Portal:Current events/2011 June 15

June 15, 2011 (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

2011 Greek uprising:
- Greek unions initiate a general strike, with protesters vowing to surround the Hellenic Parliament as it prepares to discuss its plans for financial cuts. (Reuters via France 24) (Xinhua) (euronews)
- Greek and Spanish flags fill parliament square alongside banners reading "Resist" and ¡no pasarán! (they shall not pass), dating from the Spanish Civil War. (DAWN)
- The protesters call themselves the "indignants" in solidarity with their Spanish counterparts who camped against cuts in Madrid and Barcelona until the Spanish police forced them out. (Sofia Echo) (BBC)
- Police descend in droves on the parliament building, blocking the protesters from forming a human ring around it, firing water cannon at the protesters and barricading their path. (Deutsche Welle)
- Police fire tear gas on Greek people protesting against cuts being implemented by their government in co-operation with the European Union and International Monetary Fund. (BBC) (Al Jazeera) (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)
- Police detain 10 protesters to prevent them disrupting lawmakers as they slip into parliament by car. (Taiwan News)
- Some Greek journalists' unions cancel their strike in order to provide coverage of the protests. (AP via The Guardian)
2011 Spanish protests: Protesters blockade parliament buildings in Barcelona, in a protest simultaneous with events in Greece, to express their annoyance with government cuts after camping outside overnight. The Presidents of Catalan Government and Parliament avoid the protesters by flying in on helicopters. (BBC)
Bank of Ireland chairman Pat Molloy and chief executive Richie Boucher, gathered for a meeting at University College Dublin (UCD), are attacked with eggs amid calls to have them all "taken out and bloody shot". (The Guardian) (The Irish Times) (The Wall Street Journal) (RTÉ) (BBC)
2011 Libyan civil war:
- Rebels make fresh gains against forces of Muammar Gaddafi in the east and west of the country. (Al Jazeera)
- A group of U.S. lawmakers files a lawsuit against President Barack Obama over U.S. military operations in Libya. (Politico) (CNN)
2011 Yemeni uprising:
- The Associated Press claims that the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency is building an airbase in the Persian Gulf to target terrorists in the event of a terrorist element taking control of Yemen. (AP via Richmond Times-Dispatch)
- Islamic militants seize parts of the southern city of Houta in Lahij province in a surprise dawn raid. (AP via USA Today)
Admiral Kim Sung-chan, the head of the Republic of Korea Navy, vows a stronger response to aggression from North Korea. (Yonhap News)

Arts and culture

Colum McCann wins the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, the world's richest literary award, for his novel Let the Great World Spin. (The Irish Times) (BBC)
Mario Vargas Llosa, last year's recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature, speaks out against authoritarian governments and calls on all citizens to participate in political life while addressing students at Shanghai International Studies University. (BBC)
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences changes the rules regarding the Academy Award for Best Picture at the 84th Academy Awards, allowing anywhere from five to ten nominees, provided that each receives a minimum of 5% of the nominating votes. (Variety)
Dexter Isaac, a convicted killer, claims responsibility for an attempted assassination of rapper Tupac Shakur in 1994. (New York Post)

Business and economy

Canada Post closes down operations after a campaign of rolling strikes by the Canadian Union of Postal Workers. (CBC)
TerreStar Networks, a mobile-communications company that has been in bankruptcy since October 2010, picks Dish Network as the stalking horse bidder for an upcoming auction. (The Wall Street Journal)
British public-owned bank Northern Rock is to be privatised by the coalition government. (BBC)

Disasters

New South Wales floods:
- Thousands of people living on the Mid North Coast of the Australian state of New South Wales face a flooding risk, with the town of Kempsey under particular threat and with ten thousand people isolated. (ABC News Australia) (Daily Telegraph)
- One man dies near the town of Taree, after a tree hits his car. (ABC News)
2011 Puyehue eruption:
- Australian airlines QANTAS and Virgin Australia suspends flights to Perth, Western Australia, due to ash from the eruption in Chile, with flights to Tasmania and New Zealand also cancelled. (BBC News) (NineMSN)
- Flights remain canceled in Argentina and Uruguay. (AFP via Google News)

International relations

The Yonhap news agency reports that nine North Koreans have defected to South Korea across the Yellow Sea. (Yonhap)
Liberia suspends diplomatic ties with Libya, after United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called on countries to sever ties with Libya. (Liberianobserver)

Law and crime

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation reports that the son of the acting Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea Sam Abal has been arrested on murder charges. (AP via Google News)

Politics and elections

The General Assembly of the U.S. state of North Carolina votes on a motion to veto override by the Governor Bev Perdue of the state budget. (News and Observer)
Members of the United Kingdom's Public and Commercial Services Union agree to join teachers and lecturers in strike action planned for 30 June. (BBC)

Science

The first lunar eclipse of the year occurs with it being the first central lunar eclipse since 1990. (The Australian)

Sport

The Caribbean Football Union accuses FIFA whisteblower Chuck Blazer of "slander" after making allegations of corruption against members of the FIFA committee. (Sky News)
2011 Stanley Cup Finals/2011 Vancouver Riot
- The Boston Bruins defeat the Vancouver Canucks 4-0 in Game 7 to win the Stanley Cup Finals in the North American National Hockey League. (National Post) (New York Times) (Boston Globe)
- Canuck fans riot in Vancouver following the loss. (CTV British Columbia)
- The Vancouver Police Department declares parts of Vancouver as an "illegal assembly" area and use tear gas to get the crowds to disperse as the riot continues. (The Province) (Reuters via ABC News Online)
- "Anarchist" rioters smash windows, loot stores and burn vehicles, while some Canucks fans bring garbage bags to clean up the streets following the destruction; at least nine police officers and 150 residents are injured, including stabbing victims. (The Globe and Mail) (The Vancouver Sun) (CP24)