Portal:Current events/2019 December 11
December 11, 2019 (Wednesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Islamic terrorism in Europe
- Across Denmark, police arrest twenty Islamists who were planning attacks. Bomb materials were found in some of the houses during the raids. (The Guardian)
- 2019 Bagram Airfield attack
- Taliban forces assaulted a United States air base in Afghanistan amidst peace talks between the two parties. The attackers killed two civilians and injured another 80 people using two car bombs and guns. The attackers were successfully repelled by a NATO mission present at the base along with support from US fighter aircraft. (The New York Times)(Military Times)
- 2019 Inates attack
- At least 71 people were killed after terrorists stormed a military base in Inates, Niger. The attack was carried out by suspected Islamic State in the Greater Sahara militants. (BBC News) (Reuters)
- At least three patients were killed and several other people were injured during a protest outside the Punjab Institute of Cardiology, Lahore, Pakistan. It was staged by the lawyers against a mocking viral video from doctors. The mob also attacked at the provincial information minister of Punjab Fayyaz ul Hassan Chohan. The Young Doctors Association of Pakistan reports death of 12 patients. (Dawn) (Pakistan Today)
Business and economy
- Shares from Saudi Aramco begin trading on the Riyadh stock exchange, where it surged to the maximum limit of 10% above its IPO price. This increased the company's worth to US$1.88 trillion, making it the most valuable publicly-traded company in the world. (Reuters)
- The World Trade Organization's Appellate Body ceases functioning. The tenure of two of its three remaining judges expires after the United States blocked the appointment of new judges and the quorum needed for a valid appeals ruling cannot be reached anymore. (SCMP)
Disasters and accidents
- 2019–20 Australian bushfire season, Physical impacts of climate change, Individual and political action on climate change
- Around 7,500 people in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, stage a protest against Prime Minister Scott Morrison's lack of acknowledgement towards an ongoing bushfire caused by drought and climate change. (news.com.au)
Law and crime
- During her first speech before the International Court of Justice at The Hague, Myanmar's leader Aung San Suu Kyi denies all charges of genocide, blames separatists and says the accusations are "misleading". (Euronews) (Reuters)
- The Rajya Sabha of India votes 125 to 105 to pass a controversial amendment to the Indian nationality law that would expedite citizenship for religious minorities from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. As the bill omits Muslims, critics say it's discriminatory and violates the secular nature of the Constitution. Massive protests break out in the state of Assam in response. (BBC News)
Politics and elections
- 2019 Bougainvillean independence referendum
- Voters in Bougainville vote overwhelmingly for independence from Papua New Guinea. However, the Papua New Guinea government will have the final say on accepting it or not. (BBC News)