Current events
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Time: 00:50 UTC | Date: Wednesday, December 3, 2003
December 2, 2003
- Venezuelan opposition leaders claim to have gathered enough petition signatures to force a referendum to recall President Hugo Chávez; in response, the government alleges the four-day signature drive was tainted by "massive fraud". [1] [2]
- The second trial of DeCSS releaser Jon Johansen begins. [3]
- The U.S. dollar continues to decline, hitting a new low of 1.2 against the euro; the dollar is suffering from deteriorating support against the background of a large current account deficit and fears of growing protectionism. [4]
- Russia rules out ratifying the Kyoto Protocol. [5]
- Mark Latham is elected to succeed Simon Crean as the new leader of the opposition Australian Labor Party, defeating former leader Kim Beazley by 47 votes to 45. In 2004 Latham will face Liberal Prime Minister John Howard at a general election. [6]
- The Israeli government has called on U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell not to meet with former ministers of Israel and the Palestinian Authority who have drawn up the unofficial Geneva plan. [7]
- U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld wins the annual "Foot in Mouth Prize" awarded by the UK's Plain English Campaign for the most non-sensical remark made by a public figure. Among the runners-up were Arnold Schwarzenegger and Chris Patten. [8]
- Hospitals around Paris struggle to cope with an outbreak of influenza and gastro-enteritis. [9]
- The European Union threatens retaliatory sanctions unless the United States lifts its threat of restrictions on imports of steel; the U.S. measures have been declared illegal by the WTO. [10]
- Pirate copies of a pre-alpha version of Microsoft's Windows Longhorn operating system go on sale in Malaysia more than a year ahead of the official release date. [11]
December 1, 2003
- Occupation of Iraq:
- World AIDS Day:
- U.S. Health Secretary Tommy Thompson warns that the world is losing the war against AIDS. Thompson said, "We need America, the European Union and everybody. Nobody is going to be spared unless we all come together in the fight against this disease." [14]
- Hilary Benn, the U.K. Secretary of State for International Development, announces that U.K. funding to UNAids will rise to 6 million pounds in 2004; this figure compares to the U.K.'s projected Iraq War-related costs of approximately 3 billion pounds. [15]
- U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan reportedly tells the BBC that the world is losing the war against AIDS because governments remain indifferent to the threat. [16]
- Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao marks World AIDS Day by visiting AIDS victims in a Beijing hospital. [17]
- The U.N.'s International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda hands down a life sentence to Juvenal Kajelijeli, a former mayor of Mukingo, for his role in the 1994 genocide in which more than 500,000 Rwandans were killed. [18]
- King Harald V of Norway is announced to be suffering from cancer of the bladder; he will be operated on next Monday, December 8. During the King's illness and two to three month convalescence, Crown Prince Haakon will be acting regent. [19]
- President Chen Shui-bian says that the hundreds of missiles the People's Republic of China has aimed at Taiwan justifies holding a referendum on Taiwan independence. The referendum bill recently passed by the Legislative Yuan only allows votes on sovereignty if the country is attacked by a foreign power. [20]
- Boeing Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Phil Condit resigns, a week after the aviation giant fires its Chief Financial Officer in an ethics scandal. The move comes as the company faces scrutiny by the Defense Department for a government plan to acquire Boeing 767 planes for use as refueling tankers and answers questions about the ousters of two executives for ethical misconduct during the period it was being negotiated. [21]
- In Flandreau, South Dakota, jury selection begins in the manslaughter trial of former South Dakota Governor and current U.S. Congressman Bill Janklow. [22]
November 30, 2003
- Syria hands over 22 suspects to Turkey on Sunday in connection with four deadly suicide bombings in Istanbul, the semi-official Anatolia news agency reported. [23]
- The draw is made for the 2004 European Football Championship. England are drawn with holders France, and hosts Portugal are drawn with neighbours Spain. [24]
- According to the Information Center for Human Rights and Democracy, the People's Republic of China has freed three people detained on charges of posting information critical of the government on the Internet. [25]
- The Observer newspaper reports that a deal is imminent to repatriate British men being held in Guantanamo Bay. [26]
- Israeli army chief Moshe Yaalon and former heads of Shin Bet criticise Prime Minister Ariel Sharon for his unwillingness to consider the Geneva plan. [27] [28] [29]
- In tennis, Australia wins the Davis Cup by three rubbers to one when Mark Philippoussis defeats Juan Carlos Ferrero of Spain in the first reverse singles match, played in Melbourne. It is the 28th time Australia has won the trophy, the most prestigious title in men's team tennis. [30]
- The Japanese government announces its intention to temporarily nationalize regional bank Ashikaga Bank after inspections show that it is insolvent; the cost may exceed $9 billion. [31]
- Iribnews.com reports that Georgia's parliament has elected Tedo Dzhaparidze as the new foreign minister. [32]
- Occupation of Iraq: Two South Korean civilians working for a U.S. firm are killed on a highway near Tikrit.
- There is evidence that the tuberculosis drug D-cycloserine may be the first effective agent for the treatment of phobias. [33]
- Pakistan is to end a ban on Indian flights over its territory, in another sign of improving relations between the neighbours [34]
- Nathaniel Jones, a 41-year old, 350-pound unarmed black man dies after being clubbed by police with metal truncheons in Cincinnati, Ohio. [35] Six police officers are suspended from duty afterwards. A video of the beating, captured by the video camera mounted in an officer's cruiser, is released to the public, stoking racial tensions in Cincinnati nearly three years after the city was rocked by riots. Preliminary autopsy results show that Jones had an enlarged heart, and his blood contained cocaine and PCP, Hamilton County Coroner Carl Parrott says.[36][37]
Past events by month
2003: January February March April May June July August September October November2002: January February March April May June July August September October November December
News collections
External links to news pages that can be used to gather new topics for the above list:
News sources
External links to leading English language news organizations from around the world:
- Broadcast
- British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) (UK)
- Cable News Network (CNN) (US)
- FOX News Channel (FNC) (US)
- Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) (CA)
- Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) (AU)
- Radio Telefís Éireann (RTÉ) (IE)
- Al Jazeera (ME) [English Edition]
- Radio Netherlands (NL) [English Edition]
- Print
- The Times (UK)
- The Independent (UK)
- The Guardian (UK)
- The Financial Times (UK)
- The New York Times (US)
- The Washington Post (US)
- The International Herald Tribune (US in Paris)
- The Globe and Mail (CA)
- The National Post (CA)
- The Sydney Morning Herald (AU)
- The Times of India (IN)
- The Indian Express (IN)
- Granma International (CU) [English Edition]
- Wire
- Reuters (UK)
- Associated Press (US)
- Internet-only
- Refdesk, world news and general information
- EUobserver.com (reports on the European Union; see also Wikipedia:EUobserver cooperation)
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