Portal:Current events/2005 February 16

February 16, 2005 (Wednesday)

Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), states there is no evidence to suggest Iran is developing nuclear weapons. (Washington Post)
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman announces the cancellation of the 2004–05 season because of the ongoing lockout. It is the first time a North American professional sports league has cancelled an entire season due to a labor dispute. (TSN)
A large explosion is reported in southwestern Iran, in the province of Bushehr, close to the site of a newly built nuclear power plant. Iranian officials later announce that the explosion was caused by construction work on a dam at Kowsar, near the port city of Deylam. (BBC) (Reuters)^{[permanent dead link‍]} (VOA News) (Guardian) (Reuters)^{[permanent dead link‍]}
The Kyoto Protocol, an international agreement addressing global warming, comes into effect. (BBC) (Reuters) Archived 2005-04-08 at the Wayback Machine
Thirty five Greenpeace protesters storm the International Petroleum Exchange trading floor to show that in their view the Kyoto Protocol is only a small step towards stopping climate change and big steps are required. (Times)
In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration announces that it will create a board for advisement regarding drug complications and the ongoing study of the safety of already approved drugs. (NY Times) (LA Times)
According to African envoys negotiating with the new government of Togo, the negotiations are making progress and the country agrees to organize new elections within 60 days. A crackdown on private media continues in the country. (Reuters SA) (Reuters SA) (BBC)
In Uganda, some of the child soldiers that had escaped the Lord's Resistance Army are recruited into the national army. (World Peace Herald) (BBC)
In Cambodia, former Khmer Rouge commander Chhouk Rin loses his final appeal against a murder conviction. In 1994, he ordered his soldiers to attack a train, and as a result, three backpackers from Australia, Britain, and France were killed. (Reuters) (BBC)
In the United Kingdom, the pro-fox hunting lobby Countryside Alliance loses an appeal. The Court of Appeals does not accept their claim that the Parliament Act 1949, used to introduce the Hunting Act 2004, is invalid. (BBC) (Scotsman)
In Nigeria, an Islamic court sentences cross-dressing Abubakar Hamza to six months in prison and a fine equivalent to $38 for "immoral behaviour". He had lived for seven years as a woman to sell aphrodisiacs. (BBC)
Iran and Syria announce the formation of a "united front" in order to face "challenges and threats", resolved after a meeting between Iranian First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref and Syrian Prime Minister Mohammed Naji al-Otari. (Pakistan Daily Times) (San Francisco Chronicle) (BBC) (Tehran Times)
The body of Cecilia Cubas, daughter of former Paraguayan President Raúl Cubas Grau, is found in an underground chamber at a house near the capital city of Asunción. She was abducted on September 21, 2004. (MercoPress) (ABC) (BBC)
Six Rwandans file a lawsuit in France that accuses French soldiers of complicity in the Rwandan Genocide of 1994. (Reuters) (BBC)
In Tunisia, authorities continue to clean up an oil spill near the town of Korbous that was caused by a Moroccan container ship running aground late the day before. (Reuters Alertnet) (BBC) (Daily Star)