Portal:Current events/2013 February 13

February 13, 2013 (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian civil war:
- Rebels clash with the Syrian military at an army base protecting Aleppo's international airport. The opposition claims that 40 Syrian soldiers were killed in the fighting, as large parts of the base are overrun. (AP via USA Today)
South Thailand insurgency:
- 16 Muslim insurgents are killed during an attack on a military base in the Thai province of Narathiwat. (Reuters)
War in Afghanistan (2001–2021):
- Afghan officials say that a NATO airstrike in the Kunar Province of Afghanistan kills 10 civilians and injures more including 3 children. (BBC)

Business and economy

Iranian officials say that they are beginning to install advanced centrifuges in their main uranium enrichment plant which they say will help create better fuel. (Fox News)
Apple Inc. is denied their request to sell their phones under the name "iPhone" in Brazil after regulators voted in favor of IGB Electronica who won the rights to use the name in 2008. (Bloomberg)

Disasters and accidents

South Airlines Flight 8971: An Antonov An-24 aircraft carrying 44 passengers and 8 crew members crash lands near the Eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk, killing 4 people on board and injuring 8 others. (RIA Novosti)
A Tibetan monk sets himself on fire near Boudhanath in Nepal in protest of the Chinese occupation of Tibet. (The Indian Express)

Health and environment

The European Union urges member states to conduct random tests to tackle an ongoing horse meat contamination scandal. Simon Coveney, Ireland's Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, says that the scandal is a "Europe-wide issue that needs a Europe-wide solution". (BBC)

International relations

Law and crime

Former President of the Maldives Mohamed Nasheed takes refuge in the Indian embassy in the city of Malé, Maldives saying that his trial for political abuse and corruption is a "politically motivated sham". (Channel News Asia)
A lawyer representing Barry Bonds appeals his obstruction of justice charge to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. (Los Angeles Times)
After a 12-mile (19 km) chase, a man was caught for shooting a woman and her stepfather near a South Carolina courthouse. (Fox News)
Israel confirms that in 2010 it secretly imprisoned an Australian–Israeli man, known as Prisoner X, and that he committed suicide in custody. (BBC)

Politics and elections

The U.S. administration's nominee to become next Treasury Secretary, Jack Lew, testifies before the financial committee of the United States Senate at the start of his confirmation hearing. (United States Senate Finance Committee)

Sport