Portal:Current events/2023 April 18

Armed conflicts and attacks

• 2023 Sudan clashes
  • Battle of Khartoum
    • A U.S. embassy convoy is attacked in Khartoum, amid U.S. efforts to mediate a ceasefire. (AP)
    • India tells its citizens to find shelter or stay indoors. (Dev Discourse)
    • Canada closes its embassy in Sudan and advises its citizens against travelling to the country. (Global News)
• Russian invasion of Ukraine
  • Russian annexation of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia oblasts
    • Russian president Vladimir Putin makes a rare visit to Russian-occupied Kherson and Luhansk oblasts and meets with military commanders in charge of military operations. (Reuters)
  • Former People's Deputy of Ukraine Oleh Barna is killed in combat. (UNIAN)
• Six Fulani herders are killed by Kodo armed men during an attack on two villages in Logone Oriental, Chad. Fourteen attackers are killed by soldiers in the ensuing gunfight, while two others are killed in the initial clashes with the Fulanis. (Barron's)

Business and economy

• Netflix ends its DVD rental service after 25 years, citing the reduced demand for physical rentals. (BBC News)

Disasters and accidents

• 2023 Beijing hospital fire
  • Twenty-nine people are killed in a fire at a hospital in Beijing, China. (Xinhua) (Al Jazeera)
• 2023 Torkham landslide
  • Two people are killed and dozens of others are feared missing after a landslide occurs in the Khyber Pass in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. (Reuters)
• 2023 New York City parking garage collapse
  • One person is killed and five others are injured by the partial collapse of a parking garage in Manhattan, New York City, United States. Nearby buildings of Pace University are evacuated due to the instability of the garage's remaining structure. (WCBS-TV)

International relations

• Brazil–Ukraine relations
  • The Ukrainian government invites Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to visit Ukraine and criticizes Lula for his approach to the conflict. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov welcomes Lula's position on peace efforts. (Reuters)
• Mexico–United States relations
  • Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador accuses the United States Department of Defense of spying and says that he will classify information from the Mexican Armed Forces. (Reuters)
• Palestine–Saudi Arabia relations
  • Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas chairman Ismail Haniyeh meet in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to discuss the increase in violence in the West Bank, the detainment of Hamas-affiliated Palestinians in Saudi Arabia, and about improving relations between Hamas and Saudi Arabia. This is the first meeting between Hamas and the Saudi royal family since 2015. (Al Jazeera)
• Accession of Kosovo to the European Union
  • The European Parliament votes to grant visa-free travel for Kosovo citizens to any country that is part of the Schengen Area. The policy will be in effect no later than January 2024. (RFE/RL)

Law and crime

• Dominion Voting Systems v. Fox News Network
  • Fox News and Dominion Voting Systems reach a US$787.5 million settlement in the defamation lawsuit, which was initially filed against the network in March 2021 for spreading false claims about the company regarding the 2020 United States presidential election. (Forbes)
• At least four people are severely injured in a stabbing attack at a gym in Duisburg, Germany. (Evening Standard)