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| July 2005 |
July 2005__NOTOC__
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- More torrential monsoon rains have returned to Mumbai in India, as it tries to recover from the recent floods. The death toll in the floods rises to about 1,000. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4732179.stm (BBC)]
- 7 more suspects are arrested in Brighton following the 21 July 2005 London bombings. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4732951.stm (BBC)]
- Wim Duisenberg, the former head of the Rabobank, the Central Bank of the Netherlands and the European Central Bank, is found dead in the pool of his villa in the south of France. His death seems to have been caused by a cardiac arrest. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/4733081.stm (BBC)]
- Chile's Christian Democratic Party declares Michelle Bachelet as the presidential candidate of the ruling coalition [http://www.falkland-malvinas.com/Detalle.asp?NUM=6149 (Mercopress)] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4732057.stm (BBC)]
- Russia's defence minister Sergei Ivanov bars the country's defense ministry from contacting ABC News after the channel broadcast an interview with Chechen rebel Shamil Basayev [http://en.rian.ru/russia/20050729/41054350.html (RIA Novosti)] [http://www.mosnews.com/news/2005/07/31/ivanovabc.shtml (Mosnews)] [http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/0204DB35-417B-4669-971E-327277888089.htm (Al-Jazeera)] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4732783.stm (BBC)]
- In Côte d'Ivoire, former rebels known as the New Forces refuse to disarm before legislative reforms [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4733879.stm (BBC)] [http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L31362525.htm (Reuters AlertNet)]
- Indonesian pilot Pollycarpus Budihari Priyanto is charged with involvement with the murder of Munir Said Thalib [http://www.thejakartapost.com/detailweekly.asp?fileid=20050730.@02 (Jakarta Post)] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4727531.stm (BBC)]
- In India, separatist group National Socialist Council of Nagaland extends its ceasefire with the government by six months [http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IEP20050731105452&Page=P&Title=States&Topic=0 (Newindpress)] [http://www.indiadaily.com/editorial/3871.asp (India Daily)] [http://in.today.reuters.com/news/NewsArticle.aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2005-07-31T120832Z_01_NOOTR_RTRJONC_0_India-211148-1.xml (Reuters India)]
- In Iran former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani appeals for the release of an imprisoned dissident writer Akbar Ganji. Ganji has been in a hunger strike for more than 50 days and is possibly near death [http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=14562 (Reporters Without Borders)] [http://www.irna.ir/en/news/view/menu-236/0507310874175650.htm (IRNA)] [http://www.iranmania.com/News/ArticleView/Default.asp?NewsCode=33774&NewsKind=Current%20Affairs (IranMania)]
- Atkins Nutritionals, Inc., a company founded by the late diet guru Robert Atkins to promote low-carb products, enters chapter 11 due to a loss of public interest. [http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,164425,00.html (Fox News)]
- Thousands of Czech riot police disperse the crowd at the annual free electronic music festival "CzechTek", leaving dozens injured. [http://www.cbc.ca/cp/world/050730/w073046.html (CBC)]
- Conflict in Iraq: At least two British private security agents have been killed following an attack on a convoy in Basra, south Iraq. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4730323.stm (BBC)]
- Lawyers for the former President of Iraq, Saddam Hussein, claim he was attacked by an unidentified man after questioning by the Iraqi special tribunal on Thursday; however the United States denies the event. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4730613.stm (BBC)]
- Uzbekistan has reportedly given the United States six months to move out of a key base used for operations in Afghanistan.[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4731411.stm (BBC)]
- Russia begins to withdraw its troops from the military bases in Georgia [http://www.mosnews.com/news/2005/07/30/troops.shtml (Mosnews)] [http://www.messenger.com.ge/issues/0915_august_1_2005/news_0915_1.htm (Messenger, Georgia)] [http://euronews.net/create_html.php?page=detail_info&article=302100&lng=1 (Euronews)]
- Astronomers have discovered a large new trans-Neptunian object, provisionally named , which is larger than Pluto. [http://skyandtelescope.com/news/article_1560_1.asp (Sky and Telescope)]. Also announced today was the discovery of two other large new Kuiper Belt objects, and . New observations reveal to be about 70% the diameter of Pluto. The object is also orbited by a moon. [http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn7751 (New Scientist)]
- Following a militant attack at Srinagar's city centre at Lal Chowk more than 10 people have been left injured. [http://in.rediff.com/news/2005/jul/29srinagar.htm (Rediff)]
- Hamas, the main Palestinian opposition party in the Palestinian Authority, hold a mass wedding on the West Bank in which 226 couples performed the Nikah. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4727291.stm (BBC)]
- The remaining three London bombing suspects have been arrested after raids in the UK and Italy. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4727975.stm (BBC)]
- The President of Pakistan, Pervez Musharraf, has announced that all foreign students (around 1,400) are to leave the nation's Madrassas and go home. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4728643.stm (BBC)]
- Conflict in Iraq: At least 25 New Iraqi Army recruits have been killed following an apparent suicide bomb attack in Rabia, near Mosul, in North West Iraq. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4728065.stm (BBC)]
- Indian officials have raised the death toll of those suspected dead in the 2005 Maharashtra floods to more than 800. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4727763.stm (BBC)]
- Indian bomb disposal experts have found traces of explosive in the train which exploded on Thursday killing 7 people. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4726737.stm (BBC)]
- BBC News has been told, by the activist settler Noam Livnat, that 20,000 Israeli soldiers had signed a petition vowing to block any attempt at removing Israeli settlements from the Gaza Strip. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4726435.stm (BBC)]
- In Vietnam, death toll on bird flu rises to 42. [http://thanhniennews.com/healthy/?catid=8&newsid=8204 (Thahn Nien News)] [http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2005-07-29T024346Z_01_DIT908727_RTRUKOC_0_BIRDFLU-VIETNAM.xml (Reuters AlertNet)]
- Initial results show that Ugandans have voted for a return to multi-party politics in a national constitutional referendum. The poll was marred by a low turnout.[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4726419.stm (BBC)]
- Robert Kilroy-Silk resigns as leader from Veritas, the political party he founded. [http://politics.guardian.co.uk/otherparties/story/0,9061,1539084,00.html?gusrc=rss (Guardian)]
- Conflict in Iraq:
- Two people have died following an explosion which destroyed a train tanker carrying oil, believed to have been caused by a bomb on the tracks. [Death Toll Confirmed][http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4724377.stm (BBC)]
- Six Iraqi Soldiers have died following clashes in two Baghdad streets. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4724377.stm (BBC)]
- Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: A Palestinian man has been shot dead by Israeli soldiers, who had suspected him of involvement in a Suicide bombing. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4725641.stm (BBC)]
- Seven people have been killed and 38 others injured in an explosion on a moving passenger train in India. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4724909.stm (BBC)]
- The Provisional IRA issues a statement formally ordering an end to the armed campaign it has pursued since 1969 and ordering all its units to dump their arms, with effect from 1600 BST today (1500 UTC). The IRA has been on "cease-fire" since 1996 and said it would follow a democratic path ending more than 30 years of violence. It will not, however, disband.[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/4720863.stm (BBC)] [http://www.rte.ie/news/2005/0728/northpolitics2.html (RTE)] [http://www.guardian.co.uk/Northern_Ireland/Story/0,2763,1537901,00.html (Guardian)] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/4724599.stm (Transcript of Statement)]
- The strongest tornado in Britain in 25 years, rating a 2 on the Fujita scale, hits Birmingham, damaging homes and injuring 20 people. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_midlands/4726643.stm (BBC)]
- The Islamic Human Rights Commission has released a statement which claims that the number of attacks on South Asians in the UK has risen 13 fold since the July 2005 London bombings. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4723339.stm (BBC)]
- Ugandans are voting in a referendum to decide whether to readopt a multi-party system [http://www.nationmedia.com/eastafrican/current/News/Regional2507200514.htm (East African)] [http://allafrica.com/stories/200507270884.html (AllAfrica)] [http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/IRIN/aafc4b032395ef7fa4424dbc01a1f9b2.htm (Reuters AlertNet)] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/4722925.stm (BBC)]
- In India, Lal Krishna Advani of the Bharatiya Janata Party and seven others are charged with inciting riots in Ayodhya in 1992 [http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IEL20050728024952&Page=L&Title=B+R+E+A+K+I+N+G++++N+E+W+S&Topic=0 (Newindpress)] [http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/000200507281301.htm (The Hindu)]
- In the United States, the House of Representatives approves the Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement, 217-215, sending the approved treaty to President George W. Bush. [http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050728/ap_on_go_co/cafta (Yahoo!)]
- The United States, China, India, Japan, South Korea and Australia have formed a partnership aiming to cut the emissions of gasses that lead to global warming. The agreement is known as the Asia Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate.
- In the USA, number of American-Muslim scholars announce a fatwa that condemns terrorism and religious extremism [http://usinfo.state.gov/usinfo/Archive/2005/Jul/28-997738.html (U.S State Department)] [http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N28360873.htm (Reuters AlertNet)]
- In Serbia, Ljiljana Zelen-Karadžić, wife of Radovan Karadžić, goes public to ask her husband to give himself up [http://www.fena.ba/uk/vijest.html?fena_id=FSA286723&rubrika=ES (Fena)] [http://www.b92.net/english/news/index.php?&nav_category=&nav_id=32555&order=priority&style=headlines (B92)] [http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/07/28/news/serbs.php (IHT)] [http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2005-07-28T213301Z_01_YUE877552_RTRUKOC_0_BOSNIA-KARADZIC.xml (Reuters)]
- Poland recalls its ambassador to Belarus and demands that the European Union impose sanctions after Belarusian police storms the offices of the country's Polish minority [http://euobserver.com/?sid=9&aid=19657 (EUobserver)] [http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L28516781.htm (Reuters AlertNet)] [http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/07/28/news/poland.php (IHT)]
- In Canada, gene lab confirms that alleged sasquatch hairs actually belong to a bison [http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/07/28/sasquatchtesting0727.html (CBC)] [http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=oddlyEnoughNews&storyID=2005-07-28T204249Z_01_YUE874524_RTRIDST_0_OUKOE-ODD-CANADA-SASQUATCH.XML (Reuters)]
- In Bulgaria, Bulgarian Socialist Party fails to form a government due to hung parliament. President Georgi Purvanov approaches the National Movement of former king Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha [http://euronews.net/create_html.php?page=detail_info&article=301436&lng=1&PHPSESSID=f6c6669aa7ad4ac460a44eb6ffc29569 (Euronews)] [http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2005-07-28T130445Z_01_KNE834109_RTRUKOC_0_BULGARIA-CABINET.xml (Reuters)] [http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=50618 (Sofia News Agency)]
- In Guinea-Bissau, electoral commission declares João Bernardo Vieira winner of the presidential election with a 52-55% majority [http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/IRIN/cf7a579226b4a237bf172acf87f5b8bb.htm (Reuters AlertNet)] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4723627.stm (BBC)]
- The UK government imposes a travel ban on Kenyan transport minister Chris Murungaru, who is investigated for corruption, forbidding him from visiting Britain [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4723757.stm (BBC)] [http://www.kbc.co.ke/story.asp?ID=31368 (KBC)] [http://allafrica.com/stories/200507280258.html (AllAfrica)]
- British "Shoot to Kill" Police Policy:
- The British Police member who shot an innocent Brazilian man seven times in the head and once in the shoulder has been given a free holiday, paid for by Scotland Yard.[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4720979.stm (BBC)]
- Sir Ian Blair, Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police has told Channel 4 news that on seven separate occasions British police have come close to killing suspected Suicide Bombers who it transpired were not Suicide Bombers. [http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,22989-1710202,00.html (The Times of London)], [http://news.ft.com/cms/s/764f2716-fe3c-11d9-a289-00000e2511c8.html (Financial Times)]
- Conflict in Iraq:
- Two US Troops were killed following a bomb in Baghdad. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4724377.stm (BBC)]
- Two Algerian diplomatic staff who had been kidnapped by insurgents have been killed. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4721719.stm (BBC)]
- At least five people have died following an apparent Suicide Bomb blast outside a hospital in the Iraqi Capital, Baghdad. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4722307.stm (BBC)]
- The interim Prime Minister of Iraq, Ibrahim Jaafari, has called on US troops to leave Iraq soon. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4720083.stm (BBC)], [http://csmonitor.com/2005/0727/dailyUpdate.html (Christian Science Monitor)]
- Seven Iraqi soldiers, guarding a water plant north of Baghdad, have been shot and killed by Insurgents. [http://www.kctv.com/Global/story.asp?S=3645815 (KCTV)]
- 2005 Maharashtra floods: The death toll from the series of heavy monsoon rains and landslides they have triggered has been raised to at least 418 people in India's western state of Maharashtra.[http://www.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=51605 (ExpressIndia)]
- NASA postpones indefinitely future launches of the Space Shuttle after a piece of insulation broke off the Space Shuttle external tank during the July 26 launch of the Discovery. [http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20050727/ts_afp/usspaceshuttledebris_050727223131 (Yahoo)] [http://www.spacedaily.com/news/shuttle-05zzzi.html (SpaceDaily)]
- In Australia, New South Wales premier Bob Carr resigns and announces his disengagement from politics [http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200507/s1423636.htm (ABC)] [http://www9.sbs.com.au/theworldnews/region.php?id=116859®ion=7 (SBS)]
- Malaysia takes chairmanship of the ASEAN Standing Committee [http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/southeastasia/view/160068/1/.html (Channel News Asia)]
- In China, the human death toll from an outbreak of the pig pathogen Streptococcus suis is 24. 21 are in critical condition and number of infections has increased to 117 [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4720715.stm BBC]
- In Kyrgyzstan, about 400 Vamshi Uzbek refugees who fled from Uzbekistan after crushing of an uprising last May will be moved to Romania [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4720181.stm (BBC)] [http://www.mosnews.com/news/2005/07/27/uzbekrefugees.shtml (MosNews)] [http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2005-07-27T064618Z_01_KNE724365_RTRUKOC_0_KYRGYZSTAN-UZBEKISTAN-REFUGEES.xml (Reuters)]
- An explosion destroys an ONGC oil-drilling platform in the Bombay High field area late in the afternoon. The blast occurred possibly after a shipping vessel docked nearby collided with the platform during high tide. [http://www.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=51606 (Express India)] [http://www.ndtv.com/topstories/showtopstory.asp?slug=Eight+killed+in+Bombay+High+fire&id=17417 (NDTV)] [http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/SP270501.htm (Reuters AlertNet)]
- In Spain, police arrests 6 suspected members of the Basque separatist group ETA [http://www.eitb24.com/noticia_en.php?id=78551 (EITB)] [http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2005-07-27T160559Z_01_N27259493_RTRIDST_0_INTERNATIONAL-SPAIN-ETA-DC.XML (Reuters)]
- In France, court in Angers sentences 62 members of a child sex ring to up to 28 years in jail. Trial lasted 5 months [http://euronews.net/create_html.php?page=detail_info&article=301297&lng=1 (Euronews)] [http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2005-07-27T180301Z_01_KWA764934_RTRUKOC_0_FRANCE-PAEDOPHILES.xml (Reuters)]
- Other French court in Bonneville finds 13 people and companies guilty of manslaughter for the March 24 1999 Mont Blanc tunnel fire. Gerard Roncoli, the French head of security, received six months in jail and 24 months of suspended sentence [http://euronews.net/create_html.php?page=detail_info&article=301260&lng=1 (Euronews)] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4721445.stm (BBC)] [http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/07/27/news/tunnel.php (IHT)]
- Conflict in Iraq:
- At least 12 workers have been shot dead as they are driven away from the state owned factory they work at, in the Abu Ghraib area, by insurgents. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4718717.stm (BBC)]
- Insurgents have released a video showing the two Diplomatic staff from Algeria kidnapped from Baghdad last week. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4719213.stm (BBC)]
- Over 200 people have been killed in intense rain storms in Maharashtra, India, described by the Chief Minister of the state as the heaviest recorded rainfall in a single day in India. One third of the state Capital, Mumbai, is said to be underwater causing more than a two hundred thousand people to be stranded in offices and roads for about 24 hours. [http://in.rediff.com/news/2005/jul/27rain.htm (Rediff)], [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4720343.stm (BBC)]
- Several protesters have been injured again in India on this second day of protests. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/4716623.stm (BBC)]
- The Space Shuttle Discovery lifts off at 1039 EST this morning on mission STS-114. The NASA commentator says during launch "Lift-off, lift-off, and return to America's journey to the Moon, Mars, and beyond". [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4716463.stm (BBC)].
- Lebanese Christian Militia leader, Samir Geagea, has been released from prison after 11 years. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4716701.stm (BBC)]
- South Korean ambassador to USA, Hong Seok-Hyun, resigns for alleged involvement with slush fund scandal of illegal donations during a presidential campaign in 1997 [http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200507/200507260002.html (Chosun Ilbo)] [http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/159867/1/.html (Channel News Asia)]
- Burma/Myanmar forgoes 2006 chairmanship of ASEAN [http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/159895/1/.html (Channel News Asia)]
- At least 1,000 protesters have staged a demonstration outside the main US base of Bagram in Afghanistan. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/4717905.stm (BBC)]
- In the Netherlands, Mohammed Bouyeri receives life sentence for murder of Theo van Gogh [http://www.expatica.com/source/site_article.asp?subchannel_id=1&story_id=22238&name=B+receives+life+sentence (Expatica)] [http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/07/26/news/dutch.php (IHT)] [http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/00B06BC2-8405-47A0-A53E-F554FA7AAE07.htm (Al-Jazeera)]
- In Canada, geneticists in the University of Alberta are testing hairs that allegedly belong to sasquatch [http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/07/25/sasquatchtesting0725.html (CBC)] [http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=oddlyEnoughNews&storyID=2005-07-26T140236Z_01_N26536422_RTRIDST_0_ODD-CANADA-SASQUATCH-DC.XML (Reuters)]
- In Israel, there are reports that Jewish ultranationalists have cast a Pulsa diNura death curse over Ariel Sharon [http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3118408,00.html (Ynet)] [http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L26684414.htm (Reuters Alertnet)]
- Chilean judge Sergio Munoz calls for search of new suspected secret foreign accounts of Augusto Pinochet [http://www.justicetribune.com/article_uk.php?id=3090 (International Justice Tribune)] [http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2005-07-26T231526Z_01_N26199559_RTRIDST_0_INTERNATIONAL-CHILE-PINOCHET-DC.XML (Reuters)]
- In Mexico, court rules that there is insufficient evidence to try former president Luis Echeverría for genocide for a student massacre in 1971 [http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N26179183.htm (Reuters AlertNet)]
- In Israel, Omri Sharon, MP and son of Ariel Sharon, is indicted for involvement in illegal campaign contributions, perjury and forging documents. Omri Sharon states that he would give up his parliamentary immunity and stand trial [http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1122344275548 (Jerusalem Post)] [http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/spages/605039.html (Haaretz)] [http://www.israelnationalnews.com/news.php3?id=86551 (Arutz Sheva)] [http://today.reuters.com/News/newsArticle.aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2005-07-26T193616Z_01_N2654200_RTRIDST_0_NEWS-ISRAEL-INDICTMENT-DC.XML (Reuters)]
- In Somalia, transitional president Abdullahi Yusuf arrives in the town of Jowhar, intending to make it a base for his new governmment [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4719047.stm (BBC)]
- In Nepal, king's court sentences Sher Bahadur Deuba and three others to two years in jail for alleged embezzling. Deuba denounces the sentence as "character assassination". [http://www.kantipuronline.com/kolnews.php?&nid=46898 (Kantipur Online)] [http://www.gorkhapatra.org.np/pageloader.php?file=2005/07/27/topstories/main1 (rising Nepal)] [http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/DEL75306.htm (Reuters AlertNet)]
- There were many snake bite cases admitted to L.T.M.G Hospital in Sion.
- British Prime Minister Tony Blair says he is "desperately sorry" that Brazilian electrician Jean Charles de Menezes was shot dead at Stockwell Tube station last week when he was mistaken by police for a suicide bomber. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/4714691.stm (BBC)], [http://sify.com/news/international/fullstory.php?id=13903514 (Sify News)]
- Israel has summoned the ambassador from the Vatican to explain why the Pope did not condemn Palestinian militant attacks on Israelis, in a statement on Sunday, July 24, Pope Benedict XVI said that he deplored attacks in "countries including Egypt, Turkey, Iraq and Britain". [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4715959.stm (BBC)]
- Bilateral negotiations have resumed between the US and North Korea. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4716307.stm (BBC)].
- The Service Employees International Union and the Teamsters, the two largest unions in the AFL-CIO, announce their intentions to leave the labor federation, underscoring a major schism within the U.S. labour movement. [http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/07/26/news/labor.php (IHT)]
- Two men, one today, one yesterday, have been arrested in the New Southgate area of London during police investigations into the recent London bombings. [http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=357016&in_page_id=1770 (Daily Mail)] [http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/articles/PA_NEWA12886201122231232A0000I?source=PA%20Feed&ct=5 (This is London)]
- At least five people have been killed after grenades were thrown at a night-club and official residences in Ethiopia's Somali region. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4714155.stm (BBC)]
- A mystery illness spreading through Western China has claimed its 17th victim. Doctors have confirmed the disease is neither bird flu nor SARS [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4713499.stm (BBC)]. Chinese health officials announce that autopsies point to the swine bacteria Streptococcosis II as the probable culprit. [http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-07/25/content_3266214.htm (Xinhuanet)].
- Conflict in Iraq:
- Sunni Muslim Arab representatives appointed to the committee tasked with writing up a new Constitution of Iraq have ended their boycott. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4713481.stm (BBC)]
- At least seven people have died following a twin suicide car bomb attack on police checkpoints in the centre of the Iraqi Capital Baghdad. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4713481.stm (BBC)]
- The New Zealand general election 2005 is set for Saturday September 17 2005. [http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?ObjectID=10337525 (NZ Herald)] [http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3356811a6160,00.html (Stuff.co.nz)] [http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2005-07-25T051432Z_01_N25690836_RTRIDST_0_INTERNATIONAL-NEWZEALAND-ELECTION-DC.XML (Reuters)]
- Philippine electoral crisis, 2005: Opposition files impeachment complaint against president Gloria Arroyo for election fraud. President has declared a day a holiday and intends to make a key policy speech. [http://www.sabcnews.com/world/asia1pacific/0,2172,108989,00.html (SABC)] [http://www.sunstar.com.ph/static/net/2005/07/25/40.solons.file.impeachment.complaint.against.arroyo.html (Sun Star)] [http://www.mb.com.ph/MAIN2005072340046.html (Manila Bulletin)] [http://www.philstar.com/philstar/News200507239801.htm (Philstar)] [http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/159677/1/.html (Channel News Asia)] [http://today.reuters.com/business/newsarticle.aspx?type=tnBusinessNews&storyID=nMAN249395&imageid=&cap= (Reuters)]
- Brazil hosts annual AIDS conference in Rio de Janeiro. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4713567.stm (BBC)]
- Italian court issues arrest warrants of new 6 CIA operatives for involvement of kidnapping of Osama Mustafa Hassan [http://ansa.it/main/notizie/awnplus/english/news/2005-07-25_852337.html (ANSA, Italy)] [http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=politicsNews&storyID=2005-07-25T183254Z_01_N25732253_RTRIDST_0_POLITICS-SECURITY-ITALY-CIA-DC.XML (Reuters)] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4716333.stm (BBC)]
- In Lebanon, Samir Geagea, former Maronite militia chief, leaves prison [http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/77EA736C-F5A6-4F74-BB90-CA618D419C12.htm (Al-Jazeera)] [http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2005-07-26T055734Z_01_N2681128_RTRIDST_0_INTERNATIONAL-LEBANON-WARLORD-DC.XML (Reuters)]
- In Senegal, former prime minister Idrissa Seck is arrested for "endangering national security" [http://allafrica.com/stories/200507251403.html (AllAfrica)] [http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/IRIN/ba19c2ccbc635d2cfc60e6fd6d290a8e.htm (Reuters AlertNet)] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4714475.stm (BBC)]
- In Sri Lanka, investigators that investigate alleged misappropriation of funds of tsunami relief after 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake, state that they have not found any evidence of wrongdoing. Opposition United National Party claims that prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa had siphoned off 83 million rupees to his own constituency [http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/COL239713.htm (Reuters AlertNet)]
- In Brazil, Paulo Henrique Machado, priest who led the support group of victims of the Nova Iguacu massacre, is shot to death in Rio de Janeiro [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4716363.stm (BBC)]
- Denmark protests over visit of Canadian defense minister Bill Graham to disputed Hans Island near Greenland [http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/07/25/hansisland050725.html (CBC)] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4715245.stm (BBC)]
- In Malawi, president Bingu wa Mutharika bans all exports of maize and fertilizers to alleviate the food crisis in the country [http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=84&art_id=qw1122300361136B254 (IOL)] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4715451.stm (BBC)]
- Eyepatch of Moshe Dayan, former Israeli defense minister, is in sale in eBay [http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/spages/604300.html (Ha'aretz)] [http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=6196321332&category=1449&ssPageName=WDVW&rd=1 (eBay)] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4714385.stm (BBC)]
- Francis Ona, the leader of the former Bougainville Revolutionary Army, has died in village on Bougainville following a short illness. Ona led the bloody 10-year secessionist war against Papua New Guinea that ended in 1997. [http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200507/s1422057.htm (ABC News)] [http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200507/s1421421.htm (ABC News)]
- A magnitude 7.2 earthquake occurs off the Nicobar Islands at 1542 UTC, near the epicentre of the 26 December 2004 earthquake. [http://earthquake.usgs.gov/recenteqsww/Quakes/usaxay.htm (USGS)]. USGS reports the quake was felt in Chennai, India, and Phuket, Thailand. [http://neic.usgs.gov/neis/bulletin/neic_axay_nr.html (USGS)]
- 56 people die in Nigeria when a bus travelling from Lagos crashes and falls off a bridge into the Gadar Tamburawa river, just south of Kano. It is believed that the driver fell asleep as he drove. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4712657.stm (BBC)]
- Conflict in Iraq: At least 39 people, mostly civilians, have been killed when a Suicide Truck Bomb exploded at a police station in the Iraqi Capital of Baghdad. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4712249.stm (BBC)], [http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-5164675,00.html (the Guardian)]
- Israeli-Palestinian Conflict:
- Two Israeli civilians and two Palestinian terrorists have been killed. The Israelis were killed by Palestinian terrorists on the Kisufim road in the Gaza Strip, and the IDF Engineering forces killed the two terrorists. The al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, the Popular Resistance Committees and Islamic Jihad all claimed responsibility for the attack. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4711497.stm (BBC)]
- A Palestinian attempted suicide bomber from Jebaliya was caught near Kibbutz Nir Am, near Sderot, just outside the Gaza Strip.[http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/mideast_dc;_ylt=AlQEVTw2zrm3RH.pleynPl6aK8MA;_ylu=X3oDMTA5bGVna3NhBHNlYwNzc3JlbA-- (Reuters)], [http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3116961,00.html (Ynet)]
- American cyclist and cancer survivor Lance Armstrong wins his seventh consecutive Tour de France. Armstrong has announced that this will be his last tour and he will be retiring from the sport. [http://www.letour.fr/2005/TDF/LIVE/us/2000/classement/ITE.html (Letour.fr)][http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/cycling/4712583.stm (BBC)]
- The United States wins the 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup, defeating Panama after two overtime rounds and a penalty shootout. [http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-ussoccer25jul25,1,1402722.story?coll=la-headlines-sports (Los Angeles Times)]
- In Southwest China, authorities are investigating deaths of 17 farm workers who died of an unidentified disease [http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-07/24/content_3261256.htm (Xinhua)] [http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/159606/1/.html (Channel News Asia)] [http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2005-07-25T030622Z_01_PEK200335_RTRIDST_0_INTERNATIONAL-HEALTH-CHINA-DC.XML (Reuters)]
- In South Korea, hundreds of people gather to the funeral of Yi Gu, the last heir of the former Chosun dynasty. Yi Gu died in July 16 [http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/159579/1/.html (Channel News Asia)]
- In Zambia, authorities arrest Michael Sata, leader of Patriotic Front, for sedition for inciting miners to riot [http://allafrica.com/stories/200507240031.html (AllAfrica)] [http://za.today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2005-07-24T151405Z_01_ALL454703_RTRIDST_0_OZATP-ZAMBIA-ARREST-20050724.XML (Reuters SA)]
- Guinea-Bissau presidential election, 2005: Guinea-Bissau votes in a second round of presidential elections. Candidates are the ruling party candidate Malam Bacai Sanhá and former military ruler João Bernardo Vieira. Results are expected next week [http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2005-07-24T144505Z_01_N24219866_RTRIDST_0_INTERNATIONAL-BISSAU-DC.XML (Reuters)] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4711573.stm (BBC)]
- Dawood Ibrahim's daughter marries Javed Miandad's son in Dubai. [http://in.rediff.com/news/2005/jul/24dawood.htm (Rediff)] [http://www.worldescape.com (WorldEscape)]
- Human rights campaigners in Gujarat, India, have condemned a new school textbook introduced last year by the Bharatiya Janata Party which is seen to praise Adolf Hitler and barely mention the holocaust. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4711475.stm (BBC)]
- The strongest earthquake to hit Tokyo in more than a decade strikes eastern Japan at 4:35 p.m. local time, injuring at least 27 people, rattling buildings and disrupting train and plane services. [http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/07/23/tokyo-quake-050723.html (CBC)]
- British police admit that the man killed yesterday by undercover officers had no connection to the suicide bombings or attempted bombings of previous days and weeks. Metropolitan Police has described the killing as a "tragedy". The victim, Jean Charles de Menezes, 27, was Brazilian. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4711021.stm (BBC)]
- Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) introduces a Congressional Resolution of Inquiry which, if passed, will require the White House and the U.S. State Department to "transmit all information relating to communication with officials of the United Kingdom between January 1, 2002, and October 16, 2002, relating to the policy of the United States with respect to Iraq." [http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Rep._Barbara_Lee_calls_for_U.S._Congress_probe_into_Iraq_War_planning (Wikinews)]
- A team of scientists from Britain and Australia state that they have found high concentrations of arsenic from the hair of King George III of the United Kingdom. Medication containing arsenic could have caused him bouts of madness [http://heritage.scotsman.com/news.cfm?id=1666932005 (Scotsman)] [http://www.news-medical.net/?id=11945 (News-medical.net)] [http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=oddlyEnoughNews&storyID=2005-07-22T142632Z_01_L21710269_RTRIDST_0_ODD-BRITAIN-GEORGE-DC.XML (Reuters)]
- In Spain, bomb explodes in Santiago de Compostela near regional savings bank Caixa Galicia. There are no casualties. Government blames Galician separatists. Police have arrested two people [http://www.eitb24.com/noticia_en.php?id=77730 (EITB)] [http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2005-07-23T174347Z_01_MOL363809_RTRUKOC_0_SPAIN-EXPLOSION.xml (Reuters)]
- Cuba releases three dissidents, including leader Martha Beatriz Roque. 17 others are still incarcerated after crackdown in Friday [http://www.cubanet.org/CNews/y05/jul05/25e8.htm (Cubanet)] [http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2005-07-23T232804Z_01_N23514984_RTRIDST_0_INTERNATIONAL-CUBA-DISSIDENTS-DC.XML (Reuters)]
- In Colombia, president Alvaro Uribe signs a controversial law that is meant to encourage paramilitary groups and guerillas to disarm [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4709435.stm (BBC)]
- In Burma/Myanmar, Khin Nyunt, former prime minister, receives a suspended sentence of 44 years in prison for corruption [http://www.irrawaddy.org/aviewer.asp?a=4836&z=153 (Irrawaddy)] [http://english.dvb.no/news.php?id=5207 (Democratic Voice of Burma)]
- A bomb explodes from beneath a car in the Lebanese Capital of Beirut causing injuries, but no deaths. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4709155.stm (BBC)]
- About 88 people are killed and 200 injured in a series of car bombs in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh at about 0100 local time (2200 UTC Friday). [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4709491.stm (BBC)]
- Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi says that he feels it is his duty to prevent Islam and its symbols from being used to propagate violence. He has set three missions for himself – continuing to remind the world community to understand the root causes of terrorism, explaining that Islam is a religion of peace and opposed to violence, and showcasing Malaysia as a modern Islamic country and a safe place to invest and visit. [http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2005/7/22/nation/11555395&sec=nation (The Star)] [http://iqna.ir/NewsBodyDesc_en.asp?lang=en&ProdID=23908 (Iranian Quran News Agency)] [http://www.islamonline.org/English/News/2005-07/21/article03.shtml (Islam Online)]
- Berlin/Germany. A small plane crashes near the Reichstag and the Federal Chancellor's Office, killing the pilot. Suicide suspected, rather than terrorism. [http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,1564,1657989,00.html (Deuts
2005
2005 (MMV) is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar.
2005 is the World Year of Physics, the Year of the Rooster in the Chinese calendar, and the International Year of the Eucharist in Catholicism.
See also Wikipedia's almanac of events for this year.
Events
- January 4 - Death of the Governor of Baghdad, Ali Al-Haidri, assassinated by gunmen.
- January 9 - The same storm which pounded the US earlier in the month hits England and Scandinavia, leaving 13 dead with widespread flooding and power cuts.
- January 9 - Mahmoud Abbas is elected to succeed Yasser Arafat as Palestinian Authority president in the Palestinian election.
- January 12 - Deep Impact is launched from Kennedy Space Center by a Delta 2 rocket.
- January 13 - Terrorists enter into Israel from Gaza and open fire on civilians near border, killing 6 and wounding 5 others. Hamas and Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades claim joint responsibility for attack.
- January 14 - The Huygens probe lands on Titan, largest moon of Saturn.
- January 16 - Adriana Iliescu gives birth at 66, the oldest woman in the world to do so.
Adriana Iliescu.]]
- January 18 - Terrorists murder 1 person and wound 8 people in Gush Katif, Israel. Hamas claims responsibility.
- January 20 - George W. Bush is inaugurated in Washington, D.C. for his second term as 43rd President of the United States.
- January 20 - Ireland completes metrication.
- January 21 - In Belize's capital city Belmopan, the unrest over the government's new taxes erupts into riots.
- January 23 - Viktor Yushchenko is sworn in as the third President of Ukraine in Kiev, Ukraine.
- January 25 - A stampede at Mandher Devi temple in Mandhradevi during a religious pilgrimage in India kills at least 215, mostly women and small children.
- January 30 - The first free Parliamentary elections in Iraq since 1958 take place.
- January 30 - A Royal Air Force C-130 Hercules transport plane crashes in Iraq, killing 10 British servicemen. Iraqi insurgents release a video claiming to have shot the aircraft down using a missile.
- February 6 - The New England Patriots defeat the Philadelphia Eagles 24-21 to win their third Super Bowl in four years.
- February 8 - Danish parliamentary elections continue the center-right coalition led by Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen and his Liberal Party.
- February 9 - An ETA car bomb injures 31 people at a conference centre in Madrid.
- February 10 - North Korea announces that it possesses nuclear weapons as a protection against the hostility it feels from the United States.
- February 10 - Saudi Arabia holds its first ever elections for municipal authorities, in which only men are allowed to vote.
- February 12 - Fire devastates the Windsor Building, a 32 story office block, in Madrid.
- February 14 - A massive suicide bomb blast in central Beirut kills Lebanon's former prime minister Rafik Hariri and at least 15 other people. At least 135 other people were also hurt.
- February 14 - Around 59 people are killed and 200 injured in a fire at a mosque in Tehran, Iran.
Iran emissions of greenhouse gases.]]
- February 16 - The Kyoto Protocol comes into effect, without the support of the United States and Australia.
- February 16 - The National Hockey League cancels its 2004-2005 season becoming the first North American professional league to cancel a season due to a labour dispute.
- February 19 - Suicide bombers kill more than 30 people in Iraq as Shia Muslims mark Ashura, their holiest day.
- February 20 - Spanish referendum on the Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe, passing it by a substantial margin, but on a low turnout.
- February 20 - Early Legislative elections in Portugal result in a landslide victory for José Sócrates and the Socialist Party.
- February 22 - More than 500 people are killed and over 1,000 injured after entire villages are flattened in an earthquake measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale in Zarand region of Kerman province in southern Iran.
- February 25 - The Serial Killer Dennis Rader is apprehended by Wichita Police and the FBI.
- February 25 - Terrorists murder 5 people and wound 50 people in Tel Aviv, Israel. Islamic Jihad claims responsibility for attack.
- February 26 - Hosni Mubarak the president of Egypt asks parliament to amend the constitution to allow multi-candidate presidential elections before September 2005.
- March 1 - The U.S. Supreme Court rules the death penalty unconstitutional for juveniles who committed their crimes under age 18.
- March 3 - At 19:17 the 3500-ton freighter, M/V Karen Danielsen, crashes into the Western bridge of the Great Belt Bridge of Denmark, 800m from Funen. All traffic across the bridge is closed, effectively separating Denmark in two.
- March 3 - Millionaire Steve Fossett breaks a world record by completing the first non-stop, non-refueled, solo flight around the world in the Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer.
- March 10 - Tung Chee Hwa's resignation: Tung Chee Hwa, the Chief Executive of Hong Kong, resigns.
- March 11 - In the UK, the controversial Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005 was finally given Royal Assent after one of the longest ever sittings by the House of Lords.
- March 13 - First round of Central African Republic elections.
- March 14 - The People's Republic of China ratifies an anti-secession law aimed at preventing Taiwan from declaring independence.
- March 14 - Nearly one million people gathered for an opposition rally in Beirut, a month after the death of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri — the largest rally in Lebanon history.
Lebanon, 2005.]]
- March 16 - Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri, accused of the bombing of the Air India Flight 182 in 1985, are found not guilty on all counts.
- March 19 - A suspected suicide bomber in Doha, Qatar, kills one person and injures about 12 others.
- March 19 - A time bomb explodes in a Muslim shrine in Quetta, southwestern Pakistan, killing at least 29 people and wounding 40.
- March 19 - A mine blast occurs at the Xishui coal mine in Shuozhou and rocks nearby Kangjiayao coal mine, killing up to 59.
- March 20 - At least 250 people in Japan are injured and at least one killed by when a magnitude 7 earthquake struck west of Kyushu Island, just 9km (5.5 miles) below the ocean floor.
- March 21 - 10 killed in the Red Lake High School massacre in Minnesota, the worst school shooting since the Columbine High School massacre.
- March 23 - The United States' 11th Circuit Court of Appeals' 2-1 decision refuses to order the reinsertion of Terri Schiavo's feeding tube.
- March 24 - The Tulip Revolution in Kyrgyzstan reaches its climax with the overthrow of president Askar Akayev.
- March 26 - The Taiwanese government called on 1 million Taiwanese to demonstrate in Taipei in opposition to the Anti-Secession Law of Mainland China. Around 200 000 to 300 000 attended the walk.
- March 28 - The 2005 Sumatran earthquake struck off Sumatra, 3 months after the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake. At a magnitude of 8.7 it is the second largest earthquake since 1965.
- Anti-Japanese demonstrations in China
- April 1 - Newsanchor Peter Jennings hosts what will turn out to be his final World News Tonight telecast.
- April 2 - Pope John Paul II dies, causing widespread grief in the world.
- April 7 - MG Rover, the UK's sole remaining volume producer goes into receivership after a planned alliance with Chinese manufacturer, Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation collapses.
- April 7 - A suicide bomber blows himself up in Cairo's Khan al Khalili market, killing two foreign tourists and wounding seventeen others. A group called "Islamic Pride Brigades" claims responsibility.
- April 8 - Referendum in Curaçao on independence vs. integration with the Netherlands.
- April 9 - Tens of thousands of demonstrators, many of them supporters of Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr, marched through Baghdad denouncing the U.S. occupation of Iraq, two years after the fall of Saddam Hussein, and rallied in the square where his statue was toppled in 2003.
- April 9 - The marriage of The Prince of Wales and Camilla Parker Bowles takes place. Camilla assumes the titles Her Royal Highness and The Duchess of Cornwall.
- April 12 - Fans hurl lit flares onto the field at San Siro Stadium in Milan during a Champions League quarter-final soccer match.
- April 15 - At least twenty one people died and around fifty people were injured in a devastating fire at a hotel in central Paris.
- April 16 - President Lucio Gutierrez of Ecuador declared a state of emergency in the capital city and dissolved the Supreme Court.
- April 17 - Twelve holidaymakers were killed in southern Switzerland when a bus carrying twenty seven people plunged 200 metres into a ravine.
- April 18 - Five people died in ethnic clashes in Iran's south-west Khuzestan province.
- April 19 - Joseph Ratzinger elected Pope Benedict XVI on the second day of the Papal conclave.
- April 20 - fifty six hurt as earthquake hits Fukuoka and Kasuga, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The earthquake measured a magnitude of 5.8 on the Richter scale.
- April 20 - President Lucio Gutiérrez of Ecuador is said to have fled after Congress voted to sack him amid growing protests.
- April 21 - A bus crash in Vietnam's Central Highlands has left thirty Vietnamese war veterans dead and four other people hurt.
- April 21 - A gunfight on the edge of the Saudi city of Mecca has left two militants and two members of the security forces dead.
- April 23 - Silvio Berlusconi, prime minister of Italy, re-forms government after its dissolution three days earlier.
- April 25 - A passenger train derails in Amagasaki Hyogo Prefecture Japan killing 107 people and injuring another 456. (see Amagasaki rail crash)
- April 26 - Facing international pressure, Syria withdrew the last of its 14,000 troop military garrison in Lebanon ending its twenty nine year military domination of that country.
- April 27 - The Superjumbo jet aircraft Airbus A380 made its first flight from Toulouse.
- April 30 - Attacks on tourists in the Egyptian capital Cairo leave three militants dead and at least ten people injured.
- May 1 - A suicide attack targets a Kurdish funeral in the northern Iraqi town of Talafar, near Mosul, and leaves at least 25 people dead and more than 30 others injured. Earlier, at least five policemen and four civilians were killed in two separate attacks in Baghdad.
- May 2 - 4th president of Singapore, Wee Kim Wee dies from prostate cancer.
- May 2 - A blast at an illegal munitions store in northern Afghanistan kills 28 people and injures at least 13 others.
- May 3 - At least 32 people are killed and nine others injured when three two-storey buildings in the eastern Pakistani city of Lahore collapsed after gas cylinders stored in one of them exploded.
- May 4 - In one of the largest insurgent attacks in Iraq to date, at least 60 people have been killed and dozens wounded in a suicide bombing at a Kurdish police recruitment center in Irbil, northern Iraq.
- May 5 - The United Kingdom votes in the 2005 general election. The Labour Party is re-elected with a substantially reduced majority.
- May 5 - Two homemade bombs explode outside the British consulate in New York, USA.
- May 10 - A live hand grenade lands about 100 feet (30 m) from United States President George W. Bush while he is giving a speech to a crowd in Tbilisi, Georgia, but malfunctions and does not detonate.
- May 11 - Serial killer Michael Ross became first person executed in New England in 45 years.
- May 12 - An election was held in the Cayman Islands 7 months later than originally scheduled due to Hurricane Ivan. It resulted in a change of government, with the United Democratic Party giving four seats to the then-opposition People's Progressive Movement in the 15 member Legislative Assembly.
- May 13 - Uzbek troops kill up to 700 during protests in eastern Uzbekistan over the trials of 23 accused Islamic extremists. President Islam Karimov defends the act.
- May 13 - The United States Department of Defense issues a list of bases to be closed as part of the Base Realignment and Closure process (BRAC 2005).
- May 13 - The final episode of the TV series Star Trek: Enterprise is broadcast in the United States. This episode may mark the end of the Star Trek franchise itself, which dates back to 1966.
- May 15 - A passenger ferry capsizes and sinks in strong winds in the Bura Gauranga River in Bangladesh, leaving over 100 people missing.
- May 16 - George Galloway appears before a U.S. Senate committee, to answer allegations of making money from the Iraqi Oil-for-Food Programme.
- May 17 - Kuwaiti women granted right to vote.
- May 19 - Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith released, effectively completing the Star Wars movie saga begun by George Lucas in 1977 and shattering the opening day box-office record with $50,013,859.
- May 19 - The Canadian House of Commons members narrowly pass two budget bills at second reading allowing the minority Liberal government of Prime Minister Paul Martin to stay in power.
- May 21 - Greece wins the Eurovision Song Contest in Kiev.
- May 25 - Liverpool F.C. win the UEFA Champions League by defeating AC Milan 3-2 in a penalty shootout in Istanbul.
- May 25 - The Acting Chief Executive of Hong Kong, Donald Tsang, resigned for participating in the Chief Executive Election in July. As a result, Henry Tang and Michael Suen had become the Acting Chief Executive and Acting Chief Secretary for Administration respectively.
- May 29 - French referendum on the European Constitution votes resoundingly to reject.
- May 31 - W. Mark Felt is confirmed to be Deep Throat.
- June 1 - Dutch referendum on the European Constitution votes to reject, the second country to do so.
- June 5 - Switzerland votes to join the Schengen area and to allow same-sex partnerships.
- June 6 - Syrian Vice President Abdul Halim Khaddam resigns.
- June 9 - Glynn Birch announced as new president of Mothers Against Drunk Driving.
- June 13 - Singer Michael Jackson acquitted of all charges of harming children (see 2005 trial of Michael Jackson).
- June 17 - A 6.7 aftershock,which followed a 5.3 earthquake the previous day, hits California making it the fourth earthquake since June 12 in California. (California earthquakes of June 2005)
- June 17 - Because of "quadruple-witching" options and futures expiration, the New York Stock Exchange sees the heaviest first-hour trading on record. 704 million shares were traded between 9:30-10:30 A.M. 1.92 billion shares were traded for the day.
- June 19 - Election in the Autonomous Community of Galicia, Spain — preliminary results show that Manuel Fraga and the Partido Popular lose control of the autonomous parliament.
- June 21 - Volna booster rocket carrying the first light sail spacecraft (a joint Russian-United States project) failed 83 seconds after its launch, destroying the spacecraft.
- June 23 - The San Antonio Spurs win the NBA World Championship title.
- June 28 - Queen Elizabeth II conducts the International Fleet Review of 167 international warships in the Solent, as part of the Trafalgar 200 celebrations.
- June 30 - Spain joins Belgium and the Netherlands in permitting same-sex marriage.
- July 2 - Live 8, a series of 10 simultaneous concerts take place throughout the world, raising interest in the Make Poverty History campaign.
- July 4 - NASA's "Copper bullet" from Deep Impact spacecraft hits Comet Tempel 1, creating a crater for scientific studies.
- July 4 - Violent G8 demonstrations in Gleneagles
- July 6 - The European Parliament rejects the Directive on the patentability of computer-implemented inventions in its second reading in the codecision procedure.
- July 6 - The International Olympic Committee awards the 2012 Summer Olympics to London.
London.]]
- July 7 - Four explosions rock the transport network in London, three on the London Underground and one on a bus. Over 50 deaths were reported, and over 200 injured. See 7 July 2005 London bombings.
- July 7 - Al-Qaeda admits to the killing of Egypt's Ambassador, Ihab al-Sherif.
- July 10 - Luxembourgish referendum on the European Constitution votes to accept.
- July 10 - Hurricane Dennis strikes near Navarre Beach, Florida as a Category 3 storm killing 10 people, after killing over 50 people in the Caribbean.
- July 12 - Terrorists kill 5 people and wound 90 people in a crowded mall in Netanya, Israel. Islamic Jihad claims responsibility for attack.
- July 13 - Three trains collide in the Ghotki rail crash in Ghotki, Pakistan, killing over 150 people.
- July 14 - A compromise budget is reached in Minnesota, ending the fourteen-day government shutdown.
- July 16 - Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, the sixth book of the Harry Potter saga by the British writer J. K. Rowling, is released.
- July 19 - President Bush nominates Appeals Court Judge John G. Roberts, Jr. to the United States Supreme Court, following the retirement of Sandra Day O'Connor.
- July 20 - Canada's Civil Marriage Act, legalizing same-sex marriage, receives Royal Assent.
- July 21 - A terrorist attack on London, similar to the July 7 attacks, includes 4 attempted bomb attacks on 3 Underground trains and a London bus. The bombs failed to explode properly, and only one injury was reported.
- July 22 - A Brazilian electrician, Jean Charles de Menezes, is shot dead at a London underground station by police who mistake him for a suicide bomber.
- July 23 - A series of blasts in a resort town in Egypt. See July 23, 2005 Sharm el-Sheikh attacks.
- July 24 - Lance Armstrong wins a record seventh straight Tours de France before his scheduled retirement.
- July 26 - Launch for Space Shuttle Discovery return to flight mission STS-114. This is the first Space Shuttle flight in nearly two and a half years since the breakup of Columbia on its return from mission STS-107.
- July 28 - The Provisional IRA issues a statement formally ordering an end to the armed campaign it has pursued since 1969 and ordering all its units to dump their arms.
August
- August 2 - Air France Flight 358 bursts into flames after overshooting the runway at Toronto Pearson International Airport; all aboard survive.
- August 6 - An ATR-72 heading from Italy to Tunisia crashes into the Mediterranean Sea, killing 16 of 39 on board.
- August 9 - Space Shuttle Discovery returns to Edwards Air Force Base at 0814 EDT, completing STS-114, "Return to Flight."
- August 12 - Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter launched.
- August 14 - Helios Airways Flight 552 crashes into a mountain in Greece, killing 121.
- August 16 - West Caribbean Airways Flight 708 crashes into a mountain in Venezuela, killing 152 passengers.
- August 17 - The first forced evacuation of settlers, as part of the Israel unilateral disengagement plan, starts.
- August 17 - Bangladesh is hit by bomb explosions. [http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Bangladesh_hit_by_several_bomb_explosions]
- August 18 - BTK killer Dennis Rader is sentenced to 10 consecutive life sentences.
- August 18 - Peace Mission 2005, the first joint China-Russia military exercise, begins its 8-day training on the Shandong peninsula.
- August 22 - A 4.1 kg meteorite crashes into the Dotito area of Zambezi Escarpment in Zimbabwe, leaving a 15 cm crater.
- August 23 - Israel's unilateral disengagement from 25 Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip and West Bank ends.
- August 24 - Hong Kong High Court Judge Michael Hartmann rules that sodomy laws were unconstitutional.
Michael Hartmann.]]
- August 28 - Terrorist wounds 52 at bus station in Beersheba, Israel. Islamic Jihad claims responsibility for attack.
- August 29 - At least 1,300 are killed, and severe damage is caused along the U.S. Gulf Coast, as Hurricane Katrina strikes the Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama coastal areas. Within hours, levees give way and New Orleans is flooded.
- August 31 - A crowd crush on the Al-Aaimmah bridge in Baghdad kills several hundred civilians (see Baghdad bridge stampede).
- September 1 - Oil prices rise sharply following economic effects of Hurricane Katrina.
- September 5 - Mandala Airlines Flight 091 737 crashes in Indonesia killing at least 117. (See airplane accidents in 2005).
- September 7 - Incumbent Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak wins its first multi-party presidential election.
- September 11 - Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and the LDP are returned to power following the Japanese general elections.
- September 12 - Norwegian parliamentary election
- September 12 - English cricket team draw the final match to win The 2005 Ashes.
- September 14 - September 16 - Largest UN World Summit in history, held in New York City.
- September 17 - Helen Clark leader of the Labour Party is re-elected for a third term in the New Zealand general election
- September 18 - Angela Merkel of the CDU and Gerhard Schröder of the SDP both claim victory in German federal election
- September 18 - Afghan parliamentary election
- September 19 - North Korea agrees to stop building nuclear weapons in exchange for aid and cooperation.
- September 24 - Hurricane Rita hits the US Gulf Coast. The 9th Ward section of New Orleans floods for the 2nd time in a month and a half. Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas, and Alabama are also affected.
- September 25 - Polish parliamentary election.
- September 26 - U.S. army reservist Lynndie England is convicted by a military jury on six of seven counts in connection with the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal.
- September 27 - Michaëlle Jean, born in Haiti, becomes the 27th Governor General of Canada, and the first black person to hold that position.
- September 28 - American politician Tom DeLay is indicted on charges of criminal conspiracy by a Texas grand jury.
- September 29 - John G. Roberts, Jr. is confirmed and sworn in as Chief Justice of the United States.
- September 30 - The Parliament of Catalonia passes with 120 plus votes and 15 against, the Project of New Catalan Statute of Autonomy, proclaiming in its article 1, "Catalonia is a nation".
- October 1 - 26 people are killed and more than 100 are injured in the 2005 Bali bombings.
- October 1 - The world's largest bank, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, is formed by the merger of two Japanese banking conglomerates.
- October 1 - An Australian photojournalist in Afghanistan, Stephen Dupont, films US soldiers two dead Taliban militias' bodies.
- October 2 - 20 people are killed in a shipwreck in Lake George, NY.
- October 4 - Hurricane Stan hits Mexico and Central America killing over 1,153 people.
- October 5 - Flight Lieutenant Malcolm Kendall-Smith charged with refusing to serve in the Iraq war.
- October 7 - UN nuclear agency director Mohamed ElBaradei is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
- October 8 - An earthquake in Kashmir kills about 80,000 people.
- October 9 - Polish presidential election.
- October 12 - The second Chinese human spaceflight Shenzhou 6 launched, carrying Fei Junlong and Nie Haisheng for five days in orbit.
- October 13 - Veselin Topalov wins the FIDE World Chess Championship 2005
- October 15 - The referendum on the new Proposed Iraqi constitution is held.
- October 15 - Riot in Toledo, Ohio during a Neo-Nazi rally surrounding racial issues; 114 arrested
- October 15 - Qinghai-Tibet Railway completed.
- October 16 - US Helicopters and warplanes bomb two villages near Ramadi in western Iraq, killing about 70 people.
- October 18 - The UN tightens the rules for its staff, following several claims of financial impropriety and sexual abuse.
- October 19 - The Trials of Saddam Hussein begin.
- October 19 - Hurricane Wilma swells into a Category 5 storm.
- October 21 - 200th Anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar, celebrations held around the United Kingdom.
- October 22 - Tropical Storm Alpha forms making the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season the most active on record.
- October 23 - Polish presidential e | | |
