Portal:Current events/2005 November 23

November 23, 2005 (Wednesday)

Iraq War:
- A suicide car bomber kills at least 18 and injuries at least 25, mostly Iraqi Police, in an ambush in the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk. (BBC)
- Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi states that the Italian Army could leave Iraq by the end of 2006. (BBC)
Israeli troops kill one Palestinian and Iyad Abu Rob, a suspected senior member of Islamic Jihad surrenders after a day-long siege, in the Palestinian refugee camp of Jenin. (BBC), (Reuters)
The lower house of the Russian parliament passed a bill by 370-18 requiring local branches of foreign non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to reregister as Russian organisations subject to Russian jurisdiction, and thus stricter financial and legal restrictions. The bill gives Russian officials oversight of local finances and activities. The bill has been highly criticised by Human Rights Watch, Memorial rights organization, and the nonprofit think tank Indem for its potential effects on international monitoring of the status of human rights in Russia. (Reuters)
After the explosion at a chemical factory of November 13, high levels of benzene are released into the Songhua River in northeastern China. Authorities shut off the water supply for the downstream city of Harbin. (BBC)
The new Chancellor of Germany, Angela Merkel, goes to Paris, France for her first foreign trip in office. Some observers see this as a signal that intra-European affairs will be a high priority. (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf is officially declared as the winner of the Liberian presidential runoff, after she took 59.4 percent of the vote, making her Africa's first elected female head of state. (BBC)
Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki has dismissed his entire cabinet and deputy ministers after voters rejected a draft constitution. (BBC), (Reuters)