Portal:Current events/2019 October 15
< Portal:Current events
October 15, 2019 (Tuesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Syrian Civil War, 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria
- The Russian Ministry of Defence says the Syrian Army has gained control over Manbij and the surrounding area, adding, "Cooperation with the Turkish side has been arranged". The U.S. military spokesperson for Operation Inherent Resolve announces the United States has withdrawn their forces from Manbij. (TASS) (Military Times)
Business and economy
- The Turkish lira rises after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened 50% steel tariffs and a halt to trade negotiations in retaliation for the Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria. Analysts describe the sanctions as "relatively light" and "window dressing". (CNBC)
- Wells Fargo, the fourth-largest bank in the United States, misses its third quarter profit estimates due to interest rate declines and the shrinkage of its mortgage lending business. (Reuters)
Disasters and accidents
- The number of people confirmed killed in central and eastern Japan by Typhoon Hagibis rises to 66, with 15 people still missing and more than 200 injured. (Reuters)
- A chemical plant used to manufacture Bakelite explodes in Guangxi, China; at least four are killed and six more are injured. (The News and Observer)
- A seven-storey apartment block collapses in Fortaleza, Brazil. One person is confirmed dead with seven more rescued; a further ten people are believed to be trapped in the wreckage. (BBC News)
- An irregular gas company explodes and kills four people in Boa Vista, Brazil. (MBS)
- A 4.5 magnitude earthquake, with a preliminary depth of 14.0 kilometers (8.7 miles), shakes the San Francisco Bay area. Residents reported minor damage. (USA Today) (U.S. Geological Survey)
- At least one person is killed and 70 people hospitalized as more than 100 wildfires break out across Lebanon for the second day. The Chouf and Matn regions are especially hit hard. The Lebanese Civil Defense labels it the worst firestorm in decades. (Al Jazeera)
Law and crime
- Climate activists continue Extinction Rebellion protests at the transport ministry in central London after the Metropolitan Police Service yesterday banned Extinction Rebellion protests in London, United Kingdom. Following the ban, police cleared a protester camp occupying Trafalgar Square. Almost 1,500 arrests have been made since last week. (BBC News) (Reuters)
- Notre-Dame de Paris bombing attempt
- A court in France sentences five women to prison terms for their roles in the failed bombing. A Syrian man, thought to have been killed in Iraq in 2017, is sentenced to life in absentia. (BBC News)
- Papua New Guinea police issue an arrest warrant for former Prime Minister Peter O'Neill for corruption. (RNZ)
- Trial of Catalonia independence leaders, 2019 Catalan Protests
- After a second day of mobilizations in Catalonia after the sentence of the independence leaders with cutroads and railways cuts, violent clashes take place in Tarragona, Barcelona, Girona, Sabadell and Lleida. (RTVE)
- The Government of Spain issues a statement acknowledging that there is "widespread and coordinated violence in Catalonia" and that its objective is "to guarantee security and coexistence [...] following its commitment of firmness, proportionality and unity". (la Sexta)
- 2019 Río Piedras shooting
- Five men and a woman are killed in a mass shooting Monday night at the Río Piedras housing project in San Juan, Puerto Rico. A group of people with large guns showed up before the shooting, according to the police commissioner. Sunday, two people were killed in Guaynabo in the northern section of the San Juan metropolitan area. Governor Wanda Vázquez Garced convened an emergency meeting of her security team Tuesday. (CNN via MSN.com) (AP via The Washington Post)
Politics and elections
- 2019 Mozambican general election
- Voters in Mozambique go to the polls to elect both their president and the members of the legislature. (DW)
- Migrant rescue ship MV Ocean Viking is granted permission to dock by Italy and heads to Taranto, carrying 176 migrants rescued at sea off the Libyan coast on Sunday. (Reuters)