Portal:Current events/2012 October 19
October 19, 2012 (Friday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- 2011–2012 conflict in Lebanon:
- A car bomb explodes at Sassine Square in the Lebanese capital of Beirut, killing at least eight people and wounding up to 78 others. (BBC)
- Wissam al-Hassan, head of Saad al-Hariri's security team, is killed in the blast. Al Hassan was known for being the prime investigator in the Michel Samaha case, where Michel Samaha was caught smuggling bombs into Lebanon upon orders from the Syrian government to kill Lebanese officials between 2005 and 2008, starting with the murder of Rafik al-Hariri.(Al Jazeera)
- The March 14th Alliance blames Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and the Syrian government for the attack. (Al Arabiya)
- 2011–present Libyan factional fighting: The Libyan Army launches a new full-scale assault against the town of Bani Walid, accusing it of being controlled by supporters of the late Muammar Gaddafi. (The Guardian)
Arts and culture
- Lebanese Tourism Minister Faddy Abboud says an episode of the popular U.S. TV series Homeland misrepresented Beirut and is set to pursue legal action against its makers due to concerns over damage to image and tourism. (BBC)
- Big Tex, a 52-foot statue and cultural icon in Dallas, Texas, is destroyed by fire during the final weekend of the 2012 State Fair of Texas. (CBS News)
Disasters and accidents
- A tour bus went off the highway and crashed in northwest Arizona late Friday at around 8:00 PM PDT, killing the bus driver (who was believed to have suffered a medical incident), and leaving at least four of the passengers with serious injuries. About 45 other passengers were hurt less seriously, and some were not hospitalized. The bus was northbound on Highway 93 near Willow Beach, Arizona and the Nevada state line, southeast of Las Vegas. (NBC)
Law and crime
- Jimmy Savile sexual abuse scandal:
- Scotland Yard launches a "formal criminal investigation" into Savile after 200 potential sexual abuse victims come forward. (BBC)
- The BBC schedules a special edition of Panorama for October 22 as it attempts to limit the damage done by allegations of sexual abuse by Jimmy Savile during his years with the broadcaster. (The Daily Telegraph)
- Taxicab driver Christopher Halliwell is sentenced to life imprisonment for murdering Sian O'Callaghan who went missing after visiting a nightclub in Swindon in March last year. (BBC)
- The remains of a missing young Oregon woman, Whitney Heichel, 21, a Starbucks barista from the Portland, Oregon suburb of Gresham, Oregon, are found on Larch Mountain, Multnomah County, Oregon; after DNA testing and fingerprint analysis, Gresham Police arrested a neighbor who lived nearby in her Gresham apartment complex, Jonathan Holt, 24, on suspicion of aggravated first-degree murder. (NBC)
- A woman is killed and 12 other people injured in a series of hit and run incidents in Cardiff, south Wales. A 31-year-old van driver is arrested by police. (BBC) (Western Mail) (The Guardian)
Politics and elections
- Respect MP George Galloway writes to British home secretary Theresa May and makes a complaint to the police about his secretary Aisha Ali-Khan, claiming that she was working as an "agent" for a Metropolitan police counterterrorism officer who was running a "dirty tricks" campaign against him. (The Guardian)
- Chief Whip of the British Conservative Party Andrew Mitchell resigns over remarks he made to police officers in Downing Street, and following a lengthy political row over the issue. (BBC)