Portal:Current events/2012 March 5

March 5, 2012 (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Refugees fleeing Homs in Syria accuse security forces of committing atrocities there. (BBC)
At least 2 people are killed and 6 injured after a shooting in a hair salon in Bucharest, Romania. (Fox News)
Gunmen disguised as police kill 27 members of Iraq's security forces in the town of Haditha. (Reuters)
The death toll in a battle between the Yemeni Army and Al-Qaeda on the outskirts of Zinjibar yesterday rises to over 130. (AFP via Google News) (Al Jazeera)
A soldier from Burundi is killed in an explosion in northern Mogadishu, Somalia. (IOL)

Arts and culture

The Lorax brings in US$70.7M during its opening weekend, the highest opener of 2012, and fifth highest total for an animated film ever. (CBS News)

Disasters and accidents

South East Queensland is hit by severe weather with one person dead so far. (Courier Mail)
The death toll from Tropical Storm Irina in Madagascar is estimated at 65. (AFP via Google News)
Archbishop Anatole Milandou of Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo, reports that the church of St. Louis des Francais was completely leveled by a series of blasts that came from a nearby military base on Sunday morning, March 4. (Catholic World News)

International relations

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Barack Obama meet at the White House. (BBC)
Felipe Calderón, the President of Mexico, asks Joe Biden, the vice-President of the United States, for assistance in stopping the flow of money and weapons into Mexico. (AP via The Guardian)
The Sea Shepherd anti-whaling organisation claims to have closed down Japan's main whaling ship, the Nisshin Maru, deep inside the Southern Ocean off the Antarctic coast. (WA Today)

Law and crime

The United States files an application in New Zealand to extradite Kim Dotcom and three of his associates in MegaUpload to face charges of breaching copyright. (New Zealand Herald)
The trial of former Prime Minister of Iceland Geir Haarde on charges of negligence in relation to the financial crisis begins in Reykjavík. (BBC)

Politics

Russian election aftermath:
- International observers from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe find that the Russian presidential election was skewed in favour of Vladimir Putin. (AFP via The Australian)
- Moscow Police arrest dozens of protesters against the conduct of the election including prominent members of opposition parties Sergei Udaltsov, Ilya Yashin and Alexei Navalny. (Radio Free Europe) (RIA Novosti)

Science and health

A study finds a correlation between snoring as a toddler and behavior problems later in childhood. (BBC)
Merck announces that a new drug, ragweed AIT, significantly reduced ragweed allergy symptoms in a Phase III clinical trial. (Fox Business)

Technology