December 2006
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The 2006 Asian Games are officially opened by Qatari emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani at the 50,000 seater Khalifa Sports Stadium in Doha, Qatar. (AFP via Yahoo! News) The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles settles 45 lawsuits alleging sexual abuse by priests for $60 million. (AP via Minneapolis-St Paul Tribune) Hezbollah members demonstrate their opposition to the Siniora administration in Beirut, Lebanon. (The Guardian) (BBC) As Bahrain prepares for tomorrow's second round of its parliamentary elections, a Member of Parliament from the Kingdom's largest party calls for legislation to restrict women's employment. (Gulf Daily News) Felipe Calderón becomes the President of Mexico. (Reuters) Typhoon Durian has killed at least 388 people in Albay province on the island of Luzon in the Philippines with the death toll expected to climb as rescuers get to affected villages. (Bloomberg) (CNN) Kim Beazley calls a vote for the leadership of the Federal Australian Labor Party for Monday. He will face a challenge from Kevin Rudd, the Opposition spokesman on foreign affairs. Jenny Macklin faces a challenge from Julia Gillard for the Deputy Leadership. (Melbourne Herald Sun) (AAP via News Limited) Fijian military commander Frank Bainimarama says he intends to begin a "clean up" campaign of Government now that his deadline has passed. Laisenia Qarase, the Prime Minister of Fiji, has advised that he has been given a new deadline of noon on Monday. (NZ Herald) (ABC News Australia) The United States warns of a possible al-Qaeda attack to disrupt the stock market and other financial institutions with a cyber attack. (BBC) Billionaire Kirk Kerkorian sold off the last of his shares in General Motors, the Wall Street Journal reported. It was clear that Kerkorian had sold 14 million shares for $28.75 per share, or about $400 million, slicing his stake to 4.95%. (MSN Money)
Protestors begin their second day of demonstrations in their bid to convince the current Lebanese administration to step down. (BBC) Leaked Pentagon memo by United States Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld says US policy in Iraq is "not working well enough or fast enough." (The New York Times) Iraqi insurgency: At least 50 people are killed by three car bombs exploding in Baghdad. (BBC) Bahrainis go to the polls today in the second round of voting in the Kingdom's parliamentary elections. (BBC) Rescuers in the Philippines continue to look for survivors of Typhoon Durian. (ABC News Australia) London police are examining whether the killers of Alexander Litvinenko also tried to poison Mario Scaramella, an Italian security expert who met the Russian exile on the day that he fell ill. (The Times) War in Chad (2005–present)/Darfur conflict: Chadian rebels have attacked the eastern town of Guéréda, neighbouring Sudan's war-torn Darfur region. (BBC) Police and aid workers recover more than 100 bodies from Malakal in south Sudan resulting from fighting between former rebels and Government forces. (AP via CBS News) As Kazakhstan begins its nuclear program the Japanese Government sends a delegation to make sure nuclear materials are not susceptible to theft by Kazakh terrorists. (Japan Today) Fijian military commander Frank Bainimarama announces that he has taken control of Fiji. (NZ Herald) Stéphane Dion is elected leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, defeating Michael Ignatieff. (CBC) Ed Stelmach is elected leader of the Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta and will become the next premier of Alberta, replacing outgoing leader Ralph Klein and defeating competitors Jim Dinning and Ted Morton. (CBC)
The protests in Lebanon led by Hezbollah last for a third day. (Reuters via CNN) Venezuela holds elections, with incumbent president Hugo Chávez facing a challenge from Manuel Rosales, Governor of the western state of Zulia. With 78% of votes counted by the National Electoral Council, Chávez wins with 61% over 38% for Rosales. (Reuters) At least 804 people are dead or missing in the Philippines as a result of Typhoon Durian with the death toll expected to rise further. (Bloomberg) Former President of Chile Augusto Pinochet is in a military hospital after having had a heart attack. Doctors decide to perform coronary artery bypass surgery. (BBC), (Ireland Online) Madagascar holds an election with incumbent Marc Ravalomanana expected to be elected as the President of Madagascar. (Reuters via the Scotsman) The Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2006 was won by The Tolmachevy Twins from Russia with the song "Vesenniy Dzhaz". (ESC Today) Russia wins the 2006 Davis Cup after a 3-2 victory over Argentina (BBC Sport)
Baidu, the leading search engine in Chinese language, announces its plan to provide service in Japanese. (Reuters via The Washington Post) NASA announces plans to build a base on either the north pole or south pole of the Moon. (Reuters) (Money Times) John Bolton will resign as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations when his recess appointment expires in January 2007. (The Times) It is now widely expected that Kazakhstan will head the OSCE in 2009 despite strong opposition from the United States. Kazakh President Nazarbayev is visiting Brussels, Belgium, which supports Kazakhstan's bid, and he recently visited London, meeting with Prime Minister Tony Blair, whose government also supports Kazakhstan. (RFE/RL) President of the Philippines Gloria Arroyo declares a "state of national calamity" following the death and destruction caused by Typhoon Durian. (The Australian) A US Marine is jailed for raping a woman at Subic Bay after joint exercises with the Philippines. Three other Marines were acquitted in a case which caused anti-American protests. (INQ7 Philippines) Kevin Rudd is elected as the new leader of the Federal Australian Labor Party with the caucus electing him by 49 votes to 39 votes for Kim Beazley. Julia Gillard is the new deputy leader. (The Age) Fijian troops take over the headquarters of the armed police division, occupy the main police station in Suva, and surround a police academy in an escalation of the 2006 Fijian coup d'état plot. (The NZ Herald) The Government of Iran blocks Wikipedia, IMDb and nytimes.com, among many sites both commercial and informative. (The Guardian)
Yury Chaika, the Prosecutor General of Russia, has stated that Russia will not extradite any suspects in the radioactive poisoning death of Alexander Litvinenko. (CNN) The United States Senate Committee on Armed Services unanimously approves the nomination of Robert Gates to be the next United States Secretary of Defense. (Reuters) A majority of a 15-judge panel in the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit rules that Kamehameha Schools can favour Native Hawaiians in admissions. (San Francisco Chronicle) An outbreak of E. coli bacteria has sickened more than a dozen people on Long Island, including several who ate at Taco Bell. Officials have asked eight Taco Bell restaurants be closed. (CBS) The Prime Minister of Fiji Laisenia Qarase warns that Fiji faces the imminent threat of a coup as troops reportedly surround his complex. Later, Fiji's military commander Frank Bainimarama confirmed that the military was in control of the country while the Foreign Minister of Australia Alexander Downer warned that Fiji would face international sanctions. (BBC) (ABC) Early election results indicate that Marc Ravalomanana will be re-elected in a landslide as the President of Madagascar. (IOL) The French Government launches state-owned and controlled France 24, a 24-hour television news show. (NPR) U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan appoints former Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano as the new United Nations-envoy to negotiations between the Government of Uganda and the Lord's Resistance Army, a rebel paramilitary group. (BBC News) The World Chess Champion Vladimir Kramnik loses a final game and a match with a computer program, Fritz-10. The final score is 2-4. (Seattle Post) German painter Tomma Abts wins the 2006 Turner Prize. (BBC)
Joseph Kabila, the first freely elected leader of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 40 years, is inaugurated as President. (BBC) The Iraq Study Group Report calls the situation in Iraq "grave and deteriorating" and calls for a change in strategy including the removal of most United States troops by early 2008. (CNN) The Australian House of Representatives passes private members legislation allowing therapeutic cloning after a conscience vote. The Australian Senate had already approved the bill prepared by Senator Kay Patterson meaning that it will become law. (News Limited) The United States Senate confirms Robert Gates as the next United States Secretary of Defense by 95-2. Gates will be sworn in on December 18. (CNN) Philippe Douste-Blazy, the Foreign Minister of France, says that the United Nations Security Council will impose sanctions on Iran for its nuclear program. However, the five permanent members of the Security Council as well as Germany have failed to agree on what the sanctions should be. (AFP via Khaleej Times) 2006 Fijian coup d'état:
Fijian military Commodore Frank Bainimarama, the leader of the coup, usurps Ratu Josefa Iloilo as President of Fiji. He promises to ask the Great Council of Chiefs to reappoint Iloilo to the office in one week's time. (The NZ Herald) Bainimarama appoints Jona Senilagakali as interim Prime Minister of Fiji. (Fiji Times) The Fijian military deports deposed Prime Minister of Fiji Laisenia Qarase to his home island in the remote Lau Group. The military has also arrested senior Government officials. (Sydney Morning Herald) The Fiji Times resumes publication after the military promises to refrain from further attempts at press censorship. (Fiji Times) Editors immediately blast the coup as illegal. (Fiji Times) The United Kingdom joins the United States, Australia and New Zealand in halting defence foreign aid. (Fiji Times) Bainimarama fires Fiji police commissioner Moses Driver, who had declared that the Fiji Police will stand up to the Fiji Military. Bainimarama warned against a popular uprising against the coup. (CNN)
NASA presents "compelling" evidence that liquid water flowed recently on the surface of Mars. (NASA), (BBC) A large explosion occurs near downtown Milwaukee, killing 3, injuring 37 others and leveling a factory compound.(AP) Officials of the Islamic Courts Union in power in Bulo Burto, Somalia, declare that, under their interpretation of Sharia, all people in the city must pray five times a day, or they will be beheaded on sight. (Fox News) Hundreds of thousands of Dalits stage a mass rally in Mumbai to mark the 50th anniversary of the death of their leader, B. R. Ambedkar. (BBC) James Kim is found dead in Oregon after spending 11 days in the wilderness. (CNN) (CNET)NASA delays the launch of the Space Shuttle Discovery on STS-116 until Saturday. (CNN) George W. Bush, the President of the United States says that Syria and Iran might be included in regional talks on the future of Iraq if they meet certain conditions. (CNN) Hewlett-Packard pays a fine of $14.5 million to settle an investigation by the Attorney General of California related to leaks from its boardroom. (Bloomberg) Police in Phoenix, Arizona believe that they have captured the Baseline Killer who has nine killings attributed to him. They had Mark Godeau in custody since September in relation to two alleged sexual assaults in 2005. (CNN) A tornado has ripped through Kensal Green in North West London, injuring 6.(The Times) The Doha Asian Games suffered a tragedy when South Korean rider Kim Hyung-chil died after falling from his horse during the equestrian competition. (Aljazeera) Nigerian gun men attack an Agip oil terminal in the Niger River delta and take three Italians hostage. (Reuters) Nearly 100 people are dead or unaccounted for in Vietnam as a result of Typhoon Durian. It had earlier killed over 550 people in the Philippines and left a similar number missing. (Reuters) Seven towns are under immediate threat from bushfires in Gippsland in the Australian state of Victoria. (Reuters) A motion brought by the Conservative government to reopen debate on same-sex marriage in Canada is defeated by the Canadian House of Commons. (CBC) 2006 Fijian coup d'état:
Fiji's Great Council of Chiefs condemns the coup d'état and calls on coup leader Frank Bainimarama to stop his activities. It refuses to meet with him. (ABC News Australia) Jona Senilagakali, the newly-installed Prime Minister of Fiji, conceded the coup had been "illegal" but it was "an illegal takeover to clean up the mess of a much bigger illegal activity of the previous government." (BBC) Claims are being made that the military may attempt to arrest Ratu Ovini Bokini, Chairman of the Great Council of Chiefs. Around 300 villagers have surrounded his compound in Tavua to defend him. (Fiji Times)
Grand Ayatollah Fazel Lankarani of Iran issues a fatwa calling for the deaths of Azeris Rafiq Tağı, a writer, and Samir Sadagatoglu, his editor, who were charged in November 2006 with "inciting national, racial and religious enmity" after they criticized Islam. (EurasiaNet) The Hard Rock Cafe chain of cafes, hotels and casinos, as well as its extensive collection of rock and roll memorabilia, is purchased from the Rank Group by the Seminole Tribe of Florida for US$965 million. (Fox News) Nintendo's next generation gaming console, the Wii, is released in Australia. (The Sydney Morning Herald)Three people are killed and a fourth injured when a gunman starts shooting at a Chicago skyscraper. The gunman was then shot dead by a Chicago Police Department SWAT sniper. (Chicago SunTimes) Bushfires in the Australian state of Victoria threaten at least six townships in the Gippsland region with extreme weather conditions over the weekend expected to increase the danger. The Victorian Department of Education closes 24 schools due to threat of fire. (AP via Houston Chronicle) Ethiopian involvement in the Somali Civil War: The Somali and Ethiopian militaries engage the Islamic Court Union inside Somalia. (BBC) Officials organizing the 2006 ASEAN summit in the Philippines, originally due to begin on December 10, have announced that it has been postponed due to Severe Tropical Storm Utor. Officials also denied that the postponement was due to a terror threat. (BBC) Research linking the spread of the AIDS virus with malarial infections in Africa is published in Science. (BBC) 2006 Fijian coup d'état:
Fiji is suspended from the Commonwealth of Nations following a meeting of Commonwealth foreign ministers in London. (BBC) Former Prime Minister of Fiji Laisenia Qarase warns that Fijians are planning a campaign of civil disobedience against the regime of Commodore Frank Bainimarama. (AFP via ABC Online)
Alaska State Representative Tom Anderson (R) is taken into custody by the FBI in connection with the probe of alleged [[unethical association by Alaska Legislature with VECO Corporation. (KTUU) Nintendo Wii is released in EuropeWilliam J. Jefferson is reelected as the member for Louisiana's 2nd congressional district in a runoff election defeating fellow Democrat Karen Carter despite facing an ongoing bribery investigation. (AP via CNN) The United States Senate passes legislation normalising trade with Vietnam, renewing tax cuts and opening the Gulf of Mexico to new drilling for oil and gas fields. The legislation had earlier been passed by the United States House of Representatives and will now go to President of the United States George W. Bush for approval. (Reuters) A fire at a Russian drug treatment hospital kills 45 people with arson suspected. (CNN) The Space Shuttle Discovery makes a rare night time launch. (Yahoo/AP) Two months after it opened, the "The World of Turkmenbashi Tales" themepark in Turkmenistan is made operational. The park, which is named after the Turkmenbashi, Saparmurat Niyazov, is expected to attract more children now that the rides work and all libraries have been closed. (USA Today) 2006 Fijian coup d'état: Media reports that gunfire had been heard near military barracks in Suva have been dismissed as being mistaken identification of a game of cricket. (AFP via OptusNet) DNA testing confirms that blood with a high blood alcohol content did indeed belong to Henri Paul, the driver in the crash that killed Diana, Princess of Wales, Dodi al Fayed and Paul himself in 1997. (BBC)
Incumbent Igor Smirnov wins the presidential elections in the self-declared state of Transnistria. (DPA) Ex Chilean president Augusto Pinochet dies. (The New York Times) (CNN) A video has emerged showing the current president of Croatia Stjepan Mesić praising the German puppet-state Independent State of Croatia during a speech in the early 1990s. (index.hr) According to results released by the Interior Ministry of Madagascar, a total of 61.45% of the country's registered 7.3 million voters went to the polling stations on December 3 and re-elected Marc Ravalomanana as President with 54.8% of the votes, Jean Lahiniriko and Roland Ratsiraka received 11.68% and 10.1%, respectively. (BBC), (AP) Nobel Prizes: Bangladeshi economist Muhammad Yunus accepts the Peace Prize, urging world leaders to end terrorism by fighting poverty. (AP via The Guardian)
In Nagorno-Karabakh 98.6 percent of voters vote in favor of a constitution favoring independence from Azerbaijan. (RadioFreeEurope/RadioLibery) Former GAM rebel leader Irwandi Yusuf is elected governor of the Indonesian province of Aceh in elections that are part of a peace deal ending the civil war. (Bernama) Former Prime Minister of Fiji Sitiveni Rabuka is cleared of two charges of mutiny in relation to the mutinies of the 2000 Fijian coup d'état. (ABC News Australia) Archaeologists working for the Vatican have found the tomb of Paul of Tarsus. (USA Today) United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan strongly criticizes the United States, in particular the Bush administration, claiming it has strayed from multilateralism and human rights, in his final speech. (BBC) The International Conference to Review the Global Vision of the Holocaust gets underway in Iran to examine whether the Holocaust took place or not. (BBC) Traces of polonium-210 are found in a flat in Hamburg, Germany, on objects touched by former Russian spy Dmitri Kovtun a day before he met poisoned ex-spy Alexander Litvinenko in London. (The Times) Unidentified gunmen try to assassinate Baha Balousheh, a security chief associated with Fatah, but instead shoot and kill his three children in the Gaza Strip. The assassination attempt may have been a revenge attack for the attempted assassination of Interior Minister Sayid Seyam of Hamas. (BBC) (JTA) The Space Shuttle Discovery successfully docks with the International Space Station with the crew to spend a week rewiring the space station. (CNN) In an interview with Jeff Stein, a national security editor for Congressional Quarterly, Silvestre Reyes, the incoming Chairman of the U.S. House Intelligence Committee incorrectly claims that Al Qaeda is a "predominantly Shiite" organization. When asked if Hezbollah is a Sunni or a Shiite organization, Reyes said "It's hard to keep things in perspective and in the categories." (Fox News) A devastating bushfire rips through the town of Scamander, Tasmania in Australia, destroying 23 homes. (News.com.au)
An Ethiopian court finds exiled former president Mengistu Haile Mariam guilty of genocide. (BBC) Leading climatologists warn that most of the Arctic ice will have melted by 2040 and the North Pole will be open water. (The Times) The President of the Palestinian National Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, orders security forces to deploy across the Gaza Strip in response to the murder of a Fatah security chief's three sons. (Reuters via ABC News Australia) Police in Ipswich, UK are hunting a possible serial killer after five prostitutes are found dead within the last ten days. (BBC) Vietnam will become the 150th member of the World Trade Organization on January 11, 2007. The move finalises Hanoi's near-12-year wait to join the WTO. (BBC)
The High Court of Botswana rules that thousands of Bushmen should not have been evicted from their ancestral home which is now the Central Botswana Game Reserve. (Washington Post) Belgian state TV station