Portal:Current events/2019 October 27

October 27, 2019 (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)
Politics of Belgium
- Sophie Wilmès becomes the first female Prime Minister of Belgium, succeeding Charles Michel. (The Guardian)
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)

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)