Portal:Current events
Topics in the news
- Vladimir Putin (pictured) is announced as the winner of the Russian presidential election, securing a fifth term.
- In Portugal, the Democratic Alliance wins the most seats in a snap legislative election.
- At the Academy Awards, Oppenheimer wins seven awards, including Best Picture.
- Japanese manga artist Akira Toriyama, author of Dragon Ball, dies at the age of 68.
March 22, 2024
(Friday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Russian strikes against Ukrainian infrastructure
- March 2024 Ukraine missile strikes
- Russia launches dozens of ballistic missiles at Ukrainian cities for a second consecutive day with reports of power outages in Kharkiv after critical infrastructure was targeted. At least eight missile strikes on Zaporizhzhia are reported, while a "critical infrastructure object" is damaged in Vinnytsia. (U.S. News & World Report)
- Dnieper Hydroelectric Station in Zaporizhzhia is hit with a missile causing extensive damage and a large fire. A trolleybus carrying civilians was destroyed in the attack, although casualties are currently unknown. The shelling also damaged one of the two power lines connected to the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. (The Guardian) (The Kyiv Independent)
- March 2024 Ukraine missile strikes
- Russian strikes against Ukrainian infrastructure
Disasters and accidents
Law and crime
- Gang war in Haiti
- Prominent Haitian gang leader Ti Greg, who escaped prison earlier this month, is shot dead by Haitian police. (Sky News)
- Cannabis in Germany
- The German Bundesrat approves a partial legalization of cannabis in Germany, set to come into effect on 1 April. (DW)
March 21, 2024
(Thursday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Eastern Ukraine campaign
- The Russian Ministry of Defence announces that its forces have captured the Ukrainian village of Tonenke in Donetsk Oblast. (Al Arabiya)
- Kyiv strikes
- Russia launches a massive attack on Kyiv and the surrounding region with ballistic and cruise missiles, injuring at least 17 people. (CNN)
- Mykolaiv strikes
- Eastern Ukraine campaign
- Islamic State–Taliban conflict
- A suicide bomber kills three people and injures 12 others at the entrance of a private bank in Kandahar, Afghanistan. (TOLO News)
- Spillover of the Israel–Hamas war
- The Islamic Resistance in Iraq launches drone attacks on Kiryat Shmona Airport and Ben Gurion Airport in Israel. (Mehr News Agency) (Islamic Republic News Agency)
Disasters and accidents
- A capsized boat carrying Rohingya refugees is found off the coast of Aceh, Indonesia, with 69 refugees rescued. (NOS)
- The death toll of the capsized South Korean-flagged tanker Keoyoung Sun increases to nine with one person still missing. (Reuters)
International relations
- Accession of Bosnia and Herzegovina to the European Union
- The European Council agrees to open talks on Bosnia and Herzegovina's membership of the European Union days after the recommendation by the European Commission. (AP)
Law and crime
- A court in Russia sentences the Volga Maniac serial killer to life in prison for the murders of 31 elderly women in Tatarstan in 2011 and 2012. (Reuters)
- Pope Francis laicizes Belgian bishop Roger Vangheluwe due to allegations of abuse. (NOS)
- The Dutch Royal Marechaussee arrests three British soldiers of the HMS Prince of Wales after multiple incidents in Rotterdam, Netherlands. (NOS)
- Filipino former legislator Arnolfo Teves Jr. is arrested in Dili, East Timor, after being placed in the Interpol Red Notice in connection with his role in the 2023 massacre in Negros Oriental, Philippines. (AFP via Barron's)
Politics and elections
- Vietnamese anti-corruption campaign
- President of Vietnam Võ Văn Thưởng resigns after just over a year in office amid the Communist Party's anti-corruption campaign, making him the shortest-serving president in Vietnamese history. (Reuters) (Al Jazeera) (Bloomberg)
March 20, 2024
(Wednesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Kharkiv strikes
- A Russian missile strike kills at least five people and injures eight others in an industrial area of Kharkiv, Ukraine. (Reuters)
- Kharkiv strikes
- Gang war in Haiti
- Gangs attack the neighborhood of Petion-Ville in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, killing at least five people. (The Washington Post)
- The United States evacuates its citizens by helicopter as fighting spreads. (The Guardian)
- Insurgency in Balochistan
- Eight Balochistan Liberation Army gunmen are killed after trying to storm Gwadar's port in the Balochistan Province, Pakistan. Two security guards are also wounded in the gunfight, which lasted for two hours. (Al Jazeera English)
- Israel–Hamas war
- Israeli incursions in the West Bank during the Israel–Hamas war
- Three Jenin Brigades militants are killed during an airstrike against a vehicle by Israel in Jenin, Palestine. (Al Mayadeen)
- Israeli incursions in the West Bank during the Israel–Hamas war
- Mexican drug war
- Twelve bodies are found in Mexico, five in Jalisco and seven in Sonora. (Associated Press)
Disasters and accidents
- Twelve people are killed in an explosion at a mine in Harnai District, Balochistan, Pakistan. (Associated Press)
- Eight people are killed, one is injured, and two are missing after the South Korean-flagged tanker Keoyoung Sun loaded with 980 tons of acrylic acid capsizes near Mutsure Island, Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan. (Al Jazeera English)
International relations
- Argentina–Venezuela relations
- Argentina announces a charge against Venezuela before the International Civil Aviation Organization for allegedly violating the Convention on International Civil Aviation after Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro banned Argentine aircraft from its airspace earlier this month amid traded accusations with Argentinian President Javier Milei. (Infobae)
Politics and elections
- 2024 Fine Gael leadership election
- Leo Varadkar announces his resignation as Taoiseach and leader of Fine Gael, triggering a leadership election. Varadkar will remain as Taoiseach until his successor as party leader is elected. (CNN International)
- 2024 Indonesian general election
- The General Elections Commission announces that Prabowo Subianto had received the most votes in the presidential election, but the determination of the winner as president-elect is still waiting complaints from other candidates at the Constitutional Court. (Al Jazeera English)
March 19, 2024
(Tuesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Gang war in Haiti
- Four armed men storm the Bank of the Republic of Haiti in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, injuring a security guard. All the attackers are killed in the ensuing shootout with police. (The Haitian Times)
- Israel–Hamas war
- Israel announces the death of senior Hamas military leader Marwan Issa, following an airstrike on a tunnel complex last week, making Issa the highest ranking Hamas official killed in the war so far. (BBC News)
- Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Russia claims to have captured the village of Orlivka in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. (Anadolu Agency)
- Somali Civil War
- Two Somali National Army airstrikes kill 39 alleged al-Shabaab militants in Afgooye, Somalia. (Horseed Media)
Disasters and accidents
- A bus crashes into a tunnel wall on an expressway in Linfen, China, killing 14 people. (AP)
Law and crime
- Rankin County torture incident
- Former Mississippi sheriff's deputy Hunter Elward is sentenced to 20 years imprisonment for his role in torturing two men in January 2023. (CBS News)
- Founder of Chinese property developer Evergrande Group Hui Ka Yan is fined 47 million yuan ($6.53 million) and barred from the securities market for life after the China Securities Regulatory Commission accused the group of inflating its revenue. (Reuters)
- The pro-Beijing Legislative Council of Hong Kong unanimously passes the local enaction bill on national security, which had been tasked by Article 23 of the Hong Kong Basic Law. (Reuters)
- Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro is indicted over accusations of lying about his COVID-19 vaccination status. (AP)
International relations
- Armenia–Azerbaijan border crisis
- Armenia begins a process of border demarcation with Azerbaijan in the Tavush Province, amid Azerbaijiani demands that Armenia withdraw its forces from the disputed villages of Bağanis Ayrum, Aşağı Əskipara, Xeyrimli, and Qızılhacılı. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan says that failure to compromise could result in war "by the end of the week". (Reuters) (RFE/RL)
Politics and elections
- 2024 United States presidential election
- 2024 Democratic Party presidential primaries
- The Democratic Party holds presidential nominating contests in Arizona, Illinois, Kansas, and Ohio. (The Hill)
- 2024 Republican Party presidential primaries
- The Republican Party holds presidential nominating contests in Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, and Ohio. (The Hill)
- 2024 Democratic Party presidential primaries
- Haitian crisis
- CARICOM and United Nations officials appoint seven seats out of eight of a presidential council to address the political crisis in Haiti. Once the council is installed, Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry will resign. (Miami Herald)
March 18, 2024
(Monday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Israel–Hamas war
- Siege of Gaza City
- Dozens of people are killed in an Israeli attack on the Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. The Israeli military claims that twenty Hamas militants were killed, including a senior figure of the group. (NOS) (BBC News)
- Al Jazeera Arabic reporter Ismail al-Ghoul is arrested by Israeli forces at Al-Shifa hospital, with the network joined by journalist advocacy groups in denouncing his arrest. (Al Jazeera)
- Siege of Gaza City
- Afghanistan–Pakistan border skirmishes
- Afghanistan claims five women and three children are killed in two Pakistani airstrikes in Afghanistan, following accusations that attacks in Pakistan were masterminded in Afghanistan, which the Taliban authorities deny. In response, Taliban forces open mortar fire on Pakistani troops at the border. (Reuters)
- Gang war in Haiti
- The bodies of at least twelve people are discovered in the neighborhood of Pétion-Ville, in the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince. The perpetrators of the killings are unknown. (Al Jazeera)
- Nigerian bandit conflict
- Around 80 people are kidnapped by unknown bandits near Kajuru Station, Kaduna State, Nigeria. (BBC News)
Disasters and accidents
- Schools across South Sudan close for the day, as an extreme heat wave is expected to hit the country. (Firstpost)
Law and crime
- A police officer is killed and two others are injured during a shooting, over a search at a home for suspected drug trafficking, in Charleroi, Belgium. The suspect was shot and killed by police. (DeMorgen)
Politics and elections
- 2024 Cuban protests
- Hundreds of people protest in eastern Cuba against ongoing food shortages and power outages. (BBC News)
March 17, 2024
(Sunday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Northern Ukraine skirmishes
- Ukraine says that three Russian sabotage groups have been intercepted in Sumy Oblast. (The Kyiv Independent)
- Northern Ukraine skirmishes
- Transnistria conflict
- A drone reportedly hits a military base in Transnistria, destroying an Mi-8 helicopter. (The Kyiv Independent)
Disasters and accidents
- At least 21 people are killed and 38 others are injured in a traffic accident in Grishk District, Helmand Province, Afghanistan. (AP)
International relations
- Alliance of Sahel States
- Niger–United States relations
- Niger's military junta revokes a military accord with the United States that allowed U.S. Defense Department personnel on its soil. (Reuters)
- Niger–United States relations
Politics and elections
- 2024 Russian presidential election
- Russian president Vladimir Putin is reelected to a fifth term in office with 87% of the vote. External observers widely consider he had "no real opposition". (Reuters)
- The Noon Against Putin protest occurs. (The Washington Post)
March 16, 2024
(Saturday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
Law and crime
- Storming of the Legislative Council Complex
- A court in Hong Kong sentences 12 people, including actor Gregory Wong and activists Ventus Lau and Owen Chow, to prison terms ranging from four to seven years in prison for storming the Legislative Council Complex in July 2019. (Reuters)
- Three people are fatally shot in Levittown, Pennsylvania, United States with the gunman fleeing to Trenton, New Jersey by commandeering a car to his house. A standoff involving several hostages ends with the gunman's arrest. (NBC News) (CNN)
Politics and elections
- 2024 Welsh Labour leadership election
- Vaughan Gething is elected leader of Welsh Labour with 51.7% of the vote, making him the first Black First Minister of Wales upon taking office. (BBC News)
Science and technology
- The Hokuriku Shinkansen extension from Kanazawa, Ishikawa, to Tsuruga, Fukui, Japan, is completed. (NHK)
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