Portal:Current events/November 2017

• Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
  • A Saudi-led coalition airstrike on a market in Sahar District in Yemen's northern Saada Governorate, which is under Houthi control, kills at least 26 people, according to medics and local officials. (Reuters)
• War in Afghanistan
  • Two fuel tankers are bombed in the Afghan town of Charikar, killing at least 15 people and injuring at least 27. (Reuters)

• Rock climbing in Australia
  • The Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa National Park's board votes unanimously to ban climbing on Uluru, sacred to the Anangu people, in Australia's Northern Territory, from October 2019, due to Indigenous concerns over respect for the sacred site and for the safety of tourists. (Deutsch Welle via USA Today)
• NPR controversies
  • Citing "inappropriate behavior", Michael Oreskes resigns from his position as senior vice president of news at NPR after three journalists accuse him of sexual harassment. (CNN)

• 2017 Spanish constitutional crisis
  • A Belgian lawyer representing Carles Puigdemont announces his client will not return to Spain to answer charges against him. Spanish prosecutors could order a European Arrest Warrant if Puigdemont fails to appear in court. (BBC)
• Thornton shooting
  • A gunman opens fire in a Walmart in Thornton, Colorado, killing three people. (The Telegraph)

• Japanese general election, 2017
  • Shinzō Abe is officially reinstated as Prime Minister of Japan following the election on 22 October 2017. (Reuters)
• 2017 Australian parliamentary eligibility crisis
  • President of the Australian Senate, Stephen Parry, announces he will resign, effective 2 November 2017, after confirming he holds dual British-Australian citizenship. (BBC)
• States of emergency in France
  • France declares the end of the country's state of emergency which was enforced as a reaction to the November 2015 Paris attacks. The state of emergency gets replaced with a new counterterrorism law signed by President Emmanuel Macron. (The Independent)
• 2017 Westminster sexual scandals
  • Michael Fallon resigns as the United Kingdom's Secretary of State for Defence amid controversy over reports he touched a female journalist inappropriately in 2002. (BBC)

• Genetically modified organism
  • The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reports weed killer dicamba, used in fields with genetically modified crops, has damaged more than 3.6 million acres of normal soybean crops in 25 states this year. (The New York Times)

• 2017 World Series
  • In baseball, the Houston Astros defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers 5–1 in the seventh and deciding game of the World Series. It is the first World Series title for the Astros, who had lost 111 games just four seasons earlier. The Astros' George Springer, who set records for most extra-base hits (8) and total bases (29) in a single World Series, and tied the record for most home runs in a single World Series (5), is named series MVP. (CNN) (CBS Sports)

• Syrian Civil War
  • Battle of Deir ez-Zor
    • According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the city of Deir ez-Zor has largely been cleared of ISIS fighters by the Syrian Armed Forces. Deir ez-Zor was the scene of a three-year-long siege until it was broken in September 2017. (The Guardian)

• Balfour Declaration
  • A Bethlehem art installation (by anonymous artist Banksy) satirizes the 100th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration. (The Guardian)

• Presidency of Donald Trump
  • Donald Trump nominates Jerome Powell to be the next chairman of the Chair of the Federal Reserve. (ABC News)

• 2017 NTPC power plant explosion
  • At least 22 people killed and 100 injured in boiler explosion at a coal-fired power plant in Uttar Pradesh state, India. (BBC)

• Spanish constitutional crisis
  • Judge Lamela sends preventive detention to eight of the ministers of the Government of Catalonia (Junqueras, Forn, Borràs, Romeva, Mundó, Bassa, Rull, Turull) due to an alleged crime of sedition and rebellion. The ninth Santi Vila, minister of Enterprise and Knowledge, leaves the jail the next day after payment of a bail, being the only one who was given this opportunity. (BBC)
  • Five other members of the Bureau of the Parliament and the Speaker face similar charges, but each case will be handled by the Supreme Court due to their parliamentary immunity. (BBC)
  • A new general strike is convened in Catalonia for November 8. (Express)

• Icelandic parliamentary election, 2017
  • Opposition leader Katrín Jakobsdóttir of the Left-Green Movement receives the mandate to form a government with its coalition partners: the Social Democratic Alliance, the Progressives and the Pirates. (Bloomberg)
• Donald Trump on social media
  • U.S. President Donald Trump's main social media account is suspended for 11 minutes. Twitter blames the incident on an employee and says it is "taking steps to prevent this from happening again." (The Guardian)

• The Tapanuli orangutan is identified as a new species of great ape. (The Guardian)

• Syrian Civil War
  • Siege of Deir ez-Zor (2014–17)
    • The Syrian Army (SAA) and allies announce the complete liberation of Deir ez-Zor from ISIL. (Sputnik International)
  • At least nine people are killed and another 23 are injured in Hader, Quneitra Governorate, after a Tahrir al-Sham-operated car bomb detonates inside the town. (Reuters)
• Iraqi Civil War (2014–2017)
  • 2017 Western Iraq campaign
    • The Iraqi Armed Forces enter the town of Al-Qa'im, close to the border with Syria. Al-Qa'im is one of the last towns in Iraq still held by ISIL. (Reuters)
• Somali Civil War (2009–present)
  • The United States launches airstrikes against Islamic State in Somalia for the first time. The United States Africa Command says "several terrorists" were killed in the strikes, which took place in coordination with Somalia's government. (The Independent)

• Kevin Spacey sexual assault allegations
  • Netflix announces that it will no longer be working with American actor Kevin Spacey who plays Frank Underwood on the U.S. version of House of Cards. (News Limited)

• Japan–United States relations
  • United States president Donald Trump's daughter Ivanka visits Japan. (The Washington Post) (The New York Times)

• Spanish constitutional crisis
  • Spain issues an arrest warrant against former Catalonian president Carles Puigdemont. (BBC)
• War in Afghanistan
  • United States soldier Bowe Bergdahl is convicted of desertion and dishonorably discharged, but is not imprisoned. (The New York Times)
• Human rights in Zimbabwe
  • Zimbabwe accuses American citizen Martha O'Donovan of trying to overthrow the regime of Robert Mugabe. (The Los Angeles Times)

• 2017 Westminster sexual scandals
  • The Conservative Party suspends Dover MP Charlie Elphicke following "serious allegations" against him which have been passed on to police. Elphicke denies any wrongdoing. (The Guardian)

• Climate change
  • A significant U.S. federal government study finds "no convincing alternative explanation" for the changing climate other than "human activities, especially emissions of greenhouse gases." (CNN)

• Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
  • Houthi rebels in Yemen fire a ballistic missile at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The missile was shot down, according to Saudi officials, with no resulting injuries or damage. (BBC News) (The New York Times)

• Karen Ibasco of the Philippines is crowned Miss Earth 2017 at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay, Philippines. (Xinhua)

• 2017 Pacific typhoon season
  • Typhoon Damrey kills at least 19 people in Vietnam, a week before the country is set to host APEC Vietnam 2017. (ABC Australia)

• Temporary Protected Status
  • The United States will end the temporary protected status program (TPS) for more than 300,000 refugees from El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, and Nicaragua. Many of the refugees have already left for Canada, where it is easier to get asylum. (Newsweek) (Reuters)
• Manus Regional Processing Centre
  • An offer is made by New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern to resettle refugees stuck in the Manus Regional Processing Centre but is rejected by Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. The processing center has triggered a humanitarian crisis for the refugees and protests in Australian cities. (Al Jazeera) (The Sydney Morning Herald)
• Human rights in Myanmar
  • The United States contemplates reimposing sanctions against Myanmar over alleged abuses against the Rohingya people. (The Hindu)

• 2017 Saudi Arabian anti-corruption arrests
  • Saudi Arabia announces the arrest of billionaire investor Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal, plus at least 10 other princes, four government ministers and tens of former ministers by Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman's newly formed anti-corruption agency. (AFP via Yahoo!) (The New York Times)
• West African Ebola virus epidemic
  • The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies reports the discovery of several cases of fraud amounting to at least $6 million (£4.6 million) through overbilling and the "likely collusion" between a bank and former IFRC employees during the 2013–16 West African Ebola outbreak. (Voice of Africa) (The Guardian)

• Politics of Lebanon, 2017 Lebanon–Saudi Arabia dispute
  • Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri resigns, citing assassination threats. (BBC)
• Slovak regional elections, 2017
  • Ján Lunter defeats Marian Kotleba in the Slovakian regional election held in the Banská Bystrica Region. Direction – Social Democracy loses four regions to center-right opposition candidates. (Reuters)
• Protests against Donald Trump
  • Refuse Fascism holds protests against U.S. President Donald Trump in several major cities, including New York City, Chicago, and San Francisco. (KTLA)

• Yemeni Civil War
  • Aden unrest
    • A suicide bombing in Aden kills at least five government soldiers. (Al Jazeera)
• Iraqi Civil War
  • Two suicide bombers attack a Shi'ite mosque in Kirkuk, killing at least 5 people and injuring more than 20. (Reuters)

• Paradise Papers
  • Journalists start reporting on the contents of 13.4 million documents leaked from the offshore law firm Appleby, along with business registries in 19 tax jurisdictions that reveal offshore financial activities of politicians, celebrities, corporate giants and business leaders. The German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung had previously obtained the documents and shared them with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. (BBC) (The New York Times)
  • The documents include names of individuals and companies such as that of United States businessman and Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, United Kingdom monarch Elizabeth II, Liberian president Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, former German chancellor Gerhard Schröder, Russian-Uzbek business magnate Alisher Usmanov, the social media companies Twitter and Facebook, and pop stars Bono and Madonna. (Quartz)

• 2017 Pacific typhoon season
  • Typhoon Damrey (2017)
    • The death toll in Vietnam from Typhoon Damrey reaches 27, another 22 are missing. (AP via Fox News)
• Helicopter accidents and incidents
  • A helicopter crashes near Saudi Arabia's border with Yemen, killing Prince Mansour bin Muqrin, and seven other Saudi officials. The cause of the crash is unknown. (NBC News)

• Sutherland Springs church shooting
  • A gunman opens fire at a Baptist church in the American town of Sutherland Springs, Texas in the San Antonio area, killing at least 26 people and injuring many others. The 26-year-old gunman is later found dead in his car from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. (ABC News) (BBC) (CNN)
• Catalan Republic, Spanish constitutional crisis
  • Secessionist Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont surrenders to Belgian police. (The Guardian)
• Crime in Kentucky
  • United States Senator Rand Paul is recovering from fractured ribs after being assaulted by a neighbor at his home. (NBC)

• Protests against Rodrigo Duterte, Philippine Drug War
  • Human rights activists and opponents of Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte stage protests led by the Philippine Catholic Church against the ongoing drug crackdown that has killed thousands of people. (Rappler)
• 2017 Russian protests
  • At least 260 people have been arrested while protesting against Vladimir Putin in Moscow while people in five other cities are also detained. The protests were organized by the Artpodgotovka movement founded by Vyacheslav Maltsev. (BBC)

• 2017 New York City Marathon
  • Shalane Flanagan becomes the first American woman since 1977 to win the New York City Marathon. Kenyan Geoffrey Kamworor wins the men's marathon. (The New York Times)

• 2017 Saudi Arabian anti-corruption arrests
  • Investors react poorly to the arrest of Saudi billionaire Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal, one of the world's wealthiest men. (BBC)

• Japan–United States relations
  • U.S. President Donald Trump visits Japan amidst the 2017 North Korea crisis. (CNN)
• 2017 Lebanon–Saudi Arabia dispute
  • Saudi Arabia says Lebanon has declared war against it through acts of aggression. (Reuters)

• Sutherland Springs church shooting
  • Officials from the FBI and Texas law enforcement are searching for the motive of the gunman who opened fire in a Baptist church, killing 26 people and injuring 20 others. (Todays)
• Immigration to the United States, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services
  • United States Attorney General Jeff Sessions intends on stripping the U.S. citizenship of four Somali Americans allegedly abusing the Diversity Immigrant Visa by pretending to be a family. The Trump Administration earlier said it plans to scrap the visa program. (Washington Free Beacon)
  • The United States Department of Homeland Security announces that it will end temporary protected status for thousands of Nicaraguan migrants while decisions await for thousands more from El Salvador, Haiti and Honduras. (BuzzFeed)

• Politics of the Solomon Islands
  • Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare is narrowly ousted in a vote of no confidence by 27 to 23 votes. (Radio New Zealand International)
• Icelandic parliamentary election, 2017
  • Left-Green Movement leader Katrín Jakobsdóttir fails to form a government after the breakdown of talks with her proposed four-party coalition. (Sky News)
• Politics of Zimbabwe
  • Emmerson Mnangagwa is fired as Vice President by Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe. The public and the media widely perceives Mugabe's wife Grace as his likely successor after his death with Mnangagwa having been seen as her rival. (The Guardian)

• Air quality in Delhi
  • A blanket of thick grey smog covers the Indian capital, Delhi, with some areas 30 times more polluted than the World Health Organization's recommended limit, one year after a similar smog. (BBC)
• North Korea and weapons of mass destruction
  • A North Korean defector claims children are being born with deformities near North Korea's nuclear testing site. (Fox News)

• Yemeni Crisis (2011–present)
  • Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman accuses Iran of an act of "direct military aggression" by supplying missiles to rebels in Yemen. (BBC)
• South Korea–United States relations
  • U.S. President Donald Trump visits South Korea amidst a crisis with North Korea. (CNN)
• Paris Agreement parties and signatories
  • Syria signs the Paris Agreement. This will make the United States the only country not in the Paris Agreement, when they plan to leave on 4 November 2020. (The Guardian)

• Crime in Japan
  • Former millionaire Chisako Kakehi (also known as Japan's "Black Widow") is sentenced to death for the murder of 3 men which included a husband. (AFP via MSN) (BBC)

• United States elections, 2017
  • Voters in New Jersey and Virginia chose new governors. (CNN)
    • Philip Murphy wins the New Jersey gubernatorial election. (The New York Times)
    • Ralph Northam wins the Virginia gubernatorial election. (The New York Times)
    • In the Virginia House of Delegates election, Democrats win 15 seats, Republicans lose 18 seats, and 3 seats are too close to call. (The Washington Post)
  • Voters in New York reject a ballot initiative that, if passed, would have resulted in a Constitutional Convention being convened to change in the current state constitution. (Patch.com) (Business Insider) (The New York Times)
  • Voters in Utah's 3rd congressional district choose John Curtis to win the representative seat in the special election. (CNN) (The New York Times)
  • Former US District attorney Jenny Durkan is elected mayor of Seattle, becoming the city's first woman mayor since 1926. (The Seattle Times)
  • Maine votes to expand Medicaid under Obamacare in the first ever referendum on the issue. (ABC News)

• Syrian Civil War
  • 2017 Abu Kamal offensive
    • The Syrian Army and its allies capture Abu Kamal from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. (Deutsche Welle)

• Kevin Spacey sexual assault allegations
  • Former U.S. TV news anchor Heather Unruh accuses actor Kevin Spacey of sexually assaulting her son in Nantucket, Massachusetts, in 2016, when her son was 18 years old. (CNN)

• United States antitrust law
  • The United States Department of Justice antitrust chief has told AT&T that it must sell off either DirecTV or Turner Broadcasting System (the parent of CNN) in order to complete its acquisition of Time Warner. (CNN)

• Illegal drug trade in Colombia
  • Colombian authorities seize 12 tons of cocaine, worth an estimated $360 million, from the Clan del Golfo and make four arrests. (Reuters)

• Politics of the United Kingdom
  • British politician Priti Patel resigns from her position as Secretary of State for International Development amid reports that she had had unauthorized meetings with senior Israeli officials. (The Guardian)
• Presidency of Donald Trump
  • U.S. federal prosecutors subpoena Carl Icahn over his role as an adviser on biofuels in the Trump administration. (CNBC)

• Yemeni Civil War, Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
  • A senior UN official warns that Yemen faces the world's largest famine in decades "with millions of victims" if aid deliveries do not resume. (BBC)

• 2017 Saudi Arabian purge
  • Saudi Arabia's attorney general says at least $100bn (£76bn) has been misused through systemic corruption and embezzlement in recent decades. (BBC)
• Smoking ban in Vatican City
  • Pope Francis issues a directive banning the sale of most tobacco in Vatican City as of January 1, 2018, because of its unhealthy attributes. A 2015 book stated the papal city netted $11 million (£8.7 million) per year from these sales. (AFP via MSN.com) (Crux)
• Spanish constitutional crisis
  • The Supreme Court sends to preventive prison the Speaker of the Parliament of Catalonia, Carme Forcadell. She leaves the prison the next day, after the payment of a bail. Four of the members of the Bureau of the Parliaments are condemned to pay a fine, while one of them not receives any precautionary measure. (BBC)

• United States Senate special election in Alabama, 2017
  • Four women accuse Roy Moore, a former Alabama judge and U.S. Senate candidate, of sexual misconduct during the 1970s and early 1980s when they were between the ages of 14 and 18 and he was in his 30s. (The Guardian)
  • Some Republican politicians distance themselves from Moore, calling on him to step down from the election if these allegations are true, while some Alabama Republicans defend him. (Q13 Fox) (Time)

• A driver intentionally drives into a group of students near Toulouse, France. Three injured people are taken to hospital. A suspect has been arrested. Police are not treating this incident as connected to terrorism. (BBC) (CNN)
• Airborne radioactivity increase in Europe in autumn 2017
  • France's nuclear safety institute (IRSN) picks up traces of ruthenium-106, suggesting a nuclear accident took place in either Russia or Kazakhstan, in late September and early October. (The Telegraph)

• 2017 Lebanon–Saudi Arabia dispute
  • Saudi Arabia, and subsequently the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait, urge all citizens currently in Lebanon to leave the country immediately. Recently, Saudi Arabia declared that a missile attack on its airport from Yemen was "an act of war" by Lebanon. (Al-Jazeera) (NPR)
  • French President Emmanuel Macron makes an unscheduled visit to Saudi Arabia amidst an escalating crisis between the kingdom and Lebanon. France is a close partner of Lebanon. (BBC)
  • Hezbollah declares the resignation of Prime Minister Saad Hariri invalid. Hariri has been detained in Saudi Arabia (presumably in Riyadh) for several days. The Saudi government is accused of pressuring Hariri to resign in the first place. (Al Jazeera)
• Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development
  • Pope Francis, at the start of a two-day nuclear disarmament conference at Vatican City, says countries should not stockpile nuclear weapons even for the purpose of deterrence. (Reuters) (Vatican Radio)

• Iraqi Civil War (2014–2017)
  • 2017 Western Iraq campaign
    • The Iraqi Armed Forces launch an offensive to recapture the last ISIL stronghold in Iraq, Rawa. (BBC)
    • Mass graves containing at least 400 bodies have been found near Hawija, an Iraqi city that was occupied by ISIL until last month. (BBC)
• Syrian Civil War
  • 2017 Abu Kamal offensive
    • ISIL regains control of Abu Kamal. (NDTV)

• E-commerce
  • Alibaba Group makes 168.2 billion yuan ($25.3 billion) in Singles' Day sales. (Bloomberg)

• APEC Vietnam 2017
  • Trade ministers from 11 countries announce that they have agreed on "core elements" of the Trans-Pacific Partnership and plan to move forward with approving the trade agreement. (Bangkok Post)

• 2017 Australian parliamentary eligibility crisis
  • The Turnbull Government loses its parliamentary majority, after Liberal Party MP John Alexander resigns from the Australian House of Representatives due to likely holding British dual citizenship. (The Sydney Morning Herald)
• Far-right politics in Poland
  • An estimated 60,000 Polish citizens, including a few hundred nationalists, some with banners "White Europe" and "Pray for an Islamic Holocaust", march through Warsaw under an umbrella slogan of "We want God", on the annual Independence March during the celebrations of Poland's National Independence Day. (Radio Poland) (Fox13)

• English women's cricket team in Australia in 2017–18
  • In cricket, Ellyse Perry scores 213 not out, the highest individual score by an Australian in Women’s Tests. (BBC)
• 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
  • 22 police agents are wounded in Brussels when celebrations for Morocco's 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification turn violent. (VRT)

• 2017 in the Central African Republic
  • A grenade attack at a peace concert in Bangui, Central African Republic, kills seven and injures 20. (Reuters)

• #MeToo
  • Hundreds of sexual abuse victims and their supporters march in Hollywood, California. (Los Angeles Times)

• 2017 Dubai Airshow
  • Boeing announces at the Dubai Airshow that the airline Emirates will purchase forty 787 Dreamliners with a list value of US$15 billion. (BBC)

• 2017 Iran–Iraq earthquake
  • A 7.3 magnitude earthquake strikes near Halabja, Iraq, killing at least 145 people and injuring more than 850 with structural damage reported in both Iraq and Iran. (Reuters) (Al Jazeera) (AP via Fox News) (Reuters²) (U.S. Geological Service)
• A tourist boat capsizes on the Krishna River in Andhra Pradesh, leaving at least 16 people dead. (Reuters)
• 2017 Costa Rica earthquake
  • Costa Rica is hit by a 6.5 magnitude earthquake at Jacó near the capital San José. No immediate reports of casualties or damage. (USGS)

• Equatorial Guinean legislative election, 2017
  • As the people of Equatorial Guinea vote in the legislative election, the government blocks access to the internet and bans private vehicles. Observers predict the Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea will win the election. (DW)
• Slovenian presidential election, 2017
  • Slovenian President Borut Pahor, winning nearly 53 percent of the vote (373,877), is reelected for a second term in the runoff between the top two candidates from the October, 22, 2017, poll. Marjan Šarec, the other candidate from the original field of nine, received 332,366 votes. (Reuters) (The New York Times)

• Border incidents involving North Korea
  • A Korean People's Army soldier defects to South Korea via the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). He was shot and injured by fellow North Korean soldiers as he crossed to the South Korean side at Panmunjom, and has been taken to hospital. (BBC)
• Syrian Civil War
  • The BBC reveals that a secret deal in mid-October allowed hundreds of ISIL fighters and their families, including some of their "most notorious members", escape from Raqqa in a convoy that was between 6 to 7 km long. The United States government confirms that the deal with ISIL was made and that the evacuations took place. The possibility of a deal was previously reported as early as October 14. (BBC) (Rudaw) (The Guardian)

• 2017 Iran–Iraq earthquake
  • The death toll from the earthquake in Iraq and Iran exceeds 400 with over 7,000 injured. The death toll is expected to rise further in coming days. (Washington Post)

• Military of the European Union
  • Twenty-three European Union countries sign a defence integration pact known as the Permanent Structured Cooperation. NATO members Denmark, Portugal and the United Kingdom (withdrawal from EU underway), and non-NATO members Malta and Ireland, opt out. (Reuters)
• Colombian peace process
  • The Foreign Affairs Ministers of the European Union unanimously vote to remove the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) from its list of designated terrorist groups. (Colombia Reports)
• Russia–United States relations
  • RT America registers with the U.S. Department of Justice as a foreign agent in the United States. (Reuters)

• Cabinet of Donald Trump
  • U.S. President Donald Trump selects Eli Lilly's American division president and former HHS deputy secretary Alex Azar to be Secretary of Health and Human Services, replacing Tom Price who resigned on September 29. (ABC News)
• Somaliland general election, 2017
  • Voters in Somaliland vote for their next president. (The National)
• Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
  • Thousands of Yemenis protest a blockade on Yemen led by a Saudi Arabian coalition. (France 24)

• 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
  • Italy fails to qualify (for the first time since 1958) for 2018 FIFA World Cup after being defeated by Sweden in the UEFA Second Round. (Independent)

• 2017 Zimbabwean coup d'état
  • Soldiers directing traffic and at least six APCs have been spotted around Harare, a day after General Constantino Chiwenga intervened in attempt to prevent a purge within the ruling ZANU-PF party. The party has accused the general of treason. (Reuters)

• 2017 Iran–Iraq earthquake
  • Thousands of Iranians are forced to spend a second night outdoors in near-freezing temperatures after an earthquake hit the country's western border with Iraq. (BBC)

• Seminole Heights serial killer
  • Police in Florida link a fourth unsolved murder to an unknown serial killer targeting the Seminole Heights area of Tampa, Florida. (CNN)
• Rancho Tehama shootings
  • Five people, including the gunman, are killed and several others injured following a shooting at an elementary school and other locations on Rancho Tehama, California. The alleged gunman was shot and killed by police. (Los Angeles Times) (NPR)

• Works by Leonardo da Vinci
  • Salvator Mundi, a painting generally attributed to Leonardo da Vinci, is sold at auction Christie's in New York City for US$450.3 million; setting a new record for the sale of an original work of art. (The Guardian)

• Cyclone Numa
  • Flash floods on the outskirts of the Greek capital Athens kill at least 16 people and injure dozens more after a severe thunderstorm. (AP via ABC Australia) (The Guardian)
  • Numa is an example of a rare Mediterranean tropical-like cyclone, or "medicane". These uncommon tropical-like systems form over much cooler oceans than typical tropical cyclones. (The Weather Channel) (Washington Post)

• Rancho Tehama shootings
  • Authorities discover the murdered wife of spree killer Kevin Janson Neal under the floorboards of their home, raising the death toll to six with ten others wounded in eight separate shootings. (Los Angeles Times)

• 2017 Zimbabwean coup d'état
  • Zimbabwe Defence Forces troops seize control of the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation headquarters as explosions are heard in the capital Harare amid reports of a coup against President Robert Mugabe. (Reuters)
  • A high-ranking representative of the Zimbabwe National Army broadcast a military statement calling on the various sectors of society to keep calm and support the country's development. (The Guardian)
  • Finance Minister Ignatius Chombo is among those people detained overnight in Zimbabwe. (The Guardian)
• Australian Marriage Law Postal Survey
  • The outcome of the Australian Marriage Law Postal Survey is announced with 61.6% voting yes to allow same-sex marriage with 79.5% of Australian voters participating. (Canberra Times)
• 2017 United Nations Climate Change Conference
  • High level statespersons from France, Germany and other nations speak at the 2017 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Bonn. (ABC News)

• GW170608
  • LIGO announces it has detected gravitational waves from the merger of two black holes. (LIGO Caltech)

• South Sudanese Civil War
  • Rival factions within the ruling Sudan People's Liberation Movement sign the "Declaration of Unification" in Cairo, Egypt. (Sudan Tribune)
• Northern Rakhine State clashes, Rohingya persecution in Myanmar (2016–present)
  • Human Rights Watch releases a report detailing the alleged systematic rape of Rohingya women and girls by Myanmar's security forces in Rakhine State. (Al Jazeera) (Human Rights Watch)

• Economy of Venezuela
  • Venezuela defaults on sovereign debt and bonds issued by state oil firm PDVSA (Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A.). (Reuters)

• Politics of Cambodia
  • The opposition Cambodian National Rescue Party is dissolved by the Cambodian Supreme Court. (BBC)
• Tongan general election, 2017
  • About 67% of Tonga's registered voters participate in the country's general election. (Matangi Tonga)
  • The Democratic Party of the Friendly Islands wins 14 of the 17 electoral seats, and all but 2 of the 9 noble representatives are re-elected. (Radio New Zealand)

• Iraqi Civil War (2014–2017)
  • 2017 Western Iraq campaign
    • The Iraqi Army captures the town of Rawa from the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). It was the last town held by ISIL in Iraq. (AP)

• 2017 in archaeology
  • Mungo Man, the oldest human remains in Australia, is returned to Lake Mungo in outback New South Wales, where he was originally buried. (AP)

• Disappearance of ARA San Juan
  • The Navy of Argentina begins a search for one of its submarines, the San Juan, which has been out of contact for two days. (CNN)

• Evelyn Wever-Croes becomes the first female Prime Minister of Aruba following the 2017 general election in September. (Nederlandse Omroep Stichting)
• Politics of Kenya
  • At least five people are killed at a demonstration in Nairobi after supporters of Raila Odinga and members of the National Super Alliance clash with the Kenya Police. (CNN)

• Disappearance of ARA San Juan
  • The Argentine Navy continues searching in the South Atlantic for the ARA San Juan submarine, which went missing on 15 November 2017. (Reuters via U.S. News and World Report)
• A fire in a low-rent apartment in a suburb of Beijing kills 19 people and injures 8. (Xinhua net) The Beijing municipal government then launches a fire safety crackdown in which thousands of migrant workers are evicted from their homes within days. (Caixin)

• France–Lebanon relations
  • Prime Minister of Lebanon Saad Hariri meets President of France Emmanuel Macron at the Élysée Palace in Paris. (Arab News)

• 2017 Zimbabwean coup d'état
  • Thousands of people celebrate the expected downfall of Robert Mugabe in the streets of Harare. (BBC) (Reuters)
• Politics of Northern Ireland
  • Gerry Adams, the long-term leader of Sinn Féin, announces that he will step down as party leader next year. (Reuters via News Limited)
• 2017 Spanish constitutional crisis
  • The Spanish Attorney General José Manuel Maza unexpectedly dies of an illness in Buenos Aires at the age of 66. (BBC)

• Syrian Civil War
  • 2017 Abu Kamal offensive
    • Syrian government troops and allied militia retake Abu Kamal, ISIL's last urban stronghold in Syria. (Daily Mail)
• Northern Rakhine State clashes
  • Chinese delegates visiting the Burmese capital of Naypyidaw propose a three-phase plan to resolve the conflict in Myanmar's Rakhine State. The governments of Myanmar and Bangladesh expressed support for the plan, which included repatriating refugees that have fled from violence in Rakhine State. (Reuters)

• Human stampedes in 2017
  • At least 15 people are killed in a human stampede over food in the village of Sidi Boualem, Morocco. (BBC)

• Tate murders
  • Charles Manson, the infamous former cult leader who ordered the murder of Sharon Tate and others, dies at age 83. (CNN)
• Crime in France
  • A policeman in the French city of Sarcelles kills his girlfriend's father, two passers-by and himself after she ended their relationship. (BBC)

• Chilean general election, 2017
  • Voters in Chile head to the polls to elect a president, as well as positions in the Senate, the Chamber of Deputies, as well as regional boards. (BBC)
  • Former President Sebastián Piñera wins the primary vote in the presidential election and faces a runoff against Socialist Alejandro Guillier. (BBC)
• Government formation in Germany, 2017
  • The Free Democratic Party (FDP), which was in discussions over forming a government with the CDU, CSU and Alliance 90/The Greens, announced that the party refuses further coalition negotiations. The main reasons for the failure were questions about the politics concerning migration and environment. (The Guardian)
• 2017 Zimbabwean coup d'état
  • President of Zimbabwe Robert Mugabe is fired as the leader of ZANU–PF and replaced with former Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa. (The Guardian) (AP)
  • In a television speech, President Mugabe refuses to resign and pledges to preside over next month's ZANU-PF congress. The ruling party gave the 93-year-old less than 24 hours to quit as head of state or face impeachment. (Financial Express) (Euronews)

• 2017 NASCAR Cup Series
  • Martin Truex Jr. wins the season-ending 2017 Ford EcoBoost 400 and with it his first title of the NASCAR Cup Series. The race also marks the final Cup Series appearance for Dale Earnhardt Jr., Matt Kenseth, and Danica Patrick as full-time drivers. (AP via ESPN)

• Economy of the United States
  • The U.S. Department of Justice files a lawsuit blocking the potential merger of AT&T and Time Warner. (CNN)

• Earthquakes in 2017
  • A 7.0 magnitude undersea earthquake strikes east of New Caledonia's Loyalty Islands in the South Pacific Ocean. Tsunami warnings for New Caledonia and Vanuatu are cancelled. There are no immediate reports of damage. (Gulf News) (Reuters) (USGS)

• 2017 North Korea crisis
  • U.S. President Donald Trump announces the designation of North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism. (The New York Times)

• Weinstein effect
  • Charlie Rose is suspended as host of Charlie Rose and anchor of CBS This Morning after allegations of sexual harassment and obscene phone calls and was later fired by the following day. (The Washington Post)
• Visa policy of the United States
  • The United States Department of Homeland Security announces they will not renew the "temporary protected status" of around 50,000 Haitians living in the United States when it expires in 18 months. (The Washington Post)

• Brexit negotiations
  • After the United Kingdom withdrawal from the European Union referendum, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) will relocate to Amsterdam and the European Banking Authority (EBA) to Paris from London. (Politico)

• National Football League
  • The Georgia Dome, former home of the NFL's Atlanta Falcons and the NCAA's Peach Bowl, is imploded after 25 years of use. (CNBC) (Fox News) (The Washington Post)

• Boko Haram insurgency
  • An estimated 50 people are killed when a suicide bomber attacks a mosque during morning prayers in Mubi, Nigeria. (The Guardian)

• 2017 eruption of Mount Agung
  • Mount Agung in Bali erupts for the first time in 50 years, leading to thousands of people fleeing their homes. (BBC)

• 2017 North Korea crisis
  • The U.S. Treasury imposes new sanctions on several North Korean shipping companies and vessels, along with four Chinese companies which have engaged in trading activities with North Korea. (CBS News)

• Net neutrality in the United States
  • Federal Communications Commission chairman Ajit Pai announces his agency will take steps to repeal the regulations put in place under the Obama administration, including the classification of broadband Internet as a public utility. (The New York Times)

• 2017 Zimbabwean coup d'état
  • Robert Mugabe resigns as the President of Zimbabwe shortly after impeachment proceedings are launched. It ends a period of his 29 years in office as President. (Fox News)

• Counter-terrorism in Georgia
  • Explosions and gunfire are heard in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi amidst counter-terrorism operations. One security guard and 3 terrorists are killed. (Al Jazeera)

• USS Ronald Reagan
  • A U.S. Navy C-2A Greyhound, operating off the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan, crashes in the Philippine Sea. Eight sailors are rescued, while three remain missing from the 11-person crew. (CNBC)

• Palestine–United States relations
  • The Palestinian National Authority suspends contact with the United States after the Palestine Liberation Organization office in Washington, D.C. was closed. (UPI)
• International reactions to the 2016–17 Rohingya persecution in Myanmar
  • U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson calls the persecution of Rohingya Muslims by the government of Myanmar an "ethnic cleansing" and announces that the United States will consider targeted sanctions against Myanmar. (Reuters)

• International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
  • Ratko Mladić, the former Chief of Staff of the Bosnian Serb army during the Bosnian War, is found guilty of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and is sentenced to life imprisonment. (The Guardian)

• 2017 Lebanon–Saudi Arabia dispute
  • Lebanon Prime Minister Saad Hariri arrives in Beirut for the first time since announcing his resignation in Saudi Arabia more than two weeks ago. (BBC)
  • At Lebanese President Michel Aoun's request, Hariri suspends his resignation so further consultations can proceed. (BBC)

• Mexico's Popocatepetl volcano sends a cloud of smoke, ash and steam around 5,900 feet (1798 meters) above the peak, the largest eruption since 2013. (Yahoo! News) (El Universal)

• Rohingya genocide
  • Bangladesh's Foreign Minister A. H. Mahmood Ali and Myanmar's State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi agree to return Rohingya refugees from Bangladesh to Myanmar in a two-month period. (The Australian)
• Russia–Sudan relations
  • Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, wanted by the ICC for allegations of genocide and war crimes, asks Russian President Vladimir Putin for increased military ties and protection against the United States during his first visit to Russia as President. Putin agrees to increase their countries' economic ties. (France 24)

• Immigration to Australia
  • Papua New Guinea Police remove 40 refugees from the closed Manus Regional Processing Centre, and over 300 refugees remain. (BBC)

• 2017 Sinai mosque attack
  • At least 305 people are killed, and over 128 wounded, in a bomb and gun attack at a mosque near Arish, Egypt. (BBC)

• Turkey–United States relations, Syrian Civil War
  • The White House confirms Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu's announcement that President Donald Trump told Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan that America is preparing to stop supplying weapons to ethnic Kurdish fighters in Syria. (The Washington Post) (AP via NBC News)
• Palestine–United States relations
  • The U.S. State Department, in a reversal, says the Palestine Liberation Organization mission can remain open in Washington, D.C. (CBS News)

• Trial of Oscar Pistorius
  • Former South African sprint runner Oscar Pistorius has his jail sentence increased to 13 years and five months for the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. The Supreme Court of Appeal ruled his sentence be increased to 15 years, less time already served. (9 News Australia)
• Taner Kılıç
  • Sting, Peter Gabriel, Edward Snowden and Ai Weiwei call for president of Amnesty International Turkey Taner Kılıç to be released from prison. (Al Jazeera English)

• Aftermath of 2017 Zimbabwean coup d'état
  • Emmerson Mnangagwa is sworn in as the new President of Zimbabwe pending elections next year. (CNN)
  • The Zimbabwean government recognizes the birthday of former leader, Robert Mugabe as a national holiday. (BBC)
• Presidency of Donald Trump
  • Days ahead of the Global Entrepreneurship Summit in India, scheduled to be attended by Ivanka Trump per Prime Minister Narendra Modi's June invitation, reports indicate the United States Department of State, led by Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, will not be sending a high-level delegation to support her amid reports of tensions between Tillerson and the White House. (CNN) (Daily Mail)
  • U.S. President Donald Trump designates Office of Management and Budget director Mick Mulvaney acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), replacing Richard Cordray, who promoted chief of staff Leandra English to CFPB deputy director prior to his resignation. (Reuters) (The Hill)

• Russia–United States relations
  • Russian President Vladimir Putin signs into law amendments that allow foreign media outlets in Russia to be listed as foreign agents. Earlier this month, RT America has been forced to be registered as a foreign agent in the United States. (CNN) (Reuters)

• Aftermath of 2017 Zimbabwean coup d'état
  • Former Zimbabwe finance minister Ignatius Chombo, who was arrested during Operation Restore Legacy, is charged in Harare Magistrate’s Court with three counts of fraud, abuse of power, and corruption. (Reuters) (The Citizen)
• Russia–United States relations, LinkedIn hack in 2012
  • The United States and Russia begin fighting over the extradition of Yevgeniy Nikulin, who was detained in October 2016 in the Czech Republic, after the U.S. Justice Department issued an international arrest warrant for him. However, soon after the U.S. issued its arrest warrant, Russian authorities also sought his extradition. The Russian charge accuses Nikulin of stealing from an online money transfer company back in 2009. (CNN)
• Crime in Canada

• Queensland state election, 2017
  • The Australian Labor Party leads the tight race with three-quarters of the votes counted. Pauline Hanson's One Nation party has yet to confirm victory in any contest; the nationalists are projected to win just one seat though they may poll better overall than the predicted 20 percent. Official results may not be known for several days. (Reuters)

• Syrian Civil War
  • Russian airstrikes hit residential buildings in the ISIS-held village of Al-Shafah in Deir Ezzor province, killing at least 53 civilians, including 21 children. (Japan Times)

• A large factory explosion in Ningbo, China, kills at least 2 people and injures more than 30. (BBC)
• Popocatépetl volcano continues to erupt in Mexico. (CNN)

• 2017 Tehreek-e-Labaik protest
  • Pakistan's government calls for troops to be deployed in the capital, Islamabad, after violence breaks out during protests by Islamists that were organized by the Tehreek-e-Labaik. (BBC)
• Honduran general election, 2017
  • Voters in Honduras go to the polls to elect a president for the country, with current President Juan Orlando Hernández running for a second term, marking the first time a sitting president sought reelection. (Al Jazeera)
• Nepalese legislative election, 2017
  • Voters in Nepal go to the polls for the first phase of an election to choose members for the House of Representatives and Parliament. (BBC)
• 2017 United States political sexual scandals
  • John Conyers stands down as the ranking Democrat on the United States House Committee on the Judiciary following a series of sexual harassment allegations. (The Globe and Mail)

• Wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
  • Prince Harry announces his engagement to American actress Meghan Markle. (NBC News)

• Morlanwelz train collision and runaway
  • A passenger train collides with a car on a level crossing at Morlanwelz, Hainaut, Belgium, and is damaged by the subsequent fire. During recovery operations, it breaks free from the train hauling it, runs away for 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) and collides with a passenger train at Strépy-Bracquegnies. Two people are killed, seven are injured. (The Brussels Times)

• Health in Europe
  • A European Union appeal committee votes to reauthorise the use of glyphosate as a herbicide for a five-year period. (The Guardian)

• International reactions to the Rohingya crisis in Myanmar, Pastoral visits of Pope Francis
  • Pope Francis arrives in Yangon to begin a six-day trip to Myanmar and Bangladesh, where he is expected to meet with the Rohingya people. (BBC) (Channel NewsAsia)

• Forced evictions in China
  • Authorities in Beijing evict thousands of its migrant population in wake of a fire that left 19 people dead earlier this month, leaving many homeless in sub-zero temperatures. (Radio Free Asia) (Quartz)

• 2017 Tehreek-e-Labaik protest
  • The Pakistan Minister for Law Zahid Hamid resigns after days of protest over proposed changes to blasphemy laws. (CNN)
• 2017 Spanish constitutional crisis
  • The Attorney General of Catalonia, José María Romero de Tejada, unexpectedly dies in Barcelona of pneumonia at the age of 69, few days after the death of the Attorney General of the State. (El País)

• 2017 North Korean missile tests
  • North Korea fires another missile in a test, landing in the Sea of Japan. (BBC)

• 2017 New York City truck attack
  • Sayfullo Saipov, the suspect of the attack, pleads not guilty to all charges of murder and terrorism. (The Guardian)
• Seminole Heights serial killer
  • Tampa, Florida police arrest Howell Emanuel Donaldson III and charge him with four counts of murder. (CBS)
• Police in Reno, Nevada, kill a man after he held a hostage and opened fire from the eighth floor of a luxury high-rise condominium, in a scenario similar to the 2017 Las Vegas shooting two months earlier. No one was injured. (Los Angeles Times) (Fox News) (Mercury News)

• Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017
  • The U.S. Senate Budget Committee votes to move the Trump administration's tax bill to the full U.S. Senate. (Business Insider)

• 2017 in spaceflight
  • A Soyuz-2.1b's Fregat upper stage malfunctions during Meteor-M No.2-1's launch from the Vostochny Cosmodrome. The status of the satellite and 18 other payloads is unknown, as they are either stranded in a wrong orbit or they reentered the atmosphere and crashed in the ocean. (Spaceflight Now)
• Elsagate
  • YouTube removes thousands of child abuse videos related to Elsagate. (CBS News)

• 2017 in archaeology
  • Archaeologists from the University of Leicester announce the discovery of evidence that Julius Caesar's invasion of Britain started in Pegwell Bay, Kent. (BBC)

• Corporate bankruptcies
  • Cumulus Media files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization and enters into a restructuring agreement with some of its lenders to reduce more than $1 billion of the debt accrued by the Atlanta-based radio broadcasting group since its 2011 purchase of Citadel Broadcasting, towards the end of a 30-day period for the company to secure a financing plan after defaulting on a $23.6-million debt payment on November 1. In a statement, Cumulus representatives said that the company expects all operations, programming and sales for its 459 radio stations across the U.S. to continue as normal during the restructuring process. (Reuters) (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

• 2017 Philippine dengue vaccination crisis
  • Sanofi Pasteur made a statement that its product Dengvaxia poses higher risks to people without prior dengue infection. (Sanofi Pasteur)

• Euthanasia in Australia
  • Victoria becomes the first state to pass euthanasia legislation. (ABC News Australia)
• International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
  • Retired Croatian Army general Slobodan Praljak, upon hearing at a UN tribunal that the international tribunal upheld his war crime conviction, drinks a small vial that apparently contained poison, and later dies in a hospital in The Hague. (The New York Times) (The Guardian)
• Weinstein effect
  • NBC News announces that it has terminated their employment of Matt Lauer after a female employee filed a complaint about him conducting "inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace". (CNN) (The New York Times)
  • Garrison Keillor, the former host of A Prairie Home Companion, is fired from Minnesota Public Radio after the public broadcaster discloses that it had become aware of allegations of "inappropriate behavior with an individual who worked with him". (The Washington Post)

• Donald Trump on social media, Islamophobia in the United States
  • U.S. President Donald Trump re-tweets three anti-Muslim videos that were originally tweeted by Jayda Fransen, the deputy leader of British far-right political party Britain First, prompting international condemnation and criticism. (BBC) (The New York Times) (The Guardian) (CNN) (MSNBC) (The Washington Post)

• Aftermath of the 14 October 2017 Mogadishu bombings
  • A Somali committee determined that the death toll of the twin bombing in Mogadishu last October is way higher than expected, rising up to 512. This makes the attack the third-deadliest terrorist attack worldwide. (Reuters)

• Weinstein effect
  • American producer Russell Simmons announces his resignation from his companies after a sexual assault allegation was made by screenwriter Jenny Lumet against him. (The Guardian)

• Economy of South Korea
  • The Bank of Korea raises interest rates for the first time in more than six years by lifting borrowing costs to 1.50 percent from 1.25, citing economic recovery. (AFP) (Reuters)

• Yemeni Civil War (2015–present)
  • The International Committee of the Red Cross is buying 750,000 liters of diesel fuel to help provide clean water for a million people living in Yemen. (BBC)
• A rare minor earthquake centered seven miles (11 km) northeast of Dover, Delaware, is felt throughout the Mid-Atlantic United States. (ABC)
• Disappearance of ARA San Juan
  • The Argentine Navy decides to cancel the search and rescue effort for the missing 44 crew members of San Juan, 15 days after it went missing, in order to focus on the search for the submarine itself. (Reuters via The Independent)

• Icelandic parliamentary election, 2017
  • Katrín Jakobsdóttir is confirmed as Prime Minister of Iceland after forming a coalition with other parties. (BBC News)

• Shooting of Kathryn Steinle
  • José Inés García Zarate, a suspect in a 2015 shooting in San Francisco, is acquitted of murder charges and found guilty of being a felon in possession of a firearm. (NBC News)