Portal:Current events/2011 January 27
January 27, 2011 (Thursday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- An 18-year-old Palestinian, Fadi Kaddous, is shot to death during a clash with Israeli settlers in the West Bank. (Haaretz)
- A small explosion occurs in the basement of a hotel in Davos, Switzerland, close to where the World Economic Forum is taking place. No one is injured and a boiler is blamed. (Reuters) (Channel News Asia)
Business and economy
- Iran's state-run news channel Press TV's account is frozen by National Westminster Bank in the UK; no reason was given. (AFP)(Zee News)
- Internet retailer Overstock.com has amended its complaint in a long-standing lawsuit against Goldman Sachs and Merrill Lynch to demand treble damages under New Jersey's racketeering statute. Merrill Lynch is a subsidiary of Bank of America. (Press Release)
- Giant media conglomerate News Corp. says it will launch a digital newspaper as content of Apple's iPad, on 2 February. This is a later launch date than many had expected. (Reuters)
Disasters and accidents
- Ten construction workers die after falling from the 28th floor of a skyscraper being built in Manila, the Philippine capital. (AFP via Google News) (AFP via Info Vietnam) (The Straits Times)
- The Australian government proposes a new "flood tax" to raise funds for reconstruction work following severe flooding in the east of the country. (The Australian) (Al Jazeera)
Law and crime
- Murder of David Kato:
- Ugandan gay rights activist David Kato, who was named in tabloid paper Rolling Stone last year, is found murdered. (CNN) (AFP via Google News) (The Irish Times)
- Rolling Stone says it has "no regrets about the story" and claims to be "just exposing people who were doing wrong". (The Guardian)
- Hundreds of thousands of government workers protest against the killing of Yashwant Sonawane, an official in Maharashtra, a murder which is said to have shocked people across India. (BBC)
- Macau tycoon Stanley Ho is to sue relatives accused of trying to steal his vast casino empire. (Macau News) (AFP) (Reuters)
- A court in Botswana rules that indigenous Bushmen can drill wells for water in the Kalahari Desert. (BBC) (Gabz FM Botswana)
Politics and elections
- 2011 Egyptian protests:
- Unrest in Egypt enters its third day. (BBC) (Al Jazeera)
- More than 1,000 people are arrested. (Xinhua)
- 2011 Yemeni protests:
- Tens of thousands of people protest in the Yemeni capital Sana'a calling for an end to the government of President Ali Abdullah Saleh. (Al Jazeera) (BBC)
- 2010–2011 Tunisian uprising:
- Thousands continue protesting in Tunisia calling on remaining figures of ousted President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali's regime to leave the interim government. (Press TV)
- Lebanese prime minister Najib Mikati begins consultations on forming a new government. (AFP via Google News)
- Burma faces criticism at the United Nations Human Rights Council over its human rights record. (The Straits Times)
- The Supreme Court in the U.S. state of Illinois rules that Rahm Emanuel, former Chief of Staff to President of the United States Barack Obama, is eligible to run for Mayor of Chicago. (The New York Times)
Science
- Researchers from Tel Aviv University and the University of Michigan announce a breakthrough to fight bacteria by developing a technique that neutralizes the ability of bacteria to develop resistance to antibiotics. (The Jerusalem Post)
- A fifth outbreak of bird flu occurs in Japan, with a cull of 150,000 chickens underway. (AFP via Google News) (China Post)
- Volcano alert is raised for Mount Kirishima area in southern Kyushu, Japan, after the eruption of Shinmoedake, the film location of You Only Live Twice. (Press TV) (Volcano Discovery) (NHK)
Sports
- Tennis: In the semifinals of the 2011 Australian Open, Novak Djokovic defeats defending champion Roger Federer by a score of 7-6, 7-5, 6-4.