Portal:Current events/2003 November 13

November 13, 2003 (2003-11-13) (Thursday)

• SCO v. IBM: SCO Group files subpoenas for Richard Stallman and Linus Torvalds.
• A British Daily Mirror opinion poll suggests nearly half the people of the United Kingdom see the United States as the biggest threat to world peace and are opposed to President Bush's state visit to the UK.
• A Belfast Telegraph opinion poll in Northern Ireland in the run up to the Northern Ireland Assembly elections predicts that the Ulster Unionist Party will remain the largest unionist party, defeating the Democratic Unionist Party, while the nationalist Social Democratic and Labour Party, contrary to many expectations, will outpoll Sinn Féin. At the start of the campaign, many commentators had predicted that both the DUP and Sinn Féin would topple their rivals.
• Occupation of Iraq:
  • Japan delays sending troops to Iraq because of the worsening security situation.
  • According to military analysts, recent attacks on coalition forces in Iraq are, reportedly, part of a guerrilla strategy to isolate the United States during attempts to achieve international support for rebuilding the country.
  • With growing insurgency in Iraq and increasing criticism in the United States, the White House is pushing for faster action on crucial aspects of its strategy toward Iraq, accelerating the timetable for Iraqi self-government, redoubling military efforts against insurgents via "Operation Iron Hammer", and increasing efforts to convince the American public of the long-term benefit of the transformation of Iraq.
• Mass media:
  • Leading Saudi Arabian newspaper al-Riyadh (which often reflects government thinking) claims that Qatar's Al Jazeera television coverage of the bombing in Riyadh is aimed at inciting more violence.
  • Thirty media outlets claim, with two separate letters sent to The Pentagon, that United States troops are harassing journalists in Iraq and sometimes confiscating equipment, digital camera media and videotapes. A statement by a Pentagon official states the military is aware of reports that soldiers had sometimes not followed procedures on dealing with the media and promises to take appropriate action.
• In Canada, the Commission for Public Complaints Against the RCMP rules that the police force used excessive force during the anti-globalization protests at the Quebec City Summit of the Americas FTAA negotiations in April 2001.
• The Economy: Germany, France and the Netherlands, which together account for more than half the economic activity of the eurozone, report returns to growth in the third quarter as a global economic recovery stokes demand for exports.
• Chief Justice of Alabama Roy Moore is removed from office by the Alabama Court of Judiciary for failure to remove Ten Commandments monument from court house pursuant to order by U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson.
• A British court rejects a request by the Russian government for extradition of Akhmed Zakayev, an envoy of the Chechen rebels, who is accused of being a terrorist and having committed a number of crimes including kidnapping, murdering Russian soldiers, and levying war. The request was denied on the grounds that Mr. Zakayev was considered likely to be tortured if he was extradited, which would make such deportation illegal under article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The prosecution's evidence was described as a "farce" by one BBC reporter, and reminiscent of Soviet-era show trials.
• Cybercrime: Californian man is fined and sentenced to community service for cracking into the website of satellite TV network Al Jazeera during the war in Iraq.
• United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan holds talks with Bolivia's President Carlos Mesa, Cabinet, indigenous leaders, and local UN staff during the final leg of his South American tour. The visit came several weeks after the tumultuous Bolivian Gas War forced the previous president out of office.
• Immigration: Long known as a haven of multicultural tolerance, the Netherlands' integration policy comes under scrutiny.
• Science: Craig Venter and his group announce creation of artificial virus that reproduces, and put the technology into the public domain.

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