Portal:Current events/2011 October 5

October 5, 2011 (Wednesday)

Armed conflict and attacks

Arab Spring:
- At least three people are killed and 22 injured after Yemeni Army troops shell opposition forces in the southern province of Taiz. (Xinhua)
- In eastern Saudi Arabia near the Persian Gulf, police open fire on protesters as public unrest intensifies. (The Independent)

Business and economy

NYSE Euronext and Deutsche Boerse AG, two exchange operating concerns planning a merger, receive a statement of objections to that merger from the European Union's business regulators. (NYSE Euronext)
Various American labor unions, including the CWA and the ATU, join the Occupy Wall Street demonstrations in New York City. (Reuters)
Steve Jobs, the co-founder of Apple Inc., dies of pancreatic cancer at the age of 56. (Apple Statement) (Forbes)

Disasters

In Thailand, more than 200 people are killed by floods during a severe monsoon season, with 58 of the country's 77 provinces affected. (ABC News Australia)
A container ship runs aground on a reef off the coast of Tauranga, New Zealand, causing a large oil spill into the Bay of Plenty and affecting wildlife. (Television New Zealand)

Law and crime

In the Mekong River massacre, two Chinese cargo boats are hijacked and 13 crew members murdered in the Golden Triangle region of Southeast Asia. (BBC)
German prosecutors reopen hundreds of investigations into Nazi concentration camp guards, following the successful prosecution of retired U.S. autoworker John Demjanjuk for his role at the Sobibor extermination camp in Poland during World War II. (AP via ABC News America)
Three people are killed in a workplace shooting in Cupertino, California. (Mercury Times)

Politics and elections

A strike by Greek public sector workers leads to the closure of transport services, schools and most public hospitals, with thousands of people protesting against government austerity measures in Athens. (Reuters)
Luis Fortuño, the Governor of the US Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, submits a plan for a two-part referendum to change the islands's status. (AP via Atlanta Journal Constitution)
The Governor of Alabama, Robert J. Bentley, orders flags on state government buildings to fly at half-mast following the death of civil rights leader Fred Shuttlesworth. (Birmingham News)
The former Governor of Alaska Sarah Palin announces that she will not put her name forward as a Republican candidate for the 2012 presidential election. (BBC)

Science