Portal:Current events/September 2019
September 2019 was the ninth month of that common year. The month, which began on a Sunday, ended on a Monday after 30 days.
This is an archived version of Wikipedia's Current events Portal from September 2019.
September 1, 2019 (Sunday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen, Iran–Saudi Arabia proxy conflict
- More than 100 people are killed in a Saudi airstrike on a detention centre in Dhamar, Yemen, according to the International Committee of the Red Cross. Saudi Arabia says it hit a Houthi military facility used to store drones and missiles, "in accordance with international humanitarian law". Iran labels the airstrike as a "war crime". (BBC News) (The New York Times) (Iran Press)
- War in Afghanistan
- A vehicle triggers a roadside bomb in Balkh, Afghanistan; all eight civilians on board are killed. (Xinhua)
Business and economy
Disasters and accidents
- 2019 Amazon rainforest wildfires
- Troops join volunteers battling wildfires in Bolivia. (Al Jazeera)
- Germany and Norway cease paying into the Amazon Fund, citing concerns over Brazil's environmental policies and the role they have played in the fires. (Al Jazeera)
- A flight plan transmission computer system fails in France, causing disruption to international flights across Western Europe. (BBC News) (Le Parisien)
- 2019 Atlantic hurricane season
- Hurricane Dorian
- Category 5 Hurricane Dorian, with maximum sustained winds of 185 mph (295 km/h), makes landfall on Elbow Cay in the northern Bahamas Abaco islands. The storm is heading west at 7 mph toward Grand Bahama and the southeast American coast. Storm surges from Dorian, which ties as the second strongest Atlantic hurricane on record, are predicted to be as high as 23 feet (7 meters) in places. (BBC News) (Reuters) (National Hurricane Center)
- Hurricane Dorian
- A partially occupied building under construction collapses, killing 15 people in Bamako, Mali. (AFP via Eyewitness News)
- A medical aircraft crashes into a resort in Pansol, Philippines. All nine on board are killed, with two injuries on the ground. (The Evening Standard)
International relations
- Germany–Poland relations
- German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier asks Poland's forgiveness at a remembrance ceremony in Wieluń, Poland, attended together with Polish President Andrzej Duda. The heads of state commemorate Nazi Germany's bombing of Wieluń on the first day of World War II, the world's bloodiest conflict, 80 years ago. (France 24)
Law and crime
- Gun politics in the United States
- New laws come into effect in the state of Texas that allow for less restrictions on the carrying of guns in "schools, places of worship, foster homes where children live and apartments". (NBC News)
September 2, 2019 (Monday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- War in Afghanistan
- A car bomb explodes in Kabul, killing 16 people and wounding over 100 others. (Al Jazeera)
- A suicide bomber attacks a police station in Kunduz, Afghanistan. At least six police officers are killed and another seventeen wounded. (Xinhua)
- Six Afghan army soldiers were killed and three police officers wounded after Taliban militants ambushed their patrol in the country's eastern Ghazni province. (Xinhua)
- Gunmen open fire on a vehicle carrying Colombian mayoral candidate Karina García, killing her, her mother, a candidate for the municipal council, and three activists. (Reuters)
- A Tunisian National Guard officer and three fighters from an armed group are killed in a security operation in the region of Kasserine, Tunisia. (Al Jazeera)
Disasters and accidents
- Sinking of MV Conception
- The United States Coast Guard says that 25 people died, nine went missing and five crew members have been rescued after a fire on a diving boat near Santa Cruz Island, off the coast of California. (BBC News)
- 2019 Atlantic hurricane season
- After killing at least five people in the Bahamas, Hurricane Dorian is downgraded to a Category Four hurricane as it approaches the southeastern United States. (The New York Times) (MSNBC)
Law and crime
- 2019 Papua protests
- Amid an ongoing Internet blackout across Papua, Indonesia says police have banned "fake news", "violent demonstrations" and "carrying out or spreading separatism in expressing opinions in public". The Chief of the Indonesian National Police announces that the security detail in the region has been reinforced with 6,000 troops. (Reuters)
- Corruption in Spain
- Close to 40 people, including former presidents of Community of Madrid and senior politicians Esperanza Aguirre, Ignacio González and Cristina Cifuentes, are charged by the Audiencia Nacional with alleged crimes during the instruction of the Púnica corruption case. (El Mundo)
- A court in Russia orders the seizure of the 41.6% share of equity in Vostochny Bank controlled by private equity firm Baring Vostok. The seizure, requested by Vostochny itself, is the latest move in continuing litigation over alleged embezzlement by Baring Vostok executives. (Reuters) (RAPSI)
- Former British MP Nigel Waterson's son, 26-year-old Stephen Waterson, admits to having killed 3-year-old Alfie Lamb in 2018 by crushing him to death in the footwell of a vehicle. (Metro)
- Italian police seize a migrant rescue boat after it spent over a week stranded at sea unable to find a port to accept it; over 100 migrants begin to disembark in Sicily. (euronews)
- A ship carrying 635 mostly Afghan migrants from the crowded refugee camp on the Greek island of Lesbos arrives in the mainland port city of Thessaloniki. A second ship carrying 800 more is expected to arrive tomorrow. They are to be housed in Nea Kavala, where a camp already houses 1,000 migrants. (Boston 25 News)
- A 40-year-old man allegedly kills eight children outside a primary school in Hubei, China. (BBC News)
- Former Guatemalan presidential candidate Sandra Torres is arrested for possible charges of illegal financing in her election campaign in 2015. She was given preventive detention at the Mariscal Zavala Military Center. (BBC News)
Politics and elections
- Government of Georgia, Bakhtadze government
- Georgian Prime Minister Mamuka Bakhtadze announces his resignation on Facebook. (AFP via Arab News)
- Brexit
- UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson holds discussions about a possible snap election in the face of opposition to leaving the European Union without a deal. Those against Johnson's plan to leave in late October with or without a deal within his own Conservative Party are warned they may be expelled from the party. (BBC News)
September 3, 2019 (Tuesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Second Yemeni Civil War
- At least 1,000 Saudi-led coalition forces are reported killed or captured after being enveloped and besieged in the Jabara Valley, Saada Governorate, Yemen. (Middle East Eye)
Business and economy
- The Institute for Supply Management releases numbers that indicate that manufacturing activity in the United States declined in the month of August, the first such decline in three years. (Reuters)
- Aftermath of the 2019 El Paso shooting
- Walmart announces it will stop selling ammunition for handguns and some assault weapons in all of its American stores in response to a shooting that killed 22 and injured 24 at one of its El Paso, Texas stores last month. It and Kroger also ask customers not to bring guns into the stores. (Reuters)
Disasters and accidents
- Sinking of MV Conception
- Search and rescue efforts for those remaining missing off the Californian coastline are called off as the National Transportation Safety Board arrives to launch a federal investigation. (NBC Los Angeles)
- 2019 Atlantic hurricane season
- Bahamian Prime Minister Hubert Minnis confirms two more people have been killed by Hurricane Dorian, raising the death toll to seven. (Associated Press)
International relations
- United States sanctions against Iran
- The U.S. State Department announces sanctions against the Iranian Space Agency, Iranian Space Research Center and Aeronautics Research Institute. (Xinhua)
Law and crime
- Xenophobia in South Africa, 2019 Johannesburg riots
- A wave of xenophobic attacks on migrants and foreign owned businesses in South Africa, particularly targeting Nigerian citizens, continues into its sixth day. (Yahoo! News)
Politics and elections
- Asma Mohamed Abdalla is appointed Foreign Minister of Sudan, becoming the first woman to hold that office. (Al Jazeera)
- Politics of the United Kingdom, Brexit
- British MP Phillip Lee defects from the Conservative Party to the Liberal Democrats, leaving Prime Minister Boris Johnson without a working majority in the House of Commons. (The Independent)
- The House of Commons votes to allow an attempt to stop a no-deal Brexit. All 21 Conservative MPs who voted with the opposition have their party whip removed and now sit as independents. (BBC News)
- 2019 Italian government formation
- Five Star Movement members agree to join a coalition with the Democratic Party. (Euronews)
- Gerrymandering in the United States, Redistricting in North Carolina
- A North Carolina state court rules the state legislative map drawn up by the Republican-majority state legislature violates the state constitution, and must be redrawn in time for the 2020 elections. (Reuters)
- National Emergency Concerning the Southern Border of the United States, Mexico–United States barrier
- The Pentagon approves to redistribute US$ 3.6 billion from military construction to 11 new border wall projects. (UPI News)
September 4, 2019 (Wednesday)
Business and economy
- Nicotine marketing
- Michigan becomes the first state in the United States to ban the sale of flavored electronic cigarettes, which the state government says are marketed towards children. (MLive.com)
Disasters and accidents
- New Zealand police confirm that a bus carrying 27 Chinese tourists crashed in bad weather near Rotorua and left at least five dead and six injured. (Sky News)
- Hurricane Dorian
- Hurricane Dorian increases to a Category Three storm as it approaches The Carolinas in the United States. (The Washington Post)
- At least 20 people are known to have been killed by Hurricane Dorian in the Bahamas. (WAVY-TV)
- Hurricane Dorian–Alabama controversy
- U.S. President Donald Trump uses an altered map showing the projected forecast of Hurricane Dorian in order to support a disputed claim that Alabama has recently been threatened by the storm. If deliberate, the action is a federal offense. (Newsweek)
Law and crime
- 2019 Samoa assassination plot
- After an assassination plot to kill Samoan Prime Minister Tuilaepa A. S. Malielegaoi is foiled, police are working to extradite a Samoan man who lives in Brisbane, Australia. (Radio New Zealand)
- 2019 Hong Kong anti-extradition bill protests
- Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam announces the formal withdrawal of the controversial extradition bill. (Reuters)
- Privacy concerns regarding Google
- Google agrees to pay a record US$170 million penalty to settle accusations that YouTube broke the law when it knowingly tracked and sold advertisements to children, the Federal Trade Commission says. (CNN)
- A US federal judge rules in favour of 23 citizens who sued after being placed on a terrorism watchlist, saying the list violates their constitutional rights. (CNN)
Politics and elections
- Brexit
- The House of Commons of the United Kingdom approves a bill to block a no-deal Brexit next month, by a vote of 327 to 299. The bill instructs Prime Minister Boris Johnson to request another Brexit extension if he cannot secure a deal with the European Union in the coming weeks. (The New York Times)
- The House of Commons rejects Prime Minister Boris Johnson's motion to hold a general election in October amid continuing political deadlock over Brexit. (BBC News)
- Politics of Turkey
- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan says he cannot accept that his country is not allowed to possess nuclear weapons. (Reuters)
- 2020 Democratic Party presidential debates and forums
- CNN hosts a seven-hour town hall on climate change featuring ten Democratic presidential candidates. An official debate sponsored by the Democratic Party had previously been shot down by the DNC. (Vox)
September 5, 2019 (Thursday)
Armed conflict and attacks
- September 2019 Kabul bombings
- A Taliban bomb in the middle of a heavily fortified area in Kabul kills twelve people, including a U.S. soldier and a Romanian soldier. (CNN) (BBC News)
Business and economy
- Walgreens and CVS ask customers not to bring guns into their stores in response to several deadly mass shootings last month. (CNN)
- Economy of Mexico
- Mexican authorities are preparing the launch of a $1 billion per year oil hedging program, and options trading consistent with such a giant trade. (Reuters)
- Aigle Azur a French airline ceases operations.
Disasters and accidents
- 2019 Atlantic hurricane season
- Hurricane Dorian spawns several tornadoes in the Carolinas and causes power outages to 230,000 people in South Carolina. (Charlotte Observer) (Washington Examiner)
- Air France Flight 447
- A French magistrates' court drops 228 charges of manslaughter brought by victims' relatives against Airbus and Air France. (BBC News)
- The National Transportation Safety Board of the United States rules that driver inattention and the design of Tesla's Autopilot feature were jointly the cause of a 2018 crash. A separate fatal Tesla crash remains subject to investigation by the Board. (BBC News)
International relations
- A United States Department of State spokesperson confirms as accurate a story reported yesterday by the Financial Times, saying that Akhilesh Kumar, the captain of a tanker carrying Iranian oil that was captured in Gibraltar in July and since then released, was offered millions of dollars by U.S. official Brian Hook to change its course, so that it could be impounded on U.S. charges of "terrorism". (Hindustan Times)
Law and crime
- The San Francisco Board of Supervisors passes an official resolution declaring the National Rifle Association to be a domestic terrorist organization. NRA chief executive Wayne LaPierre criticizes the decision online. (ABC)
- The Court of Appeal in Kyiv, Ukraine, rules to release Volodymyr Tsemakh, a person of interest in the case of the downed Malaysia Airlines Flight 17. President of Russia Vladimir Putin says both countries are finalizing negotiations on a "rather large-scale" prisoner exchange. (RFE/RL)
- Ghost Ship warehouse fire
- A jury finds Max Harris, the creative director of the Ghost Ship warehouse in Oakland, California, not guilty on involuntary manslaughter charges in relation to a fire at the location in 2016, which killed 36 people. The jury fails to reach a verdict on similar charges for its leaseholder, Derick Almena, due to a hung jury. (CNN)
- Former First Lady of Honduras Rosa Elena Bonilla is sentenced to 58 years in prison after buying jewels with public funds. (BBC News)
Politics and elections
- Jo Johnson, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's younger brother, resigns from his joint position as the minister of state for universities, science, research and innovation with the Department of Education and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. He says he has experienced "an unresolvable tension" in recent weeks in being "torn between family loyalty and the national interest". (NBC News)
- Conte II Cabinet, 2019 Italian government crisis
- Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte's new cabinet is sworn in after the coalition agreement between the Five Star Movement and the Democratic Party. Lega Nord ministers, led by Matteo Salvini, are ousted from the government. (The Guardian)
- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan threatens to "open the gates" and allow over three million Syrian refugees to freely emigrate into Europe, unless the Northern Syria Buffer Zone, agreed between Turkey and the United States, is set up according to Turkey's plans. He further claims that the "international community, namely the European Union" fails to provide support with respect to the refugees. (The Guardian)
- Special Representative for International Negotiations Jason Greenblatt, in charge of crafting the as yet unreleased Trump peace plan intended to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, announces his resignation. (CNN)
September 6, 2019 (Friday)
Arts and culture
- Amazon is criticized for the trailer and synopses of its new season of Jack Ryan, which are interpreted to promote a US-led invasion of Venezuela. (Yahoo!)
Disasters and accidents
- At least 43 people are now confirmed to have been killed by Hurricane Dorian in the Bahamas. The death toll is expected to rise further. (BBC News)
Politics and elections
- Niuean MP Terry Coe says there is "growing concern" over the absence of Premier Toke Talagi, who is reportedly undergoing medical treatment in New Zealand and has not been seen in public since July and, prior to that, early April. Coe says Niue's citizens are concerned that the state affairs are seemingly being conducted from New Zealand, and the island nation's acting premier has held power for an unusually long period of time due to Talagi's absence. (Radio New Zealand)
- Robert Mugabe, the second president of Zimbabwe, dies at the age of 95. (CNBC)
- The United Kingdom's House of Lords approves a bill forcing Prime Minister Boris Johnson to ask the European Union for a Brexit deadline extension. The bill will now become law once receiving royal assent from Queen Elizabeth II. (BBC News)
- The first government of Sudan after the Omar Al-Bashir era is formed, headed by Abdalla Hamdok. (Al Jazeera)
- 2019 Venezuelan presidential crisis
- Venezuelan political parties waive the multi-party agreement to rotate leadership of the National Assembly annually in favor of allowing Juan Guaidó to continue in the position for another term. (Reuters)
Science and technology
- A denial-of-service attack takes down Wikipedia, with users unable to access the encyclopedia in Europe and parts of the Middle East. The Wikimedia Foundation blames a "massive and very broad" distributed denial of service attack. (The Independent) (Deutsche Welle) (TechCrunch)
- The Indian Space Research Organization loses contact with Vikram moments before its planned soft landing on the Moon. India would have been the fourth nation to have explored the lunar surface, had Vikram successfully landed, and it would have deployed the Pragyan rover onto the surface. (NPR)
September 7, 2019 (Saturday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- War in Afghanistan (2001–2021), Afghan peace process
- U.S. President Donald Trump says he has "called off" peace negotiations with the Taliban over the latest Taliban attack in Kabul. It is not clear if the talks are paused or altogether cancelled. (Al Jazeera) (Reuters)
Business and economy
- Joichi Ito steps down as the director of the MIT Media Lab and as a member of the board of directors of The New York Times Company. Yesterday, The New Yorker wrote that the lab hid its financial links with Jeffrey Epstein after Epstein had pleaded guilty of procuring a minor for prostitution in 2008. (NPR)
- Mastercard cuts access to two Venezuelan banks. (Venezuelanalysis)
Disasters and accidents
- 2019 Pacific typhoon season
- Typhoon Lingling impacts South Korea, killing at least three people and knocking out power to over 50,000 homes, according to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety. (Al Jazeera)
International relations
- Russia–Ukraine relations, Ukrainian crisis
- Russia and Ukraine swap prisoners on a "35-to-35" basis, including Oleg Sentsov, Mykola Karpyuk, Olexandr Kolchenko, Roman Sushchenko, and 24 Ukrainian Navy sailors detained by Russia during the 2018 Kerch Strait incident. The exchange includes Kirill Vyshinsky. The Dutch government says it "seriously regrets" that Volodymyr Tsemakh is included in the swap. U.S. President Donald Trump lauds the move as "perhaps a first giant step to peace." (Reuters) (Ukrayinska Pravda) (Ukrayinska Pravda) (TASS)
- Nuclear program of Iran
- The Atomic Energy Organization of Iran announces it has activated the research and development of new uranium enrichment centrifuges. It is the third breach of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action agreement from which the United States withdrew last year, reimposing U.S. sanctions on Iran. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has recently stated his country will reimplement the agreement only if the remaining parties also do so, giving them two extra months. (Deutsche Welle)
- Colombia–Venezuela relations
- Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro has the Venezuelan military deploy air defense missiles to its border with Colombia after declaring an "orange alert" signifying potential or likely incoming threat. (Al Masdar News)
Law and crime
- The Venezuelan de facto Attorney General Tarek William Saab announces a charge of high treason against acting president Juan Guaidó. This comes as part of an investigation where the Maduro government alleges Guaidó does not support the Venezuelan claim to the Guayana Esequiba region, despite Guaidó having been a vocal supporter of the claim since he entered politics in 2007. (South China Morning Post) (Yahoo!)
Politics and elections
- Brexit
- British Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Amber Rudd resigns from Boris Johnson's cabinet and the Conservative whip in protest of both his handling of Brexit and his expulsion of 21 MPs from the party. Rudd will now sit as an independent MP in the House of Commons. (CNN)
- King Salman of Saudi Arabia replaces Minister of Energy Khalid al-Falih with his son Abdulaziz bin Salman by royal order. Earlier this month, al-Falih was replaced with Yasir Al-Rumayyan, head of the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund and a close adviser to the crown prince, as chairman of Saudi Aramco. (Bloomberg)
- 2019 Venezuelan presidential crisis
- Juan Guaidó appoints Leopoldo Lopez to form a shadow cabinet in preparation for taking control of the Venezuelan government. Lopez is currently in refuge in the Spanish embassy of Venezuelan capital Caracas after being freed from house arrest by dissident military during the 30 April uprising, which may have removed a bar placed on him from engaging in political activity. (VOA)
September 8, 2019 (Sunday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Syrian Civil War, Northern Syria Buffer Zone
- The Turkish Armed Forces conduct their first joint patrol with the United States Armed Forces near the Syrian town of Tell Abyad, within the context of the Northern Syria Buffer Zone agreement. (ABC News)
- The Syrian government condemns the operation as a "flagrant violation of international law." (SANA)
- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan says the U.S. seems to be interested in a safe zone for "the terrorist organization", rather than for Turkey. (Reuters)
Business and economy
- China–United States trade war
- Imports of U.S. goods into China decreased by 22% in August, while exports of Chinese goods into the U.S. fell 16% over the same year-to-year period, according to customs data. (NBC News)
- A pilots' strike over a pay dispute causes British Airways to cancel "the vast majority" of its 850 daily flights on Monday and Tuesday. It is the first pilots' strike action at the company since the 1970s. (Bloomberg via Gulf News)
Disasters and accidents
- 2018–19 Australian bushfire season
- A wildfire destroys much of the Queensland Heritage Register-listed Binna Burra Cultural Landscape holiday resort, including its famous lodge, in Binna Burra, Queensland, Australia. (ABC News) (BBC News)
- A bus connecting Casablanca and Rissani fell off the Oued Damchan bridge in the Draa Tafilalet region, Morocco, killing 24 people. (Morocco World News)
International relations
- Brexit negotiations
- French Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Yves Le Drian says that, under current conditions, the European Union would not grant the United Kingdom an extension beyond October 31 to negotiate its exit from the Union. (Reuters) (Bloomberg) (The Guardian)
- Iran's Adrian Darya 1 oil tanker, which was temporarily detained in Gibraltar and sanctioned by the United States Department of Justice, has sold its cargo after supposedly docking at the Syrian port of Tartus, according to the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. (Reuters) (The Guardian)
Politics and elections
- 2019 Russian elections
- Russian citizens head to polls to cast their votes in elections for heads and council members of federal subjects, among which an election for the Moscow City Duma, members and heads of local legislatures, and in by-elections to the State Duma. (TASS)
- Roskomnadzor, the state communications watchdog, states Google and Facebook published political advertising the day before and during the election, even though it requested them to ban such publication "in line with Russian law". The watchdog labels the tech giants' actions as "interference in Russia’s sovereign affairs". (Reuters)
- The Parliament of Georgia appoints the previous Interior Minister Giorgi Gakharia as Prime Minister. (DPA via Gulf Times)
- 2020 U.S. Republican Party presidential primaries
- Former South Carolina congressman and governor Mark Sanford announces a primary challenge against incumbent President Donald Trump. (Axios)
- Neo-Nazi National Democratic Party of Germany (NPD) politician Stefan Jagsch is elected as the mayor of Altenstadt-Waldsiedlung in Altenstadt, Hesse, after running unopposed, prompting condemnations from Germany's political leaders, including SPD General Secretary Lars Klingbeil. Norbert Szilasko, a member of the council who voted Jagsch into office says, "We voted for him due to the fact we have nobody else". (The Telegraph)
September 9, 2019 (Monday)
Disasters and accidents
- Typhoon Faxai kills three people and causes damage to Japan's capital Tokyo. (The Japan Times)
International relations
- Nuclear program of Saudi Arabia
- Saudi Arabia says it experiments with two nuclear reactors and wants to go ahead with the "full nuclear cycle", implying also uranium enrichment. The United States states they would like to pursue a Section 123 Agreement to accompany the transfer of U.S. technology. (Reuters)
- The International Monetary Fund confirms that Kristalina Georgieva is the only candidate for the nomination as its Managing Director. (Politico.eu)
Law and crime
Politics and elections
- 2019 Tuvaluan general election
- Citizens of Tuvalu head to the polls to elect the 15 members of the parliament. (Fenui News)
- Politics of the United Kingdom
- John Bercow announces his resignation as Speaker of the House of Commons, effective October 31. (The Irish Times)
- Women's rights in Iran
- An Iranian female football fan, Sahar Khodayari, dies one week after setting herself on fire outside a court, reportedly after learning she may have to serve a six-month sentence for trying to enter a football stadium alongside men. (The Washington Post)
September 10, 2019 (Tuesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- American-led intervention in Iraq (2014–2021)
- The United States Air Force launches a small shock and awe bombing raid using F-35 and F-15 Eagle warplanes on the ISIL-occupied Qanus Island in Iraq's Saladin Governorate, dropping 36,000 kg of explosives. The small island was being used by ISIL as a "major transit hub", according to the U.S.-led coalition. (The Independent) (Sky News)
Business and economy
- Jack Ma retires and Daniel Zhang succeeds him as executive chairman of Alibaba Group. (International Business Times)
Disasters and accidents
- Karbala stampede
- Thirty-one pilgrims are killed and 100 others are injured in a stampede in the city of Karbala, Iraq, while marking Ashura. (Gulf News)
Health and environment
- Fukushima disaster cleanup
- As Tepco says that, by 2022, it will run out of storage room for what is now more than 1 million tonnes of radioactively contaminated reactor core cooling water, Japanese Minister of the Environment Yoshiaki Harada opines that "the only option will be to drain it into the sea and dilute it". (Reuters)
International relations
- Colombia–Venezuela relations
- 150,000 Venezuelan troops begin exercises along the Colombian border. Nicolás Maduro's Venezuelan government says it is to intercept an attack from the other country, despite no indications there will be one. (Reuters)
- 2019 Hong Kong protests, Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act
- Chief Executive of Hong Kong Carrie Lam urges "foreign parliaments" not to interfere in Hong Kong's internal affairs and says continued violence "cannot solve the issues". (CNN)
Politics and elections
- List of Trump administration dismissals and resignations
- United States National Security Advisor John R. Bolton is dismissed by President Donald Trump, citing strong disagreements. Bolton insists he resigned. The interim replacement is to be Deputy Charles Kupperman, says the White House. (BBC News)
- September 2019 Israeli legislative election, Proposed Israeli annexation of the Jordan Valley
- With next week's election in sight, Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu proposes to annex parts of the West Bank and the Jordan Valley. Prime Minister of the State of Palestine Mohammad Shtayyeh replies that "Netanyahu is the chief destroyer of the peace process". (The Jerusalem Post) (NBC News)
- 2019 North Carolina's 9th congressional district special election
- In a special election viewed as prescient to the 2020 elections, Republican Dan Bishop beats Democrat Dan McCready by two percentage points. (The New York Times)
- The California State Senate approves Assembly Bill 5, a bill to regulate gig economy work, introducing a formal test to classify workers as independent contractors or employees. (TechCrunch) (The Week)
September 11, 2019 (Wednesday)
Business and economy
- China–United States trade war
- China publishes a list of 16 U.S. goods that will be temporarily exempted from its retaliatory import tariffs. (Reuters)
- China announces that it will allow the import of soybean meal from Argentina, to ensure livestock feed under the impact of the trade war with the U.S. Apart from Argentina, China has been increasing imports of soybeans and soymeal from other channels, such as allowing soybean meal, rapeseed meal and sunflower meal from Russia since September 6. (Global Times)
- 2019 Japan–South Korea trade dispute
- South Korea announces it will file a complaint with the World Trade Organization over Japanese government export controls. (Marketwatch)
Disasters and accidents
- A crash of a twin-engine Convair 440 cargo plane near Toledo, Ohio, kills the two people on board. (CNN)
- Effects of Hurricane Dorian in The Bahamas
- The Bahamian National Emergency Management Agency lists approximately 2,500 people as missing after Hurricane Dorian devastated the islands last week. (BBC News)
International relations
- Pastoral visit of Pope Francis to Africa
- At St. Peter's Square Pope Francis reviews highlights from his African visit to Mozambique, Madagascar and Mauritius on September 4-10. (Crux)
Politics and elections
- Suffering from pneumonia, Tongan Prime Minister ʻAkilisi Pōhiva is rushed from hospital in Nukuʻalofa to one in Auckland, New Zealand, where he was treated for a liver condition earlier this year. According to a government spokesperson, Pōhiva is in a "very serious" condition. (RNZ)
- B.J. Habibie, reformist Indonesian president, dies at 83, after spending more than a week in intensive care. (The Washington Post)
- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe rearranges his government cabinet, naming replacements at the Defense, Foreign Affairs, Environment and Olympics ministries, among others. (Al Jazeera)
- Politics of the United Kingdom
- Scotland's Court of Session rules that UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson violated the law by his suspension of Parliament from 9 September to 14 October, encouraging calls for MPs to get back to work immediately. (Reuters)
- The Johnson ministry releases the Operation Yellowhammer contingency plans in the event of a no-deal Brexit to the public. (BBC News)
- 2019 Canadian federal election
- Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau calls a general election on 21 October. Governor General Julie Payette, the acting head of state, formally dissolves Parliament. (The Independent)
Science and technology
- Scientists from Denmark and the United Kingdom report they have identified genetic information from a 1.7-million-year-old Stephanorhinus tooth enamel from Dmanisi, Georgia, making it the oldest genetic data ever recorded. (Cosmos)
- Discoveries of exoplanets
- Water vapor is detected on exoplanet K2-18b, a super-Earth which is located about 111 light-years away from Earth. It is the first time water has been confirmed on an exoplanet within the circumstellar habitable zone of a star. (BBC News) (Business Insider)
- Scientists report, in the journal Gondwana Research, the discovery of an eighth— still hidden—continent (Greater Adria) from the break-up of supercontinent Pangaea which slid underneath what is now Southern Europe about 120 million years ago. (National Geographic) (Business Insider)
September 12, 2019 (Thursday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Kulp bombing
- Seven civilians are killed and ten are injured in a roadside attack by the PKK in Kulp, Diyarbakir Province, Turkey. (Anadolu Agency)
Business and economy
- The European Central Bank announces new monetary stimulus, with a second round of quantitative easing "for as long as it deems necessary" and lowering its already-negative main deposit rate. (CNBC)
Disasters and accidents
- A train derails in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's Tanganyika Province, killing about 15 people and injuring many others. (The Independent)
Law and crime
- The French National Assembly says its president, Richard Ferrand, is put under formal investigation in a "financial impropriety" case. Ferrand stepped down as a minister in President Emmanuel Macron's government in 2017 over the case related to property deals, eight years ago, by a health insurance fund he managed in Brittany. Prosecutors in Lille say he is charged with a conflict of interest. (Reuters via France 24) (AFP via The Straits Times)
- Death of Sahar Khodayari
- Iran's judiciary issues a warrant to arrest actress Saba Kamali after she posted a text in her Instagram sympathizing with Sahar Khodayari, which was reported to be found "insulting" to the third Shiite Imam, Hussain ibn Ali. (Radio Farda)
Politics and elections
- Tongan Prime Minister ʻAkilisi Pōhiva, age 78, dies one day after being taken to a New Zealand hospital from his native country. (RNZ)
- 2020 U.S. Democratic Party presidential debates and forums
- The third major Democratic Party televised debate takes place at the Health and Physical Education Arena in Houston, Texas, with a focus on health care in the United States. (BBC News)
Science and technology
- Interstellar objects
- C/2019 Q4 (Borisov), a second interstellar comet after ʻOumuamua in 2017, is discovered by an amateur astronomer. (BBC News)
- Social media use in politics
- Twitter suspends several Cuban government and state media accounts, including First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba Raúl Castro and his daughter Mariela Castro. The pro-government Union of Journalists of Cuba denounces the suspensions as "massive censorship". (The Guardian) (BBC News)
- Facebook suspends a chatbot on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's official page for violating its hate speech policy. Netanyahu says the mistake was made by a volunteer employee. (The Guardian)
September 13, 2019 (Friday)
Business and economy
- Transport in Paris
- Parisian metro workers launch a general strike, the largest of its kind since 2007, in protest at Emmanuel Macron’s pension reforms. Ten of the sixteen metro lines and two major regional train lines are shut down during morning rush hour. (Reuters)
Disasters and accidents
- A fire in a hospital kills eleven people in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (G1)
- Two students are killed when a bus rolls over east of Bamfield, British Columbia. (Global News)
International relations
- Sanctions against North Korea, North Korea–United States relations
- The U.S. Treasury imposes sanctions on the Lazarus Group and two of its affiliates, accusing them of being responsible for several recent cyberattacks under direction from North Korea's RGB intelligence agency. (Washington Post)
Law and crime
- Ponte Morandi collapse
- 2019 college admissions bribery scandal
- American actress Felicity Huffman is sentenced to fourteen days in jail and fined US$30,000 for her role in the conspiracy. (Reuters)
September 14, 2019 (Saturday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- 2019 Abqaiq–Khurais attack, Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
- Two Saudi Aramco oil refineries, one in Abqaiq and one in Khurais, Saudi Arabia, are attacked by drones, resulting in massive fires. The fires are under control, according to the Saudi Arabian Interior Ministry. Houthi militants claim responsibility, saying that they used 10 drones for the attack. (Euronews)
- According to Al Jazeera, Saudi Aramco's exports and oil production are disrupted by 5 million barrels of oil a day, half of the entire Saudi Arabian oil exports. (Al Jazeera) (Al Jazeera)
Disasters and accidents
- Seven people are hospitalized after a taxi drives onto the sidewalk outside Kanayama Station in Nagoya, Japan. (NHK)
Politics and elections
- A charity ship, carrying 82 migrants rescued off the coast of Libya, is offered docking at the Italian island of Lampedusa. The migrants can be brought ashore after "several E.U. countries" agreed to take them in, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said on Thursday. (Reuters)
Sport
- In Gaelic football, Dublin defeat Kerry 1–18 to 0–15 in the 2019 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final replay to become the first male team in GAA history to win 5 All-Ireland titles in a row. (RTE)
September 15, 2019 (Sunday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- 2019 Abqaiq–Khurais attack, Saudi Arabia–United States relations
- During a phone call, U.S. President Donald Trump reportedly tells Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman that the "U.S. supports Saudi Arabia in its efforts to fight terrorism" and that the U.S. will cooperate in the aftermath of the oil facilities attacks. (Al Arabiya English)
- After accusations by U.S. and Saudi officials, Iran denies involvement in the attack and says it's "ready for war" against both the U.S. and Saudi Arabia after the Kingdom blamed Iran for backing the Houthis. (Reuters)
- An anonymous senior Iraqi intelligence officer says the drones that attacked Saudi Arabia were launched from Popular Mobilization Forces bases in southern Iraq. The drones on that flight path reportedly would have crossed Kuwait's airspace to carry out the strikes. Kuwait's government says it is investigating the sighting of a drone, reportedly flying low and hovering over Kuwait City on the day of the attacks. (Middle East Eye)
- An unnamed United States official says evidence suggests the drones approached Saudi Arabia from the northwest from Iraq or Iran, contrary to the Houthi militants' claim that the drones were launched from Yemeni territory. Three experts cited by CNN say the official's evidence is not conclusive. (Reuters) (CNN)
- Donald Trump says the U.S. military is "locked and loaded" after the attacks on its ally Saudi Arabia, but is awaiting confirmation from Riyadh on who launched the strikes before taking action. (CNBC)
- Syrian Civil War
Business and economy
- Price of oil
- Following the drone attacks on Saudi Aramco facilities, the price of benchmark Brent Crude oil futures contracts surges as high as 19.5% at market opening, the biggest increase in percentage terms since the 1990 oil price shock in response to Ba'athist Iraq invading Kuwait. (Yahoo! Finance)
- Donald Trump authorizes the use of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to "keep the markets well-supplied", following severe disruption to crude oil output in Saudi Arabia. (The Hill)
- Opioid epidemic in the United States
- U.S. company Purdue Pharma files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Agreeing to contribute more than US$3 billion from the sale of a daughter company, the owners propose to settle thousands of lawsuits related to the risk of addiction to their narcotic painkiller Oxycontin. (The Guardian)
Disasters and accidents
- A sightseeing boat capsizes on the Godavari River in India's East Godavari district, killing at least 12 people and leaving 35 others missing, all Indian nationals. (The Independent)
- A Transpacifico airplane crashes shortly after departing an airport in Popayán, Colombia for a domestic flight. Seven of the nine occupants are killed. The remaining two on board are injured, as is a child on the ground. (Al Jazeera)
International relations
- Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Israel–Turkey relations
- The Cabinet of Israel legalizes the outpost settlement of Mevo’ot Yericho, in the occupied West Bank. (The Jewish Press)
- Referring to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's proposed annexation of the West Bank, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu says Israel is turning into "a racist, apartheid regime." (Reuters)
Politics and elections
- 2019 Hong Kong protests
- Despite an official ban, thousands of people march from Causeway Bay to the center of town. Police use tear gas to disperse the protestors. (CNN)
- 2019 Tunisian presidential election
Sports
- 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup Final
- In basketball, Spain defeats Argentina 95–75 to win their second World Cup title. (news.com.au)
September 16, 2019 (Monday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- 2019 Abqaiq–Khurais attack, Iran–Saudi Arabia proxy conflict, Iran–United States relations
- Iran says the accusations about the Saudi Arabian oil facilities attacks are unacceptable and baseless. (Al Arabiya English)
- Iraq says the United States has told them that the information the U.S. has "confirms the Iraqi government's statement that its territory was not used to carry out this attack". (Reuters)
- Saudi Arabia says Iranian weapons were used in the attacks. (Swissinfo)
Business and economy
- Economy of China
- Figures released by the National Bureau of Statistics of China show that industrial production growth in August was at a 17-year low. (SCMP)
Law and crime
- Grenfell Tower fire
- Officers with the Metropolitan Police interview members of the London Fire Brigade under caution in connection with the disaster. The fire brigade is being treated as a corporation suspected of breaching health and safety legislation. (The Guardian)
Disasters and accidents
- One firefighter is killed and six others are injured after a propane gas leak leads to a large explosion at a non-profit organization in Farmington, Maine. (CNN) (WGME)
International relations
- Iran–United Arab Emirates relations
- The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps of Iran says it has seized a vessel in the Persian Gulf which it claims was smuggling diesel fuel to the United Arab Emirates. (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)
- Political status of Taiwan, Foreign relations of China, Foreign relations of the Solomon Islands
- The Cabinet of the Solomon Islands votes to shift diplomatic ties from Taiwan to China. Taiwanese Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu says that, since the Solomon Islands decided to establish diplomatic relations with China, this prompts Taiwan to cut ties with the Solomon Islands". (Hong Kong Free Press) (Reuters)
Politics and elections
- Brexit
- UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson abruptly pulls out of a press conference in Luxembourg to avoid an anti-Brexit protest organised and attended by British citizens living in Luxembourg. Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel attends the press conference, where, during a short speech followed by questions from journalists, he contradicts Johnson's prior public statements and exposes that the UK government has not submitted any concrete proposals for amendments to the UK's Withdrawal Agreement from the European Union, or delivered any alternative to the "Irish backstop" which Johnson wishes to replace. Bettel warns that Johnson "holds the future of all UK citizens in his hands" and that he shouldn't "hold the future hostage for party political gain". (BBC News)
- At the Liberal Democrats conference, party leader Jo Swinson reaffirms that if elected any future Liberal Democrat led government, would halt Brexit by revoking Article 50, adding that in the case of a hung parliament she would not enter a coalition with either the Conservatives or Labour. (BBC News)
September 17, 2019 (Tuesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
- 17 September 2019 Afghanistan bombings
- Suicide bombings in Afghanistan kill 48 people including civilians and soldiers. The first is in Charikar at a rally for Ashraf Ghani, the President of Afghanistan. The second is in Kabul near the U.S. embassy. (The New York Times) (BBC News)
- 17 September 2019 Afghanistan bombings
- Islamic terrorism in Europe
Arts and culture
- Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew meets with Pope Francis at the Vatican. In his brief remarks, Patriarch Bartholomew talks about the value of synodality in the Eastern Orthodox Church. (Vatican News)
Disasters and accidents
- 2019 Atlantic hurricane season
- Tropical Storm Imelda makes landfall in Texas, threatening severe flash flooding throughout Eastern Texas and the Houston area. (The Washington Post)
- Italian champion speedboat designer and racer Fabio Buzzi and two other racers are killed when their boat, attempting to set a new Monte Carlo-to-Venice record in the Assonautica Italiana race, crashes into a sunken, flood-barrier dam near the finish line. A fourth racer is in hospital with serious injuries. (BBC News) (Il Globo)
International relations
- Foreign relations of Taiwan, Foreign relations of China, Foreign relations of the Solomon Islands
- Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen regrets and strongly condemns the move by the Solomon Islands to cut ties with Taiwan and establish relations with China. (RNZ)
- 2019 Abqaiq–Khurais attack
- An anonymous U.S. official says the United States is certain that the attack was launched from Iranian territory and that it involved cruise missiles. (The Daily Star)
Politics and elections
- Donald Trump impeachment hearings
- Amid a gag order from the White House, impeachment hearings begin at the United States House Committee on the Judiciary. (The Independent)
- Brexit, 2019 British prorogation controversy
- The UK Supreme Court begins considering the lawfulness of Prime Minister Boris Johnson's prorogation of Parliament. It is jointly considering two appeals. One is against a ruling by the High Court under English law that the issue is solely a matter for the Prime Minister and one the courts do not have jurisdiction over. The other is against a ruling by the Court of Session under Scots law declaring the suspension unlawful and a nullity, and requiring Johnson to recall Parliament. (BBC News)
- April 2019 Spanish general election, Politics of Spain
- Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, after failing to achieve support from the Unidas Podemos alliance, announces the calling for a snap election on 10 November, which would be the fourth general election in 4 years. (Reuters) (BBC News)
- September 2019 Israeli legislative election
- Israeli voters head to the polls after the last election failed to form a government. Exit polls show the incumbent right-wing Likud barely losing to the centrist Blue and White alliance. (Reuters)
- The Arab-dominated Joint List is projected to win between 13 and 15 seats, its highest showing ever. Yisrael Beiteinu, led by former Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman, is expected to play kingmaker. (Reuters)
- 2019 Venezuelan presidential crisis
- The Venezuelan secret service releases National Assembly Vice President Edgar Zambrano. The Nicolás Maduro government says his release comes after a partial compromise with members of Juan Guaidó's opposition government to live peacefully; Guaidó says the Maduro government has been forced to release him under international human rights pressure. (BBC News)
Science and technology
- Christchurch mosque shootings
- Following the attack, which was livestreamed on Facebook, the social network teams up with the Metropolitan Police of London. Facebook is providing bodycams to the force's firearms officers to help train its artificial intelligence systems, enabling it to automatically detect and remove live first-person footage of violent incidents. The company says it previously had insufficient footage for its software to suitably match fresh footage with, and has been criticised for its role in the shooting. Instagram say they will also participate. (The Guardian)
September 18, 2019 (Wednesday)
Business and economy
- 2019 Japan–South Korea trade dispute
- South Korea officially removes Japan from its "whitelist" of countries with fast-track trade status. (Reuters)
Disasters and accidents
- At least 27 people, a majority of them children, are killed in a fire caused by an electrical problem at a boarding school in a suburb near the Liberian capital of Monrovia. (BBC News)
- A Twin Otter cargo plane carrying rice and four people goes missing shortly after its departure from Timika, Indonesia. (The Loadstar)
International relations
- Saudi Arabia joins the International Maritime Security Construct. (Arab News)
- Solomon Islands–United States relations
- U.S. Vice President Mike Pence cancels a meeting with Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare in response to the country's move to cut ties with Taiwan and establish relations with China. (RNZ)
Law and crime
- 2019 Samoa assassination plot
- Prosecutiors in the case of the latest attempt to kill Samoan Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi announce that Eletise Leafa Vitale, convicted of the assassination of one of Malielegoai's cabinet members in another failed attempt at killing him in 1999, will testify in the trial against the conspirators of this year's plot. (RNZ)
- Crisis in Venezuela
- The NGO Human Rights Watch publishes details of what it deems to be arbitrary executions and arrests in Venezuela. The Venezuelan government alleges that most of those listed in the report were armed criminals, but admits to have placed several hundred security agents under investigation for abuses of power and extrajudicial actions. (Human Rights Watch)
- Murder of Derk Wiersum
- Dutch lawyer Derk Wiersum has been shot to death near his home. At the time of his death he was the lawyer of state witness Nabil Bakkali in the Marengo-proces against the Mocro Maffia led by Ridouan Taghi. (BBC News)
Politics and elections
- Cabinet of Donald Trump
- U.S. President Donald Trump appoints attorney and former U.S. State Department hostage negotiator Robert C. O'Brien as his new National Security Advisor. (The New York Times)
September 19, 2019 (Thursday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
- According to Afghan officials, a US drone strike kills more than 30 pine nut farm workers in Nangarhar Province. The US military say they targeted ISIL terrorists. (Reuters)
- 2019 Qalat bombing
- According to Afghan officials, a Taliban truck bomb outside a hospital in Qalat, Zabul Province, kills 39 people. The Taliban say they targeted a National Directorate of Security building nearby. (Al Jazeera)
Business and economy
- A German magazine reports that the chief financial officer of automobile manufacturer BMW, Nicolas Peter, plans to cut between 5,000 and 6,000 jobs at that company, mostly at the Munich headquarters, before 2022. (Reuters)
- UK-based travel agent Thomas Cook is reported to be attempting to sell assets as it seeks to prevent its collapse. The group employs 20,000 people and, were it to collapse, approximately 150,000 British customers currently abroad could require repatriation assistance from the Civil Aviation Authority in the largest peacetime operation of its kind. (Sky News)
- Over the last three days, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York adds more than US$200 billion liquidity to the money market, countering a spike in the repo rate on Tuesday. (Business Day)
Disasters and accidents
- An F-16 fighter jet of the Belgian Air Component strikes a house before crashing into a field near Pluvigner, north-west France. Both pilots eject and escape with minor injuries, but one gets his parachute entangled in high-voltage power lines, requiring two hours to rescue. (BBC News)
International relations
- European migrant crisis
- France and Italy call for a new system to redistribute immigrants to the European Union amid an ongoing increase in the numbers arriving, complaining of unfair demands being placed upon nations where immigrants make landfall. (BBC News)
- Austrian MPs vote to demand a government veto on a proposed trade deal between the European Union and South American trade group Mercosur. The deal is the result of 20 years of negotiations. France and Ireland have previously threatened to also veto the deal unless Mercosur member Brazil increases efforts to fight ongoing Amazon rainforest wildfires. (BBC News)
- The United States Department of State withholds US$160 million in direct aid to Afghanistan, citing "Afghan Government corruption and financial mismanagement." (The Hill)
- Citing "influence operations against the United States," the US expels two Cuban diplomats at the United Nations. Cuban Minister of Foreign Affairs Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla dismisses the accusations as "vulgar slander." (CNN)
Law and crime
- Fukushima nuclear disaster
- The only prosecution concerning the 2011 nuclear catastrophe ends with the acquittal of three former Tepco executives. The decision means nobody has been held criminally responsible for the meltdown. Greenpeace says the verdict is not very surprising, since the case was "hugely political". (Al Jazeera)
- Interpol reports that in six weeks it has detected more than a dozen people wanted for terrorism offences crossing the Mediterranean Sea using tourist routes. The joint operation involved Algeria, France, Italy, Morocco, Spain, and Tunisia. (BBC News)
- Brexit
- The UK Supreme Court finishes hearing arguments on the lawfulness of Prime Minister Boris Johnson's prorogation of Parliament. The court states it expects to rule next week. It is jointly considering appeals against two rulings. One, made by the High Court in London under English law, ruled prorogation was an entirely political decision over which courts had no jurisdiction. The other, made by the Court of Session in Edinburgh under Scots law, ruled Johnson acted unlawfully and the prorogation was a nullity that must be reversed. (BBC News)
- Hwaseong serial murders
- Police in South Korea link convicted murderer Lee Chun-jae to the serial rapes and murders, which occurred between 1986 and 1991 and left ten dead. The investigations inspired the movie Memories of Murder and saw 21,000 people investigated. Lee, who is serving life for the 1994 rape and murder of his sister in law, cannot be prosecuted despite a DNA link to three victims because the statute of limitations has expired. (BBC News)
Science and technology
- Havana syndrome
- A study ordered by the Canadian government finds that exposure to anti-mosquito fumigation, which contains cholinesterase-inhibiting neurotoxins, coincides with brain damage causing the same symptoms as those associated with the syndrome. (Reuters)
September 20, 2019 (Friday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Boko Haram insurgency
- Nigeria bans international humanitarian organization Action Against Hunger for allegedly providing food and medicine for Boko Haram militants in the north-east of the country. Action Against Hunger denies the Nigerian military's accusations. (BBC News) (Africanews)
- 2019 Karbala bombing
- A bomb explodes onboard a minibus at a security checkpoint near Karbala, Iraq, killing 12 civilians. (SFGate)
Arts and culture
- Under pressure from owner Hasbro, the next Brussels edition of the Monopoly board game censors Manneken Pis, the 17th-century bronze statue of a naked boy urinating, with swimming trunks. (The Telegraph)
Business and economy
- China–United States trade war
- The Trump administration lifts tariffs on 437 goods, amid talks. Chinese officials cancel a planned farm visit to return to China earlier. (Reuters)
- Nicotine marketing
- American retailer Walmart announces it will stop selling electronic cigarettes, which have recently caused at least eight deaths and 530 cases of a new extreme form of respiratory disease. (CNN)
Disasters and accidents
- A bus carrying Chinese tourists overturns near Bryce Canyon national park in Utah, United States. At least four passengers are killed and another five wounded. The National Transportation Safety Board launches an investigation. (The Guardian) (NTSB)
International relations
- Foreign relations of Taiwan
- U.S. President Donald Trump demands that European allies, in particular Germany and France, take back captured ISIL fighters, or else, he says, "we're going to let them go at your border". Trump also made the same threat in August. (AFP via MSN News)
- United States sanctions against Iran, 2019 Abqaiq–Khurais attack
- The United States unveils the "highest sanctions ever imposed on a country", targeting Iran's Central Bank and its National Development Fund. (Politico)
- The head of the Iranian Central Bank says the "re-boycotting" of the already-blacklisted institution shows the U.S.' failure to find new ways to pressure Iran. (Reuters)
Law and crime
- A woman who previously accused late United States financier Jeffrey Epstein of sexually abusing her when she was a teenager says she was "trafficked" to Prince Andrew of the United Kingdom and was abused by him at a house in London. She calls him "an abuser" and "a participant". Prince Andrew denies the allegations. (BBC News)
Politics and elections
- September 2019 climate strikes
- Millions of young people take to the streets and numerous businesses worldwide go on strike days before the UN Climate Summit, demanding that further action be taken to confront climate change. (Reuters) (NBC News)
- 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries
- The Mayor of New York City Bill de Blasio announces he is ending his presidential campaign, saying "I feel like I have contributed all I can to this primary election, and it's clearly not my time". (BBC News)
- 2019 Egyptian protests
- Thousands of protestors march across Egypt, including at Tahrir Square, demanding the resignation of President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. (Al-Jazeera)
Science and technology
- Twitter suspensions
- Twitter suspends a network of 4,258 accounts using fake names being operated from the United Arab Emirates that were spreading fake news and propaganda, mostly about Qatar and the war in Yemen. Twitter also suspends the account of Saud al-Qahtani for violating the company's "platform manipulation" policies. (Al Jazeera)
September 21, 2019 (Saturday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Iran–Saudi Arabia proxy conflict
- 2019 Abqaiq–Khurais attack
- Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir says the international community must take a firm stand on Tehran and that if confirmed Iran is behind the attacks against the oil facilities, Saudi Arabia will "take the necessary steps" to "respond appropriately". (Reuters)
- 2019 Abqaiq–Khurais attack
- 2019 Karbala bombing
- ISIL claims responsibility for yesterday's bombing in Iraq, in which 12 were killed. (The New York Times)
Disasters and accidents
- Search and rescue operations begin for a baby who is missing after a migrant boat carrying fourteen people sinks near Turkey. (The Daily Sabah)
- Authorities in Texas report a fifth death from Tropical Storm Imelda. (Los Angeles Times)
- Venezuelan migrant crisis
- As the number of refugees from the crisis in Venezuela is projected to surpass the 6 million figure in 2020, matching that of the Syrian Civil War now, Brookings Institution calculates that aid for Venezuelan emigration is yet only 1.5% that for Syrian emigrants after five years of crisis. (Bloomberg)
Health and environment
- Individual and political action on climate change
- Global warming protesters glue themselves to a road near the Port of Dover in England, blocking it. Police arrest ten people, believed to be members of Extinction Rebellion. Further scheduled protests take place in a dedicated area set up by police. (BBC News)
International relations
- Iran's Revolutionary Guards leader, Hossein Salami, warns that "any country that attacks the Islamic Republic will have their mainland turned into the main battlefield". He further added that "any attack will not stop until the full destruction of the aggressor". (Al Arabiya English)
Law and crime
- Terrorism in Turkey
- Turkish authorities declare a forest wildfire near Istanbul to be the result of terrorism. They say a suspect is in custody. (The Daily Sabah)
- A mass shooting in Lancaster, South Carolina, leaves 2 men dead and 9 other people injured. (USA Today)
Politics and elections
- Brexit
- Thousands of protestors march in Edinburgh, Scotland, against the upcoming departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union. The crowd is addressed by Members of the UK Parliament, and Members of the Scottish Parliament. Amongst the attendees is MSP Joanna Cherry QC, who is taking legal action against UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson's recent prorogation of the UK Parliament. Cherry's action succeeded at Scotland's Court of Session, and is currently being reviewed by the UK Supreme Court. (BBC News)
September 22, 2019 (Sunday)
Arts and culture
- 71st Primetime Emmy Awards
- Fleabag wins Outstanding Comedy Series and Game of Thrones wins Outstanding Drama Series at the 71st Primetime Emmy Awards. (CNBC)
Disasters and accidents
- At least 22 people are killed and 15 others injured after a bus rams into a hill en route from Skardu to Rawalpindi, Pakistan, following a brake failure. (Sky News)
- Two minibuses collide head-on near Limpopo, South Africa. All eleven on board the vehicles die. (ENCA)
- Search and rescue aircraft locate wreckage near Ilaga, Indonesia. It is thought to be a missing Twin Otter cargo plane carrying rice and four people, but this remains to be confirmed. (The Aviation Herald)
- A classroom collapses in Dagoretti, Kenya, killing at least seven children. (The Standard)
Health and environment
- World Car-Free Day
- Cities around the world celebrate World Car-Free Day. (UrduPoint)
- Brussels reports up to 70% lower levels of nitrogen dioxide and black carbon in the atmosphere, compared to other Sundays. (Belga via Het Laatste Nieuws)
- Over 12 miles (19 km) of roads are closed for traffic in central London. (The Guardian)
- Climate change mitigation
- German Environment Minister Svenja Schulze says the €54 billion climate plan approved by the German cabinet on Friday enables her country to join the Powering Past Coal Alliance. Germany expects to transition away from coal by 2038. (Deutsche Welle)
- Effects of global warming
- The World Meteorological Organization publishes a report stating that 2015–2019 was the hottest five-year period since measurements began. The increase in the global carbon dioxide level, the rise of the sea level and the melting of ice caps is accelerating. (PA via breakingnews.ie)
Law and crime
- Crisis in Venezuela
- Argentina accuses Venezuela of committing "crimes against humanity", "torture and murder" after receiving reports from Venezuelan refugees in the country. The Argentine Government will file a formal accusation against Venezuela before the International Court of Justice. (Clarín)
- Brexit
- Dominic Raab says the UK Government will abide by the upcoming Supreme Court's ruling on the lawfulness of Prime Minister Boris Johnson's prorogation of Parliament. When asked if the Government would prorogue Parliament again if it wins, he answers that he's "keen not to take levers off the table that weaken the position of the UK in Brussels". (BBC News)
- Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok launches an investigation into the deaths of dozens of protestors during a July crackdown orchestrated under the regime of now-ousted President Omar al-Bashir. (France 24)
Politics and elections
- The Joint List recommends Benny Gantz as the next Prime Minister of Israel. This is the first time an Arab-led political party recommends a candidate for prime minister since they recommended Yitzhak Rabin in 1992. (Axios)
September 23, 2019 (Monday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- War in Afghanistan
- Afghan officials say a government strike Sunday night on a militant facility in Musa Qala District, Helmand Province, killed 35 or more civilians at a wedding party nearby. The Afghan Defence Ministry says the operation targeted a training facility for suicide bombers and it killed 22 members of the Taliban. The Taliban say 18 members of the Afghan forces were killed. (Reuters)
Business and economy
- In a rare joint press release, European car makers warn that a no-deal Brexit, introducing administrative hassle and tariffs, would have a "seismic" impact on frictionless trading conditions and that it would deal a "severe" blow to the industry's just-in-time manufacturing supply chains, also potentially affecting "consumer choice and affordability on both sides of the Channel". (AFP via The Guardian)
- Collapse of Thomas Cook
- British travel company Thomas Cook enters compulsory liquidation, leaving 150,000 British holidaymakers stranded abroad and endangering 22,000 jobs worldwide. In response, the UK government and the Civil Aviation Authority launches Operation Matterhorn, the largest repatriation in the UK's peacetime history. (BBC News) (Gov.uk)
- Tunisian tourism minister René Trabelsi says Thomas Cook owes Tunisian hotels €60 million for stays in July and August, with 4,500 customers still in the country. Tourism is a major component of the national economy. (Reuters)
Disasters and accidents
- 2019 Southeast Asian haze
- Raging wildfires in Indonesia cause the sky to turn red over much of Sumatra. The phenomenon is a result of Rayleigh scattering. (BBC News)
- Boeing 737 MAX groundings
Health and environment
- Doctors Without Borders alleges the World Health Organisation is rationing vaccines for Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo despite adequate resources. (France 24)
International relations
- Iran says a UK-flagged ship seized several months ago is free to depart. MV Stena Impero, an oil tanker, was captured in response to the seizure of an Iranian oil tanker in Gibraltar over allegations it was carrying fuel to Syria. (The Independent)
Law and crime
- After "seriously considering feedback from different parties who feel objections on some substantial content", Indonesian President Joko Widodo postpones the vote on a new criminal code, intended to replace the century-old Dutch colonial-era penal code. The proposed code would criminalise extramarital sex, insults to the president and "obscene acts". (CNN)
- The Spanish Civil Guard arrests nine members of the Committees for the Defence of the Catalan Republic for planning violent acts and creating homemade explosives. Expressions of support come from politicians including the Government and President of Catalonia claiming the charges represent repression against Catalonia. (La Vanguardia)
- 2016 Notre-Dame de Paris bombing attempt
- A group of alleged ISIL sympathisers go on trial in France, including two women accused of an attempted car bombing at Notre-Dame Cathedral in 2016. Defendants also include a man being tried in absentia whom the United States claims to have killed via drone strike in 2017; the court ruled no evidence had been provided to confirm his death. (France 24)
- In Port-au-Prince, an Associated Press photojournalist and a security guard are wounded when Senator Jean Marie Ralph Féthière (PHTK) opens fire, reportedly trying to pass through a demonstration outside the Haitian Parliament. The Senate tries to convene and appoint Fritz-William Michel as Prime Minister. (The Guardian)
Sports
- The World Anti-Doping Agency launches a probe into "inconsistencies" with laboratory results from Russia, promising "the most stringent sanctions" if violations are found. Russia was previously banned from the 2018 Winter Olympics following a similar probe. (France 24)
September 24, 2019 (Tuesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- 2019 Papua protests
- Violent protests in Papua, Indonesia, kill at least 30 people. Most casualties are in Wamena, with deaths also reported in Jayapura. Victims reportedly receive stab and arrow wounds, and others die in fires as protestors torch government buildings. (The Telegraph)
Business and economy
- WeWork co-founder Adam Neumann agrees to resign as chief executive officer of the office rental firm amid investors increasing concern about the firm's true market value which has led to the company postponing its initial public offering. (BBC News) (The New York Times)
Disasters and accidents
- A fire in the maternity ward of a hospital in El Oued, Algeria, kills eight newborn babies. (The Independent)
- 2019 Kashmir earthquake
- An earthquake in Azad Kashmir kills at least 37 people and wounds more than 300 others in Pakistan. The tremor hits cities including Mirpur and Islamabad. The military commences search and rescue operations. (Reuters)
- Merrimack Valley gas explosions
- The National Transportation Safety Board of the United States meets to discuss a final report on the accident, including findings of cause. The explosions killed one, injured dozens, and destroyed or damaged around 100 structures. (CBS Boston)
- Effects of global warming
- Italian authorities close roads in the Val Ferret valleys on Mont Blanc de Courmayeur and order evacuation of the population in the risk area beneath the Planpincieux Glacier following warnings by experts that the glacier, whose movement has accelerated to 50-60cm (16-23in) a day, could collapse. (BBC News) (Agenzia Nazionale Stampa Associata)
- A tanker truck carrying fuel overturns after swerving to avoid a motorcycle in Bamako, Mali. A subsequent explosion kills six and seriously injures 46 more. Dozens of vehicles burn. (Reuters)
International relations
- Sudanese Finance Minister Ibrahim el-Badawi says Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok is to ask the World Bank for US$2 billion. Sudan has been unable to do business with either the World Bank or the International Monetary Fund because it is featured on the United States' State Sponsors of Terrorism list. The US Congress is unlikely to remove Sudan before next year, el-Badawi further announces, saying he has been told the process is complicated. (Asharq al-Awsat)
Law and crime
- Luxury automaker Daimler, owner of the Mercedes-Benz brand, is fined €870 million by prosecutors in Stuttgart, Germany for its role in the diesel emissions scandal. (Reuters)
- The Supreme Court of Spain rules that the body of former Caudillo Francisco Franco can be exhumed from the country's Valle de los Caídos tomb, where his body has been kept since his death in 1975. The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party-led Sánchez government says it will go ahead with the exhumation following the court ruling. (The Guardian)
Politics and elections
- Brexit, 2019 British prorogation controversy
- The UK Supreme Court rules that Prime Minister Boris Johnson's prorogation of Parliament was an unlawful nullity. (BBC Newsq)
- U.N. General Assembly 74th session
- General Debate opens at the UN Headquarters in New York City, with US President Donald Trump denouncing globalism and calling Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro "a Cuban puppet". (CNN) (The Guardian)
- Efforts to impeach Donald Trump, Trump–Ukraine scandal
- Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi announces that a formal impeachment inquiry has been launched into US President Donald Trump. (The New York Times) (The Washington Post)
- September 2019 Indonesian protests and riots
- Tens of thousands of students rally against graft laws and new criminal codes across Indonesia. Some of the protesters violently clash with the riot police, leading to the injury of more than 300 people. (Deutsche Welle) (Al Jazeera)
Science and technology
- Microsoft issues an emergency patch for its Internet Explorer browser to close a vulnerability that allowed cybercriminals to install malware via boobytrapped websites. (BBC News)
- The European Court of Justice rules in favour of United States search engine Google in a landmark right to be forgotten case, rejecting a French privacy regulator's argument that Google should apply the rules to its results and domains globally and not only within the European Union. (BBC News)
September 25, 2019 (Wednesday)
Business and economy
- Collapse of Thomas Cook
- German airline Condor, a subsidiary of the now insolvent Thomas Cook Group, files for bankruptcy. (BBC News)
- Secretary of State for Transport Grant Shapps announces that the UK government is planning to introduce new legislation in the aftermath of Thomas Cook's collapse in order to allow "more orderly" bankruptcies by travel agencies and airlines. (Sky News)
- Northern Irish bus manufacturer Wrightbus collapses into administration after buyout talks fail, with 1,200 jobs lost. Local politicians urge action from UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who commissioned the so-called "Boris Bus" from the company when he was Mayor of London and previously promised to "do everything we can to ensure the future of" Wrightbus. (Sky News)
Disasters and accidents
- Rescuers reach the wreckage of a Twin Otter cargo plane that crashed last week between Timika and Ilaga in Papua, Indonesia. All four persons on board are found dead, and their bodies are recovered. (The Malaysian Insight)
Health and environment
- Climate change mitigation
- An advisory board to the Dutch government recommends reducing speed limits on roads and using public money to purchase outdated cattle farms as part of a raft of measures to tackle global warming-linked nitrogen emissions in the country. (Associated Press)
- Economy of Poland
- Polish Energy Minister Krzysztof Tchórzewski announces the ruling Law and Justice party plans to pass new laws to enable more coal mines to be built. (Reuters via Euronews)
International relations
- Foreign relations of Kiribati
- Kiribatian President Taneti Mamau condemns Australia for the alleged apathy the Australian government shows toward small island nations in the Pacific facing the threat of global warming. (RNZ)
Law and crime
- A bomb explodes as a police riot bus passes by in Yüreğir, Adana Province, Turkey. At least five officers are injured. (Bianet)
- Cannabis in Australia
- The Australian Capital Territory (ACT) becomes the first jurisdiction in Australia to legalize the recreational use of cannabis. From January 31, 2020, adults within ACT will be allowed to have 50 grams of the drug and can grow up to four cannabis plants at home. (BBC News)
- Millionaire Italian yacht businessman Giulio Lolli is convicted of terrorism in Libya and sentenced to life imprisonment by a court in Tripoli. Lolli is wanted for fraud in Italy, and his Italian lawyer says the Libyan legal case appears to be based on Lolli using a yacht to evacuate fighters from Tripoli. (The Times)
- A jury in New York convicts Dilkhayot Kasimov, a citizen of Uzbekistan, of terrorism offences for attempting to raise funds to assist a friend in travelling to join ISIL. Five others pleaded guilty in 2015. (Associated Press)
- Suspected serial killer Gracious David-West confesses to fifteen murders at a hotel in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. (The Telegraph)
- The military court in Blida sentences Mohamed Mediène, Said Bouteflika, Bachir Tartag and Louisa Hanoune, four persons from the ruling elite around former Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, to 15-year jail terms for conspiracy against the army and the authority of the Algerian state. (Reuters)
- Impeachment inquiry into Donald Trump
- The United States House of Representatives issues an impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump. (CNN)
- Danske Bank money laundering scandal
- Authorities raid the German bank Deutsche Bank as part of a money laundering probe into €200 billion of suspicious payments identified into the accounts of Danske Bank's branch in Estonia. Danske Bank's Estonian boss from 2007 to 2015 is found dead near Tallinn at his home in circumstances police describe as neither suspicious nor accidental. (City A.M.)
- A federal grand jury indicts a US Army soldier on charges of distributing explosives information as part of an alleged far-right terror plot. (CNN)
Politics and elections
- September 2019 Israeli legislative election
- Israeli President Reuven Rivlin formally gives Benjamin Netanyahu the mandate to form the next Israeli government by October 24, after 55 members of the Knesset recommended the latter, compared with 54 recommendations for Benny Gantz. If Netanyahu fails, the mandate could be transferred to Gantz. (The Jerusalem Post)
Science and technology
- The Soyuz-MS spacecraft Sarmat, carrying Hazza Al Mansouri, the first United Arab Emirates astronaut, and Expedition 61 crew members Jessica Meir and Oleg Skripochka, is launched to the International Space Station. It was the final flight of the Soyuz-FG launch vehicle – all future Soyuz MS spacecraft launches will be conducted with the Soyuz-2. (Spaceflight Now) (CBS News)
September 26, 2019 (Thursday)
Business and economy
- The world's largest airport, Beijing Daxing International Airport, formally opens to commercial flights. (CNN)
Disasters and accidents
- 2019 Ambon earthquake
- A 6.5-magnitude earthquake strikes the Maluku Islands in eastern Indonesia. 30 people are killed and 156 others injured. (Rappler)
- Around 100 people are evacuated from Breivika port in Tromsø, Norway, after Russian trawler FV Bukhta Naezdnik catches fire and develops a heavy list. The burning ship has a tank of ammonia and 200,000 litres of diesel oil on board. The ship is purposely capsized to reduce the risk of the ammonia tank exploding. (BreakingNews.ie) (The Independent)
- At least 30 miners are killed after a gold mine collapses due to a landslide in the Tibesti Region, Chad. (BBC News)
International relations
- Foreign relations of Sudan, Aftermath of the Sudanese Revolution
- Sudan closes its borders with Libya and the Central African Republic citing the "threat they pose to the security and economy of Sudan". (Africanews)
- Japan–South Korea relations, 2019 Japan–South Korea trade dispute
- Japan and South Korea fail to make progress toward resolution, but agree to continue dialogue. (The Japan Times) (Bloomberg)
Law and crime
- The Major Criminal Court in Bahrain sentences four people to jail terms for setting up a terror group with the aim of launching attacks on police, and related crimes. Two are fugitives tried in absentia (Gulf News)
- Authorities in the Netherlands launch a probe into bank ABN Amro. The bank is suspected of breaching rules on money laundering and terrorism financing. (City A.M.)
Politics and elections
- National Emergency Concerning the Southern Border of the United States
- The United States Senate votes to end President Donald Trump's emergency declaration along the U.S.-Mexico border. (CBS News)
- September 2019 Indonesian protests and riots
- A student dies after allegedly being shot during a violent clash between the protesters and police force in front of the provincial parliament building in Kendari, Indonesia. (The Jakarta Post)
Science and technology
- The Soyuz-MS spacecraft Sarmat successfully docks with the International Space Station, with the first Emirati astronaut, Hazza Al Mansouri, and Expedition 61 astronauts Jessica Meir and Oleg Skripochka joining the crew of Expedition 60 aboard the station. (Gulf News)
September 27, 2019 (Friday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- American intervention in Libya (2015–2019)
- The United States Africa Command says the US has carried out an airstrike against ISIL in southwest Libya, killing at least 17 militants. (The Straits Times)
Business and economy
- Collapse of Thomas Cook
- Portugal announces it has set aside 150 million euros to lend to the companies that have been hurt by the collapse of tour guide company Thomas Cook. (Reuters)
Health and environment
- September 2019 climate strikes, Individual and political action on climate change
- An estimated two million people across the world participate in strikes to encourage action on climate change, with a total of 6 million during the week, including up to 500,000 protesters in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (The Guardian) (CBC)
International relations
- Foreign relations of China, Foreign relations of Taiwan, Foreign relations of Kiribati, Cross-Strait relations
- Anti-China protests are held by the opposition in Kiribati's capital of Tarawa after the government severed ties with Taiwan and established relations with China. (RNZ)
- Turkey–United States relations
- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan says that it is "impossible" for his country to stop buying oil from Iran, despite United States sanctions against Iran. (Reuters)
- U.N. General Assembly 74th session, Foreign relations of North Macedonia
- 2019 Venezuelan presidential crisis
- Diplomats of several Western-aligned countries walk out of the UN General Assembly as Venezuelan Vice-President Delcy Rodríguez begins a speech. (Fox News)
Law and crime
- Honour killing in Pakistan
- The brother of Pakistani social media star Qandeel Baloch is sentenced to life in prison for her honour murder, while six others are acquitted. The case sparked international headlines and discussion of women's rights in the country. (BBC News)
- Crisis in Venezuela
- A resolution is adopted by the United Nations Human Rights Council with 19 votes in favour, 7 against and 21 abstentions, accusing Venezuela's Nicolás Maduro government of thousands of extrajudicial murders, forced disappearances, and torture, after being proposed by the Lima Group and backed by many European countries. The UN resolves to send an investigative mission to the country. Maduro says the motion was "produced by the United States to run a hate campaign". Another Venezuelan representative calls the UN a "small group" that they "will not cooperate with". (BBC News)
- Police in Kaduna, Nigeria, raid an Islamic learning centre, and free around 500 men and male children held captive there. The freed detainees allege torture, slavery, and sexual abuse, and some display evidence of injury and malnutrition. Two children self-identify as being from Burkina Faso, with the remaining captives thought by police to be mostly Nigerian. Eight suspects are arrested. (BBC News)
Politics and elections
- UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson is formally referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) amid allegations of corruption during his tenure as Mayor of London. Johnson is alleged to have awarded a close friend, American technology entrepreneur Jennifer Arcuri, "thousands of pounds" in public business funding, according to the The Sunday Times. (The Guardian)
- Trump–Ukraine scandal, Impeachment inquiry into Donald Trump
- Kurt Volker, United States special envoy to Ukraine, resigns one day after the release of a whistleblower report concerning a phone call between U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky. (CNN) (Reuters)
- 2020 United States federal budget
- President of the United States Donald Trump signs a short-term spending bill that temporarily extends government funding through November 21, thereby avoiding a federal government shutdown when the 2019 budget funding ends on September 30. (The Hill) (CNN)
- Fale Alea elects Pohiva Tuʻiʻonetoa as Prime Minister of Tonga succeeding the interim premiership of Semisi Sika. (RNZ)
September 28, 2019 (Saturday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- A bomb targeting the office of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam in Chaman, Balochistan, Pakistan, kills three people, including leader Maulana Mohammad Hanif, with nine more people injured. (Arab News)
- Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
- Houthi rebels claim that they have captured "thousands" of enemy troops near the Saudi town of Najran following a major, deadly attack near the two countries' border. Saudi officials have not confirmed the claim. (BBC News) (Al Jazeera)
Disasters and accidents
- Flooding in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh kills at least 93 people and displaces thousands of others. Another 29 people were killed in Bihar. (BBC News).
- An oil tanker ship explodes in Ulsan, South Korea, with flames subsequently spreading to an adjacent second tanker. At least ten people are injured. (CBC)
- A coach with a flat tyre swerves into oncoming traffic and strikes a lorry head-on in Jiangsu, China. The collision kills at least 36 and injures another 36. (The Guardian)
International relations
- Syrian Civil War, U.N. General Assembly 74th session, Rojava conflict
- Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem demands the immediate withdrawal of all U.S. and Turkish troops from his country and warns that Syrian government forces have the right to take countermeasures if they refuse. (Reuters)
Politics and elections
- 2019 Afghan presidential election
- Voters in Afghanistan head to the polls to elect a new president. The process is overshadowed by "insurgent" attacks, which led to dozens of civilian casualties. (DW)
- The Independent Election Commission says it has reports that there is no contact with 901 of the 4,942 polling centers. (Reuters)
Sports
- The Richmond Football Club defeats the Greater Western Sydney Giants in the 2019 AFL Grand Final by 114 points to 25, marking the club's twelfth premiership and second in three years. The match, attended by 100,014 spectators, is the lowest single-match score by the Giants in their history, and the most lopsided Grand Final result in Richmond's history (89 points). (The Age)
- 2019 UCI Road World Championships
- Annemiek van Vleuten wins the women's road race after a 105-kilometre (65 mi) solo attack, with a lead of 2 min 15 s over second-placed defending champion Anna van der Breggen. (The Guardian)
September 29, 2019 (Sunday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Saudi Arabian and Yemeni border conflict, Yemeni Crisis, Najran attack
- Yemen's Houthi movement releases footage appearing to show captured Saudi Arabian Army soldiers and burning armoured personnel carriers, after claiming to have conducted an "all-out" cross-border offensive inside Saudi Arabia's Najran Region that defeated three "enemy military brigades". (Al Jazeera)
Disasters and accidents
- A fire at an overcrowded refugee camp on the Greek island of Lesbos kills an Afghan woman living in a shipping container. A local official claims "aggressive" residents at the camp prevented firefighters from accessing the blaze, and that thrown stones and other missiles injured first responders and damaged their vehicles. (The Guardian)
Politics and elections
- 2019 Austrian legislative election
- The Federal Electoral Authority, based on preliminary results, reports the People's Party, headed by the prior chancellor Sebastian Kurz, wins the snap election with 38.4 percent of the vote. Second place Social Democratic Party got 21.5%. (BBC News) (The New York Times) (National Election Authority (in German)) (Reuters)
Sports
- 2019 UCI Road World Championships
- Mads Pedersen wins the men's Road race World Championship as the first rider from Denmark ever. (BBC Sport)
September 30, 2019 (Monday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Somali Civil War
- Islamist militants launch two attacks against foreign forces in Somalia. A U.S. military base in Baledogle, Lower Shabelle, is stormed by attackers using two car bombs and guns, and an Italian peacekeeping convoy is targeted by additional bombs in Mogadishu. United States and Italian authorities both state no injuries occurred, although the suicide bombing against the Italian convoy destroyed a military vehicle and heavily damaged nearby buildings. Al-Shabaab claims responsibility for both attacks. (Newsweek)
- Yemeni Civil War, Yemeni peace process
- The International Committee of the Red Cross says that the Houthis have unilaterally released 290 prisoners. The move is part of a peace agreement brokered in Stockholm by the United Nations in December. The Houthis call on their opponents to take a comparable step. (BBC News)
- The Swedish Navy formally relocates its headquarters back to the underground Muskö naval base on the island of Muskö after a 25-year absence. The move from Karlskrona naval base to Muskö is based on the calculation that only Muskö could withstand a Russian attack, according to the Swedish Defence Research Agency. (The Guardian)
Business and economy
- The American clothing retailer Forever 21 files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and announces it will close up to 178 stores. (NPR)
- French airline XL Airways grounds all flights amid financial difficulties ahead of a bankruptcy hearing scheduled for Wednesday. (The Local)
- Slovenian airline Adria Airways cancels all flights and files for bankruptcy. (Reuters)
International relations
- Foreign relations of Vanuatu, 2019 Papua protests
- At the United Nations, the Prime Minister of Vanuatu, Charlot Salwai, calls for "action on West Papua". He was rebuffed by Indonesian diplomats. (RNZ)
- Iraq–Syria relations
- The main border crossing between Al-Qa'im, Iraq, and Albukamal, Syria, reopens. (AFP via The Daily Star)
Law and crime
- Eight alleged members of a far right terror cell go on trial in Germany. The defendants, from Chemnitz, are accused of plotting attacks against immigrants and "the economic establishment". The city saw far-right protests last year following the stabbing homicide of a German man. (BBC News)
- Moroccan journalist Hajar Raissouni and her husband Rifaat al-Amin are each jailed for a year by a Rabat court for premarital sex and unlawful abortion, with doctor Mohammed Jamal Belkeziz receiving two years for carrying an abortion out. Her lawyer claims the evidence was fabricated to dissuade Raissouni and others from criticising the government. Observers including Amnesty International criticise the verdicts. (The Guardian)
- European migrant crisis
- Riots erupt following a fire yesterday which killed an Afghan woman at an overcrowded refugee camp on the Greek island of Lesbos. The camp in Moria houses 13,000 in tents and shipping containers but has facilities for only 3,000 residents. The Greek government declares it will step up transfers to the mainland in response. (The Guardian)
Politics and elections
- 2019 Peruvian constitutional crisis
- President of Peru Martín Vizcarra dissolves the Congress and calls for snap elections. Lawmakers reject the proposal, suspend him from office and name Vice President Mercedes Aráoz as acting president. The Peruvian Armed Forces continued to recognize Vizcarra as President of Peru and head of the armed forces. Popular protests backing the President takes place in the streets of Lima. (BBC News) (The Guardian) (The New York Times)
- Vicente Zeballos is named new Prime Minister, replacing Salvador del Solar. (Andina)
Science and technology
- Scientists say the largest iceberg in 50 years has broken away from Antarctica's Amery Ice Shelf. The 1,636 sq km iceberg, known as D28, will continue to be monitored as it could pose a risk to shipping. (BBC News)
- A near-record snowstorm drops large amounts of snow in some parts of Alberta, from September 27-30. 95 cm fell in Waterton, 50-60 cm fell in Lethbridge, and over 27-32 cm fell in Calgary. Impacts were relatively mild, with power outages, and businesses closing. (The Globe and Mail)
| S | M | T | W | T | F | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
| 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 |
| 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 |
| 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 |
| 29 | 30 |
Ongoing events
Disasters
- 2018–19 Australian bushfire season
- 2018–19 European windstorm season
- 2018–20 Kivu Ebola epidemic
- 2019 North Indian Ocean cyclone season
- 2019 Pacific hurricane season
- 2019 Pacific typhoon season
- 2019 Atlantic hurricane season
- 2019 wildfire season
- Yemeni famine
Politics
- 1MDB scandal
- Afghan peace talks
- Algerian protests
- Brexit
- Egyptian protests
- European migrant crisis (timeline)
- Hong Kong protests
- Indonesian protests
- Iranian protests
- Iraqi protests
- Mueller report (investigation) (timeline)
- Papua protests
- Qatar diplomatic crisis
- Rohingya persecution in Myanmar
- Thirty Meter Telescope protests
- Turkish purges
- Venezuelan presidential crisis (protests)
- Yellow vests movement
Religion
Sports
More details – ongoing conflicts
Elections and referendums
Recent
- September
- 15: Tunisia, President (1st)
- 17: Israel, Knesset
- 28: Afghanistan, President
- 29: Austria, National Council
Upcoming
Recently concluded
- Honduras: Rosa Elena Bonilla
- Sweden: ASAP Rocky
- Spain: Trial of Catalonia independence leaders
- United Kingdom: Tommy Robinson
- United States: Eddie Gallagher, Gregory B. Craig
- International
Ongoing
- Guatemala: Otto Pérez Molina, Roxana Baldetti, Juan Carlos Monzón and others
- Greece: Nikolaos Michaloliakos
- Israel: Faina Kirschenbaum
- Philippines: Leila de Lima, Maria Ressa, Leni Robredo
- South Africa: Jacob Zuma
- Spain: Bárcenas affair
- United States: Fat Leonard scandal, Varsity Blues scandal, Raid on the North Korean embassy in Madrid, 6ix9ine
Upcoming
- Guatemala: Álvaro Colom, Manuel Baldizón, Juan Alberto Fuentes
- Japan: Carlos Ghosn
- Philippines: Andal Ampatuan Jr.
- United Kingdom: Football sex abuse scandal, David Duckenfield
- United States: Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Elizabeth Holmes, Meng Wanzhou, Chris Collins, Duncan D. Hunter, Roger Stone, R. Kelly, Harvey Weinstein, Michael Avenatti, Golden State Killer
- Zimbabwe: Ignatius Chombo
- Association football
- Women's association football
- American football
- Baseball
- Basketball
- Golf
- Ice hockey
- Motorsport
- Rugby league
- Rugby union
- Tennis
- Other sports seasons
More details – current sports events
September 2019
- 28: Mark Zakharov
- 28: José José
- 27: Joseph C. Wilson
- 26: Jacques Chirac
- 26: William Levada
- 26: Martin Wesley-Smith
- 25: Paul Badura-Skoda
- 23: Madhav Apte
- 23: Andre Emmett
- 23: Robert Hunter
- 21: Aron Eisenberg
- 21: Sid Haig
- 21: Sigmund Jähn
- 21: Christopher Rouse
- 21: Carl Ruiz
- 19: Zine El Abidine Ben Ali
- 19: Barron Hilton
- 18: Fernando Ricksen
- 17: Cokie Roberts
- 15: Lol Mahamat Choua
- 15: Phyllis Newman
- 15: Ric Ocasek
- 14: Asadollah Asgaroladi
- 13: Paul Cronin
- 13: Rene Espina
- 13: György Konrád
- 13: Eddie Money
- 12: ʻAkilisi Pōhiva
- 11: B. J. Habibie
- 11: T. Boone Pickens
- 10: Daniel Johnston
- 9: Robert Frank
- 9: Brian Barnes
- 9: Danny Frawley
- 8: Camilo Sesto
- 6: Chris Duncan
- 6: Robert Mugabe
- 6: Abdul Qadir
- 3: Peter Lindbergh
August 2019
Africa
- Algeria, Libya and Tunisia
- Cameroon
- Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria
- Central African Republic
- Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Libya
- Mali
- Mozambique
- Nigeria
- Somalia
- South Sudan
- Sudan
Americas
- Colombia
- Mexico
- Peru
Asia
- Afghanistan
- China
- India
- India and Pakistan
- Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines
- Indonesia and Papua New Guinea
- Myanmar
- Pakistan
- Philippines
- Thailand
Europe
- Armenia and Azerbaijan
- Georgia
- Russia
- Ukraine
Middle East
Wikimedia Commons has media related to September 2019.
