Portal:Current events/2007 March 23

March 23, 2007 (Friday)

Condoleezza Rice, the United States Secretary of State, travels to the Middle East to talk with Israel and the Palestinian National Authority about the peace process. (CNN)
Sami Al-Arian, the former university professor convicted of funneling money to Palestinian Islamic Jihad, ends his hunger strike to protest his imprisonment, after 60 days. (AP via Yahoo! News)
Jorge Noguera, former Colombian intelligence chief, is freed from prison following a ruling by an appeals court after having been jailed last month for collaborating with right wing militia. (BBC)
War in Afghanistan (2001–present):
- A Taliban attack on a convoy carrying supplies to foreign troops in southern Afghanistan kills 17 Afghan security guards and drivers. (AFP via ABC Australia Online)^{[permanent dead link‍]}
- US Marines accused of shooting and killing civilians after a suicide bombing in Afghanistan are under investigation and their unit has been shipped out of the country.(AP via Forbes)
The President of Iran Mahmoud Ahmadinejad cancels a trip to address the United Nations Security Council before it decides whether to impose further sanctions, saying the United States government had been "obstructive" in issuing visas to members of his entourage. (AP via CBS)
A missile hits an Ilyushin airplane assisting the African Union Mission to Somalia as it takes off from Mogadishu, killing up to 11 people. (Reuters via ABC Australia)
The United States Senate votes 52-47 to approve a budget plan that aims to achieve a balanced budget within five years and aims to find offsets for tax cuts passed in President Bush's first term. (Dow Jones via Nasdaq)
Iraq War:
- The United States House of Representatives votes in favor of withdrawing all U.S. troops from Iraq by August 2008. President Bush promises to veto the bill. (BBC)
- Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Salam al-Zaubai is injured in a bomb attack. (BBC)
- Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction Stuart Bowen describes the reconstruction program in Iraq as "chaotic and badly managed" in an official report. (BBC)
15 Royal Navy servicemen of the HMS Cornwall operating in Iraqi waters are seized by Iranian authorities after inspecting a ship suspected of smuggling. (BBC) (ITV)
Nepal's Government orders a judicial probe into clashes between Maoists and supporters of the Madhesi People's Rights Forum. (Yahoo News)
Heavy fighting is reported in northwest Sri Lanka between the Army and the Tamil Tigers. (BBC)
Democratic Republic of Congo's chief prosecutor issues an arrest warrant for Senator Jean-Pierre Bemba who has sought refuge in the South African embassy as fighting continues in Kinshasa. (AP via IHT)
Celebrations to mark the 50th birthday of the European Union begin. (Sky)
At least three people die after an accident involving four cars and three trucks causes a fire in the Burnley Tunnel in Melbourne, Australia. Both the Burnley tunnel and nearby Domain Tunnel are evacuated. (Herald Sun)
Veterinarians warn that thousands of cats and dogs may die in the wake of the Menu Foods voluntary recall of over 60 million cans of aminopterin-contaminated pet food across North America. (ABC)
16 people are dead and twelve more missing after a passenger schooner capsized in the Toe River, Myanmar. (Press TV)