanese protests
  • Hundreds of protestors march across Lebanon over the government's proposal to tax numerous goods, such as tobacco and WhatsApp calls. Police respond by firing tear gas on those in Beirut. (Al Jazeera) (Reuters)
  • The government withdraws the controversial tax plan. Despite this, protests continue, with participants swelling to tens of thousands and them now calling for the downfall of the government. Prime Minister Saad Hariri gives his government 72 hours to resolve the country's worsening economic crisis. (Al Jazeera)
• 2019 Santiago protests
  • After a week of fare-dodging protests in the Santiago Metro, thousands of protestors clash with police in different places across Santiago, Chile. Subway service is suspended in the entire city. Protests started after a price hike in the most expensive subway system in Latin America. (The Guardian)

Science and technology

• In the International Space Station, the crew members Expedition 61, Christina Koch and Jessica Meir took the first all female spacewalk in history. (BBC news)

October 19, 2019 (2019-10-19) (Saturday)

Disasters and accidents

• SIEV X
  • An Iraqi man is arrested at Brisbane Airport for his membership in a human trafficking syndicate responsible for chartering a boat carrying 421 Afghan and Iraqi refugees to Australia. More than 350 of those aboard perished when the boat sank off the coast of Indonesia in October 2001. (The Guardian)
• A dam on the Seiba river in Krasnoyarsk, Siberia, collapses, flooding a nearby gold mine and cabins used to house miners. At least 15 people have been killed, with 13 more missing and 14 hospitalised. (BBC News)

Politics and elections

• 2019 Santiago protests
  • The Chilean government declares a state of emergency in the capital Santiago, following riots in response to a price hike in Santiago Metro fares. Overnight, the high-rise headquarters of Enel Generación Chile is set on fire by rioters. (BBC News)
  • 19 stations of the Santiago Metro are set on fire during the night. (La Tercera)
  • Police and military officers clash with protestors in Plaza Baquedano, Maipú Main Square and other places, while several cacerolazos are heard in the city. (ADN Radio)
  • Curfew is announced for the Greater Santiago area, the first time it is used since the end of the Pinochet dictatorship. (El Desconcierto)
• Brexit
  • The British Parliament votes 322 to 306 to pass the so-called "Letwin amendment" to the Withdrawal Agreement Bill, which states it will not approve any withdrawal agreement unless all relevant formal legislation is passed. In effect any subsequent vote on a deal is not considered final, and Prime Minister Boris Johnson will be forced to ask for an extension. (Reuters) (CNN)
• 2019–20 Lebanese protests
  • Four ministers resign from the current cabinet, stating that the government is incapable of addressing any of the issues under current circumstances. Conversely, Hassan Nasrallah of Hezbollah announces that his group will continue to support the government, saying, "All of us have to shoulder the responsibility of the current situation that we arrived at." (Al Jazeera)

October 20, 2019 (2019-10-20) (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• American-led intervention in Iraq (2014–2021)
  • U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper says American troops withdrawing from Syria will go to western Iraq, where the U.S. military will continue to conduct operations against the Islamic State to prevent its resurgence. (Yahoo! News)

Arts and culture

• Second inauguration of Joko Widodo
  • Joko Widodo is officially inaugurated as president of Indonesia for the second time, while Ma'ruf Amin is inaugurated as the new vice president. They will serve their terms from 2019 to 2024. (Tempo) (Al Jazeera)

Disasters and accidents

• Three American soldiers with the 3rd Infantry Division are killed and three others are injured in a training accident at Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah, Georgia. (CNN)
• Tornadoes strike North Texas as part of an outbreak (CNN)

Politics and elections

• 2019 Bolivian general election
  • People in Bolivia head to the polls for the latest general election. (France 24)
  • Authorities abruptly stop updating the results, causing concern among opposition politicians and the Organization of American States, which has election observers in Bolivia. Before the results were halted, incumbent President Evo Morales held 45 percent of the vote and former President Carlos Mesa held 38 percent. (BBC News)
• 2019 Chilean protests
  • Curfew is extended to Concepción and Valparaíso Region. Including Santiago, nine million people are under a state of emergency, equal to 52 percent of the country's population. (La Tercera) (Sputnik)
  • Three people are found dead in a supermarket that had been set on fire in San Bernardo. (BioBioChile) (The Raw Story)
• 2019 Swiss federal election
  • Voters in Switzerland elect the members of the country's Federal Assembly and Council. Provisional results show the Swiss People's Party retaining their plurality, and that the Green Party has become the fourth-largest party. (DW) (Le News) (The Local)
• Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh
  • The government of Bangladesh announces it will begin moving thousands of Rohingya refugees from crowded camps to the flood-prone island of Thengar Char, starting early November. The government hopes to relocate 100,000 refugees by the end of the operation, which has been criticised by rights groups as an "inevitable" humanitarian crisis. (Al Jazeera) (Reuters)

October 21, 2019 (2019-10-21) (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria, Syrian Civil War
  • Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says his country is ready to mediate between the Syrian government and Kurdish forces. (Kurdistan 24)

Arts and culture

• A team of ocean explorers announce the discovery of Imperial Japanese aircraft carrier Akagi on the Pacific seafloor. The vessel was sunk in 1942 during the World War II Battle of Midway. (The Guardian) (TVNZ)

Disasters and accidents

• A fiery bus crash near Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo kills at least 31 people, with another 18 injured. (CNN)

International relations

• New Zealand–United Kingdom relations
  • The Foreign Minister of New Zealand Winston Peters accuses the United Kingdom of "walking out" on Pacific aid to small island nations. The accusation surprised British officials. (Radio New Zealand)

Law and crime

• Murder of Ján Kuciak
  • Authorities in Slovakia charge four people with murdering investigative journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancée. The killings sparked widespread anti-corruption protests and forced the resignation of Prime Minister Robert Fico. (The Guardian) (Reuters)
• Opioid epidemic in the United States
  • Teva Pharmaceuticals, McKesson, and AmerisourceBergen reach a US$260 million settlement hours before a civil trial in U.S. federal court in Cleveland, Ohio, brought as a class-action lawsuit representing communities affected by opioid addiction. (The Guardian) (The Week)

Politics and elections

• 2019 Canadian federal election
  • Voters in Canada go to the polls to elect members of the 43rd Canadian Parliament. Polls show Justin Trudeau's Liberals and Andrew Scheer's Conservatives deadlocked with equal numbers of support after a divisive campaign. (CBC News) (CTV News) (HuffPost)
  • The Liberal Party win a pluralty of seats, and will remain in government, albeit as a minority and having lost the popular vote to the Conservative Party. The Bloc Québécois resurge from a 10-seat rump at dissolution to take third place and regain official party status. (CBC News) (CTV News) (CNBC)
• 2019 Chilean protests
  • Chilean President Sebastián Piñera says that Chile is "at war" and calls on citizens to take sides in the matter as violence continues in the capital and other cities. (Al Jazeera) (Pensions and Investments)
• 2019 Bolivian protests, 2019 Bolivian general election
  • Protests break out across Bolivia in rejection of what are seen as fraudulent Presidential vote results. (BBC News) (MSN)
• 2019–20 Lebanese protests
  • The Lebanese government passes a series of economic measures, such as slashing government wages and extending financial aid to poor families, in an attempt to placate protestors. (BBC News)

October 22, 2019 (2019-10-22) (Tuesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria, Second Northern Syria Buffer Zone
  • Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, presidents of Russia and Turkey respectively, reach an agreement in Sochi, which would end Turkey's offensive into Northern Syria. (CNN) (CNN₂)

Arts and culture

• 2019 Japanese imperial transition
  • Japanese Emperor Naruhito officially proclaims his enthronement as the Emperor of Japan in an ancient enthronement ceremony held in the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, after ascending to the throne on 1 May. It was attended by about 2,000 guests with 420 foreign dignitaries. (CNN) (BBC News)
• Presidency of Donald Trump
  • An anonymous senior Donald Trump administration official, who in 2018 wrote a controversial New York Times op-ed called treasonous by President Trump, has written a book about the administration titled "A Warning," its publisher says. It will be released next month. (The Washington Post)

Disasters and accidents

• Florida International University pedestrian bridge collapse
  • The National Transportation Safety Board of the United States concludes its investigation into the accident, which killed six and injured ten. It states design errors were the immediate cause, exacerbated by failures to take appropriate remedial action when cracks were discovered. (USA Today)
• A convention centre catches fire in Auckland while still under construction, causing significant disruption in the CBD. (Stuff)

Law and crime

• Crime in Norway
  • Police officers in Oslo wound an armed 32-year-old man, who injured three people when he rammed a stolen ambulance into them. The police then arrest him and a 25-year-old woman, both of whom have connections to the Nordic Resistance Movement. (The Guardian) (The Telegraph)
• Manchester Arena bombing
  • UK Home Secretary Priti Patel announces the inquests into the deaths of the victims will be converted into a public inquiry at the request of the coroner. This enables the hearing of evidence in secret by members of the intelligence community, which would otherwise not be available as the coroner had previously granted public interest immunity to the witnesses on the grounds of possible assistance to future terrorists were the evidence to be heard. Inquests cannot hear secret evidence. (The Telegraph)
• Trump–Ukraine scandal, Impeachment inquiry against Donald Trump
  • Acting U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine William B. Taylor Jr. testifies before Congress that he had been told President Donald Trump would, to help his reelection chances, withhold military aid to Ukraine until that country publicly declared investigations would be launched into Burisma Holdings, a company that hired former Vice President Joe Biden's son Hunter, as well as Ukraine's alleged involvement in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. (Salon)

Politics and elections

• 2019 Chilean protests
  • According to candidate for Vice President of Argentina for the Together for Change alliance, Miguel Ángel Pichetto, there is a "destabilization plan in Latin America directly linked to Venezuela's and Cuba's governments' activities". Argentine Foreign Minister Jorge Faurie also expressed his concerns and said there were "calculated and identical methods of destabilization in the region". He blames Nicolás Maduro's government after Constituent Assembly President Diosdado Cabello says there is a "Bolivarian breeze" in the region. (Clarín) (Buenos Aires Times)
• Abortion in Northern Ireland, Same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland
  • As a result of the local government failing to reconvene in time, the Northern Ireland (Executive Formation etc) Act 2019 comes into effect. This means abortion is decriminalized in Northern Ireland, and same-sex marriage is scheduled to commence in February 2020. (BBC News)
• Brexit
  • The British Parliament votes 329 to 299 to pass the Withdrawal Agreement Bill, but then rejects the proposed timetable in a separate 322 to 308 vote. Speaker of the House of Commons John Bercow says the bill is now "in limbo", and Prime Minister Boris Johnson plans to consult with European Union leaders for the time being. (BBC News)

October 23, 2019 (2019-10-23) (Wednesday)

Disasters and accidents

• Lion Air Flight 610, Boeing 737 MAX groundings
  • Indonesian investigators meet with families of the deceased ahead of the release of their final report, scheduled for Friday. They state the crash was caused by design flaws with software on the aircraft, and inaccurate assessments by Boeing as to how pilots would respond to them. (Al Jazeera)
• Yirol Let L-410 Turbolet crash
  • Ukraine releases the final report into the disaster, which was prepared by South Sudan. The report concludes mistakes by both crew and maintenance, as well as poor weather, combined to cause the crash. (The Aviation Herald)

Health and environment

• Pacific Gas and Electric is set to shut off power to 179,000 customers in Northern California due to an elevated wildfire risk, while Southern California Edison does so for 308,000 in Southern California. (The New York Times) (KTLA)

International relations

• 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria, Turkey–United States relations
  • The Trump administration lifts the sanctions it placed on Turkey, in response to the latter's ceasefire. While U.S. President Donald Trump states the ceasefire is permanent, he threatens to reinstate the sanctions if "something happens that we are not happy with". (Reuters)

Law and crime

• Essex lorry deaths
  • Police discover 39 bodies inside a lorry container in Grays, Essex, UK. They had been transported from Zeebrugge, across the English Channel to Purfleet. The driver, a man from Northern Ireland, is arrested. (The Guardian)
• Right-wing terrorism in the United Kingdom, Christchurch mosque shootings
  • Two men are given prison sentences in the United Kingdom after they incited copycat attacks following mosque shootings in New Zealand. They were convicted of a series of terror offences. (BBC News)
• Police in Albania say they have identified a terrorist cell in the country operated by the Revolutionary Guards of Iran and seeking to attack members of exiled Iranian anti-government group Mujahedin-e Khalq. (The Guardian)
• Murder of Nusrat Jahan Rafi
  • A court in Bangladesh sentences sixteen people to death after they burned a student alive when she reported sexual harassment by a teacher. (BBC News)
• Trump–Ukraine scandal
  • At a hearing in New York City, Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, two associates of U.S. President Donald Trump's personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, who aided him with a search in Ukraine for detrimental information on President Trump's political opponents, plead not guilty to charges that they funneled $350,000 in illegal donations to a pro-Trump political committee and another $20,000 to former Republican Congressman Pete Sessions while acting on behalf of at least one Ukrainian government official. (AOL)

Politics and elections

• 2019 Botswana general election
  • Citizens of Botswana cast their vote to elect the members of the National Assembly and local government councils. (Eyewitness News)
• 2019 Chilean protests
  • Chilean President Sebastián Piñera in a nationally televised address apologizes for the failures of the government and pledges economic reforms as violent protests continue in the country. (WJCT)
• 2019 Bolivian protests
  • Evo Morales accuses opposition politicians of plotting a coup d'etat with foreign powers. (The Guardian)
• Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, Fort Lauderdale airport shooting
  • In a special session of the Florida Senate, the chamber voted 25–15 to uphold the suspension of former Broward Sheriff Scott Israel for his agency's response to the mass shootings at both Ft. Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport and Parkland. (WPLG)
• September 2019 Israeli legislative election
  • President of Israel Reuven Rivlin tasks Leader of the Opposition Benny Gantz to try to form government after the failing of current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. (The Guardian)

October 24, 2019 (2019-10-24) (Thursday)

International relations

• Japan–South Korea relations, 2019 Japan–South Korea trade dispute
  • Japan and South Korea hold a high-level bilateral meeting for the first time since the trade dispute, with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe meeting with his counterpart Lee Nak-yeon. (The Japan Times)

Law and crime

• 2019 Grays incident
  • The people found deceased in a lorry in Essex yesterday are suspected to be Chinese nationals. (BBC News)
• Persecution of homosexuals in Uganda
  • Ugandan authorities announce that they have arrested 16 LGBT activists on suspicion of gay sex. (The Guardian)
• At the Old Bailey a UK jury convicts a British man who traveled to fight against the Islamic State of a terror offence for visiting a training camp used by the PKK. He is the first UK man found guilty of such a crime, and is remanded in custody to await his November 7 sentencing hearing. (BBC News)

Politics and elections

• The remains of former Spanish dictator Francisco Franco are exhumed from Valle de los Caídos and are moved to a private mausoleum with his wife Carmen Polo, 44 years after his death. Some pro-Franco protestors gather outside the national mausoleum. (CNN)
• 2019–20 Lebanese protests
  • As protests enter its eighth day, President Michel Aoun in a televised address states he is willing to meet with protestors and offers support for various reforms, such as increasing transparency for banks and lifting immunity for government officials. He however states that changes “can only happen through state institutions" in response to calls to bring down the government. (Al Jazeera)
• The Chicago Teachers Union's strike enters its sixth school day as it is unable to reach an agreement with Chicago Public Schools. (WMAQ-TV)
• Mueller special counsel investigation, Russia investigation origins counter-narrative
  • U.S. federal prosecutor John Durham's ongoing probe into potential FBI and Justice Department misconduct in the time leading up to the 2016 presidential election through the spring of 2017 is upgraded to a formal criminal investigation. (New York Post)

Sports

• Brandon Taubman, the assistant general manager for the Houston Astros, is fired from his position for making "inappropriate comments" toward female journalists. (Forbes)

October 25, 2019 (2019-10-25) (Friday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• American-led intervention in the Syrian Civil War
  • Following the U.S. military withdrawal from northern Syria, the United States is to deploy more troops to Syria's eastern Deir ez-Zor Governorate to secure the country's petroleum gas and oilfields, according to a senior Department of Defense official. (Al Jazeera)
• 2018–19 Iraqi protests
  • At least 40 people are killed and over 1,700 wounded when security forces violently clamp down on anti-government protestors in Iraq. (Al Jazeera) (BBC News)
• 2019 Ethiopian riots
  • Ethiopian police report on Friday that the death toll from violent protests in Oromia Region was 67, including five officers. The protests started on Wednesday when protestors accused Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed of acting dictatorial, but they quickly degenerated into ethnic clashes. (The Guardian)

Arts and culture

• Hundreds of tourists flock to Uluru in Australia's Northern Territory to climb it for the last time before the park's ban on climbing goes into effect. The ban is being implemented to respect the wishes of the indigenous Aṉangu people, who find Uluru sacred. (Reuters)

Business and economy

• The United Automobile Workers ends their 40-day strike against General Motors after a new contract is ratified. (MLive)
• In a move that surprised insiders, Microsoft beats Amazon Web Services to win a $10 billion cloud computing contract with the United States Department of Defense. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• Lion Air Flight 610
  • Indonesian investigators conclude their probe of the disaster with the release of a 353-page final report. The report states the crash was caused by a combination of flawed software design by Boeing, a failure of Lion Air to ground the jet over issues it had previously experienced, and inappropriate pilot responses to the developing emergency. (BBC News)
• A car collides with pedestrians and other vehicles after running two red lights while accelerating in central Shanghai. At least five are killed and nine more injured. (South China Morning Post)

International relations

• Brexit negotiations
  • The European Commission announces that the European Union has agreed to a further extension of the Brexit deadline. The length of the extension is yet to be decided. (BBC News)

Law and crime

• 2019 Grays incident
  • Liu Xiaoming, Chinese ambassador to the United Kingdom, announces he has sent a team to Essex to verify the identities of the 39 bodies found in a lorry this week, who are thought by UK authorities to be Chinese nationals. Post-mortems are due to begin today. The Northern Irish driver remains in police custody, suspected of murder. (BBC News)
  • It is suspected that six of the victims are Vietnamese nationals. The family of one of them, a 19-year-old woman, made public her last text message to her parents which she sent while dying. (BBC News)
  • Two further people are arrested on suspicion of manslaughter and conspiracy to traffic people in connection to the case. (BBC News)
• Terrorism in Turkey
  • Turkish police arrest nine people on terrorism charges in Adana, including one foreign national. The men are suspected of Islamic State membership, recruiting for the group, and planning terrorist attacks. (Anadolu Agency)
• Gorny shooting
  • A Russian soldier shoots and kills eight fellow soldiers and wounds two others at a Russian Armed Forces base in the village of Gorny, Zabaykalsky Krai. Officials say the soldier is suspected of having a "nervous breakdown", according to Russian media. (BBC News)

Politics and elections

• 2019 Bolivian general election
  • Official results announce that incumbent Bolivian president Evo Morales has achieved a great enough margin to win re-election, though the legitimacy of the electoral process has been questioned by protestors and international observers. (BBC News)
• 2019–20 Lebanese protests
  • Hezbollah's Hassan Nasrallah calls on his supporters to leave the protests, warning the government's resignation will lead to "chaos" and "civil war". It comes the day after Hezbollah supporters violently clashed with protestors in central Beirut. (Al Jazeera)
• Mueller report, Mueller special counsel investigation
  • A federal judge rules the U.S. Justice Department must provide Congress with grand jury information redacted from special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. (The Wall Street Journal)
• The Chicago Teachers Union 2019 strike extends into its seventh schoolday, on-par with its 2012 strike. A Cook County judge is expected to hear an emergency injunction filed against the Illinois High School Association for not allowing student athletes within Chicago Public Schools participate in state playoffs, despite the IHSA's long-standing ban against teams from striking districts. (WGN-TV)

Sports

• 2019–20 in English football
  • Leicester City F.C. equals the 24-year record for the biggest ever Premier League win and the biggest ever victory by an away side in an English football top-flight game after beating Southampton F.C. 9–0 at St Mary's Stadium. It was also Southampton's worst ever defeat in all competitions in their history. (BBC Sport)

October 26, 2019 (2019-10-26) (Saturday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• 2018–19 Iraqi protests, October 2019 Iraqi protests
  • Fifteen more people are killed in clashes between security forces and protestors in Iraq, raising the overall death toll to 222 since protests began this month. (Al Jazeera) (Reuters)
  • Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi orders the elite Counter-Terrorism Service to quell the protests in the capital Baghdad and the southern city of Nasiriya. (Voice of America)
• 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria, Second Northern Syria Buffer Zone
  • Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu rejects a proposal by German Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer to establish a United Nations-mandated security zone in northeastern Syria, calling the plan "not very realistic". (Al Jazeera)
• Sea-Eye, a charity which performs migrant rescue operations in the Mediterranean Sea, claims the Libyan coastguard circled their ship MV Alan Kurdi and fired warning shots into the air, with weapons pointed at crew and the migrants they were rescuing. (Deutsche Welle)

Disasters and accidents

• Flooding in Japan kills nine people in Chiba and one more in Fukushima, with a further person missing in the latter. (Gulf News)

Business and economy

• The Times reports that the Barclay family is looking to sell The Daily Telegraph and The Sunday Telegraph, citing conflicting viewpoints within the family and low circulation. The Daily Mail, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, and Evening Standard owner Evgeny Lebedev are rumored to be potential buyers. (Reuters) (BBC News)

Law and crime

• Trial of Catalonia independence leaders; 2019 Catalan protests
  • In a demonstration in Barcelona, 350,000 people protest prison sentences given to Catalan leaders. The protest turns violent with clashes with National Police Corps and Mossos d'Esquadra. (Euronews) (La Vanguardia)
• 2019 Grays incident
  • The driver of the lorry in which 39 bodies were found is charged with 39 counts of manslaughter, as well as immigration offences, money laundering, and people trafficking. Three other people remain in police custody suspected of manslaughter and people trafficking after 39 bodies were found in a lorry earlier this week. (BBC News)

October 27, 2019 (2019-10-27) (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Syrian Civil War, American-led intervention in the Syrian Civil War, International military intervention against ISIL, Barisha raid
  • Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, leader of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, is believed to have died in a suicide bombing after U.S.-led coalition special forces raid targeted positions belonging to Huras al-Din in Syria's rebel-held Idlib Governorate. U.S. President Donald Trump makes a statement at 9:00 AM EDT (1300 UTC) asserting his death. (Voice of America) (Reuters)
  • Abul-Hasan al-Muhajir, the official spokesman of ISIL, is killed in a second operation near Jarabulus in northwest Syria. (BNO News)
  • France is put on high alert due to concerns of ISIL revenge attacks. (Reuters)
• War in Afghanistan
  • Over 80 Taliban members are killed in Afghan and U.S. airstrikes. (Al Jazeera)
  • A bomb planted on a foreign tank wounds a soldier at Kandahar International Airport. The nationality of the military concerned is unknown. (Gulf News)
  • An improvised explosive device planted by the Taliban detonates when a child steps on a pressure plate in Pashtun Kot. The explosion kills five, all children. A sixth child survives but is injured. (Xinhua News Agency)
• 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria, Syrian Civil War
  • Clashes take place between Turkish forces and the Syrian Army in the town of Ras al-Ain, with an undetermined number of casualties. (Reuters)

Business and economy

• The Hong Kong economy enters into a recession, as a result of continuous protests from the past five months. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• 2019 California wildfires
  • Further evacuations are ordered, with 180,000 people now affected. Power companies are scheduled to cut supplies for a million people today, doubling the size of what is already the biggest blackout in California history in a bid to prevent further fires igniting from damaged electric cables. (BBC News)

International relations

• North Korea–United States relations
  • The government of North Korea says that it is "running out of patience with the U.S." due to "unilateral hostile disarmament demands" and warns that the cordial relationship between Kim Jong-un and Donald Trump would not prevent the talks from derailing. (ABC News)
• Since convening on 6 October, the synod of Catholic bishops from Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Venezuela, and Suriname gather with Pope Francis in Rome. According to the bishops, "a deep personal, social and structural conversion" is needed in response to the "unprecedented" environmental and social crisis in the Amazon. (Catholic News Service)

Law and crime

• Essex lorry deaths
  • Three people arrested on suspicion of manslaughter and conspiracy to traffic people after 39 deaths in a lorry earlier this week are released on police bail as Essex Police continue their investigation. (BBC News)
• Two men die and ten others are injured in a mass shooting at a Halloween party in Greenville, Texas. (KXAS-TV)

Politics and elections

• 2019 Chilean protests
  • Chilean President Sebastián Piñera fires all sitting ministers of his government. (BBC News)
• 2019 Argentine general election
  • Argentinian voters go to the polls to elect a new president. Though the margin is lower than what opinion polls predicted, Alberto Fernández of the left-wing Justicialist Party beats incumbent Mauricio Macri of the center-right Republican Proposal. Macri becomes the first president in Argentinian history to lose his reelection bid. (Al Jazeera)
• 2018–19 Iraqi protests, October 2019 Iraqi protests
  • Several universities and schools shut down as many students join the protests across Iraq. Thousands continue to participate in spite of the violent crackdowns from the previous days. (Al Jazeera)
• 2019–20 Lebanese protests
  • Nearly 170,000 protestors form a 105 mile (170 km) human chain running from Tyre to Tripoli to symbolize their solidarity. (Al Jazeera) (CNN)
• 2019 Omani general election
  • Citizens of Oman vote for the members of the country's Consultative Assembly. (Times of Oman)
• 2019 Uruguayan general election
  • People in Uruguay vote for their next president and the members of the country's senate and Chamber of Representatives. (Reuters)
• 2019 Catalan protests
  • In Barcelona, 80,000 demonstrators take to the streets in protest of the Independent politics of the Catalan government and the violence of the last weeks' pro-independence protests, and for the unity and democracy of Spain. (Reuters)
• U.S. Democratic Congresswoman Katie Hill of California announces her resignation days after admitting to having a relationship with a campaign staffer before coming into office. (CNN)
• Politics of Belgium
  • Sophie Wilmès becomes the first female Prime Minister of Belgium, succeeding Charles Michel. (The Guardian)

Science and technology

• The uncrewed Boeing X-37B spacecraft returns to Earth after spending a record 780 days in orbit. The nature of the X-37B's mission remains classified information. (United States Air Force) (Space)

Sports

• In golf, Tiger Woods wins the inaugural Zozo Championship in Japan by three shots over Hideki Matsuyama for his 82nd career PGA Tour title, tying him with Sam Snead atop the all-time list. (ESPN)

October 28, 2019 (2019-10-28) (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Afghanistan–Pakistan barrier
  • Three women are killed after Afghan and Pakistani forces clash in Kunar Province. (CityNews Vancouver)
• Kashmir conflict
  • Twenty people are injured in a grenade attack in Sopore. (Reuters)
• Maghreb insurgency
  • Pobé Mengao shooting
    • Gunmen kill 16 people after they refused to help buy them ammunition. The attack happened in the village of Pobé Mengao in Burkina Faso. (Jeune Afrique)
• Bayonne mosque shooting
  • A gunman opens fire on a mosque in Bayonne, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France, wounding two before being detained. The perpetrator is an 84-year-old man who ran for the National Front in the 2015 regional elections. (The Daily Telegraph)
• War in Afghanistan
  • An improvised explosive device detonates in a partially constructed building in Bati Kot, Afghanistan. The bomb kills two labourers and injures five more, three seriously. (Xinhua News Agency)

Arts and culture

• Pope Francis officially renames the Vatican Secret Archive to the Vatican Apostolic Archive. (Detroit News)

Disasters and accidents

• An explosion kills five people at a petroleum plant in Shaanxi, China. A further three are missing. (South China Morning Post)

Law and crime

• Impeachment inquiry against Donald Trump
  • Charles Kupperman, U.S. President Donald Trump's former deputy national security adviser, defies a congressional subpoena to testify before the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence regarding the impeachment inquiry into President Trump. (CNN)

Politics and elections

• Brexit negotiations
  • The European Union agrees to delay the deadline again for a Brexit deal until January 31, 2020. (BBC News)
• October 2019 Iraqi protests
  • The Iraqi government enacts a curfew in Baghdad as renewed protests enters its fourth day. (Al Jazeera)
• 2019 Chilean protests
  • President Sebastián Piñera changes eight ministries of his cabinet, notably with Interior Minister Andrés Chadwick and Financial Minister Felipe Larraín Bascuñán being replaced with Gonzalo Blumel and Ignacio Briones respectively. New rounds of protests and riots erupt in Santiago and other cities after the announcement. (BBC News) (The Guardian)
• 2019–20 Lebanese protests
  • Central Bank Governor Riad Salame says the economy of Lebanon is "days" away from collapsing. (CNN)
• Impeachment inquiry against Donald Trump
  • The U.S. House of Representatives announces it will vote this week to formalize the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump. (CNN)

Science and technology

• A study by Garvan Institute of Medical Research in Sydney, and headed by geneticist Vanessa Hayes, pinpoints the Okavango region in northern Botswana as the origin of modern humans. Other scientists express skepticism at this, particularly at the study's primary evidence coming from mitochondrial DNA. (BBC News) (The Guardian) (Nature)

October 29, 2019 (2019-10-29) (Tuesday)

Business and economics

• WhatsApp sues Israeli cyber intelligence firm NSO Group for allegedly spying on 1,400 users on four continents. Among those affected were diplomats, journalists, and government officials. If moved forward, it could set a major legal precedent for cybersecurity. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• 2019 Cotabato earthquakes
  • A magnitude 6.6 earthquake strikes the southern part of the island of Mindanao, killing at least eight. (GMA News and Public Affairs)
• At least 42 people were killed during a landslide caused by torrential rainfall in the city of Bafoussam, Cameroon. Twenty-six of the victims are children. (Al Jazeera)

• South Airlines Flight 8971
  • The National Bureau of Air Accidents Investigation of Ukraine concludes its investigation, stating the accident was caused by the pilot's excessive speed reductions as he attempted to land in weather conditions beyond his qualifications. (The Aviation Herald)

International relations

• Turkey–United States relations, Armenia–United States relations, Armenian Genocide recognition
  • The United States House of Representatives votes 405 to 11 to officially recognize the Armenian Genocide as a genocide for the first time. Turkey condemns the resolution, describing it as "a meaningless political step", and that "its sole addressees are the Armenian lobby and anti-Turkey groups". (Reuters)
• Israel–Jordan relations
  • Jordan recalls its ambassador to Israel when the latter refuses to release two Jordanian citizens whom Foreign Affairs Minister Ayman Safadi says have been held illegally for months without charges. They were arrested in August for crossing into the West Bank to attend a family wedding. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

• 2019–20 Lebanese protests
  • Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri submits his resignation to President Michel Aoun. (Al Jazeera)
• October 2019 Iraqi protests
  • Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, who heads the current ruling bloc, calls on the opposition to help him introduce a motion of no confidence against Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi. (Reuters)
• 2019 United Kingdom general election
  • The House of Commons votes 438 to 20 to approve Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s call to hold a general election on December 12. (Reuters)

October 30, 2019 (2019-10-30) (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• A motorcycle bomb explodes in front of a hotel in Spin Boldak, Kandahar Province, Afghanistan. Seven are wounded. (Hindustan Times)
• The Afghan army, together with its international partners, launch a series of counterterrorism airstrikes in Kandahar, Uruzgan and Zabul, killing 58, including a Taliban governor. Ten mines are also destroyed. (Hindustan Times)
• Syrian peace process
  • The first meeting of the Syrian Constitutional Committee takes place in Geneva in a bid to end the country's eight-year-long civil war. (Reuters)

Business and economics

• Twitter announces it will ban all political ads on its platform starting November 22. (BBC News)

Disasters and accidents

• 2013 Glasgow helicopter crash
  • The fatal accident inquiry into the crash concludes with the issuing of a report by Sheriff Principal Craig Turnbull. Turnbull criticises the helicopter's pilot, prompting concerns by some victims over excessive blame being placed upon pilot error. The aircraft crashed into a bar after running out of fuel. (BBC News)
• A fire destroys much of the 500-year-old Shuri Castle in Shuri, Okinawa, Japan, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. (NHK World-Japan)

Law and crime

• 2019 Samoa assassination plot
  • After months of delay, the Supreme Court of Samoa accepts a closed court bail hearing for two defendants accused of attempting to assassinate Prime Minister of Samoa Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi. A third defendant who pleaded guilty is due to be sentenced on November 1. (Radio New Zealand)
• Murder of Aya Maasarwe
  • A court in Australia sentences Maasarwe's confessed killer, Codey Herrmann, to 36 years in prison with parole eligibility after 30 for rape and murder. The case prompted widespread debate about violence against women in Australia. (BBC News)
• 2019 Chilean protests
  • Due to the escalation in the protests, President Sebastián Piñera announces the cancellation of the 2019 APEC Summit and the United Nations Climate Change Conference, due to be hosted in Santiago in the following weeks. (Bloomberg)
• Death of Jeffrey Epstein
  • Dr. Michael Baden, a medical examiner who observed the autopsy of Jeffrey Epstein, says that it shows signs consistent with homicide. (Yahoo! News)
• Crime in California
  • A mass shooting at a Halloween party at a residence in Long Beach, California, by at least one gunman, who is believed to have targeted the party but to have fired at random, kills three and injures at least nine, with some having significant injuries. (MSN)
• Censorship in Myanmar
  • A court in Yangon convicts five members of satirical thangyat troupe Peacock Generation over an April performance in which they lampoon the nation's military. They each are jailed for one year. (BBC News)

Sports

• 2019 World Series
  • The Washington Nationals beat the Houston Astros 6–2 in Game 7 to win the World Series. It is the franchise's first World Series championship and the first World Series victory for an MLB team based in the district since the Washington Senators (now known as the Minnesota Twins) won in 1924. This World Series is also notable as the first in which all games were won by the visiting team. (USA Today)

October 31, 2019 (2019-10-31) (Thursday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• ISIL confirms the deaths of its leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and its spokesman Abul-Hasan al-Muhajir, and names Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi as its new leader. (Al Jazeera)
• Syrian Civil War
  • A car bomb in Afrin kills nine people and wounds over 14 others. No one has claimed responsibility for the attack. (Voice of America)
• Islamist insurgency in Mozambique
  • Seven Russian defense contractors from the Wagner Group and 20 Mozambican soldiers are reportedly killed in attacks by Salafi jihadists in northern Mozambique. (The Moscow Times)
• A rocket is fired from the Gaza Strip, exploding in an open field in southern Israel. The IDF retaliates by launching strikes against two Hamas military posts. (The Jewish Press) (Xinhua News Agency)
• Allied Democratic Forces insurgency
  • The Armed Forces of DR Congo (FARDC) began a new large scale offensive against the Allied Democratic Forces rebel group in the Congo's North Kivu province. (Al Jazeera)
• Ansar al-Islam
  • Ansar al-Islam claims responsibility for an IED explosion that killed three soldiers in Iraq's Diyala Province. This was their first attack since 2013. (Long War Journal)

Arts and culture

• An archaeologist discovers a 25 m (82 ft)-wide ring cairn dating back to the Bronze Age near Tidenham, Gloucestershire. (BBC News)
• American rock band My Chemical Romance announces their reunion and first show in seven years. (CNN)

Business and economy

• Ana Botín, the chairwoman of Spain's Santander bank, which has suffered a major stock price fall since reporting its disappointing third quarter earnings, buys €3.61 million worth of shares as a display of confidence. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• 2019 Tezgam train fire
  • A train catches fire in Liaquatpur Tehsil, Rahim Yar Khan District, Punjab, Pakistan. The blaze, apparently sparked by gas stoves used by passengers illegally cooking on board, kills at least 74 people. (BBC News)
• Firefighters in Hungary save 20,000 baby birds in the wake of a barn fire that broke out earlier this week. (MSN)

Law and crime

• Police in Papua New Guinea withdraw the arrest warrant issued against former Prime Minister Peter O'Neill, who was accused of corruption. (Radio New Zealand)
• Mongolian police arrest 800 Chinese citizens and confiscate hundreds of computers and SIM cards in Ulaanbaatar. Authorities believe they were part of a cybercrime ring involved in illegal gambling, hacking and identity theft, among other activities. (Reuters)
• Orinda shooting
  • Police say five people were shot dead and another four injured at a Halloween party in Orinda, California. An investigation is currently underway. (San Francisco Chronicle)

Politics and elections

• Presidency of Jair Bolsonaro
  • Brazilian Congressman Eduardo Bolsonaro threatens to introduce a "new AI-5" in response to opposition to the government headed by his father, Jair Bolsonaro. (GloboNews)
• India formally splits Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories, dubbed Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. Both entities will be directly governed from New Delhi. (BBC News)
• 2019–20 Lebanese protests
  • Days after Prime Minister Saad Hariri resigned, both France and Hezbollah call for quick formation of a new government, saying that reforms are needed to deal with Lebanon's economic crisis. (Reuters)
  • President Michel Aoun pledges that the new government will consist of technocrats. (Reuters)
• Impeachment inquiry against Donald Trump
  • The U.S. House of Representatives votes 232 to 196 to approve a resolution formalizing the procedures of the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump. (CNN)
• 2019 Bolivian protests, 2019 Bolivian general election
  • Two men are killed in a town in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, during protests and riots over the disputed general election on 20 October. (Bloomberg)
  • The Organization of American States, with Spain, Mexico and Paraguay as observers, begins its audit of the election results. (BBC News)
• 2019 Iraqi protests
  • In Iraq, Prime Minister Adil Abdul Mahdi agrees to resign after weeks of anti-government protests. (CNN)

Science and technology

• Researchers discover a shipwreck at a depth of 20,400 feet (6,200 m) under the Philippine Sea. The shipwreck is believed to be the remains of USS Johnston, a World War II-era destroyer. (MSN)

October 2019

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	31

Ongoing events

Disasters

• 2018–19 Australian bushfire season
• 2019–20 European windstorm season
• 2018–20 Kivu Ebola epidemic
• 2019 North Indian Ocean cyclone season
• 2019 Pacific hurricane season
• 2019 Pacific typhoon season
• 2019 Atlantic hurricane season
• 2019 wildfire season
• Yemeni famine

Politics

• Afghan peace talks
• Algerian protests
• Bolivian protests
• Brexit
• Catalan protests
• Chilean protests
• Ecuadorian protests
• Egyptian protests
• European migrant crisis (timeline)
• Hong Kong protests
• Indonesian protests
• Iraqi protests
• Impeachment inquiry against Donald Trump (Mueller report) (investigation) (timeline)
• Kashmir lockdown
• Lebanese protests
• Papua protests
• Qatar diplomatic crisis
• Rohingya persecution in Myanmar
• Turkish purges
• Venezuelan presidential crisis (protests)
• Yellow vests movement

Religion

• 2018 Moscow–Constantinople schism

Sports

• NCAA Division I men's basketball corruption scandal
• 2019 Rugby World Cup

More details – ongoing conflicts

Elections and referendums

Recent

• October
  • 17: Gibraltar, Parliament
  • 20: Bolivia, President, Legislative Assembly
  • 20: Switzerland, Federal Assembly
  • 21: Canada, House of Commons
  • 23: Botswana, National Assembly
  • 27: Argentina, President, Congress
  • 27: Oman, Consultative Assembly
  • 27: Uruguay, Constitutional referendum, President (1st), General Assembly

Upcoming

• November
  • 10: Romania, President
  • 10: Spain, Cortes Generales

Trials

Recently concluded

• Honduras: Rosa Elena Bonilla
• Sweden: ASAP Rocky
• Spain: Trial of Catalonia independence leaders
• United States: Gregory B. Craig

Ongoing

• Guatemala: Otto Pérez Molina, Roxana Baldetti, Juan Carlos Monzón and others
• Greece: Nikolaos Michaloliakos
• Israel: Faina Kirschenbaum, Benjamin Netanyahu
• Malaysia: Najib Razak
• Philippines: Leila de Lima, Maria Ressa, Leni Robredo
• South Africa: Jacob Zuma
• Spain: Bárcenas affair
• United States: Fat Leonard scandal, Varsity Blues scandal, Raid on the North Korean embassy in Madrid, 6ix9ine

Upcoming

• Guatemala: Álvaro Colom, Manuel Baldizón, Juan Alberto Fuentes
• Japan: Carlos Ghosn
• Philippines: Andal Ampatuan Jr.
• United Kingdom: David Duckenfield
• United States: Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Elizabeth Holmes, Meng Wanzhou, Duncan D. Hunter, Roger Stone, R. Kelly, Harvey Weinstein, Michael Avenatti, Golden State Killer
• Zimbabwe: Ignatius Chombo

Sport

• Association football
  • UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying
  • 2019–20 UEFA Champions League
  • 2019–20 UEFA Europa League
  • 2019–20 La Liga
  • 2019–20 Premier League
  • 2019–20 Serie A
  • 2019–20 Bundesliga
  • 2019–20 Liga MX season
  • 2019–20 Ligue 1
  • 2019–20 Scottish Premiership
  • 2019 MLS season
• Women's association football
  • 2019–20 Champions League
  • 2019–20 Division 1 Féminine
  • 2019–20 FA WSL
  • 2019–20 Frauen-Bundesliga
  • 2019–20 Liga MX Femenil
• American football
  • 2019 NFL season
  • 2019 NCAA Division I FBS
• Basketball
  • 2019–20 EuroLeague
  • 2019–20 NBA season
• Golf
  • 2019 European Tour
  • 2019 LPGA Tour
  • 2019 PGA Tour Champions
  • 2019 Ladies European Tour
  • 2020 PGA Tour
• Ice hockey
  • 2019-20 NHL season
  • 2019-20 KHL season
  • 2019–20 Champions League
• Motorsport
  • 2019 Formula One Championship
  • 2019 World Rally Championship
  • 2019 MotoGP
  • 2019 Supercars Championship
  • 2019 NASCAR Cup Series
• Rugby sevens
  • 2019–20 World Rugby Women's Sevens Series
• Rugby union
  • 2019 Rugby World Cup
• Tennis
  • 2019 ATP Tour
  • 2019 WTA Tour
  • 2019 Davis Cup
  • 2019 Fed Cup (World Group)
• Other sports seasons
  • 2019 CFL season
  • 2019–20 international cricket season
  • 2019–20 curling season
  • 2019–20 figure skating season
  • 2019–20 snooker season

More details – current sports events

Recent deaths

October 2019

• 29: John Witherspoon
• 28: Kay Hagan
• 28: Anne Phelan
• 27: Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi
• 27: Vladimir Bukovsky
• 27: John Conyers
• 27: Ivan Milat
• 26: Paul Barrere
• 26: Robert Evans
• 25: Chou Wen-chung
• 25: Dilip Parikh
• 22: Raymond Leppard
• 22: Sadako Ogata
• 22: Marieke Vervoort
• 22: Hans Zender
• 21: Willie Brown
• 21: Lho Shin-yong
• 20: Thomas D'Alesandro III
• 20: Huang Yong Ping
• 20: Nick Tosches
• 19: Joseph Lombardo
• 18: Mark Hurd
• 18: Meir Shamgar
• 17: Alicia Alonso
• 17: Elijah Cummings
• 17: Bob Kingsley
• 16: Morton Mandel
• 14: Harold Bloom
• 14: Sulli
• 13: Richard Huckle
• 13: Charles Jencks
• 12: Sara Danius
• 12: Hevrin Khalaf
• 11: Sam Bobrick
• 11: Robert Forster
• 11: Alexei Leonov
• 8: Carlos Celdran
• 7: Ella Vogelaar
• 6: Abdul Aziz Bin Abdullah Al Zamil
• 6: Ginger Baker
• 6: Eddie Lumsden
• 6: Rip Taylor
• 5: Amalia Fuentes
• 5: Marcello Giordani
• 4: Diahann Carroll
• 3: Diogo Freitas do Amaral
• 2: Bill Bidwill
• 2: Kim Shattuck
• 1: C. K. Menon
• 1: Erik Pleskow

September 2019

• 30: Wayne Fitzgerald
• 30: Jessye Norman
• 29: busbee

Ongoing conflicts

Africa

• Algeria, Libya and Tunisia
  • Maghreb insurgency
• Cameroon
  • Anglophone Crisis
• Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria
  • Boko Haram insurgency
• Central African Republic
  • Civil War
• Democratic Republic of the Congo
  • Kivu conflict
  • ADF insurgency
  • Ituri conflict
  • Lord's Resistance Army insurgency
• Libya
  • Second Civil War
  • American intervention in Libya
• Mali
  • Northern Mali conflict
• Mozambique
  • Islamist insurgency in Mozambique
• Nigeria
  • Communal conflicts in Nigeria
• Somalia
  • Civil war
• South Sudan
  • Ethnic violence (South Sudanese Civil War)
• Sudan
  • War in Darfur
  • South Kordofan conflict
  • Sudanese nomadic conflicts

Americas

• Colombia
  • Colombian conflict
• Mexico
  • Mexican War on Drugs
• Peru
  • Internal conflict in Peru

Asia

• Afghanistan
  • Afghanistan War
• China
  • Xinjiang conflict
• India
  • Naxalite–Maoist insurgency
  • Insurgency in Northeast India
• India and Pakistan
  • Kashmir conflict
• Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines
  • Moro conflict
    • Cross border attacks in Sabah
• Indonesia and Papua New Guinea
  • Papua conflict
• Myanmar
  • Internal conflict in Myanmar
    • Kachin conflict
    • Karen conflict
    • Rohingya conflict
• Pakistan
  • War in North-West Pakistan
  • Balochistan conflict
• Philippines
  • Communist rebellion in the Philippines
  • Philippine Drug War
• Thailand
  • South Thailand insurgency

Europe

• Armenia and Azerbaijan
  • Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
• Georgia
  • Abkhaz–Georgian conflict
  • Georgian–Ossetian conflict
• Russia
  • Chechen–Russian conflict
  • North Caucasus insurgency
• Ukraine
  • War in Donbass
    • Russian military intervention in Ukraine

Middle East

• Egypt
  • Sinai insurgency
• Iran and the Persian Gulf
  • Iran–PJAK conflict
  • Iran–Israel proxy conflict
  • Iran–Saudi Arabia proxy conflict
• Iraq
  • American-led intervention in Iraq
  • Iranian intervention in Iraq
• Iraq and Syria (map)
  • Military intervention against ISIL
• Israel and Gaza
• Syria
  • American-led intervention in Syria
  • Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War
  • Turkish occupation of northern Syria
    • SDF insurgency in Northern Aleppo
• Turkey
  • Kurdish–Turkish conflict
• Yemen and Saudi Arabia
  • Yemeni Civil War
  • Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
  • Saudi Arabian–Yemeni border conflict

Further information: List of ongoing armed conflicts