Portal:Current events/July 2014

Armed conflict and attacks

2014 pro-Russian conflict in Ukraine
- The President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko states that the Ukraine government's forces will resume offensive operations against pro-Russian rebels. (Reuters)
Gaza-Israel conflict
- Israel's military hits 34 targets across the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip in response to the more than 20 rockets that were fired into Israel from Gaza since Sunday. One Palestinian man is killed after throwing a grenade at security forces in the raids. (AP)
Islamist insurgency in Nigeria
- A car bomb explodes in a market in the northeast Nigerian town of Maiduguri, the birthplace of Boko Haram, with dozens feared dead. (AP via SFGate)

Business and economics

The United States imposes a record $9 billion fine on BNP Paribas for helping clients bypass sanctions against Cuba, Iran, and Sudan. The bank is also barred from certain US dollar dominated transactions for one year. (Reuters)

International relations

Malaysia states that it will extradite a junior military official who returned home after being charged with sexual assault at its diplomatic mission in New Zealand. (AP via Netscape)

Law and crime

Former President of France Nicolas Sarkozy is held for questioning over alleged corruption. (BBC)
A Ku Klux Klan flag is erected in the east of Belfast, Northern Ireland, sparking outrage amid a recent surge in racist attacks in the city. (The Guardian)

Politics and elections

The German Social Democrat Martin Schulz is reelected President of the European Parliament for another two and a half years. (Deutsche Welle)
The Council of Representatives of Iraq is due to meet for the first time since recent elections to try and counter the surge made by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. However, the meeting is delayed due to a lack of quorum. (CNN)
The Cabinet of Japan lifts a ban on the Japan Self-Defense Forces fighting overseas. The move is aimed towards defending allied countries. (Australia Network News)

Sports

In cricket, former New Zealand player Lou Vincent is banned for life for match fixing. (ABC News Australia with AAP)

July 2, 2014 (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Taliban insurgency
- A suicide bomber attacks an Afghan National Army air force bus in Kabul killing at least five people. (BBC)
Israeli–Palestinian conflict
- A missing Palestinian boy in Shuafat is rumored to be murdered in revenge for the kidnapping and murder of Israeli teenagers, clashes break out. (Jerusalem Post)

Business and economy

Roche Holding AG says that its US-based Genentech subsidiary will purchase American biotechnology company Seragon Pharmaceuticals, Inc for up to $1.725 billion in cash and contingency payments. (AP)

Disasters

2014 Atlantic hurricane season
- Tropical Storm Arthur heads towards the US coast with a hurricane warning in place for the state of North Carolina. A mandatory evacuation is ordered for Hatteras Island in the Outer Banks. (AP)
Widespread flooding in the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan leads to the declaration of states of emergencies in 87 municipalities. (CBC)
Eleven people are injured including 2 in critical condition after a food truck explodes due to a ruptured propane tank in northern Philadelphia. (FOX)
At least 70 asylum seekers drown at sea after their boat sinks off the coast of Sicily with 27 rescued. (BBC)

Health

2014 West Africa Ebola outbreak
- The World Health Organisation convenes an emergency meeting of health ministers from 11 countries in Accra, Ghana, to discuss ways of combatting the outbreak which has so far infected 763 people, leading to 468 deaths. (BBC)

International relations

Togo formally recognizes Kosovo. (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kosovo)
Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair agrees to become Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi's economic adviser as part of a program funded by the United Arab Emirates. (The Guardian)
South Korea reports that North Korea fired two short range missiles into the Pacific Ocean from the coastal city of Wonsan. (AP)
A Danish ship carrying hundreds of tons of Syrian chemical weapons arrives in the Italian port of Gioia Tauro prior to a rendezvous with an American ship that will destroy the weapons at sea. (AP)

Law and crime

Former President of France Nicolas Sarkozy is charged with corruption and influence peddling. (AFP via Yahoo! News Australia)

Politics and elections

Luxembourg's Viviane Reding, Finland's Olli Rehn, Italy's Antonio Tajani and Poland's Janusz Lewandowski step down as EU commissioners in order to take office as newly elected members of the European Parliament. (EU Observer)
Hundreds of Hong Kong Police Force officers clear sit-in protesters from Hong Kong's Central District after the biggest pro-democracy rally in a decade yesterday. Over 500 people are arrested for illegal assembly and disrupting traffic in Chater Road. (Bloomberg), (AP)

Science and technology

Fabien Cousteau and two crew members resurface after 31 days living underwater and collecting scientific data. (ABC News)

July 3, 2014 (Thursday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Post-coup unrest in Egypt (2013–14)
- On the anniversary of Mohamed Morsi's ouster last year, three attacks took place in Kerdasa, Cairo and Assiut, during which one suspected militant was killed when the homemade bomb he was handling prematurely exploded. A late night bomb in Alexandria exploded in a passenger train, wounding 9 people. (ABC News) (allAfrica)
- One pro-Morsi demonstrator and a policeman were killed during clashes between protester and security forces in Giza and Helwan respectively. (The Telegraph)
- Sinai insurgency: Government raids in Rafah killed 17 suspected extremist militants. (GlobalPost)
Saudi Arabia deploys 30,000 soldiers to its border with Iraq after Iraqi government forces withdrew from the area. (Reuters)

International relations

Global surveillance disclosures
- A 31-year-old male employee of Germany's intelligence service BND is arrested on suspicions of spying for the United States. The employee is suspected of spying on a German parliamentary committee investigating U.S. espionage. (BBC)
The government of Tonga reveals a proposal to trade the disputed Minerva Reefs to Fiji in exchange for the Lau Islands, in an effort to settle a decades old territorial dispute between the two Pacific countries. (Fiji Times)
The government of Japan lifts some sanctions on North Korea following an agreement to re-investigate the fate of Japanese nationals abducted by North Korean agents in the 1970s and 1980s. (AP via Fox News)
The President of China, Xi Jinping, arrives in South Korea for talks with the President of South Korea, Park Geun-hye, days after a North Korean missile test.(Yonhap)
Russia starts limiting its import of meat from Moldova as a reaction to the European Union Association Agreement signed on 27 June. (Moscow Times)

Politics and elections

Valeriy Heletey takes office as the third Defense Minister of Ukraine after the 2014 Ukrainian revolution, replacing Mykhailo Koval (Interfax Ukraine)
The German parliament approves the country's first minimum wage which will be set at 8,50 euros per hour from 2015. (BBC)

July 4, 2014 (Friday)

Disasters and accidents

An 11-story building under construction collapses in the Indian city of Chennai, crushing to death 61 people, most of them workers on site. (CNN) (BBC News)

Law and crime

Australian entertainer Rolf Harris is sentenced to 5 years and 9 months at Southwark Crown Court in London, United Kingdom, convicted on 12 charges of indecently assaulting female minors between 1968 and 1986. Harris will be eligible for release on licence after half of the sentence in 2017. (BBC News)
A Kindergarten teacher is stabbed and killed in front of students at the Edouard Herriot school in Albi in southern France. The suspect was the mother of a new student who suffered from psychiatric problems. (New York Post)
A 20-year-old man is arrested and charged with murder and attempted murder in connection with a June 28 shooting that occurred at Bourbon Street in New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S., which killed one person and wounded 8 others. (Yahoo News)

Politics and elections

Aminata Touré is dismissed as Prime Minister of Senegal by the country's parliament following her failure to win a seat from Dakar in the 2014 local elections. (Deutsche Welle)
The National Congress of Bolivia backs a new law on child labour, allowing 10-year-olds into the workforce under special conditions. (AlJazeera)
The United Nations announces in a policy statement that it will begin recognizing staff members' legal same-sex unions (UN Globe)

July 5, 2014 (Saturday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

2014 pro-Russian conflict in Ukraine
- Ukrainian forces recapture the pro-Russian armed separatists' main strongholds of Slovyansk and Kramatorsk after the separatists defending it escaped an encirclement. (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)
2014 Northern Iraq offensive
- 46 Indian nurses held hostage by the ISIS for almost a month in Tikrit, Iraq, arrive at Cochin airport, Kochi, India. (IANS via Biharprabha)

July 6, 2014 (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Israeli–Palestinian conflict
- 6 Israeli nationals are arrested in relation to the murder of Muhammad Abu Khdeir as Palestinians continue to riot and clash with police in East Jerusalem and Nazareth. (Jerusalem Post)
- In response to over 25 rockets fired from Gaza into Israel on Sunday, the IAF carries out airstrikes killing 6 Hamas militants. Over 150 rockets and mortars have been fired into Israeli civilian areas over the past three weeks. (Jerusalem Post)

Law and crime

Moldova's Council for TV and Radio suspends the broadcast license of the Russian TV channel Russia-24 and places sanctions on four Moldovan broadcasters for lack of pluralism. (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)

July 7, 2014 (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

2014 pro-Russian conflict in Ukraine
- Minister of Defense of Ukraine Valeriy Heletey says that special forces have retaken the city of Kostiantynivka, Donetsk from armed insurgents. (Presidential administration)
- Ukrainian forces retake Artemivsk and Druzhkivka from pro-Russian armed separatists. (BBC)
Operation Protective Edge
- Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas claims responsibility for the over 80 rockets fired into southern Israel Monday evening; the Israeli Air Force carries out overnight airstrikes killing nine Palestinian militants. In response to escalating rocket fire, the Israel Defense Forces calls up 1,500 reservists as southern towns declare a state of emergency. (Haaretz)(Jerusalem Post)
Iraqi insurgency (post-U.S. withdrawal)
- Sittings of the Council of Representatives of Iraq are postponed for five weeks as Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant forces kill an Iraqi Army general on the outskirts of Baghdad. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

A Russian-made Mil Mi-17 crashes in the Thạch Thất District of the Vietnamese capital Hanoi with 16 people dead. (AFP via GlobalPost), (BBC)
2014 Pacific typhoon season
- Japan braces for the impact of Typhoon Neoguri which is expected to hit Okinawa and then Kyushu on Tuesday. (Market Watch)
A 6.9 magnitude earthquake hits southern Mexico and Guatemala, causing at least three deaths. (Wall Street Journal)

International relations

Angela Merkel, the Chancellor of Germany, says that if allegations that a German intelligence officer was working for the United States are true, it would be a "clear contradiction" of trust between allies. (AP via US News and World Report)

Law and crime

An antitrust trial begins pitting the U.S. Justice Department against American Express over tactics the latter has employed in the credit card market. (Reuters)
Judge Anita B. Brody of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania approves a preliminary settlement between the National Football League and lawyers for 4,500 former players over damages caused by concussion. (New York Times)

Politics and elections

Afghan presidential election, 2014
- A preliminary count indicates that former finance minister Ashraf Ghani is favourite to win the election. (Euronews)
Senegal's president Macky Sall appoints his close aid Mohammed Ben Abdallah Dionne as the third prime minister in Sall's time in office, following the resignation of Aminata Touré. (AlJazeera)
The alliance between the Israel's right-wing parties Likud and Yisrael Beiteinu is dissolved, reducing the ruling party's share of seats in the Knesset to just 20 out of 120. (Times of Israel)
Thousands rally in Nairobi against the President of Kenya Uhuru Kenyatta's rule.(AP)
Europeans elect German neo-Nazi leader Udo Voigt to the European Parliament's Civil Liberties, Justice, and Home Affairs Committee. (Jerusalem Post)

Science and technology

The prehistoric bird Pelagornis sandersi is identified as the largest flying bird yet discovered. (BBC)

July 8, 2014 (Tuesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Gaza–Israel conflict
- The Israeli cabinet approves the call up of 40,000 reserve soldiers as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warns of a ground operation against Palestinian rockets attacks and infiltration attempts into Israel. (The Times of Israel)
- The Israel Defense Forces launch an air and artillery offensive in the Gaza Strip to quell rocket attacks and the Israeli Air Force conducts more air strikes against the Gaza Strip after Hamas fires rockets into Israel. (BBC) (AP)
Taliban insurgency
- The Taliban claims responsibility for an attack in central Afghanistan that claims the lives of 10 civilians, four Czech members of the International Security Assistance Force and two Afghan police officers. (Wall Street Journal)
War in Somalia (2009–present)
- Al-Shabaab Islamic militants storm the presidential palace in Mogadishu with heavy gunfire as government troops try to repel them. (AP via National Post)

Disasters and accidents

Typhoon Neoguri (2014)
- Typhoon Neoguri heads towards the southern Japanese island of Okinawa with 100,000 on the island and adjacent islands urged to evacuate. (AFP via Yahoo! news Australia), (Reuters)
More than 50 people are injured after two trains collide near the South African city of Durban. (AP)

International relations

The Prime Minister of Australia Tony Abbott and the Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe sign a free trade agreement in the Australian capital Canberra. (ABC News Australia)
The United Nations Permanent Court of Arbitration rules in favour of Bangladesh in a border dispute with India over the Bay of Bengal. (Reuters)

Law and crime

Several buses are set alight and an electronics store looted in the Brazilian city of Sao Paulo following Brazil's crushing defeat by Germany in the World Cup semi-final. (AFP via Yahoo! News Australia)
A jury acquits Rengan Rajaratnam after a trial on insider trading charges in U.S. District Court in New York City. (Bloomberg)

Politics and elections

Around 70 pro-US activists occupy Taiwan provincial government hall. (Focus Taiwan)
Amidst several spending scandals, the French major opposition party Union for a Popular Movement is discovered to have an hidden debt of €79.1 millions for the year 2013 (Lemonde.fr)

Sports

Brazil v Germany (2014 FIFA World Cup)
- Germany won 7-1 against Brazil to go through to the final in the biggest margin of victory in the FIFA World Cup's semifinal history. (AP) (Bloomberg)
- Miroslav Klose of Germany breaks the World Cup goal scoring record he previously shared with Ronaldo in a semi-final against Brazil. (ABC News Australia)

July 9, 2014 (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

2014 pro-Russian conflict in Ukraine
- A spokesman for Russia's Investigative Committee confirms that Nadiya Savchenko, the female military aviator who was captured by pro-Russian separatists on June 18, is now held in Voronezh, Russia, where she has been charged with killing two Russian journalists. (Radio Free Europe), (AP)
Gaza–Israel conflict
- The Israeli Army intensifies its attack on the Hamas controlled Gaza Strip with 130 attacks on key sites such as command centers and rocket launchers after over 250 rockets and mortars were fired into Israel over the past week. Hamas rockets reached over 100 km into Israeli territory. (AP)
- The death toll from Operation Protective Edge in the Gaza Strip reaches 40. (ABC News Australia)
Iraqi insurgency (post-U.S. withdrawal)
- Iraqi security forces find the bodies of 53 men shot recently in Hamza south of Baghdad. (BBC)
War in Somalia (2009–present)
- Somalia's police and intelligence chiefs were sacked after Al-Shabaab's attack on the Presidential palace yesterday. (BBC)

Business and economy

Minutes from the last meeting of the U.S. central bank, the Federal Reserve, indicate that it will end its program of bond purchases, also known as quantitative easing, this October. (Reuters)

Disasters

2014 Pacific typhoon season
- Typhoon Neoguri leaves two dead on Okinawa as it departs for Japan's main islands threatening heavy rain. (Reuters)

International relations

South Korea claims that North Korea has fired two short range missiles into the ocean to the east of the Korean Peninsula. (CNN)

Law and crime

Former Mayor of the American city of New Orleans, Louisiana Ray Nagin (D) is sentenced to ten years in prison for corruption, money laundering and other related offences. (USA Today), (New York Times)
2014 Harris County, Texas shooting: A gunman in Spring, Texas, a suburb of the US city of Houston, kills six people including four children.

Politics and elections

Indonesian presidential election, 2014
- Voters in Indonesia go to the polls for a presidential election. (ABC News Australia)

Science and technology

Russia's Angara rocket successfully makes its maiden flight. (BBC) (Moscow Times) (RIA Novosti)

Sports

2014 FIFA World Cup
- Argentina defeats The Netherlands 4-2 after a penalty shootout to advance to the 2014 FIFA World Cup Final. (Los Angeles Times)

July 10, 2014 (Thursday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

2014 pro-Russian conflict in Ukraine
- Ukrainian forces reclaim control of the city of Siversk from pro-Russian insurgents, and move on to consolidate their position by repairing damaged infrastructure and funneling aid into recently recaptured territory. (Wall Street Journal)
Gaza–Israel conflict
- A BBC investigation determines that photographs circulating on social media sites allegedly covering the airstrikes on Gaza include photographs taken from conflicts in Iraq and Syria and are up to five years old. (BBC)(IsraelNationalNews)
- As Israeli airstrikes continue, Hamas releases a video threatening to carry out stabbings, terror attacks, and suicide bombs inside Israel. The IDF arrests two Palestinians as they tried to enter Israel from the West Bank with a car bomb to carry out an attack. (Palestinian Media Watch) (YouTube) (JPost)

Business and economy

Civil servants in the United Kingdom go on strike over salary freezes and public sector cuts. (Sky News)

International relations

Germany expels the Berlin station chief of the United States Central Intelligence Agency following a series of spy scandals. (AAP via SBS Australia)

Law and crime

A Myanmar court sentences four journalists and the editor of the Yangon based Unity journal to ten years hard labor for allegedly publishing state secrets in an investigative series of reports on a weapons factory. (AP)

Disasters

2014 Pacific typhoon season
- Typhoon Neoguri hits the main Japanese island of Honshu causing flooding, landslides and three deaths. (BBC)

July 11, 2014 (Friday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine
- Ukrainian forces in recently reclaimed city of Sloviansk discover documents that show pro-Russian insurgent leader Igor Strelkov handed down at least four death sentences under a Stalin-era law of 1941. (Kyiv Post)
- Twenty-three Ukrainian Army soldiers die as rebels fire a BM-21 Grad missile at an armoured brigade near the Russian border. (Reuters)
Iraqi insurgency (post-U.S. withdrawal)
- Kurdish MPs withdraw from the central government following a dispute with the Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki with Kurdish forces taking over control of two northern oil fields at Bai Hassan and Kirkuk. (BBC)

Health

The aid group Save the Children warns that a cholera outbreak in South Sudan, which has so far killed 60 people, threatens thousands of lives. (AP)
An experimental vaccine for dengue fever has been developed in Manila. (BBC)

Law and crime

The People's Republic of China jails 32 people for allegedly downloading and spreading violent Islamist material via the Internet to Xinjiang. (AP via Washington Post)

Sport

Four-time NBA MVP LeBron James, who opted out of the final two years of his contract with the Miami Heat, announces that he will return to the Cleveland Cavaliers, where he played for the first seven seasons of his NBA career. (Sports Illustrated)
2014 Sochi Winter Olympics
- Four Slovenian skiing officials are suspended for allegedly rigging results so that violinist Vanessa-Mae could compete for Thailand in alpine skiing. (AP)

July 12, 2014 (Saturday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Operation Protective Edge:
- The death toll in the Gaza Strip since the beginning of Israeli air strikes reaches 120. The IAF has performed over 1,300 airstrikes since the beginning of the operation. (AP)
War in North-West Pakistan:
- A cross border attack by the Afghan Taliban kills three Pakistan Army soldiers in Bajaur Agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas. (AFP via Business Recorder)
Iraqi insurgency (post-U.S. withdrawal):
- Gunmen kill 29 people in an apartment building in East Baghdad, including twenty women. (Reuters)
- Twin bombings in the city of Kirkuk kill at least 28 people. (AFP via Daily Star)

Disasters

An explosion in a shop in Istanbul, Turkey's largest city, leaves many injured. (World Bulletin)

International relations

2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine:
- The European Union imposes sanctions on Aleksandr Borodai and ten other pro-Russian leaders including travel bans and asset freezes. (Reuters via The Globe and Mail)

Politics and elections

Afghan presidential election, 2014:
- The disputed Afghan presidential election is to be recounted in full following an agreement between the two leading candidates Abdullah Abdullah and Ashraf Ghani. (Reuters)

Sports

2014 FIFA World Cup:
- The Netherlands beats Brazil 3-0 in the Third Place playoff. (Reuters via Yahoo! Sports Australia) (Daily Mail)

July 13, 2014 (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Operation Protective Edge:
- Israel Defense Forces special forces raid a missile launch site in the Gaza Strip and destroy it. (CNN)
Post-civil war violence in Libya:
- Islamist militias attack the Zintan Brigade which controls Tripoli International Airport triggering fierce clashes that result in six deaths. (AFP via France 24) (AP)
Syrian Civil War:
- At least four people are killed as Hezbollah clashes with Syrian rebels on the border between Lebanon and Syria. (AFP via Global Post)

International relations

Japan's Defence Ministry claims that North Korea has fired two ballistic missiles into the Sea of Japan. (Yonhap News)

Law and crime

Argentinian police arrest at least 30 people in downtown Buenos Aires after Argentina loses the 2014 World Cup final in Brazil. (CNN)

Politics and elections

Slovenian parliamentary election, 2014:
- The new centrist Party of Miro Cerar wins the Slovenian elections by a landslide while both the Social Democrats and the centre-right parties suffer their worst-ever defeat, and the winner of the previous elections, Positive Slovenia, does not even pass the electoral threshold. (Slovenia Times)

Sports

2014 FIFA World Cup:
- Germany defeats Argentina 1-0 in extra time in the 2014 FIFA World Cup Final at the Maracanã Stadium in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro, with Mario Gotze scoring the winning goal. (ABC News Australia) (BBC)
- Lionel Messi of Argentina wins the Golden Ball for player of the tournament while Colombia player James Rodriguez wins the Golden Boot for highest scorer and Manuel Neuer of Germany wins the Golden Gloves for best goalkeeper. (ABC News Australia)
2014 Women's British Open:
- American golfer Mo Martin wins the 2014 Women's British Open held at the Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport, England. (Daily Telegraph)

July 14, 2014 (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Korean maritime border incidents:
- South Korea claims that North Korea has fired dozens of artillery shells into the sea near the disputed border. (AP via Fox News)
Sinai insurgency:
- One soldier and seven civilians, including two children, are killed in two successive mortar blasts in Egypt's city of Al-Arish in the Sinai Peninsula. (Indian Express)
2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine:
- A Ukrainian Antonov An-26 military transport plane was shot down near Luhansk where there is currently heavy fighting between Ukrainian forces and separatist rebels. The Ukraine claims that it was shot down by a rocket fired from Russia. (Interfax) (AP via CBC)
- Ukraine and Russia trade charges of alleged violations of the border with the Russians claiming that shell fired from the Ukraine killed a Russian man in a border town on the weekend. (Reuters)

Law and crime

Anti-Israel protesters in Paris, France, surround a synagogue and chant anti-Semitic slogans resulting in a clash with police leaving three temple members in the hospital. Additional anti-Semitic attacks take place across the country including the firebombing of a synagogue and the assault of a 17-year-old girl. (Jerusalem Post)

Arts and culture

The General Synod of the Church of England meeting in York votes to allow women to become bishops. (BBC)

Business and economy

South Korean electronics company Samsung suspends business with one of its Chinese suppliers after finding possible evidence of use of child labour in one of its plants. (AFP via NDTV)
Shareholders in Australian retailer David Jones Limited agree to accept a $2 billion takeover from South African retailer Woolworths. (Bloomberg via Business Week)

Disasters and accidents

Costa Concordia disaster
- Efforts to refloat the Italian cruise ship Costa Concordia begin off the coast of Italy two and a half years after it sank. (Sky News Australia)

Health

2014 West Africa Ebola outbreak:
- The ebola virus outbreak in West Africa continues to get worse with the death toll now exceeding 500. (AP)

Politics and elections

William Hague stands down as the United Kingdom Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs as part of a cabinet reshuffle by Prime Minister David Cameron. (AFP via ABC News Australia)

July 15, 2014 (Tuesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Operation Protective Edge:
- A ceasefire deal, brokered by Egypt, is accepted by Israel but rejected by Hamas. (The Guardian) (Haaretz)
- Despite the suspension of airstrikes by the IDF for 6 hours as the ceasefire agreement comes into effect, rockets continue to be fired from Gaza and the IDF resumes its military operation as the death toll in Gaza reaches 190. (Reuters)
- The IDF reports that a rocket which started a fire in the Golan Heights was launched from Syria. (Jerusalem Post)
Taliban insurgency:
- A car bomb explodes at a market in the eastern Afghanistan province of Paktika, killing at least 89 people and injuring scores more in one of the deadliest attacks of the war. (BBC) (Reuters)
2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine:
- An airstrike on the rebel-held town of Snizhne kills at least eleven civilians. (AP via Washington Post)

Business and economy

American chemical company Albemarle Corporation announces plans to buy out competitor Rockwood Holdings in a $6.2 billion cash and stock deal. (AP)
A UK regulatory agency, the Financial Conduct Authority announces plans to cap the interest rates that can be set by payday lenders, as well as their default charges. (BBC)

Disasters and accidents

Nineteen immigrants drown as a boat carrying 80 people capsizes off the coast of Malaysia's Tanjung Piai cape. (The Sun Daily)
2014 Pacific typhoon season:
- The Philippines braces for the impact of Typhoon Rammasun (Glenda) which is expected to pass over the capital Manila causing flooding. Thousands have fled to evacuation centres and ports and airports in the country are closed (ABC News Australia), (AAP via SBS)
A train derails on the Moscow Metro, killing at least 20 and injuring more than 100 others, 50 of whom seriously. (AP via Daily Mail), (BBC)

Law and crime

Ten thousand survivors of the Black Saturday bushfires in the Australian state of Victoria in February 2009 win a settlement of A$497.4 million against utility company SP AusNet, its maintenance contractor and the Victorian Department of Sustainability and Environment for poor inadequate maintenance and protection measures. (BBC)
Mexican police rescue 458 children and 138 adults from a Great Family Group Home in Michoacan state where they were allegedly badly mistreated including sexual abuse. (AP)

Politics and elections

Salim al-Jabouri is elected as speaker of the Iraqi parliament. (Wall Street Journal)
The European Parliament votes to elect Jean-Claude Juncker as President of the European Commission. (Euronews)
The Croatian parliament passes a law that recognizes life partnerships for same-sex couples, making them equal married couples in everything except adoption. (queer.de)

Sports

2014 Major League Baseball All-Star Game:
- In North American baseball, the American League defeats the National League 5-3 with Mike Trout batting in two runs. (Fox News)

July 16, 2014 (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

2014 insurgency in Donbass:
- The US widens sanctions against Russia, targeting major banks and energy companies, Russian defense industry, and individuals it said were responsible for the continuing support of separatists battling government forces in eastern Ukraine. (The New York Times) (U.S. Department of Treasury)
- The Chancellor of Germany, Angela Merkel, criticises Russia for failing to meet commitments to end the violence in Ukraine, and said Russia might face further EU sanctions. (BBC)
War in North-West Pakistan:
- A drone strike kills at least 20 people in North Waziristan near the border with Afghanistan. (Pakistan Express Tribune)
- Pakistan Air Force air strikes kill at least 35 militants fleeing from North Waziristan. (PTI via Business Standard)
Operation Protective Edge:
- Israeli shelling kills four children playing in a port next to Al-Deira hotel in Gaza, base to many journalists. (The Guardian)
A ceasefire violation by Pakistan; forces on Indo-Pak border ends with one BSF soldier killed. (Patrika Group)

Business and economy

Japan's Nuclear Regulation Authority grants allowance to restart two nuclear plants, the first such a move in the country after the Fukushima disaster. (BBC)

Disasters

2014 Pacific typhoon season:
- Typhoon Rammasun (Glenda) hits the Philippines island of Luzon causing extensive damage and at least ten deaths. (CNN) (Reuters via NBC)

Politics and elections

The European Parliament approves four new European commissioners: Jyrki Katainen as Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs and the Euro, Ferdinando Nelli Feroci as Commissioner for Industry and Entrepreneurship, Martine Reicherts as Commissioner for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship, and Jacek Dominik as Commissioner for Financial Programming and Budget. (European Parliament)
Bashar Assad is sworn in to serve his third term as President of Syria. (AP via Washington Post)
Russia and Cuba agree on reopening the biggest soviet era espionage base outside of Russia. (Business Insider)

July 17, 2014 (Thursday)

Armed conflict and attacks

2014 insurgency in Donbass:
- Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 carrying 298 people from multiple countries is shot down near Hrabove in Donetsk Oblast, on a flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur. (BBC) (Reuters)
- Ukraine accuses a Russian Air Force jet of shooting down a Ukrainian warplane over its territory. (Sky News Australia)
Operation Protective Edge:
- Israel and Hamas agree to a brief UN humanitarian ceasefire Thursday morning to allow aid to enter the Gaza Strip. (Al Jazeera)
- It is reported later by Israel´s foreign minister and Hamas the cease fire was misinformed news. (BBC)
- During a routine investigation by the United Nations, over 20 rockets are found hidden in an abandoned school in Gaza operated by UNRWA. (Times of Israel)
- Another ceasefire deal brokered by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi is accepted by Israel but rejected by Hamas, several hours later Israel commences a ground offensive. (BBC) (Times of Israel)
Taliban insurgency:
- Explosions and gunfire are reported near Kabul International Airport in Afghanistan as militants temporarily capture a building under construction. (Reuters via UK Investing) (Sky News Australia)
Insurgency in the Maghreb (2002–present):
- At least 14 Tunisian soldiers are reportedly killed following Islamist militant attacks at two checkpoints near the Algerian border with at least 20 others wounded, a group called the Okba Ben Nafaa Brigade has claimed responsibility. (BBC)

Arts and culture

The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum obtains a full copy of the archives of the United Nations War Crimes Commission from World War II and makes it available online. (AP)

Business and economy

Microsoft announces deeper-than-expected job cuts as part of its cloud-oriented restructuring, almost halving the newly-purchased Nokia phone business. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

2014 Pacific typhoon season:
- Typhoon Rammasun (Glenda) heads for southern China and northern Vietnam after killing at least 38 people in the Philippines with eight missing. (Reuters) (WTOP-FM)
- The Philippines province of Quezon is placed under a state of calamity due to the damage caused by the typhoon. (GMA Network)
A firefighting helicopter searching for missing people from the sinking of the MV Sewol in April crashes in the South Korean city of Gwangju with five people aboard. (Fox News)
A fire on a train at Busan Metro in the South Korean port city of Busan leaves five people injured and 100 people were evacuated. (GlobalPost)
A French regional train on the Pau-Bayonne line crashes into a high-speed train near the town of Denguin, resulting in at least 25 injuries. (BBC News)

Health

Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan stands for the protection of Homosexual rights in India. (Patrika Group)

Law and crime

A federal judge rules the death penalty in California is unconstitutional. (Los Angeles Times)

Politics and elections

The Parliament of Australia votes to abolish a carbon tax and emissions trading scheme. (AFP via Yahoo!7 news)
2013–14 Thai political crisis:
- The Thai military junta gives permission for former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra to travel abroad for the first time since the coup. (BBC)

Science and technology

Scientists report a video footage of a mysterious giant hole and crater that have suddenly appeared in the Yamal Peninsula, Russia. (Gizmodo)

July 18, 2014 (Friday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

2014 insurgency in Donbass:
- US President Barack Obama says the United States has "increasing confidence" that the missile that shot down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 came from Russian separatists in Ukraine - and that Russia bears responsibility for the crisis. (New York Times)
War in North-West Pakistan:
- At least eight members of the Pakistan Army Frontier Corps are killed in a militant attack in the Khyber Agency. (The News Pakistan)
Syrian Civil War:
- About 100 soldiers, guards and employees are killed as insurgents belonging to the Islamic State (ISIS) seize control of the Shaer gas field in Palmyra, central Syria. The United Kingdom-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 115 people were killed in total. (Irish Independent)
Islamist insurgency in Nigeria:
- Many people are feared dead after suspected Boko Haram militants raided the town of Damboa with substantial parts of the town including the market burnt down. So far, 18 bodies have been recovered with the death toll expected to rise. (BBC)

Business and economy

Espírito Santo Financial Group, the holding company for Portugal's second largest bank, Banco Espírito Santo, files for creditor protection in Luxembourg. (Wall Street Journal)

Disasters

2014 Pacific typhoon season:
- Typhoon Rammasun, which has killed at least 54 people in the Philippines, approaches the southern China provinces of Hainan and Guangdong. (Reuters)
- Three people are reported killed and eleven injured as a roof collapses on a bank in Shenzhen, China as a result of heavy rain from the typhoon. (Channel News Asia)
A high-speed TGV train on the Pau-Bayonne line crashes with a TER regional service near the town of Denguin, Pyrénées-Atlantiques resulting in 25 injuries including nine serious injuries. (BBC)
At least 35 homes have been destroyed in the US state of Washington in the Carlton complex wildfires. (NBC)

International relations

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan slams Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi as an "illegitimate tyrant", adding that Egypt could not be relied on when negotiating a ceasefire. (AFP via Yahoo! News)

Law and crime

Six men are arrested in the Australian state of Victoria in relation to alleged involvement in an international tennis match-fixing syndicate. (ABC News Australia)

July 19, 2014 (Saturday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

War in North-West Pakistan:
- A US drone strike kills eleven insurgents in a Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan compound in North Waziristan. (AFP via Global Post)
Operation Protective Edge:
- According to Hamas the death toll from Israel's offensive against the Gaza Strip exceeds 300 although it is not clear how many are civilians or militants. Israel conducted over 2500 airstrikes and artillery strikes during the operation while thousands of rockets have been fired into Israel. (AFP via SBS)
Iraqi insurgency (post-U.S. withdrawal):
- Three bombs explode in Baghdad killing at least fifteen people. (AP via Daily Mail)
Post-coup unrest in Egypt (2013–14)
- Gunmen in Egypt's western desert province of New Valley Governorate attack a military checkpoint, killing at least 21 soldiers. Egypt reportedly declares a state of emergency on its border with Sudan. (Reuters), (Al-Arabiya)

Disasters and accidents

Buses from Poland and Ukraine crash outside the German city of Dresden resulting in at least nine deaths and 40 people injured. (AP)
At least 38 people are dead after a bus collides with a van carrying flammable liquids in China's Hunan province. (AFP via ABC News Australia)
2014 Pacific typhoon season
- Typhoon Rammasun has killed at least 14 people in southern China since it arrived late on Friday. (Reuters)

International relations

Russia bans 13 Americans including Congressman Jim Moran, Rear Adm. Richard Butler and Lynndie England in response to the United States banning Russians for human rights abuses. (AP)

Law and crime

A Florida court awards $23.6 billion in punitive damages against R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company in a case of a longtime smoker who died in 1996. (AP)

July 20, 2014 (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Post-civil war violence in Libya
- Islamist militia renew their attack on Tripoli International Airport. (Sky News Australia)
Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 and 2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine
- Separatist rebels take all the 196 bodies from Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 to an undisclosed location. (AP)
Operation Protective Edge
- Israel agrees to a two hour ceasefire in Shuja'iyya neighbourhood in the Gaza Strip at the request of the Red Cross ِafter a heavy firefight caused the death of more than 74 Palestinians and 13 Israel Defense Forces soldiers. (Haaretz)
- At least 100 Palestinians and 13 Israel Army soldiers are killed in fighting with the United Nations Security Council set to meet tomorrow. (AFP via Yahoo! News)

Arts and culture

Monty Python perform their last ever comedy show at the The O2 Arena in London. (Telegraph)

Disasters

2014 Pacific typhoon season
- The death toll from Typhoon Rammasun reaches 94 in the Philippines and 18 in southern China. (AP via Fox News)

International Relations

For the first time in RIMPAC's history a nation (China) sent a surveillance vessel while also participating in the naval exercises.(Reuters)

Politics and elections

Indonesian presidential election, 2014
- Election results indicate that the Governor of Jakarta Joko Widodo has been elected as the President of Indonesia. (The Jakarta Globe)

Sports

In golf, Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland wins the 2014 Open Championship (British Open) played at Royal Liverpool Golf Club, England. (AP)
In rugby union, a group of players for French club Clermont Auvergne are attacked by a gang with machetes, knives and swords in Millau. Three France internationals, Benjamin Kayser, Julien Pierre and Aurélien Rougerie, are hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries. (The Independent)

July 21, 2014 (Monday)

Armed conflict and attacks

Operation Protective Edge
- The United Nations Security Council calls for an immediate ceasefire on the Gaza Strip after an emergency meeting. (BBC)
2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine
- Fighting restarts near Donetsk as international investigators arrive to examine the crash of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17. (Reuters)
- The Prime Minister of Malaysia Najib Razak states that pro-Russian separatists agree to hand over the black box flight recorders to a Malaysian investigation team. (Washington Post)
- The United Nations Security Council unanimously supports an Australian proposed resolution for an international investigation and an end to hostilities near the site. (AP via Fox News)
Iraqi insurgency (2011–present)
- Ten people are killed in an Iraqi Air Force air strike on the rebel-held town of Hawija. (Reuters)

Business and economy

Russian company Severstal sells two steel works in the US to AK Steel and Steel Dynamics for US$2.3 billion. (AP)

Disasters and accidents

2014 Pacific typhoon season
- The death toll from Typhoon Rammasun rises to 26 in southern China and 11 in northern Vietnam. (CTV News)
A bus crashes into a ravine in Pakistan's Kashmir region killing 16 people with 37 others injured. (AFP via Global Post)

Law and crime

Boston Marathon bombings
- Azamat Tazhayakov, a friend of accused marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is found guilty of obstruction of justice and conspiracy for trying to hide evidence during the ongoing case. (MSN)

July 22, 2014 (Tuesday)

Armed conflict and attacks

Operation Protective Edge:
- For the second time, an inspection by United Nations officials reveals rockets being stored in a UNWRA run school in Gaza. Rockets discovered in a school a week ago were returned to Hamas by UNWRA workers. (Times of Israel)
Donbass war:
- The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), guardian of the Geneva Convention, makes a confidential legal assessment that Ukraine is officially in a war, Western diplomats and officials say, opening the door to possible war crimes prosecutions, including over the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17. (Reuters)
Taliban insurgency:
- A Taliban suicide bomber blows himself up outside Kabul International Airport killing three foreign advisers and an Afghan interpreter. (Reuters)
Malaysia Airlines Flight 17:
- Forensic experts in Kharkiv, Ukraine begin identifying the victims of the crash, with only 200 bodies delivered out of the 282 pro-Russian separatists claim to have sent. (BBC)
Iraqi insurgency (2011–present):
- A suicide bombing in Baghdad kills at least 21 people. (AP via Fox News)

Disasters and accidents

2014 Pacific typhoon season:
- Typhoon Matmo (Henry) is expected to make landfall over Taiwan en route to eastern China later in the week. (Weather Channel)
2014 Moscow Metro derailment:
- Ivan Besedin is fired as the head of the Moscow Metro as a result of the derailment that cost 22 lives. (AP)

Health

Thirty thousand people in the city of Yumen in China's Gansu province have been prevented from leaving and 151 people placed in quarantine after a man dies of bubonic plague last week. (Wires via Sydney Morning Herald)

International Relations

The European Union agrees to impose new sanctions on Russia, expanding a list of Russian entities and individuals subject to asset freezes and travel bans and threatens to target vast sectors of the Russian economy if Moscow does not act swiftly to rein in rebels believed to have shot down a Malaysia Airlines plane over eastern Ukraine. (Washington Post)

Law and crime

South Korean police advise that they have positively identified a body found on June 12 as Yoo Byung-eun wanted for his alleged role in the sinking of the MV Sewol. (New York Times)
Panels of the United States Fourth and D.C. (Halbig v. Burwell) Circuit Courts make contradictory rulings as to whether people who enroll in federal exchanges under the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) can receive subsidies. (Washington Post)

Politics and elections

Indonesian presidential election, 2014:
- Joko Widodo is officially elected as the new president of Indonesia (The Jakarta Post)

Sports

Estimate, owned by Queen Elizabeth II and a winner of several high-profile races including the Ascot Gold Cup in 2013, tests positive for morphine after this year's Gold Cup at Royal Ascot. (The Telegraph)

July 23, 2014 (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine:
- Pro-Russian separatist commander Alexander Khodakovsky of the Vostok Battalion confirms that the rebels did possess the BUK missile system - believed to have shot down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 - originating from Russia, and it could have been sent back to Russia subsequently to remove proof of its presence. (Reuters)
- The Red Cross officially declares the fighting in Ukraine as a civil war. The formal classification means participants in the fighting between government forces and pro-Russian separatists in the east could eventually be prosecuted for war crimes in international courts. (The Local)
- Ukrainian forces recapture the villages of Karlivka, Netailove, and Pervomaiske in Donetsk Oblast from pro-Russian separatists. (Kyiv Post)
- Two Ukrainian Sukhoi Su-25 military fighter jets are shot down by pro-Russian separatists in Savur Mogila. (AP via Chron News)
- The bodies of crash victims of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 are returned from Eastern Ukraine to the Netherlands together with flight recorders from the flight. (Business World Online)
Islamist insurgency in Nigeria:
- Two explosions rip through the northern Nigerian city of Kaduna killing at least 82 people. (Yahoo News)
Operation Protective Edge:
- United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay condemns both Israel's military actions in the Gaza Strip and Hamas for "indiscriminate attacks" on Israel, and warns that war crimes may have been committed. (BBC)
- Speaking in Qatar, Hamas political chief, Khaled Mashal rejects the current ceasefire efforts and threatens future attacks from the West Bank. (YNet)
- A pro-Palestinian protest in Sarcelles, France turns violent as protesters vandalized and looted Jewish businesses and called for the gassing and killing of Jews. (Huffington Post)
- A football friendly in Austria between Maccabi Haifa and French team Lille is abandoned after pro-Palestinian protesters storm the field and attack the players. (ESPN)

Business and economics

Lithuania and the euro:
- The Council of the European Union (General Affairs Council) adopts a final decision allowing Lithuania to adopt the euro as its currency on January 1, 2015. (Consilium)

Disasters and accidents

TransAsia Airways Flight 222 crashes into residential buildings in an emergency landing in Taiwan's Penghu Islands, with at least 47 feared dead and 11 injured. (USA Today)
2014 Pacific typhoon season:
- The total death toll for Typhoon Rammasun (Glenda) reaches 151 as Typhoon Matmo (Henry) hits Taiwan. Typhoon Matmo has been described as a likely cause of the crash of Transasia Airways Flight 222. (AP via Washington Post), (Dow Jones via The Australian)

International relations

A glitch in the United States Department of State Consular Consolidated Database causes delays to issuing of US passports and visas around the world. (AP)

Law and crime

Authorities in Millau, France have formally charged two men in last Sunday's machete attack in which three Clermont Auvergne rugby union players were injured. (AFP)

Sports

The opening ceremony for the 2014 Commonwealth Games is held in Glasgow, Scotland. (BBC)

July 24, 2014 (Thursday)

Armed conflict and attacks

2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine:
- Ukrainian Government forces recapture the city of Lysychansk from pro-Russian rebels. (Kyiv Post)
- Pro-Russian separatists continue to control the strategic border crossing near Izvaryne, Luhansk Oblast, which they are believed to use to transport weapons and reinforcements from Russia into Ukraine. (Kyiv Post)
- The United States says it has evidence that Russia is firing artillery across the border into Ukraine to target Ukrainian military positions in the conflict against pro-Russian separatists. (Reuters)
- More wreckage from Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 is discovered together with more bodies. (The Australian)
Iraqi insurgency (2011–present)
- Gunmen attack a prisoner convoy north of Baghdad resulting in the death of 52 prisoners and eight Iraqi Army soldiers. (AFP via Fox News)
- Twin car bombs kill at least 13 people in central Baghdad. (NDTV)
Israel-Gaza conflict
- At least 15 Palestinians are killed and 200 injured in a strike on a UNRWA-run school in Beit Hanoun, northern Gaza, crowded with hundreds of displaced civilians. UN condemns the shelling, saying it asked IDF for time to evacuate civilians. (The Guardian)
- Three Palestinians are shot dead by Israeli security forces at a 10,000 person protest on the West Bank that had turned violent with molotov cocktails and rocks being thrown. Israeli forces reported being fired upon and having protesters trying to grab their weapons.(Sky News)
In Herat, Afghanistan, two Finnish women working for a foreign aid organization are shot and killed. (BBC News)

Disasters and accidents

Air Algérie Flight 5017 loses contact with air traffic controllers 50 minutes after takeoff. It was travelling between Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso and Algiers with 116 people on board. The wreckage is later found in Mali. (AFP via Sydney Morning Herald), (NBC News), (NBC News), (Reuters)
Eighteen people including 16 schoolchildren die after a train collides with a bus in the Medak district of the Indian state of Telangana. (PTI via Business Standard)

International relations

The United States Federal Aviation Administration lifts its ban on aircraft travelling to and from Israel imposed due to concerns about Hamas rockets. (Time)
Three American citizens have been detained in Iran this week including Washington Post correspondent Jason Rezaian. Rezaian's Iranian wife Yeganeh Salehi has also been detained. (Washington Post)
The European Court for Human Rights censures Poland over CIA renditions. (The New York Times)

Politics and elections

Arseniy Yatsenyuk resigns as Ukraine's Prime minister after the ruling coalition in parliament collapsed, accusing lawmakers of imperiling the nation by putting politics above urgent needs during wartime. (Washington Post)
The Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine, Volodymyr Hroisman, is appointed to the post of acting prime minister of Ukraine. (Kyiv Post)
Fuad Masum is elected as the 7th President of Iraq. (The Washington Post), (BBC News)
Reuven Rivlin is sworn in as the 10th President of Israel. (IANS via Biharprabha)

Sports

2014 Commonwealth Games
- In swimming, the Australian women's team in the 4x100m freestyle relay of Bronte Campbell, Cate Campbell, Emma McKeon and Melanie Schlanger sets a new world record of 3:30:98. (Daily Telegraph)

July 25, 2014 (Friday)

Accidents

Indian Air Force landing chopper-307 crashed in the Sitapur area of Uttar Pradesh, taking the lives of 7 people. (Patrika Group)

Armed conflicts and attacks

2014 Israel–Gaza conflict:
- A cease fire deal proposed by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is rejected by Israel and not commented on by Hamas. Israel agrees to a uni-lateral 12 hour humanitarian ceasefire as negotiations continue. (Times of Israel)
- Israel Police admits that the kidnapping of the three teenagers did not occur on the orders of, or with the knowledge of the Hamas leadership and that the crime was the action of a "lone cell". (New York) (The Guardian)
2014 pro-Russian insurgency in Ukraine:
- U.S. President Barack Obama speaks by phone with Netherlands Prime Minister Mark Rutte and they both agree on the need to impose more sanctions on Russia for continuing to arm pro-Russian separatists in Ukraine. (Reuters)
Syrian Civil War:
- The Jordanian Air Force shoots down a drone as it flew over the northeastern Mafraq Governorate near the border with Syria, a security official said. The official said the drone flew near the Zaatari refugee camp, which is home to around 100,000 Syrian refugees. (Channel News Asia)
- Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant forces claim to have killed at least fifty members of the Syrian Army, summarily killing many of them. (AFP via Global Post)

Business and economy

British broadcaster BSkyB buys 21st Century Fox's stake in Sky Italia and Sky Deutschland in a $7 billion deal. (The Wrap)

Health

2014 West Africa Ebola outbreak:
- A Liberian official visiting Lagos dies of the Ebola virus becoming the first reported death in Nigeria. (Business Day Online)

Law and crime

Food safety incidents in China:
- McDonald's restaurants stop selling Chicken McNuggets and some other chicken products in Hong Kong, China and Japan from Shanghai Husi Foods that allegedly sold out-of-date items to fast food restaurants. (BBC)
Vietnamese authorities confirm that a shipment of Vietnamese-owned air-to-air missile parts bound for Ukraine was detained by Finland on June 24 after raising concerns the consignment of military hardware violated arms-export regulations. (The Wall Street Journal)

Politics and elections

Edits to Wikipedia made via computers within the United States Congress are blocked for ten days after a series of disruptive edits on pages created by congressional staff members. (The Guardian)

July 26, 2014 (Saturday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

2014 Israel–Gaza conflict:
- Israel agrees to pause its offensive on the Gaza Strip while negotiations continue for a broader ceasefire while Hamas violates the ceasefire. (New York Times)
- The death toll from the offensive exceeds 900. (AFP via Manila Bulletin)
- Fox News reports that Israel has extended the ceasefire by four hours with further extensions under consideration while Hamas rejects an extension. (Fox News)
Post-civil war violence in Libya:
- The United States evacuates its embassy in Tripoli amid concerns about deteriorating security conditions. (AP via ABC)
Taliban insurgency:
- Insurgents stop minibuses in Ghōr Province, Afghanistan and execute 14 Shiite Muslims. (AP via New York Daily News)

Health

2014 West Africa Ebola outbreak:
- Dr. Kent Brantly, the medical director for Samaritan's Purse in Liberia, tests positive for the virus. (AP)

Law and crime

Turkey's state run Anadolu Agency reports that twenty police officers have been charged with illegal wiretaps of officials including the Prime Minister of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Another 49 are awaiting questioning. (AP via Houston Chronicle)

Politics and elections

Pedro Sánchez Pérez-Castejón is elected Secretary-General of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party by an extraordinary congress, following the party's first-ever primary elections, and thereby becomes leader of the Spanish opposition. (Euronews) (Typically Spanish)

Sports

In horseracing, filly Taghrooda wins the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes by 3 lengths. (BBC)

July 27, 2014 (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

2014 Israel–Gaza conflict:
- Israel extends a humanitarian ceasefire on the Gaza Strip but Hamas refuses to do so unless Israel withdraws its tanks. Fighting has resumed. (PTI via Business Standard)
- An Israel Defence Force soldier dies from mortar fire as Hamas fires more rockets at Israel. The Israeli ceasefire ends early due to continued Hamas attacks. (Haaretz) (NBC News)
Post-civil war violence in Libya:
- Intense fighting in Benghazi between the Libyan Army and local Islamist militias leaves 38 dead, mostly soldiers. (AFP via Yahoo! News)
- A rocket attack in Libya's capital Tripoli kills 23 Egyptian workers amid increased fighting in the city for control of an airport. (Independent Online)
Islamist insurgency in Nigeria:
- Gunmen believed to be members of Boko Haram abduct the wife of Deputy Prime Minister of Cameroon Amadou Ali. (CNN)

Law and crime

Five family members are shot to death in a home in Saco, Maine, U.S. (AP via SFGate)

Science

The population of the Philippines reaches 100 million. (AFP via Yahoo! News)

Sports

2014 Tour de France:
- In cycling, Vincenzo Nibali of Italy wins the Tour de France, becoming the sixth cyclist to win all three grand tours including the Vuelta a España and Giro d'Italia. (NBC Sports)
In American baseball, the National Baseball Hall of Fame inducts six new members for 2014 Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, Frank Thomas, Bobby Cox, Tony La Russa and Joe Torre. (TSN)

July 28, 2014 (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine:
- Ukrainian forces recapture control of the strategic height of Savur-Mohyla in Donetsk oblast from pro-Russian insurgents. (Interfax)
- Ukrainian forces recapture control of Debaltseve, Shakhtarsk, Torez, and Lutuhyne in Donetsk oblast from pro-Russian separatists. (Kyiv Post)
- The US and the EU increase sanctions against Russia. (The New York Times)
At least 16 people are killed and 13 injured in the Philippines in a terrorist attack by Islamic group Abu Sayyaf. (IANS via Biharprabha)
Post-civil war violence in Libya:
- A huge fire at the National Oil Corp. depot started by a stray rocket threatens the Libyan capital Tripoli. (AFP via The News)
2014 Israel–Gaza conflict:
- The United Nations Security Council calls for an immediate ceasefire but neither Israel nor Hamas agrees. (Washington Post)
- Israeli officials release a report documenting cases of journalists being threatened after reporting on potential war crimes by Hamas. (Times of Israel)
- The IDF releases data indicating that long range rockets fired by Islamic Jihad in Gaza struck a hospital in Shifa and a Palestinian refugee camp in Shati killing at least nine children and two adults. (Times of Israel)
- In Toulouse, France, a man is arrested for firebombing a Jewish center after a pro-Palestinian protest. (Jerusalem Post)
- A young Jewish man is assaulted and battered in Paris after his picture and identity is posted on a Facebook page calling for attacks on Jews. (Algemeiner)

Business and economy

American discount store chain Dollar Tree reaches an $8.5 billion deal to buy out rival Family Dollar. (AP)
The Hague's Permanent Court of Arbitration says Russian officials have manipulated the legal system to bankrupt Russia's largest Yukos oil company, and jail its boss (Mikhail Khodorkovsky and others). Yukos was the object of a series of politically motivated attacks by the Russian authorities that eventually led to its destruction. The company's assets were illegally expropriated for the benefit of State companies Rosneft and Gazprom. The Yuganskneftegaz auction was illegal. The $50 billion awarded by the Hague's arbitration court against Russia is the largest arbitration award ever. (Reuters) (The New York Times) (The Moscow Times) (BBC)
Real estate firms Zillow and Trulia agree to merge, becoming the world's third-largest real estate firm. (Business Week)

Disasters and accidents

A rare EF2 tornado strikes Chelsea and Revere, Massachusetts marking the first such incident since at least 1950 that a tornado had hit the two communities north of Boston according to the NWS. (Boston Globe)(NWS)

Law and crime

Alleged child molester Charles Mozdir is shot and killed following a shootout in Manhattan that left 2 US Marshals and 1 police officer wounded after someone saw the recently aired segment involving Charles on The Hunt With John Walsh and gave a tip. (CNN) (Boston Herald)

July 29, 2014 (Tuesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine:
- The Ukrainian Azov Battalion say that they and the 39th battalion of the Dnipropetrovsk territorial defense have recaptured control of Novy Svit in Donetsk Oblast from pro-Russian insurgents. (Kyiv Post)
- 64 percent of polled Russians think that the Ukraine crisis was caused by Western "interference" and 55 percent believe that Russia should continue supporting pro-Moscow separatists even if it could lead to a full-fledged civil war or even World War III, a poll shows. (Moscow Times)
- Ukrainian forces recapture control of Stepanivka (Perevalsk Raion) in Luhansk oblast from pro-Russian insurgents. (Kyiv Post)
- The Australian Federal Police and Dutch police abandon efforts to reach the crash site of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 due to escalating tensions. (Sky News Australia)
- The EU approves tougher sanctions on Russia. (The New York Times)
2014 Israel–Gaza conflict:
- Eighteen people die in airstrikes on Gaza City as the fighting intensifies. IDF reported performing over 200 airstrikes today. (CNN). According to media^{[weasel words]}, up to^{[weasel words]} 128 Palestinians are dead in different military attacks today, marking the bloodiest day of Gaza war to the moment. (StarTribune)(The Times of Israel)
- The Palestinian Authority announces it has convinced Hamas and Islamic Jihad to accept a humanitarian ceasefire, but Hamas denies the claim. (Ynet)
Iraqi insurgency (2011–present):
- An Iraqi Army raid on jihadist targets in a town southwest of Baghdad kills at least 17 people. (Sky News)
Dozens of people are dead after a mob armed with knives rampages through township of Elixku in China's restive Xinjiang region and is met with gunfire. (AP)
Taliban insurgency
- A suicide bomber kills Hashmat Karzai, the cousin of the President of Afghanistan and a regional powerbroker, in the city of Kandahar. (The Telegraph)

Arts and culture

The Ukrainian Culture Ministry decides not to issue distribution licenses for two Russian films: The White Guard, and a film about Ukrainan-born Soviet wrestler Ivan Poddubny, as they "show contempt for the Ukrainian language, people and the state," and "some facts are distorted to benefit Russia." (Moscow Times)

Disasters and accidents

A heatwave in Japan has caused at least 15 deaths with more than 8000 hospitalised in the past week. (AFP via Yahoo! News)
A stampede at a concert in Conakry, the capital of Guinea, to mark the end of Ramadan results in at least 24 deaths with dozens more injured. (BBC)

Health

2014 West Africa Ebola outbreak
- ASKY Airlines suspends flights to Liberia and Sierra Leone as the death toll from the Ebola outbreak reaches 672. (BBC)
- Sheik Umar Khan, the doctor who was leading the fight against the disease in Sierra Leone, dies of the Ebola virus. (Reuters via ABC Australia)

International relations

Moscow describes Tokyo's decision to impose further sanctions on Russia in the wake of the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 as an "unfriendly step" that may harm "the entire system of relations" between Russia and Japan. (Reuters)
The European Union and United States impose tougher sanctions against Russia over the Ukraine crisis. (New York Times)

Politics and elections

Chinese state media report that former Politburo Standing Committee member and security chief Zhou Yongkang is undergoing investigation for "disciplinary violations." (New York Times)

Sports

2014 Commonwealth Games
- In weightlifting, Nigerian gold medallist Chika Amalaha fails a drug test. (Reuters)

July 30, 2014 (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine: War in Donbass:
- Fighting intensifies in the east as Ukraine forces recapture control of the strategic town of Avdiivka from pro-Russian insurgents. (BBC)
Post-civil war violence in Libya
- Islamist militias capture a special forces base in Benghazi. (BBC)
2014 Israel–Gaza conflict:
- Israeli shelling of a UNRWA school in Jabaliya refugee camp kills at least 19 Palestinian civilians and wounds scores more. (Al Jazeera)
- Three IDF soldiers are killed and fifteen injured when trying to disarm an IED rigged smuggling tunnel found at a UNRWA run health clinic in Khan Younis. Since the start of Operation Protective Edge 56 IDF soldiers and over 1200 Palestinian civilians and militants have been killed. (Times of Israel)
- Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, offers to donate weapons to the West Bank to better hit Israeli cities such as Tel Aviv. (Ynet)

Business and economy

Analysts of Morgan Stanley predict that Russian President Vladimir Putin would soon block the transit of gas through Ukraine to Europe to retaliate against the world for imposing economic sanctions on Russia. (Business Insider)
Argentina is required to pay $1.3bn to investors who bought its bonds at a big discount after a default in 2001-02 by the end of today or be in default again. (BBC)
The U.S. District Court in Manhattan, via Judge Jed Rakoff, orders Bank of America to pay $1.27 billion in damages relating to the housing bubble-era actions of what is now its Countrywide unit. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

One hundred and fifty people are trapped after a landslide in the village of Ambe in the Pune district in India's Maharashtra state with 20 killed. (IBN Live), (The Hindu)
A fire broke out on Eastbourne Pier in East Sussex, destroying the arcade. (BBC)

Health

2014 West Africa Ebola outbreak
- Liberia closes schools and quarantines communities in order to stop the spread of the Ebola virus that has claimed 672 lives in West Africa. (Reuters via ABC News Australia)

July 31, 2014 (Thursday)