Portal:Current events/2011 August 17
< Portal:Current events
August 17, 2011 (Wednesday)
Armed conflict and attacks
- A rocket is fired into the compound of the President of Afghanistan in Kabul. (AP via Salon)
Business and economy
- Workers at the Polish Przewozy Regionalne passenger rail network commence a 24-hour strike. (RIA Novosti)
- Verizon Communications says that striking workers who do not return to work by the end of August will lose medical, prescription drug, and related benefits. (Bloomberg)
- The price of gold reaches a new record after the President of Venezuela Hugo Chávez announces plans to nationalize the Venezuelan gold industry. (Dow Jones via The Australian)
- The Financial Times reports that sources "familiar with the situation" say Liberty Media is losing interest in a purchase of Barnes & Noble, due to financing constraints. (Financial Times)
Law and crime
- The Special Tribunal for Lebanon publishes an indictment against Hezbollah members accused in the 2005 assassination of Lebanese Prime Minister Rafic Hariri. (Los Angeles Times) (Washington Post) (UPI) (The Telegraph)
- A lawyer claims that 25,000 South Koreans will be suing Apple Inc. in relation to alleged privacy breaches in relation to collection of iPhone location addresses. (AP via MSNBC)
- Three sexual assault cases are lodged against the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Miami. (Miami Herald)
- A Toronto Imam is charged in relation to alleged sexual assaults and death threats committed against five victims over the course of three years. (Toronto Star)
- A fourth man is charged with murder following the deaths of three men hit by a car in Birmingham, UK, during recent rioting which spread across England. (BBC)
Politics and elections
- Vasyl Dzharty, the Prime Minister of Crimea, an autonomous region of Ukraine, dies in office. (Kyiv Post)
- Singapore's Presidential Elections Committee approves four presidential candidates for the presidential election on August 27: Tony Tan Keng Yam, Tan Cheng Bock, Tan Kin Lian and Tan Jee Say. (Wall Street Journal)