Portal:Current events/2005 April 26

April 26, 2005 (Tuesday)

Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: The Israeli soldier killed in the West Bank on Monday night was shot by his comrades. It was believed he was killed by an Unarmed Taxi Driver, Iyad Dueik, who was shot seven times and whose car ran over the man, but news that he was shot questions this assessment. (BBC)
Alassane Ouattara is allowed to run for Presidential election in Côte d'Ivoire. (AP via Yahoo! France)
2005 Kuomintang visits to Mainland: a 70-member delegation led by Kuomintang chairman Lien Chan left Taipei for Nanjing via Hong Kong, launching Lien Chan's 8-day Taiwan Strait peace tour, also the first official visit by the highest leader of Kuomintang to Mainland China in 60 years. (BBC)
Faure Gnassingbé wins the Togolese presidential election with more than 60% of the votes. Results cause riots in Lomé when the opposition doesn't acknowledge the election, denouncing massive fraud. (AFP via Yahoo!) (AFP via Yahoo! France)
The Civil Unions and Relationships Acts take effect in New Zealand. These laws allow same-sex and de facto couples to form legal unions that are similar to marriage. (New Zealand Herald)
The death toll in the Amagasaki rail crash reaches 73. Police searches the offices of West Japan Railway Co looking for clues for the cause of the crash. (Japan Today) (Reuters)^{[permanent dead link‍]} (Bloomberg) (Reuters AlertNet)
Political unrest increases in Belize when opposition calls for the government to step down, telephone workers are on strike and teachers threatening to follow. (Reuters AlertNet)
The U.S. chief weapons inspector, Charles Duelfer states that search of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq has "gone as far as feasible". (Washington Post) (Reuters AlertNet) (BBC)
Military action in Lebanon: After three decades, all Syrian troops leave Lebanon, fulfilling UN Security Council Resolution 1559. (Daily Star, Lebanon), (Reuters)^{[permanent dead link‍]}
British Labour Party member Brian Sedgemore moves to the Liberal Democrats. (Independent)^{[permanent dead link‍]} (Times) (BBC)
Following Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin's plea on national television that a re-election ought to be delayed until the Gomery Commission has completed its report on the sponsorship scandal, a deal between the governing Liberal Party and the New Democratic Party may avoid the election in the near future as predicted earlier last week. (CBC)