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Victor Ponta At least 41 people are killed when an Antonov An-12 cargo plane crashes near Juba, South Sudan. Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta (pictured) resigns over the fatal Colectiv nightclub fire. Cyclone Chapala becomes the first hurricane-force storm on record to strike mainland Yemen. In horse racing, Michelle Payne becomes the first female jockey to win the Melbourne Cup, riding Prince of Penzance. In baseball, the Kansas City Royals defeat the New York Mets to win the World Series. Ongoing events: European migrant crisis Recent deaths: Tom Graveney Ahmed Chalabi Günter Schabowski

Current events of November 6, 2015 (2015-11-06) (Friday) International relations Indonesia–Philippines relations Indonesia and the Philippines discuss their borders after the Indonesian Navy sinks four Filipino fishing vessels off the coast of the Philippines triggering a diplomatic dispute. (Business World) Business and economics India has cancelled Greenpeace International's license to operate and gave the group 30 days to close down, citing financial fraud and falsification of data, the environment watchdog said on Friday.(NDTV)(Reuters) U.S. job growth for October 2015 saw the biggest gains since December 2014, fueling hopes that the Federal Reserve Board will increase near-zero interest rates at its December meeting. (Reuters) Disasters and accidents Kogalymavia Flight 9268 Russia has ordered the suspension of all flights to Egypt following indications that the crash near Sharm el-Sheikh was caused by a bomb.(bbc) Politics and elections The U.S. House passes the 2016 National Defense Authorization Act by a vote of 370-58. In addition to funding the U.S. military, the bill contains provisions for sweeping personnel reforms. The previous version of the bill was vetoed by President Barack Obama. Swift passage by the U.S. Senate is expected. (Defense News) Current events of November 5, 2015 (2015-11-05) (Thursday) Armed conflicts and attacks Syrian Civil War Syrian Kurdish–Islamist conflict (2013–present) Canada's Department of Foreign Affairs says it's aware of reports that a Canadian national, John Robert Gallagher, has died while fighting in Syria. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, John Robert Gallagher was killed while fighting alongside the Syrian Democratic Forces against Islamic State militants in the northeast Al-Hasakah Governorate. (CBC News) Syrian rebels seize control of Murak, a town located north of the city of Hama on a strategic highway that is crucial to control of western Syria, following clashes with pro-government forces. Murak was the scene of heavy fighting last year when government forces took control of the town in October 2014. (Reuters) Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War Russia sends antiaircraft missile systems to Syria, where more than 50 Russian aircraft are stationed and its bombing campaign in support of the Assad regime has been in progress since late September. (Radio Free Europe) Military intervention against ISIL British Prime Minister David Cameron, under pressure from Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn and the Foreign Affairs Committee, will not ask for a vote by Parliament to join the U.S. airstrikes in Syria. (Military.com) France announces that it will deploy its aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle to the eastern Mediterranean to boost its efforts against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in Iraq and Syria. (Independent) Disasters and accidents Minas Gerais dam disaster An iron ore tailings dam bursts in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais flooding a valley, causing mudslides in the nearby village of Bento Rodrigues and causing up to 17 deaths and 45 missing. The dam is operated by Samarco Mineração, a joint venture between BHP Billiton and Vale. (Bloomberg) (Reuters via SBS Australia) (AFP via Yahoo! News) (Al Jazeera English) Law and crime European migrant crisis Greek police say they came under fire on the country’s northeastern border with Turkey during the arrest of two suspected migrant smugglers who had just ferried 22 people across the Evros river that runs along the Greek-Turkish border. (AP via New Europe) NetCracker and Computer Sciences Corporation agree to pay fines amounting to over $12 million, settling a Justice Department investigation into the firms’ sub-contracting of computer coding work to Russian sources. The programs were subsequently installed on secure U.S. government computer networks. (The Daily Beast) University of California, Merced stabbing attack The Merced County Sheriff identifies the attacker of four students at the University of California, Merced as freshman Faisal Mohammad. (Merced Sun Star) ExxonMobil says that it is preparing a response to the subpoena from the Attorney General of New York pursuant to an investigation into whether Exxon has misled the public about climate change. (Reuters) Politics and elections Belizean general election, 2015 Belizean Prime Minister Dean Barrow wins a record third term in Wednesday's snap general election in the Central American nation as his United Democratic Party (UDP) gains a clear majority in parliament. The UDP won 19 constituencies and Francis Fonseca's People's United Party (PUP) took 10, with two constituencies yet to report. Belize is a parliamentary constitutional monarchy with Queen Elizabeth II, the symbolic head of state. (Reuters) (Newsweek) The President of the Maldives, Abdulla Yameen, declares a state of emergency suspending civil rights and giving sweeping powers to security forces. (The Guardian) The United States, Amnesty International, and the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), the country's main opposition party, sharply criticize the state of emergency, concerned it might lead to a new crackdown on dissent. MDP had scheduled a protest rally for this Friday, demanding the release of its jailed leader, and former Maldivian President, Mohamed Nasheed. The government order cancels that action. (Washington Post) (AP via U.S. News & World Report) Myanmar general election, 2015 Myanmar opposition leader and Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi says she would be "above the president" if her National League for Democracy party (NLD) gets the expected win in the Sunday, November 8, 2015, election. The 2008 constitution, drafted by the military without NLD participation, bars her from becoming President. (Reuters) (Time) Current events of November 4, 2015 (2015-11-04) (Wednesday) Armed conflicts and attacks Kogalymavia Flight 9268 Flights between the United Kingdom and the Egyptian city of Sharm el-Sheikh are suspended due to concerns of the British government that the crash was caused by an "explosive device". (ITV) CNN reports that intelligence sources suggest that the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant or an affiliate organisation planted explosives on the plane. (CNN) Egypt's Sharm el-Sheikh airport chief Abdel-Wahab Ali is replaced; he is now an assistant to Adel Mahgoub, chairman of the country's air transport service. (AP) Kunduz hospital airstrike, Afghanistan War The United States says that last month's airstrikes in Kunduz hit three locations, mistakenly including the Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) (MSF) hospital where at least 30 were killed. Afghan commanders, whose forces were actively engaged with the Taliban, requested the attacks. The Washington Post reports a warehouse and a mansion in two densely populated residential areas were "pulverized" without loss of civilian lives. According to residents, earlier their neighborhoods had been conflict zones, but no militants were there the time of the attacks. "Together, the three attacks raise questions about the quality and reliability of the intelligence that Afghan security forces are providing to their American partners, as well as U.S. decisions to act on that intelligence," writes the Post. (Washington Post) Médecins Sans Frontières held memorials around the globe Tuesday, the one month anniversary of the bombing, to reaffirm their request for an independent investigation. U.S. officials resist an independent probe, pledging that the three investigations underway, by the Pentagon, NATO, and Afghan officials, will be thorough and transparent. Thomas Nierle, head of MSF Switzerland, told AFP that he had little hope the inquiries would ultimately see any wrongdoers punished. (The Hill) (DW Akademie) (AFP via Yahoo News) Business and economics Keystone XL Pipeline The United States State Department formally denies Calgary-based TransCanada Corporation's request, made Monday, to pause the review of the proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline. Reuters states this is expected to lead to the project's rejection by the Obama administration. (Reuters) (AP via Chicago Tribune) Whole Foods, the Texas based food retailer, announces that it will buy back $1 billion of its shares, and increases its dividend. [1] Disasters and accidents Ash from Indonesia's Mount Rinjani volcano closes Bali's Ngurah Rai International Airport, the country's third busiest. Nearly 700 flights are cancelled. Officials will re-evaluate the situation tomorrow. Mount Rinjani started spewing ash last weekend. (Reuters) (International Business Times) 2015 Juba plane crash A cargo plane crashes shortly after takeoff from Juba International Airport in Juba, South Sudan. 41 people have reportedly died. The five Armenian crew members were killed. (Reuters Africa) (RT) (Al Jazeera English) (AFP via Rappler) (Daily Mail) 2015 Lahore factory disaster A building collapses in the Pakistani city of Lahore resulting in at least 18 deaths, at least 75 injured and around 150 people still trapped. (AFP via France24) (Al Jazeera English) (BBC Online) International relations Cross-Strait relations, 2015 Ma–Xi Meeting The presidents of China and Taiwan are scheduled to meet in Singapore on November 7th, the first such meeting since the Chinese Communist Revolution. (New York Times) (BBC) An Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) meeting in Malaysia fails to agree on a joint communique following disagreement between China and other nations over the South China Sea. (AP) South Korea and China agree to establish an emergency navy and military hotline. (UPI) Territorial disputes in the South China Sea, China–United States relations, Malaysia–United States relations U.S. Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter and his counterpart from Malaysia will visit the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) as it cruises in the South China Sea, this in the wake of China’s dismay over a U.S. Navy ship’s sailing in the vicinity of artificial islands constructed by China in the Spratly Islands. (Stars and Stripes) European migrant crisis European Union president Donald Tusk and Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfvén, in a joint news conference, announce Sweden will ask to transfer some migrants to other European countries under an EU relocation plan. Sweden has taken the highest number of asylum-seekers per capita in the 28-member bloc. (AP) (The Local) Law and crime UC Merced stabbing spree Police, at the University of California, Merced campus, shoot and kill a male student who went on a stabbing rampage that wounded four people. The University closed its campus, except for housing, and cancelled classes for Wednesday and Thursday. The school reported all of the wounded are expected to recover. (KGO) (UC Merced) (Los Angeles Times) (AP via Houston Chronicle) Police have the gunman in custody and San Diego International Airport flights resume. The airport closed after police encountered a man with a high-powered gun shooting in a Bankers Hill apartment complex, east of the approach path to the airport. Also known as Lindbergh Field, the airport is frequently cited as one of the scariest because of its downtown location. (AP update) (Reuters) (Airfare Watchdog) The Mexican Supreme Court, in a 4-1 decision, rules that people have the right to grow and distribute marijuana for their personal use. The decision challenges the country’s current substance abuse laws. Fox News Latino and The New York Times point out the ruling only covers the plaintiffs in one case, a group that wants to form a "Pot Club." A precedent will be established if the court approves five similar petitions. (Fox News Latino) (Reuters) James Tran of Sacramento County is arrested on suspicion of attempted homicide in the October 8 stabbing of Airman Spencer Stone near a bar in Sacramento California. Stone had helped foil the 2015 Thalys train attack but officials believe it was just a drunken bar fight. (MSN) Politics and elections Colectiv nightclub fire Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta and his government resigns after tens of thousands took to the streets to protest over the Colectiv nightclub fire that killed 32 people. Mircea Dușa has been proposed to be installed as Acting Prime Minister. (Euronews) (BBC News) (The Guardian) Canadian government Justin Trudeau is sworn in as the new Prime Minister of Canada along with his ministry. (Toronto Star) Trudeau announces an ethnically diverse cabinet which for the first time is equally balanced between men and women (15 each). (The Guardian) Belizean general election, 2015 Voters in Belize go to the polls with the United Democratic Party led by Dean Barrow hoping for a third consecutive term. (Voice of America) Current events of November 3, 2015 (2015-11-03) (Tuesday) Armed conflicts and attacks 2014–15 India–Pakistan border skirmishes At least two Indian soldiers are killed after Pakistani forces opened fire along the de-facto border that divides Kashmir between the two countries. (BBC) Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War, Syrian Civil War The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reports Russia conducted multiple airstrikes on ISIS-held Palmyra. (Air Force Times) Russia's Defence Ministry says the Russian Air Force has bombed 2,804 "militant targets" in Syria so far since beginning of its airforce campaign in September. (The Daily Star) Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant ISIS claims responsibility for the deaths of two Syrian refugee activists who fled to Sanliurfa, Turkey, raising concerns about the group’s reach in countries outside of Syria and Iraq. Ibrahim Abdel Qader, a founder of Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently, and Fares Hammadi are said to have been killed by an acquaintance posing as a defector from ISIS. (New York Times) At least four people are killed and 15 injured in an ISIL attack in the Kurdish section of northern Iraq. (Al-Arabiyah) Business and economics British bank Standard Chartered announces that it will axe 15,000 jobs around the world as part of a restructure. (AFP via Manila Bulletin) Takata Defective airbag recalls (2013-present) The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Japanese manufacturer of airbags Takata Corp. agree to a five-year consent decree where the company agrees to pay a civil penalty of $70 million dollars and faces as much as $130 million more in fines if it violates the settlement. Twelve automakers are ordered to speed up recalls that so far have only reached about a quarter of the affected cars. (Bloomberg) (USA Today) Honda, Takata's biggest customer, announces it will not use airbag inflaters made by Takata Corp. for the driver or front passenger side in new Honda and Acura vehicles for any market, world-wide. (USA Today) (NASDAQ) Volkswagen emissions scandal Volkswagen says it has found faulty emissions readings for the first time in gasoline-powered vehicles, widening a scandal that so far had centered on diesel engines. (Bloomberg) (BizNews) Disasters and accidents At least seven people are dead and 35 others are injured as a bus overturns near Tula, Russia. (RT) At least 30 people are killed and 35 injured after an overcrowded bus carrying passengers inside and on its roof veered off a mountain road in northwest Nepal. (USA Today) 2015 Southeast Asian haze Scientists report fires raging in Indonesia have hit Borneo's orangutans particularly hard. Borneo is home to about 30 percent of the world's wild orangutans, an endangered species. Smoke has already displaced many orangutans and caused health problems related to smoke inhalation, according to the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation (BOSF). (Live Science) 2015 North Indian Ocean cyclone season Cyclone Chapala "Ravaged by months of war, Yemen now gets battered by the first tropical storm on record to make landfall." Extremely Severe Cyclonic Storm Chapala slams into Yemen's central coast, with maximum sustained winds of around 140 kph (85 mph) -- the equivalent of a Category 1 hurricane. The storm floods coastal areas, brings down electricity lines and destroys houses, with severe threat of mudslides. Chapala is expected to pour over two or three years worth of rain, up to 300 millimeters (12 inches), in a single day. (CNN) (Abu Dhabi Media) International relations China–United States relations In a Peking University speech in Beijing, US Pacific Command commander, Admiral Harry Harris, says the U.S. Navy’s freedom-of-navigation patrols in the South China Sea are routine operations intended to demonstrate respect for international law principles. Harris reiterated they should not be construed as a threat to any country while emphasizing America's common ground with China. (South China Morning Post) (Bloomberg) Libyan Crisis (2011–present) The New General National Congress (Libya Dawn) which controls the capital Tripoli, and much of western Libya, threatens to send 'hundreds of thousands' of refugees to Europe unless the European Union recognizes the Islamist-led government. (Daily Mail) Territorial disputes in the South China Sea, Japan–Vietnam relations Japan has delivered two more ships to Vietnam that will be refurbished into patrol boats. The ships, which arrived in the port city of Da Nang, are the second delivery of a 2014 deal in which Tokyo is to provide Vietnam with six used fishing vessels that will be converted into patrol boats for Vietnam's coast guard in the South China Sea. (Voice of America) European migrant crisis German Chancellor Angela Merkel announces a plan to register and distribute incoming refugees evenly throughout the European Union. Refugees would be stopped at EU borders, have their application processed, and then, if accepted, sent to one of the Union's 28 member states. (UPI) Law and crime Pakistani journalist Zaman Mehsud is shot dead by two motorcycle-riding gunmen in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, near the country's northwestern tribal region. According to a 2014 report, at least 56 journalists have been killed in Pakistan since 1992. (UPI) (Xinhua) Politics and elections U.S. elections: Gubernatorial In Kentucky, Republican Matt Bevin defeats Democrat Jack Conway and independent Drew Curtis with 52 percent of the vote to succeed term-limited Democrat Steve Beshear. (Fox News) (AP) In Mississippi, incumbent Republican Phil Bryant easily wins re-election over Democratic, truck driver Robert Gray. according to the Associated Press. (AP via Huffington Post) State, city Former five-term Bridgeport mayor Joe Ganim wins election to a sixth term as mayor of Connecticut's largest city, topping the six other candidates in the poll. Ganim is, in American parlance, an "ex-con;" i.e., a convicted felon. In 2003, He was convicted by a federal jury on 16 felony counts for racketeering, bribery, conspiracy, mail fraud, and tax evasion in an operation that also led to convictions of 10 of his associates. Ganim served seven years in federal prison; he was released from a Hartford halfway house in 2010. (Hartford Courant) (AP via CBSLocal.com) Newcomer, businesswoman, and clinical psychologist Karen Weaver tops incumbent Dayne Walling in the non-partisan, Flint, Michigan, Mayor's election. Flint, which is dealing with lead in drinking water, has been under State financial management for close to four full years, and is in the final stage where control will be returned to city officials. (AP) (Detroit News) (MLive Media) Ballot initiatives, referendums In Ohio, a ballot initiative that would have established a legal oligopoly for the sale of recreational and medicinal marijuana is resoundingly defeated by voters, according to AP. (Los Angeles Times) In Texas, the Equal Rights Ordinance that would have established nondiscrimination protections for gay and transgender people in Houston fails to win approval from voters. (AP via Washington Post) (Texas Tribune) Voters in Denver's suburban Jefferson County recall, by 64 to 36 percent, three conservative school board members who worked to weaken the local teachers union while boosting funding for charter schools and pushing through other market-driven policy changes. In Fall 2014, the conservative-led majority drew national attention when they wanted the AP U.S. history course to focus on citizenship and patriotism, while condemning civil disobedience and strike actions. (Washington Post) (AP via Huffington Post) The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issues a two-year investigative report finding the Palatine, Illinois, school district unfairly denied a transgender teenager — who was undergoing hormone therapy but had not undergone gender reassignment surgery — access to school facilities in violation of Title IX, that bars discrimination in federally funded education programs, causing her “isolation,” “ostracism” and at least one “tearful breakdown.” The school district has 30 days to reach an agreement with authorities or risk losing up to $6 million in federal funding and case-referral to the Department of Justice. The Washington Post report called this "The Palatine standoff". (The Washington Post) (Chicago Tribune) (DOE report) Sport In Australian horse racing, Prince of Penzance wins the 2015 Melbourne Cup becoming the first 100-1 winner since World War II; Michelle Payne becomes the first female jockey to ride the winning horse. (Melbourne Age) (Huffington Post) Current events of November 2, 2015 (2015-11-02) (Monday) Armed conflicts and attacks 2015 Nepal fuel crisis Nepali police shoot dead an Indian citizen at a border checkpoint as they attempt to clear protesters whose blockade has crippled Nepal's fuel supplies and badly damaged relations between the neighboring countries. (Reuters) War in Somalia (2009–present) At least 15 Somalia army soldiers are killed in an Al-Shabaab ambush near the town of Wanlaweyn in the Lower Shebelle region. (AP) Arts and culture New Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull announces knights and dames will no longer be part of the nation’s honors system. He said Queen Elizabeth signed off on the decision. (Time) (Reuters) In the United States, the hacking group Anonymous starts releasing names and information about alleged members of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK), a white-supremacist terrorist group originally founded after the Civil War by former Confederate soldiers. Prominent individuals listed deny the allegations. The group says they also infiltrated KKK-affiliated websites, and warned of more action culminating on November 24, the anniversary of the Ferguson, Missouri grand jury's decision not to indict. (The Hill) (USA Today) (Anonymous) Business and economics China's government-owned Comac launches the Comac C919 as part of its efforts to challenge Boeing and Airbus. (CNN) American financial services company Visa Inc. buys European franchisee Visa Europe for $US23 billion. (AP via AL.com) Volkswagen emissions scandal The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and California's CARB are widening the Volkswagen investigation into several more expensive VW, Porsche, and Audi automobiles with 3.0-liter diesel engines in model years 2014 through 2016. Volkswagen says it installed no defeat device software on its 3.0 litre V6 diesel cars and is cooperating with the agency to fully investigate the matter. (Reuters) (Consumer Affairs) TransCanada Corp asks the United States Department of State to suspend its review of the Keystone XL pipeline while it negotiates with the US state of Nebraska about the route. If granted, the delay (according to Reuters) would almost certainly mean the decision on the project will be made by a future president. (The Globe and Mail) (Reuters) Disasters and accidents 2015 Southeast Asian haze The Indonesian state of Riau extends its haze emergency by another month while four airports in Sumatra and Kalimantan remain shut. (Straits Times) SS El Faro The American National Transportation Safety Board confirms that wreckage found on Saturday east of the Bahamas is the cargo ship SS El Faro that sank during Hurricane Joaquin on October 1. (NBC News) Planes have been left stranded at airports throughout the United Kingdom as the "Great Fog" descends. Heathrow Airport said around 45 flights had been cancelled there while London City Airport was closed for several hours. Other affected airports include Manchester, Leeds Bradford, Glasgow, Belfast, Southampton and Cardiff. (BBC) 2015 North Indian Ocean cyclone season At least one person is killed after Cyclone Chapala hits Yemen's Socotra island in the Indian Ocean with flooding reported in Hadibu, the provincial capital. The severe cyclone is expected to cause considerable damage when it makes landfall on Yemeni mainland. (BBC) Kogalymavia Flight 9268 U.S. intelligence analysts conclude the Russian plane was not brought down by surface-to-air missile. An American infrared satellite detected a heat flash at the same time and same place over the Sinai as the plane, but no evidence a missile was involved. Analysts believe it could have been some kind of explosion on the aircraft itself, either a fuel tank or a bomb. U.S. officials do not rule out that ISIL could have been responsible for bringing down the flight. (NBC News) (ABC News) The Russian Air Transportation Ministry says the flight recorders are recovered with only "minor" damage. The ministry also said charter airline Metrojet's assertion that technical failure or human errors have been ruled out pointing to "external" reasons for the crash, is "premature and not based on any real facts." (Voice of America) (Reuters) International relations A day after Sunday's trilateral summit between China, Japan, and South Korea, South Korean President Park Geun-hye and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe are meeting in Seoul. The two countries haven't met in over three years. Expected topics include trade ties, North Korea's pursuit of nuclear bombs, and long-running disputes over Japanese wartime aggression and behavior. (AP) (Nikkei Asian Review) Territorial disputes in the South China Sea, China–United States relations Chinese military aircraft conduct training in the South China Sea following the cruise of a U.S. Navy ship in the vicinity of the disputed Spratly Islands. (International Business Times) A U.S. defense official says the U.S. Navy plans to conduct patrols within 12 nautical miles of artificial islands in the South China Sea about twice a quarter to remind China and other countries of U.S. rights under international law. "That's the right amount to make it regular but not a constant poke in the eye," the official said. (Reuters) (Sydney Morning Herald) Law and crime The Vatican police arrest Msgr. Lucio Ángel Vallejo Balda and Francesca Immacolata Chaouqui, members of a former papal commission charged with studying financial operations of the Holy See, for allegedly leaking confidential documents to the media, a crime since 2013. (New York Times) Science and technology French national public television broadcaster France Télévisions fires France 2 TV channel's weatherman Philippe Verdier, who has been suspended since mid-October. Verdier, known as “Monsieur Météo” (Mr Weather), has been promoting his recently published book, Climat Investigation (Climate Investigation), in which he throws doubt on the global warning findings of leading climate scientists and political leaders. France Télévisions said its rules, "prevent anyone using their professional status … to push forward their personal opinions." (Irish Times) (The Guardian) Sports 2015 Major League Baseball postseason The Kansas City Royals win the 2015 World Series, defeating the New York Mets 7–2 in 12 innings in Game 5 to take the best-of-seven series. (NY Times) Politics and election United States presidential election, 2016, Democratic Party presidential candidates, 2016 Harvard Law School Professor Lawrence Lessig announces his decision, via a four minute YouTube video, to end his campaign for the 2016 Democratic Party presidential nomination. (Politico) (The Atlantic) (YouTube) Current events of November 1, 2015 (2015-11-01) (Sunday) Armed conflicts and attacks War in Somalia (2009–present) Islamist al-Shabaab militants attack a hotel in Mogadishu resulting in at least 12 deaths. (AFP via Yahoo! News) (Reuters via ABC News Australia) Syrian Civil War Islamic State fighters seize control of Mahin, a town in Syria's central Homs province, following clashes with government forces which left about 50 dead. Fighting was also reported to be taking place on the outskirts of Sadad, a nearby town mostly populated by Christians. (Reuters) Israeli-Palestinian conflict (2015) One Palestinian is killed and three Israeli soldiers injured in two attacks in the West Bank. According to the Israeli army, the Palestinian was shot dead after attempting to stab soldiers at a military checkpoint near the Beit Einun village in Hebron. In a second incident in the same area, a driver rammed and injured three Israeli paramilitary border policemen with his car before fleeing the scene. None of the three were injured seriously. (The Daily Star) (Al Jazeera) Since the beginning of October, nine Israeli citizens, 67 Palestinian and an Arab Israeli have been killed in this wave of violence. (AFP via Yahoo News) The fate of slain Palestinians is fueling a new feud with Israeli authorities. The Israeli defense minister says Israel is refusing to return the bodies of Palestinian terrorists killed during this month-old surge of violence unless the Palestinian side agrees to keep their funerals "modest." (Reuters) An Israel Defense Forces inquiry concludes the death of a Palestinian woman at a checkpoint in Hebron last month was unnecessary, finding the teenager could have been detained and not killed. (Haaretz) Disasters and accidents The United States Navy sends a remotely operated underwater craft to investigate a wreck which they believe is the remains of the SS El Faro which disappeared on October 1 near the Bahamas during Hurricane Joaquin with 33 people on board. (CNN) Kogalymavia Flight 9268 Airlines including Emirates, Lufthansa and Air France refuse to fly over the Sinai Peninsula until the cause of the crash is known. (AP via ABC News America) Russian air transport chief Alexander Neradko says Flight 9268 broke apart at high altitude and scattered plane parts over a wide swath of Egyptian desert. Neradko added it was too soon to determine what caused Saturday's horrific crash. (USA Today) Russia observes a nationwide day of mourning for victims of the plane crash in Egypt. (AP via Fox News) The bodies of more than 140 of those killed in the air crash have been flown back to St Petersburg. (BBC) Colectiv nightclub fire Three other victims of the nightclub fire die at hospital, bringing the death toll to 30. (Mediafax) At least eight people are dead and 70 missing following the sinking of a ferry on Myanmar's Chindwin River in the northwestern Sagaing Region, (Myanmar Times) International relations China–Japan–South Korea trilateral summit The leaders of the People's Republic of China, South Korea and Japan hold their first summit in three years. (New York Times) Japan and China agree to restart mutual visits of their foreign ministers, to hold bilateral high-level economic dialogue early next year, and to work toward early implementation of communication mechanisms between their military forces. (Reuters) Switzerland Named World’s Most Positive Country For 2015. (China.org.cn) Law and crime School shootings in the United States A campus shooting at around 1:20 AM at Lot W, near Wilson Hall and Gleason-Hairston Terrace, at the Main Campus of Winston-Salem State University, in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, kills at least one person and wounds at least one- the two are believed to be students; the suspected gunman, Jarrett Jerome Moore, is not believed to be a student, and is believed to be still at large. (CNN via MSN) (University note) (Winston-Salem Journal) Politics and elections Turkish general election, November 2015 Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) wins Sunday's snap election with more than 49 percent of the vote. AKP, projected to get 316 seats in the 550-seat parliament, regains single-party rule just five months after losing it. (Washington Post) (BBC) (Al Jazeera) Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu calls on all of Turkey's political parties to work together on a new constitution to replace the 1982 constitution written during the military junta of 1980-1983. The document has been amended 17 times revising 113 of the 177 articles. (Reuters) (Kuwait News Agency) (ODATV) Protesters clashed with police outside the headquarters of the People's Democratic Party (HDP) in the Kurds' main city of Diyarbakır in southeastern Turkey as it became evident President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and the AKP were getting a solid majority and would return to power. The tumult spread to other major cities and towns in the Kurdish heartland. The HDP won 10.7 percent of the vote; the party holds 59 of its 80 seats in the parliament. (Al-Ahram) (Wall Street Journal) Azerbaijani parliamentary election, 2015 Azeri voters go to the polls for a parliamentary election, which Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev's ruling New Azerbaijan Party is widely expected to win since the The Müsavat (Equality) Party and other Azerbaijani mainstream opposition parties are boycotting. The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is not monitoring the election because the restrictions imposed by the authorities make credible poll monitoring impossible. (TASS) (Reuters) Attacks on secularists in Bangladesh Teachers, writers and students lead a protest rally in Dhaka against the recent killings and attacks on secular authors and publishers in Bangladesh. (AFP via Straits Times) Science and technology Smart Sheriff, the most widely used child surveillance mobile app in South Korea, is pulled from the market after specialists raised serious concerns about the program's safety. Security experts say its programming left the door wide open to hackers and put the personal information of some 380,000 users at risk. The country's April 2015 law requires all new smartphones sold to those 18 and under have software parents can use to monitor their kids' social media activity. (AP via U.S. News & World Report) Sport In athletics, Stanley Biwott and Mary Jepkosgei Keitany of Kenya win the 2015 New York City Marathon. (Runners World) (ABC7 New York) 2015 World Series In Major League Baseball, the Kansas City Royals defeat the New York Mets in the 2015 World Series 4 games to 1. (Fox Sports) (Huffington Post) Royals catcher Salvador Perez wins the World Series Most Valuable Player Award. (ESPN) Current events of October 31, 2015 (2015-10-31) (Saturday) Armed conflicts and attacks Syrian Civil War, American-led intervention in Syria A newly formed U.S.-backed Syrian rebel alliance, Democratic Forces of Syria, launches an offensive against Islamic State forces in the northeast province of Hasaka. (Reuters) (International Business Times) Business and economics Vodafone Group Plc announces criminals accessed customer account details, including phone numbers and some bank details. The British multinational telecommunications company of over 400 million subscribers says it is contacting about 1,800 affected customers. This is the second recent hacking of a U.K. phone carrier. Last week, TalkTalk Telecom Group Plc said its systems had been attacked. (Bloomberg) (Financial Times) Disasters and accidents Fifteen people are killed and 11 injured in a fire at the public markets at Zamboanga City in the Philippines. (CNN) Kogalymavia Flight 9268 A Russian Kogalymavia Airbus A-321 airliner crashes in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula with 224 passengers on board travelling from Sharm el-Sheikh to St Petersburg. (The News Hub) (BBC) The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant affiliate in the Sinai claims responsibility for shooting down the aircraft, but the claim is disputed. (AFP via Yahoo! News) The wife of co-pilot Sergei Trukachev says, in a call with their daughter before the flight, he complained that the technical condition of the aircraft left much to be desired. According to Egyptian officials, while in the air, the pilot told traffic controllers the aircraft was experiencing technical problems and he intended to try and land at the nearest airport. (AP via New Jersey Herald) A second round of storms and strong winds moves east across Texas in the American Southwest, with three radar-confirmed tornadoes damaging homes and causing injuries in the Houston area that got up to eight inches of rain since Friday night. Six people have been killed. (AP via USA Today) (AP update) Colectiv nightclub fire Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta declares three days of national mourning. (Reuters) (CBC) International relations Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu retracts controversial comments he made about Nazi policies during World War 2, saying he never meant to claim that an Islamic leader Amin al-Husseini persuaded Adolf Hitler to adopt a policy to kill European Jews. (CNN) Syrian Civil War Syria peace talks in Vienna U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says new talks aimed to help end Syria's war shouldn't be held up by wrangling over whether President Bashar Assad stays or goes. (AP) American-led intervention in Syria At the International Institute for Strategic Studies Manama Dialogue security conference in Bahrain, Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken announces the United States will contribute $100 million (£64.7 million) in fresh aid to support the Syrian opposition. (AP) Law and crime The Presidential Palace and the Philippine Senate investigate an extortion scam involving the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. (Manila Bulletin) (BBC) Attacks on secularists in Bangladesh Faisal Abedin Deepan, a publisher of secular books, is hacked to death in Dhaka. (The Guardian) In a separate incident, another publisher and two writers are stabbed and shot in Dhaka. (The Guardian) A group identifying itself as Ansar al-Islam – Bangladesh chapter of al-Qaeda Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) – claimed responsibility. (The Daily Star) The United Nations condemned the attacks expressing deep concerns over these threats to free speech. (Prothom Alo) A man marching down a street in Colorado Springs, Colorado (U.S.), shot and killed three people before being fatally shot in a gunbattle with police. (AP) (Colorado Springs Gazette) At least eleven people are killed in Pakistan in fighting between rival parties as voters go to the polls for local elections in Sindh province. (Reuters via Sydney Morning Herald) Politics and elections Guinean presidential election, 2015 Guinea's constitutional court validates President Alpha Condé's October 11, 2015, re-election victory. The court dismissed complaints lodged by opposition candidates. (Reuters) (Channel NewsAsia) Science and technology A large asteroid 2015 TB145, thought to be a dead comet, passes close to the earth. (Time) According to a new NASA (U.S.) study, ice sheet gains outweigh losses on the continent of Antarctica. An increase in snow accumulation that began 10,000 years ago outweighs increased losses from the continent's thinning glaciers. In 2013, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change findings suggested gains were not keeping up with losses. NASA glaciologist Jay Zwally said, "We’re essentially in agreement with other studies ... (except) ice gain in East Antarctica and the interior of West Antarctica exceeds losses in the other areas." (UPI) (NASA) Sports 2015 Rugby World Cup Final In rugby union, New Zealand defeat Australia 34–17 to win the 2015 Rugby World Cup. (BBC) In baseball, the 2015 Korean Series ends with the Doosan Bears beating the Samsung Lions by 4 games to 1 ending the Lions four straight consecutive Korean Series streak. (Yonhap News) In horse racing, U.S. Triple Crown winner American Pharoah completes his racing career with a win in the 2015 Breeders' Cup Classic, becoming the first-ever "grand slam" winner in American horse racing. (New York Times), (ESPN) More October 2015 events...

Time: 15:37 UTC  |  Day: 6 November  |   << November 2015 >> 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    More November 2015 events... About this page • Suggest a headline News about Wikipedia  Ongoing events Political Boko Haram insurgency in Nigeria, Cameroon and Niger Iraqi Civil War Military intervention against ISIL Iranian-led American-led Israeli–Palestinian conflict (2015) Lebanese anti-government protests Nagorno-Karabakh conflict 2015 Nepal fuel crisis PKK rebellion Yemeni Civil War Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen Second Libyan Civil War Sinai insurgency South China Sea disputes Syrian Civil War American-led intervention against ISIL (Syria) Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War War in Donbass Russian military intervention in Ukraine Sports 2015-16 UEFA Champions League 2015–16 La Liga season 2015–16 NBA season 2015–16 Premier League season Environmental Southeast Asian haze More details on ongoing conflicts below  Recent deaths November 5: George Barris 5: Nora Brockstedt 5: Soma Edirisinghe 4: Kostas Tsakonas 4: René Girard 4: Melissa Mathison 3: Ahmed Chalabi 3: Howard Coble 3: Peter Donaldson 3: Csaba Fenyvesi 3: Tom Graveney 2: Mike Davies 2: Hashim Abdul Halim 2: Kondavalasa Lakshmana Rao 2: Colin Welland 1: Brijmohan Lall Munjal 1: Günter Schabowski 1: Fred Thompson October 31: Ants Antson 31: Charles Herbert 31: Gus Savage 30: Mel Daniels 30: Zehra Deović 30: Al Molinaro 29: Luther Burden 29: Ernesto Herrera 28: Diane Charlemagne 27: Ranjit Roy Chaudhury 27: Philip French 27: Tshepo Ngwane 27: Gulam Noon 27: Rajendra Singh Rana 26: Ed Walker 25: Cao Ying 25: David Cesarani 25: Pijush Ganguly 25: Lisa Jardine 25: Flip Saunders 24: Ján Chryzostom Korec 24: Maureen O'Hara 24: Sandra Peterson 23: Murphy Anderson 23: Leon Bibb 23: Roger De Clerck 23: Thomas G. Stemberg 23: Paride Tumburus 22: Peter Baldwin 22: Willem Aantjes 22: Arnold Klein 22: Mark Murphy 22: Mohammad Daud Sultanzoy 21: France Bučar 21: Marty Ingels 21: Ian Steel death announced on this date 20: Makis Dendrinos 20: Michael Meacher 20: Don Rendell 20: John Scott 20: Cory Wells 19: Leon Bramlett 19: Ron Greener 19: Ali Treki 18: Robert Dickerson 18: Gamal El-Ghitani 18: Robert W. Farquhar 18: Frank Watkins 17: Howard Kendall 17: Anne-Marie Lizin 16: Bevo XIV 16: Denis Cuspert 16: Irwin Schiff 15: Nate Huffman 15: Kenneth D. Taylor 15: Michael Stevens 14: Mathieu Kérékou 14: Bruce Mozert 14: Skip Yowell 13: Bruce Hyde 13: Rosalyn Baxandall 13: Rizzini Alexis Gomez 13: Sue Lloyd-Roberts 12: Sam de Brito 12: Duncan Druce 12: Hal Hackady 12: Joan Leslie 12: George Mueller 11: Dean Chance 11: David Hunt 11: Steve Mackay 10: Diepreye Alamieyeseigha 10: Richard F. Heck 10: Manorama 10: Sybil Stockdale 9: Ray Duncan 9: Gordon Honeycombe 9: Geoffrey Howe 9: Ravindra Jain 9: Dave Meyers 9: Koopsta Knicca 9: Jerry Parr 9: Larry Rosen 9: Robbin Thompson 8: Richard Davies 8: Jim Diamond 8: Hossein Hamadani 8: Lindy Infante 8: Paul Prudhomme 8: Elizabeth Ramsey 8: Hugh Scully 7: Elena Lucena 7: Gail Zappa 6: Kevin Corcoran 6: Árpád Göncz 6: Billy Joe Royal  Ongoing conflicts Africa Algeria, Tunisia and Niger Maghreb insurgency Central African Republic Civil war Democratic Republic of the Congo Kivu conflict ADF insurgency Katanga insurgency Ituri conflict Lord's Resistance Army insurgency Libya Civil war Mali Northern Mali conflict Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad, and Niger Boko Haram insurgency Somalia Civil war South Sudan South Sudanese Civil War Sudan War in Darfur South Kordofan conflict Americas Colombian conflict Internal conflict in Peru Mexican War on Drugs Asia Afghanistan War China Xinjiang conflict India Naxalite–Maoist insurgency Insurgency in Northeast India India and Pakistan Kashmir conflict Pakistan War in North-West Pakistan Balochistan conflict Philippines CPP-NPA-NDF rebellion Moro conflict Moro conflict in Sabah Southeast Asia Internal conflict in Burma Papua conflict South Thailand insurgency Europe Georgia Abkhaz–Georgian conflict Georgian–Ossetian conflict Chechen–Russian conflict North Caucasus insurgency War in Ingushetia Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Nagorno-Karabakh conflict Ukraine War in Donbass Russian military intervention in Ukraine Middle East Arab–Israeli conflict Gaza–Israel conflict Israeli–Lebanese conflict Israeli–Palestinian conflict Egypt Sinai insurgency Iran Iran–PJAK conflict Iraqi civil war American-led intervention in Iraq Iranian intervention in Iraq Syrian Civil War American-led intervention in Syria Syrian Civil War spillover in Lebanon Turkey Turkey–PKK conflict Turkey–ISIL conflict Yemeni crisis Houthi rebellion Al-Qaeda insurgency South Yemen insurgency  Elections Recent October 11: Belarus, President 11: Guinea, President 17–19: Egypt, Parliament (1st phase) 18: Switzerland, Federal Assembly 19: Canada, House of Commons 25: Argentina, President, National Congress 25: Republic of the Congo, Referendum 25: Côte d'Ivoire, President 25: Guatemala, President (2nd round) 25: Haiti, President, National Assembly (2nd round) 25: Oman, Consultative Assembly 25: Poland, Parliament 25: Tanzania, President, National Assembly November 1: Azerbaijan, National Assembly 1: Turkey, Grand National Assembly 4: Belize, House of Representatives Upcoming 8: Croatia, Parliament 8: Myanmar, Legislature 16: Marshall Islands, Legislature 21–23: Egypt, Parliament (2nd phase)  Trials Recently concluded Australia: Brett Peter Cowan, Craig Thomson, Robert Hughes Brazil: Mensalão scandal Canada: Luka Magnotta China: Ji Jianye, Li Chuncheng, Jiang Jiemin, Liao Shaohua, Ni Fake, Chen Baihuai, Zhou Yongkang, Gu Junshan Croatia: Ivo Sanader Egypt: Hosni Mubarak, Peter Greste, Mohamed Morsi Germany: Bernie Ecclestone, Uli Hoeness, Christian Wulff Iran: Mohammad Reza Rahimi Israel: Hussam Qawasmeh Jordan: Abu Qatada Romania: Liviu Dragnea, Dan Diaconescu Russia: Leonid Khabarov, Eston Kohver, Vladimir Kvachkov South Africa: Shrien Dewani, Oscar Pistorius Turkey: Kenan Evren, Tahsin Şahinkaya United Kingdom: Michael Adebolajo and Michael Adebowale, Kweku Adoboli, Tony McCluskie, Kevin Hutchinson-Foster, Chris Huhne, Nicola Edgington, Vicky Pryce, Derek Rose, Mick Philpott, Mairead Philpott, Paul Mosley, Stuart Hazell, Mark Bridger, Andrew Lancel, Dale Cregan, Ray Wilkins, Liam Adams, R v Grillo and Grillo, Ian Watkins, William Roache, Dave Lee Travis, Nicholas Jacobs, Nigel Evans, Max Clifford, Stuart Hall, Dappy, Rebekah Brooks, Andy Coulson, Rolf Harris, Tulisa Contostavlos, Chris Denning, Ray Teret, Gary Glitter, Fred Talbot United States: Abu Hamza al-Masri, Michael Grimm, Jesse Jackson Jr., Bob McDonnell, Vilma Bautista, Jared Lee Loughner, Lauryn Hill, Kermit Gosnell, George Zimmerman, Chelsea Manning, Ariel Castro, Whitey Bulger, Robert Bales, Nidal Malik Hasan, Jodi Arias, Anas al-Libi, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, James Eagan Holmes International ECCC: Nuon Chea, Khieu Samphan ICC: Germain Katanga ICTY: Momčilo Perišić, Mladen Markač, Ante Gotovina, Zdravko Tolimir Ongoing China: Yao Mugen, Guo Youming, Zhu Zuoli Germany: Beate Zschäpe Iran: Babak Zanjani, Jason Rezaian Philippines: Andal Ampatuan, Jr., Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, Janet Lim-Napoles, Jovito Palparan, Joseph Scott Pemberton Romania: Darius Vâlcov, Dan Șova, Elena Udrea, Radu Mazăre, Gheorghe Nichita, Marian Vanghelie, Cătălin Voicu, Relu Fenechiu, Gheorghe Ștefan, Gabriel Sandu, Dorin Cocoş, Dumitru Nicolae Russia: Alexei Navalny South Korea: MV Sewol crew members International ICTY: Radovan Karadžić, Ratko Mladić PCA: China Upcoming China: Wu Changshun, Ling Jihua Estonia: Edgar Savisaar Libya: Saif al-Islam Gaddafi Spain: Lionel Messi United States: Paul Anthony Ciancia, Javaris Crittenton, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Dylan Quick, Aaron Hernandez, Graham Spanier, Tim Curley, Gary Schultz, Justin Bieber, Chris Brown, Rick Perry International ICC: Laurent Gbagbo

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