Portal:Current events/2011 January 26

January 26, 2011 (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Three muslim rebels are killed following a clash with government security forces in the Southern Philippines. (China Xinjiang)
Egyptian Protests:
- Three Egyptian protesters in Suez and one police officer in Cairo are killed in protests against president Hosni Mubarak. (Xinhua) (CNN)
- Egyptian authorities ban protests and block access to some websites after continuing street demonstrations in the country. (BBC) (Al Jazeera)(Bloomberg)
- Police in Cairo beat and arrest a Guardian news reporter, who secretly records the events that occur in the police van. (The Guardian)
At least four people are killed and several injured in a car bombing in Dagestan in the North Caucasus. (RIA Novosti) (BBC)
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev fires top airport security officials, two days after a suicide bombing at Moscow's Domodedovo International Airport killed 35 people and injured 130. (CNN) (RIA Novosti)
The Sudanese army clashes with Sudan Liberation Army rebels in Darfur for the second time in a week, and insurgents said they shot down a helicopter gunship, killing at least three people, a claim denied by the army, which said it had killed 25 rebels. (AFP) (Reuters)
An ambush attack on an army-escorted postal truck in Yemen's southern Hadramut region kills 5 people. (TRT) (Reuters via Arab News)

Arts and culture

Sky Sports presenter Richard Keys resigns following his comments about female referee Sian Massey. (BBC)
Canadian singer Mary-Lu Zahalan-Kennedy becomes the first person in the world to graduate with a Masters degree in The Beatles, which she studied at Liverpool Hope University. (BBC)

Business and economy

The newly released figures show China had 6.31 million new college graduates, and about 90.7 percent of them found employment by the end of 2010, which represented a 3 percent year-on-year increase. (CRI)
The 41st World Economic Forum opens in Davos, Switzerland. (Xinhua)
Incumbent Ivorian leader Laurent Gbagbo orders the seizure of all local branches of the Central Bank of West African States. (BBC)

Disasters and accidents

At least 30 miners are trapped after an explosion in a coal mine in northeastern Colombia. (Colombia Reports) (CNTV) (BBC)

International relations

Switzerland adopts European Union sanctions against Iran’s energy, nuclear and weapons sectors, but an 18-22 billion euro Swiss EGL gas contract with the National Iranian Gas Export Company has not been canceled. (The Jerusalem Post)
Former Kyrgyz energy minister Saparbek Balkibekov, who fled the country during the 2010 uprising, is detained in Ireland by an Interpol operation. (Xinhua)
Iranian media censor pictures of EU foreign minister Catherine Ashton's cleavage taken at recent failed talks on Iran's nuclear program; Ashton covers up in later meetings to prevent further diplomatic incident. (BBC) (Daily Mail) (Ynet)
Ireland upgrades its relations with Palestine to a diplomatic mission, short of recognition, though the Palestinian representative is now officially an ambassador. (Israel Today) (Belfast Telegraph)

Law and crime

Tunisia issues an international arrest warrant for former President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and members of his family who fled the country earlier this month following demonstrations that toppled his regime. (AFP)(CNN)
A court in Vietnam sentences a former Communist Party member to eight years in jail for posting articles on the Internet calling for multi-party democracy. (Taiwan News)
Former Member of the Scottish Parliament Tommy Sheridan is jailed for three years for committing perjury. (BBC)
Scotland Yard launches a fresh inquiry into phone hacking by tabloid journalists after receiving "significant new information". (BBC)

Politics and elections

Election of Micheál Martin:
- Ireland's former foreign minister Micheál Martin is elected leader of the Fianna Fáil party following Brian Cowen's resignation. (The Daily Telegraph) (The Wall Stret Journal) (BBC)
- Martin challenges opposition leaders Enda Kenny and Eamon Gilmore to a series of televised debates ahead of the upcoming general election. (RTÉ) (The Irish Times)
U.S. President Barack Obama delivers the annual State of the Union address calling on the United States Congress to improve the nation's "crumbling" infrastructure, saying it will create jobs and help the nation compete in the global economy. (CNN)
The preliminary results of the referendum on an independence for Southern Sudan will be announced in the next few days, with final results as early as February 7; most of the count in the south already completed shows 99% voted for independence.(CNN)
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao asks citizens to voice their criticisms of the government and speak out about injustice during a visit to the country's highest petition bureau. (Al Jazeera) (Sify India) (Xinhua)
Gabon dissolves the country's main opposition party, accusing one of its leaders of treason. (Reuters)
British Home Secretary Theresa May announces new measures to replace controversial control orders for terror suspects. (BBC)
British Prime Minister David Cameron announces that Sinn Féin's Gerry Adams has resigned from the British parliament, having accepted the position of Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Manor of Northstead. (The Independent) (BBC)