Portal:Current events/October 2003

These are entries which cover current events that may have historical significance.

Ongoing events: Space Shuttle Columbia disaster - Israeli-Palestinian conflict - U.S. plan to invade Iraq - War on Terrorism - North Korea nuclear weapons program - Loyalist Feud

February 13, 2003

The discovery of a Samoud 2 ballistic missile with a range of over 150 km in Iraq is described by the British government as a breach of UN Security Council Resolution 1441, which calls on Iraq to disclose its entire arsenal of weapons of mass destruction and medium and long-range missiles.

February 12, 2003

The British government deploys troops around Heathrow airport after reports that al-Qaeda agents may have smuggled surface-to-air missiles into Britain.
An audio tape attributed to Osama bin Laden, urging Muslims to fight the United States, is released by al-Jazeera television.

February 11, 2003

The 2002 nominees for the Academy Award (Oscar) were announced to the public.

February 10, 2003

France and Belgium broke the NATO procedure of silent approval concerning the timing of protective measures for Turkey in case of a possible war with Iraq. Germany said it supports this veto. The procedure was put into operation on February 6 by secretary general George Robertson. In response Turkey called upon Article 4 of the NATO Treaty, which stipulates that member states must deliberate when asked to do so by another member state if it feels threatened.
Muslims celebrate the Islamic festival of Eid al-Adha today. See also Hajj.

February 8, 2003

Sections of a 'dossier' issued by the UK government, which purported to present the latest British intelligence about Iraq, and which had been cited by Tony Blair and Colin Powell as evidence for the need for war, were criticized as plagiarisms. They had been copied without permission from a number of sources including Jane's Intelligence Review and a 12-year-old doctoral thesis of a Californian student that had been published in the US journal Middle East Review of International Affairs. Some sentences were copied word-for-word, and spelling mistakes had been reproduced from the original articles. Downing Street responded by saying that the government had never claimed exclusive authorship and that the information was accurate.

February 7, 2003

The Center for Public Interest, a United States nonprofit watchdog group, obtained a leaked draft version of John Ashcroft's proposed Domestic Security Enhancement Act of 2003, also known as "the Patriot Act II". If enacted, the legislation would grant the United States government unprecedented secret internal surveillance powers and sharply curtail judicial review of such surveillance,
The chief United Nations arms inspector Hans Blix said Iraq appeared to be making fresh efforts to cooperate with U.N. teams hunting weapons of mass destruction, as Washington said the "momentum is building" for war with Iraq.
The United States said it was ready for any contingency after North Korea issued threats of pre-emptive attack and suggested it was poised to restart an atomic reactor central to its suspected drive for nuclear arms.
Israeli police said they had found a suicide bomber's explosives belt hidden in a mosque in Israel, and said it was the first such discovery since the Palestinian uprising began more than two years ago.
President George W. Bush has ordered the government to draw up guidelines for cyber-attacks against enemy computer networks, according to a Washington Post report. The order is known as National Security Presidential Directive 16.
An oil tanker carrying 35,000 tons of fuel oil ran aground off Denmark but no immediate spill was reported in the area noted for its wildlife, a Danish Royal Navy spokesman said.
Pakistan's most feared Islamic militant group, branded by Washington last week a foreign terrorist group, has been severely weakened by a crackdown on extremism, intelligence officials claimed.
Senior citizens groups began a call for a boycott of British-owned pharmaceuticals company GlaxoSmith Kline, the largest in the world, after the company announced that it would no longer sell drugs to Canadian companies that sell drugs at steep discounts to Americans over the Internet. The boycott would include such brands as Tums antacid, Aquafresh toothpaste, Contac cold remedy, Paxil and Flonase.
The last game is completed in the FIDE Man vs Machine World Chess Championship, in which Garry Kasparov, the highest rated human chess master, competed against the world champion computer program, Deep Junior. The six game match was played to a 3-3 draw.

February 6, 2003

In the United Kingdom, seven more arrests have been made under the Terrorism Act 2000 in raids in the cities of Edinburgh, Glasgow, London and Manchester.

February 5, 2003

At the United Nations US Secretary of State Colin Powell presents the US government's case against the Saddam Hussein government of Iraq, as part of the diplomatic side of the U.S. plan to invade Iraq. The presentation includes tape recordings, satellite photographs and other intelligence data, and aims to prove WMD production, evasion of weapons inspections and a link to Al-Qaida.
The International Court of Justice orders the United States to take "all measures necessary" to prevent the execution of three Mexican nationals, pending its final judgment [1]
Congressman Howard Coble, of North Carolina, chairman of the House committee overseeing homeland security, said that the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II was justified, and that it had been done for "their own safety." He was roundly criticized by Asian American members of Congress and spokespeople for Asian American organizations.

February 4, 2003

Federal Republic of Yugoslavia renamed to Serbia and Montenegro with a new constitution converting the federal republic to a "loose union".
Sheikh Abu Hamza al-Masri has been removed from his position as an agent of Finsbury Park mosque. BBC News Story
United Kingdom parliament: MPs in the House of Commons have voted to reject all seven options presented for the reform of the House of Lords.

February 3, 2003

Record producer Phil Spector has been arrested in relation to an investigation into the fatal shooting of a 40-year-old woman in Los Angeles. Press reports identify the woman as the actress Lana Clarkson.
Radical Muslim cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri claims Space Shuttle Columbia disaster is a sign from God. He says "It is a punishment from God. Muslims see it that way. It is a trinity of evil because it carried Americans, an Israeli and a Hindu, a trinity of evil against Islam." al-Masri's remarks are widely denounced by many other Muslim clerics. Reported in a BBC News Article: Muslim cleric's shuttle outburst attacked.

February 2, 2003

The term of Czech Republic President Václav Havel ends without an elected successor to fill the position.

February 1, 2003

Space Shuttle Columbia disaster: The Space Shuttle Columbia broke apart and disintegrated over Texas as it embarked on its final approach to a landing after its 28th space mission. All seven crew members are lost.
A crowded passenger train and a freight train collided head on and burst into flames in northwestern Zimbabwe, killing 40 people and injuring about 60. Flames were still burning 14 hours after the collision.

January 29, 2003

A false rumor that Thai actress Suvanant Kongying had told a reporter that the temple ruins at Angkor really belong to Thailand led to a riot in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, causing the destruction of the Thai Embassy and dozens of Thai-owned businesses, hotels and factories.

Past events:

News pages

External links to news pages that can be used to gather new topics for the above list:

News Search Engines: http://www.HavenWorks.com/news/search
Google News
Google: News and Resources
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/headlines/ts/
http://news.bbc.co.uk - Coverage split in to science/health etc... for UK and international news
http://www.cnn.com.
News Sources
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)
The Globe and Mail
Fatal Network