Portal:Current events/2012 April 15

April 15, 2012 (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

2011-2012 Syrian uprising:
- Clashes continue in Syria as United Nations observers are due to arrive in the country. (Buenos Aires Herald)
- The first members of a U.N. monitoring team arrive in Syria, while at least 23 people are reported killed in violence across Syria. (CNN)
Heavily armed Taliban insurgents launch multiple coordinated militant attacks on the British, Russian and German embassies, NATO's headquarters, military bases and the Afghan parliament in central Kabul, Afghanistan, and other cities, including Jalalabad and Gardēz. (BBC) (The Daily Telegraph)
Nearly 400 Islamist militants escape from a prison in northwestern Pakistan after an attack by insurgents. (Vanguard Nigeria)
2012 South Sudan–Sudan border conflict:
- Sudanese warplanes bomb the border town of Heglig, seized by South Sudan last week. (Reuters)
- Five people are killed and five wounded in an aerial bombing attack on the town of Rubkona, South Sudan; a Sudanese military spokesman denies any attack occurred. (CNN)

Arts and culture

Events and ceremonies are held around the world marking the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the RMS Titanic. (The Observer)
Russian Orthodox patriarch Kirill says the church is stronger than its critics after a series of scandals. (AFP)
Spanish King Juan Carlos is criticised for going on a hunting trip to Botswana while his country is in an economic crisis. (Mail & Guardian)

Business and economy

China loosens controls on the yuan, allowing it to fluctuate up to 1% in trading against the United States dollar, up from 0.5%. (BBC)

International relations

Across Europe, hundreds of activists are prevented by authorities from boarding flights bound for Tel Aviv as part of the Welcome to Palestine campaign. Hundreds of Israeli police officers are deployed at Israel's main airport to arrest any activists who manage to fly in. (Al Jazeera) (The Times of Israel)
The U.S. Secret Service announces it has put 11 agents on leave while it investigates alleged "inappropriate conduct" in Cartagena, Colombia, before the 6th Summit of the Americas there attended by U.S. President Barack Obama. It emerges that five soldiers are also facing investigation. (Associated Press via The Guardian)

Politics

In his first public speech, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un calls for a push towards "final victory" at a ceremony in Kim Il-sung Square in the capital Pyongyang. (Al Jazeera)
Police in Swaziland detain at least seven activists on their way to a pro-democracy church service in the city of Manzini. (IOL)
Belarus releases a second opposition leader amid pressure from the European Union. (UPI)
Former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra plans an early return from exile. (The Mainichi)^{[permanent dead link]}