Portal:Current events/2013 May 17
May 17, 2013 (Friday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Iraqi insurgency (post-U.S. withdrawal):
- A string of bombings, most of them in Sunni areas of Iraq, kill at least 90 people and injured more than 200 others. (Times of India)
- War in North-West Pakistan:
- Two bombs explode near two separate mosques in the Malakand District of Pakistan, killing 15 people and wounding at least 100 others. (Dawn)
Business and economy
- The United States government paves the way for expanded exportation of natural gas by approving a US$10 billion facility in Texas. (Reuters)
Disasters and accidents
- Ottawa experiences a 5.2 magnitude earthquake. (CTV)
- A US Navy Seal is killed and 7 others are injured as their Humvee rolls over during a training exercise. (Reuters)
- Two Metro-North commuter trains collide near Bridgeport, Connecticut injuring at least 72 people and resulting in the cancellation of Amtrak services between New York City and Boston. (USA Today)(CNN)
Politics and elections
- Jorge Rafael Videla, who served as President of Argentina after the 1976 Argentine coup d'état, dies at the age of 87 in a jail of Marcos Paz, Buenos Aires. (USA Today)
Law and crime
- A million dollars worth of jewelry meant for use by celebrities at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival is stolen from a Novotel hotel room in Cannes. (BBC)
- An anti-homophobia march in the Georgian capital Tbilisi results in a riot with dozens of people injured as opponents attack the march. (Institute for War and Peace Reporting)
Science and technology
- NASA records the brightest lunar meteor impact yet observed. (National Geographic)
- Mild electric shock is shown to provide lasting improvement to mathematical ability. (Nature)
Sports
- In golf, former U.S. Open winner and longtime TV analyst Ken Venturi dies at age 82. (ABC News)