Portal:Current events/2010 August 10

August 10, 2010 (Tuesday)

Armed conflicts and incidents

A United States military judge at Guantánamo Bay rules that confessions allegedly forced via torture from Omar Khadr, a Canadian citizen they accuse of terrorism after his 2002 capture at the age of 15, count as evidence in his trial. (Aljazeera) (BBC) (The Independent)
Defense Minister of Israel Ehud Barak testifies before Israel's Turkel Commission investigating the country's role in May's Gaza flotilla raid, chaired by Israeli judge Jacob Turkel. His prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday testified that he had left Barak to "co-ordinate" the raid and response "in all of its aspects" while he visited North America. (The Jerusalem Post)
The United States and Vietnam celebrate the 15th anniversary of diplomatic relations by conducting what the United States describes as a "series of naval engagement activities" in the South China Sea, risking a disagreement with China. (BBC) (China Daily)
War in Afghanistan
- The United Nations releases a report highlighting the deaths of civilians in Afghanistan. (BBC)
- Two people are killed in a suicide attack on a guesthouse used by foreign security company in Kabul. (Voice of America)
Israel's Foreign Ministry alleges Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah's press conference yesterday, in which he stated he has evidence that implicates Israel in the 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister of Lebanon Rafic Hariri and 22 others, was full of "ridiculous lies". (The Jerusalem Post)

Business and economy

A much-publicised project backed by Spain's government sells just 16 of the 2,000 electric cars it had intended so far in 2010. (BBC) (The Guardian) (The Hindu) (BusinessWeek)

Disasters

The Niger River bursts its banks forcing 5,000 people to lose their homes and crops. (BBC)
A 7.6 magnitude earthquake and small tsunami hits the Pacific Ocean nation of Vanuatu. (AFP via Yahoo News Australia), (INO)
Rescuers in China's Gansu province continue to search for 1,100 missing people in a recent landslide, as the death toll rises to 702. (BBC) (China Daily)
A de Havilland Canada DHC-3 Otter seaplane crashes near Aleknagik, Alaska, killing five people, including former U.S. Senator Ted Stevens. Former NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe and O'Keefe's son were aboard the plane, but survived. (MarketWatch) (Reuters) (CNN)

International relations

The United States defends its decision to appoint as Venezuelan ambassador Larry Palmer, who has expressed negative views of the country in the past, including insinuating that it has ties with Colombian rebels. (Aljazeera)
The Prime Minister of Japan Naoto Kan apologises to South Korea for colonising the Korean peninsula for three decades in the early 1900s and promises to return cultural relics in the near future. (CNN) (BBC) (AP)
Iran digs mass graves in Khuzestan province, using psychological warfare in preparation for an invasion by the United States armed forces after the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1929, and warns that Iran will attack American bases in the Middle East if American forces attack. (Voice of America)

Law and crime

The United States convicts Noshir Gowadia, a former engineer who allegedly sold secrets to China, and who now faces life imprisonment. (BBC)
The United Nations warns that the trial of Guantánamo Bay inmate Omar Khadr violates an International Criminal Court statute banning the trial for war crimes of those under the age of 18, saying this has not happened since World War II. (The Hindu)
The Israel Defense Forces arrest three wanted Palestinians during an operation in Tulkarm and Nablus in the West Bank. (The Jerusalem Post)
The Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation rules same-sex marriages in Mexico City have to be recognised across Mexico. (BBC)
Saudi Arabia permits the use of BlackBerry devices for now, having previously considering banning them as they were unable to intercept and decrypt communications on that platform. (BBC)
Guatemala issues arrest warrants for 18 former senior officials and policemen who killed 7 prisoners in 2006. (BBC)
Morocco is to close 1,250 mosques deemed to be unsafe following the collapse of a minaret at the Bab Berdieyinne Mosque in February. (BBC) (AFP)
A policy proposal by Google and Verizon regarding the way internet service is regulated comes under criticism from groups promoting net neutrality. (New York Times)

Politics

The President of the United States Barack Obama signs a $26 billion bill to help struggling states to meet budgets. (Reuters)

Science

The World Health Organization announces that the H1N1 flu pandemic which killed 18,000 people worldwide is over. (CBC) (WHO)
Archaeologists claim they have located Britain's oldest house near Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England, UK. (BBC)

Sport

Usain Bolt sustains a back injury that rules him out of all competition for the remainder of the year. (Jamaica Observer) (BBC Sport) (Herald Sun) (The Mercury)