Portal:Current events/2018 April 12

• Poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal
  • The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons states it agrees with UK authorities on their analysis of the identity of the toxic chemical used against the Skripals. The UK identifies the substance as a Novichok nerve agent, of a type developed by Russia. (BBC) (OPCW)
• 2018 Gaza border protests
  • A further two Palestinian protestors die, bringing the death toll at the Israeli-Gazan border to 34 since March 30. (al-Jazeera)
  • Adalah and Al Mezan say Gazan doctors had to amputate the legs of two young protestors wounded by Israeli fire after Israel refused permission for their transfer to Ramallah in the West Bank for treatment. Israel says the men were refused transfers because they were involved in violence. (The Times of Israel)
  • Egypt, citing humanitarian reasons, opens the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and the Egyptian Sinai Peninsula for three days. (The Times of Israel)
  • The 9th International Conference on the Holy City of Jerusalem begins, with Israel denying access to the Palestinian Authority-hosted conference to a number of foreign invitees including a party of thirteen Indians, two buses containing academics, and Ghanan MP Ras Mubarak. Israel's ambassador to Ghana denies ever issuing Mubarak with permission to enter the Occupied Palestinian Territories, calling Mubarak a "propaganda machine" and claims it's a "complete lie". (al-Jazeera)
• Syrian Civil War
  • Siege of Eastern Ghouta
    • Syrian government fighters remove the last rebels from Douma, completing the Syrian government's recapture of former rebel stronghold Eastern Ghouta. (al-Jazeera)
• Right-wing terrorism in the United Kingdom
  • The High Court in Glasgow sentences Banff resident Connor Ward to life in prison with a minimum term of six years for plotting an anti-Islamic terror attack against mosques in Aberdeen. (The Press and Journal)
  • Two serving soldiers are cleared of terror offences related to banned neo-Nazi group National Action. A civilian is convicted. (BBC) (BBC) (Birmingham Mail)
• Unidentified militants attack Kuru-kuru and Jarkuka in Zamfara, Nigeria, killing dozens. (The Punch)
• Ex-MI5 agent Jeremy Fleming gives his first public speech as head of GCHQ, revealing the United Kingdom launched a "major offensive cyber-campaign" against Islamic State. He also criticises Russia for actions such as launching the NotPetya virus and the poisoning of Yulia and Sergei Skripal, both actions Russia denies involvement in. (BBC)

• Chernobyl disaster
  • The Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant opens its doors to tourism. (TASS)
• Steve Huffman, co-founder and CEO of Reddit, says racism is allowed on the website. Some users criticize his position, while others praise Huffman for defending free speech. (BBC)

• Economy of the United Kingdom
  • Door-to-door sales firm Kleeneze, which employs around 5,000 people, collapses into administration after 95 years. (BBC)

• Shipwrecks in 2018
  • The fire onboard South Korean ship FV Dong Won 701 in the Port of Timaru, New Zealand, enters its fourth day. The port resumes limited operations despite the ongoing blaze and the Transport Accident Investigation Commission starts an investigation despite being unable to board the vessel. (The New Zealand Herald) (Stuff)
• A Hellenic Air Force Mirage 2000-5F fighter jet crashes near the Greek island of Skyros in the Aegean Sea while intercepting a Turkish aircraft that had violated Greek airspace. The pilot is reported dead. (The Independent) (Protothema)
• Strong winds from a storm cause two of the Taj Mahal's minarets to collapse. No injuries are reported (BBC)
• Tesla Inc. withdraws from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board's probe of a fatal Model X crash in California. Tesla had drawn the NTSB's ire by releasing information publicly about its view of the case and about the car's Autopilot feature, something the Board does not allow during active investigations. (Reuters) (Bloomberg)

• 2018 inter-Korean summit
  • A joint letter from more than 200 NGOs urge South Korean president Moon Jae-in to discuss North Korean human rights at the April 27 summit. (Al Jazeera)

• 2018 Hamburg stabbing attack
  • A man fatally stabs his ex-wife and his one-year-old daughter at a crowded subway platform in central Hamburg, Germany. (The Washington Post)
• Terrorism in Iraq
  • Counterterror forces in Ninevah arrest and charge four suspected Islamic State members over a fatal bombing at a market in regional capital Mosul last year. Separately, authorities discover an unidentified corpse in Mosul thought to be connected. (al-Bawaba News)
  • A mass grave containing burnt bodies is found in al-Tarabisha, Anbar. (Iraqi News)
• Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act
  • Backpage CEO Carl Ferrer pleads guilty to conspiracy and money laundering and agrees to assist in the prosecution of other Backpage employees, including co-founders Michael Lacey and James Larkin, who were charged with several counts of human trafficking on April 6 after the site was seized by the FBI. (The Wall Street Journal)

• 2018 in spaceflight
  • NASA announces that the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite will be launched from Cape Canaveral on April 16. (Times Now News)
• 2017 Atlantic hurricane season
  • Harvey, Irma, Maria, and Nate join the list of retired Atlantic hurricane names. (USA Today)
• Threatened fauna of Australia
  • The Mary River turtle, which is endemic to the Mary River in south-east Queensland, Australia, is added to the Zoological Society of London's list of endangered species. (CNN)
• A study in Nature shows species which are visually unusual or attractive go extinct at higher rates. (Tech Times)