Portal:Current events/2012 March 2

March 2, 2012 (Friday)

Armed conflict and attacks

The Red Cross is denied access to the Baba Amr district of Homs following its capture by the Syrian Army despite having been granted permission earlier to provide relief to 4,000 residents. (Sky News) (The New York Times)
At least 33 people die in a clash between the Pakistan Army and militants in Tirah Valley in the Bara area of Khyber. (Reuters)
The Russian Army kills two militants in the village of Mutsalaul in Dagestan's Khasavyurt district. (RIA Novosti)
The US space agency NASA claims that it was hacked 13 times last year compromising security. (New York Times)
The Washington Post reports that a US military report into the accidental burning of Qurans at Bagram airfield in Afghanistan that led to widespread protests has found that five US service personnel were involved. (Washington Post)

Business and economy

25 of the 27 members of the European Union sign a new "fiscal compact", the exceptions being the United Kingdom and the Czech Republic. (BBC)
Nestlé and Danone are said to be bidding for the infant nutrition business that Pfizer is about to put up for sale. (Reuters)
Moody's Investor Services cuts Greece's credit rating to C claiming that there is a still a significant risk of default despite the Eurozone bailout. (BBC)

Disasters

Anglican Church officials in Christchurch, New Zealand, announce that the 131-year-old landmark ChristChurch Cathedral will need to be demolished, having suffered severe damage from the 2011 Christchurch earthquake and its aftershocks. (The Press Christchurch)
Australian floods:
- Residents in the New South Wales town of Bega evacuate as the Australian flood crisis continues to worsen. (Bloomberg)
- Warragamba Dam, Sydney's main dam, reaches its capacity, leading to the evacuation of residents in southwestern Sydney and flooding of major roads at Windsor and Richmond. (News Limited)
Tornado outbreak of March 2–3, 2012
- Tornados hit the midwestern and southern United States two days after the 2012 Leap Day tornado outbreak. (BBC) (MSNBC) (USA Today)
- Widespread damage is reported in southern Indiana with the towns of Marysville, Indiana and Henryville, Indiana worst affected. (USA Today) (CNN) (The New York Times)
- Steve Beshear, the Governor of Kentucky, declares a state of emergency due to widespread damage. (Courier-Journal) (AP via Google)
- At least 27 people are killed in the tornado outbreaks, including 15 from Indiana and 11 from Kentucky. (CNN)
Around 30 people are injured and six of them taken to hospital when a stand collapses in Ericsson Globe Arena in Stockholm, Sweden, during a concert with Avicii. (Aftonbladet)

Law and crime

The Indian Intelligence Bureau launches an inquiry into whether the office of Defence Minister A. K. Antony had been bugged. (NDTV)
The International Criminal Court issues an arrest warrant for Abdelrahim Mohamed Hussein, Sudan's Defence Minister, on war crimes charges in connection to Darfur. (Al Jazeera)
BP and plaintiffs reach an agreement over compensation for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. (AP via ABC News America)

Politics and elections

Iranian elections:
- Voters in Iran head to the polls to elect Members of the Parliament. (PressTv)
- Iranian Interior Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar says that the results will be announced in less than 72 hours. (Al Jazeera)
The Prime Minister of Australia Julia Gillard announces a Cabinet reshuffle with Bob Carr, a former Premier of New South Wales, appointed as Minister for Foreign Affairs to replace Kevin Rudd. (Sydney Morning Herald)
Thousands of people in south-eastern Nigeria attend the funeral of former Biafran secessionist leader Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu who died in London last year. (BBC)
Libyans protest outside a courthouse building in Benghazi calling for it to reopen rather than be used as a militia headquarters. (Reuters)

Science and health

Meta-analysis of 42 previous studies concludes chocolate may be good for the heart. (Reuters)

Sport