Portal:Current events

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Syrian civil war
  • Northwestern Syria offensive
    • Battle of Aleppo
      • Turkish-backed militants say that they captured Ramouseh, As-Safira, and Khanasir in Aleppo Governorate, Syria. (Al Jazeera Mubasher) (SOHR)
    • Syrian National Army says that they captured Tell Rifaat and Menagh Air Base. (Al Jazeera Mubasher)

Disasters and accidents

• Tropical Cyclone Fengal kills 19 people in India and Sri Lanka. (Reuters)

International relations

• Ukraine–United States relations
  • Outgoing U.S National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan says that the United States will not return to Ukraine the nuclear weapons they dismantled. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

• 2024 Romanian parliamentary election
  • Romanians vote to elect the 330 seats of the Chamber of Deputies and the 136 seats of the Senate. (RFE/RL)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Syrian civil war
  • Northwestern Syria offensive
    • Battle of Aleppo
      • Pro-government forces close Aleppo International Airport and major roads in Aleppo, Syria, as rebels continue to advance into the city. The airport is later captured by the rebels. (The Telegraph) (Reuters)
      • Rebels capture the Citadel of Aleppo and the University of Aleppo as they continue to advance through the city. (New Arab)
      • Rebel tanks reach the main Saadallah al-Jabiri Square in Aleppo's city centre with the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reporting that a majority of the city is now under the control of rebel forces. (BBC News)
      • The Syrian Army announces a total withdrawal from Aleppo, formally acknowledging the fall of the city to rebel forces, and saying that its troops will regroup and launch a counter-offensive to retake the city. (Reuters)
      • A Russian airstrike hits a busy roundabout in Aleppo, killing at least 16 people and injuring 20 others, the first time that Russian warplanes have targeted the city since 2016. (SOHR)
    • Operation Dawn of Freedom
      • The Turkish-backed Syrian National Army launches an offensive in northern Aleppo Governorate, capturing the town of Tadef. (Caliber)
    • A Syrian rebel coalition declares full control of Idlib Governorate after capturing the towns of Maarat al-Numan and Khan Shaykhun. (Al Arabiya)
    • Rebel forces led by Tahrir al-Sham capture the Abu al-Duhur Air Base in Idlib Governorate following the withdrawal of the Syrian Armed Forces. (Sky News Arabia) (Caliber)
    • The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) take control of the Shiite-majority towns of Nubbul and Al-Zahraa in Aleppo Governorate after Syrian government forces withdraw from the towns. (Kurdistan 24)
    • Rebel forces capture the towns of Morek, Kafr Zita, Qalaat al-Madiq, and Al-Lataminah in Hama Governorate. (Lbc)
    • Rebel forces advance within 20 kilometres (12 mi) of the regional capital Hama with heavy clashes underway on the M5 Motorway. Pro-government forces reportedly retreat from the city and Hama Air Base toward Homs Governorate. (Anadolu Ajansi) (SOHR)
    • SDF forces clash with the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army near Tell Abyad, Raqqa Governorate and in Manbij District, Aleppo Governorate, as pro-government forces withdraw from the region, leaving a power vacuum. (SOHR)
    • Local forces in Talbiseh, northern Homs Governorate, attack Syrian Army convoys withdrawing towards Homs, seizing control of the town's checkpoint and burning it following pro-government forces withdrawal. (SOHR)
  • Southern Syria offensive
    • South Syrian rebel groups announce a new offensive on Daraa Governorate and Suwayda Governorate with the goal of implementing a pincer movement on Damascus. (Al-Araby)
• Israel–Hamas war
  • Israel–Hamas war hostage crisis
    • Hamas releases a propaganda video showing Israeli American hostage Edan Alexander. (CBS News)
  • An Israeli airstrike on a car in the Gaza Strip kills five people, including employees of World Central Kitchen. (AP)
• Israel–Hezbollah conflict
  • Two people are killed and six others are injured in three airstrikes by Israel in southern Lebanon that occurred despite the ceasefire with Hezbollah. (Al Jazeera)

Business and economy

• Vietnam approves a US$67 billion 1,541 kilometres (958 mi) high speed rail line from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City, which will be an updated version of the North–South express railway proposal. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• At least 27 people are killed and more than 100 others are missing when a boat capsizes in the Niger River in Kogi State, Nigeria. (Al Jazeera)

Law and crime

• Ibar-Lepenac attack
  • Police arrest eight people linked to an explosion on a canal near Zubin Potok, Mitrovica District, Kosovo, that supplies water to the country's two main power plants. The Kosovar government blames Serbia for the "terrorist" acts, which Serbia denies. (Al Jazeera) (Euronews) (Le Monde)

Politics and elections

• 2024 Georgian post-election protests
  • More than 100 demonstrators are arrested in Tbilisi, Georgia, while protesting against Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze's decision to temporarily suspend the country's accession plans to the European Union to 2028. (ABC News)
• 2024 Icelandic parliamentary election
  • Citizens of Iceland vote in a snap election to elect the 63 members of the Althing national parliament. (Al Jazeera)

Sports

• 2024 Copa Libertadores
  • In association football, Botafogo win their first Copa Libertadores title after defeating Atlético Mineiro 3–1 in an all-Brazilian final at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires, Argentina. (AP)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Syrian civil war
  • Northwestern Syria offensive
    • Battle of Aleppo
      • Anti-Assad forces led by Tahrir al-Sham enter the city of Aleppo, Syria, for the first time since 2016 with heavy urban fighting reportedly underway in the western neighbourhoods of the city. A rebel coalition spokesman confirms that an operation to capture Aleppo has officially begun. (CNN) (The New Arab)
      • Rebel forces reach the city centre of Aleppo after overrunning multiple neighbourhoods, including New Aleppo. (Anadolu Agency) (AP)
      • Syrian state media reports that four people are killed when rebel forces shell the University of Aleppo. (Reuters)
    • Rebel forces capture the towns of Al-Hadher, Khan Tuman and Al-Eiss in Aleppo Governorate. (SOHR)
    • Rebel forces capture the city of Saraqib in Idlib Governorate, which has been held by government forces since 2020. Pro-government forces withdraw from the city after two days of clashes. (ABC News) (Anadolu Ajansi)
• Russo-Ukrainian War
  • Russian invasion of Ukraine, Ukraine–NATO relations
    • Peace negotiations in the Russian invasion of Ukraine
      • Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy says that his country is ready to agree to a ceasefire if NATO protects parts of Ukraine. (Kyiv Post)
• Sudanese civil war
  • Battle of Khartoum
    • It is reported that 12 children have died this month in Khartoum, Sudan, due to city-wide malnutrition. (Sudan Tribune)

Disasters and accidents

• 2024–2025 floods in Southeast Asia and South Asia
  • At least three people are killed and more than 84,000 people are displaced by flooding in Malaysia, primarily in Kelantan. (AP)
• 2024–25 Australian region cyclone season
  • The death toll from the floods and landslides in North Sumatra, Indonesia, increases to 31, with ten others injured, and dozens of others missing. (DW)
• Six people are killed and eight others are injured after a launching gantry and precast concrete segments collapsed onto the Rama II Road at a construction site of the Ekkachai–Ban Phaeo Intercity Motorway [th] in Samut Sakhon, Thailand. (Bangkok Post)

Politics and elections

• 2024 Irish general election
  • Citizens of Ireland vote in a snap election to elect the 174 members of the 34th Dáil Éireann. (DW)
• The United Kingdom House of Commons votes 330–275 to pass the second reading of the Terminally Ill Adults Bill, marking the first time the Parliament has voted in favour of assisted dying. The bill will now need to pass several more stages before becoming law. (The Guardian)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Russian invasion of Ukraine
  • Eastern front of the Russian invasion of Ukraine
    • The Russian Defence Ministry claims that Russian forces have taken the village of Nova Illinka in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. (Reuters)
  • Russian strikes against Ukrainian infrastructure, Ukrainian energy crisis
    • Russia launches a massive missile and drone attack on civilian and critical infrastructure in Ukraine, injuring at least five people and causing blackouts for more than a million households. (CNN)
• Syrian civil war
  • Northwestern Syria offensive
    • More than 130 Syrian Army soldiers are killed and dozens of others are captured as rebel forces led by Tahrir al-Sham advance to within 10 kilometres of Aleppo, Syria. (Reuters)
    • Rebel forces cut off the strategic M5 Motorway which connects Aleppo to Damascus and also capture the district of Khan al-Asal near Aleppo. (i24 News) (The Guardian)
    • An Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps brigadier is killed in a shootout in Aleppo. (Rudaw)
    • Russian and Syrian warplanes strike rebel-held positions across Idlib Governorate. Separately, at least 17 people are killed in airstrikes on the towns of Atarib and Darat Izza in Aleppo Governorate. (Reuters) (SOHR)
• Hezbollah–Israel conflict
  • 2024 Israel–Lebanon ceasefire agreement
    • Israel and Hezbollah accuse each other of violating ceasefire terms that came into action the prior day, following an Israeli Air Force airstrike on a Hezbollah missile storage facility and the Israeli Defense Forces opening fire on suspected combatants moving into southern Lebanon. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• 2024–25 Australian region cyclone season
  • Landslides and flash floods caused by Cyclone Robyn kill at least 27 people and injure dozens of others in North Sumatra, Indonesia. (Reuters)
• 2024 North Indian Ocean cyclone season
  • At least twelve people, including four children, are killed and more than 250,000 people are evacuated due to flooding and landslides caused by Deep Depression BOB 08 in Sri Lanka. (DW)
• 2024 South Korean snowstorm
  • At least six people are killed in traffic accidents and more than 140 flights are canceled in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea, due to a winter storm in the country, marking the third heaviest snowfall in Seoul since 1907. (AP) (Yonhap) (Newsweek)
• 2024 Ugandan landslides
  • Fifteen people are killed and 113 others are missing in landslides in Bulambuli, Uganda. (Al Jazeera)

International relations

• Georgia–European Union relations, Potential enlargement of the European Union
  • Accession of Georgia to the European Union
    • Prime Minister of Georgia Irakli Kobakhidze temporarily suspends the country's accession to the European Union until 2028 and accuses the European Parliament of blackmail. (Al Jazeera) (Politico)
• Chad–France relations
  • The government of Chad announces it will terminate its defense pact with France, stating it wants to fully assert its sovereignty following its independence from France in 1960. (DW) (VOA)

Law and crime

• Anti-corruption campaign under Xi Jinping
  • The Chinese Communist Party suspends the Director of the Political Work Department of the Central Military Commission Admiral Miao Hua from his post following a corruption investigation. (CNA)
• PTI do-or-die protest, Freedom of the press in Pakistan
  • Pakistani senior journalist Matiullah Jan and his colleague are abducted by unidentified men while they were reporting on the protests for the release of former Prime Minister Imran Khan in Islamabad, Pakistan. (DW) (The Nation)

Politics and elections

• 2024 Georgian parliamentary election protests, Accession of Georgia to the European Union
  • Thousands of people gather in Tbilisi, Georgia, to protest against Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze and his party's decision to suspend the country's accession plans to the European Union. Riot police fire tear gas and water cannons at protesters near the parliament building. (DW) (Yahoo! News) (The New York Times)
• 2024 Romanian presidential election
  • The Constitutional Court of Romania requests a recount of all votes cast in the first round of the presidential election following a complaint by candidate Cristian Terheș. (AP)
• The Australian House of Representatives passes a bill to restrict social media access for people under the age of 16 years. (NBC News)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Israel–Hezbollah conflict
  • 2024 Israeli invasion of Lebanon
    • 2024 Israel–Lebanon ceasefire agreement
      • A 60-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah takes effect. (Reuters) (BBC News)
• Israel–Hamas war
  • Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip, Killing of journalists in the Israel–Hamas war
    • Seventeen people, including one journalist, are killed in Israeli strikes on the Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahia and the Nuseirat refugee camp in the Gaza Strip. (The New Arab) (Anadolu Agency) (Al Jazeera)
  • United States support for Israel in the Israel–Hamas war
    • The Joe Biden administration provisionally approves a $680 million military arms package to Israel, including hundreds of small diameter bombs and thousands of JDAMs. (Al Jazeera)
• Syrian civil war
  • Northwestern Syria offensive
    • Syrian opposition forces led by Tahrir al-Sham attack the pro-government Syrian Army in western Aleppo Governorate, capturing eleven towns and villages. (Al Jazeera) (SOHR)
  • Rojava conflict
    • Rojavan Kurdish insurgents launch a raid on Turkish-Syrian National Army positions in Manbij, Aleppo Governorate, Syria, although no casualties are reported. (SOHR)

Arts and culture

• The City of London Corporation proposes a bill to close the 19th-century Billingsgate Fish Market in Billingsgate and Smithfield Meat Market in Smithfield, City of London, United Kingdom, by 2028. (BBC News) (AP)

International relations

• United States–Venezuela relations, 2024 Venezuelan political crisis
  • The United States imposes sanctions on 21 Venezuelan officials, including information minister Freddy Ñáñez and planning minister Ricardo Menéndez, for suppressing the protests against the results of the presidential election in July. (DW)

Law and crime

• Killing of Yuval Castleman
  • The Israel Defense Forces indicts Sgt. Aviad Frija with reduced manslaughter after he shot and killed Yuval Castleman after mistaking Castleman for a Hamas militant during the 7 October attacks. (The Jerusalem Post)
• Rohingya genocide, War crimes during the Myanmar civil war
  • Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court Karim Ahmad Khan applies for an arrest warrant for Myanmar's military leader and Chairman of the State Administration Council Min Aung Hlaing for crimes against humanity relating to the deportation and persecution of the Rohingya. (The Guardian)

Politics and elections

• Constitutional crisis in Somalia
  • 2024 Jubaland presidential election
    • The Banadir Regional Court in Mogadishu, Somalia, issues an arrest warrant for Jubaland President Ahmed Madobe, accusing Madobe of treason and violating the constitution. In response, the regional court in Kismayo, Jubaland, announces a $100,000 reward for the arrest of Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, accusing Hassan of treason, undermining national unity, and conspiring with Al-Shabaab militia. (AFP) (Idili News) (Hiiraan Online)
• 2024 Indonesian local elections
  • Indonesians vote for governors, regents, and mayors in the country's first simultaneous local elections. (CNN Indonesia)
• 2024 Namibian general election
  • Namibians vote in the first round of the general election between 14 candidates for President, and also vote for the 96 members of the National Assembly. (AP) (DW)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Israel–Hezbollah conflict
  • 2024 Israeli invasion of Lebanon
    • 2024 Israel–Lebanon ceasefire agreement
      • The Security Cabinet of Israel agrees to a 60-day ceasefire in Lebanon. (CNN) (The Times of Israel)
      • U.S President Joe Biden announces that the ceasefire has been accepted. (CNBC)
    • For the first time since the start of the conflict, the Israeli military issues evacuation orders for central Beirut, warning residents of four neighbourhoods to leave as soon as possible. (The Times of Israel)
    • Airstrikes are carried out by the Israeli Air Force across several areas of Beirut, Lebanon, hitting at least 20 locations and resulting in several casualties. (Euronews)
• Russian invasion of Ukraine
  • Eastern front of the Russian invasion of Ukraine
    • Battle of Kurakhove
      • Russian forces enter the city of Kurakhove in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, with heavy fighting reportedly underway. (Al Arabiya)
• Somali Civil War
  • Puntland–Somaliland dispute
    • Las Anod conflict
      • Somaliland imposes a curfew following a clash between soldiers and civilians that resulted in nine deaths and many injuries in Erigavo, Sanaag, Somaliland. (Idil News) (Hiiraan Online) (Horseed Media)
• Arrest of Imran Khan
  • Six people, including four paramilitary soldiers, are killed in clashes between security forces and supporters of former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan in Islamabad. The protesters, led by Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, are calling for Khan's immediate release from prison. (Reuters)
• Unidentified gunmen ambush a group of motorcycle taxis returning from a religious ceremony in Bria, Haute-Kotto, Central African Republic, killing 10 people. (AP)

Business and economy

• 2021–present United Kingdom cost-of-living crisis
  • Multinational car manufacturing company Stellantis announces that it will close its van-production factory in Luton, England, putting 1,100 jobs at risk, citing the UK's economic conditions and the government's zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) mandate as reasons for its closure. (The Guardian)

Disasters and accidents

• 2024 Red Sea tourist boat disaster
  • Four people are found dead and five others are rescued from a tourist boat that sank yesterday off the coast of Marsa Alam, Red Sea Governorate, Egypt. Seven others are still missing. (The Guardian)
• Winter of 2024–25 in the Gaza Strip
  • A winter storm floods refugee camps across the Gaza Strip, leading to several thousands of shelters being damaged or destroyed, and worsening refugee exposure to cold and illness. (Reuters)
• Five people are killed and 20 others are reported missing when a motorboat capsizes in Warri, Delta State, Nigeria. (Reuters)
• Five people are killed and another is in critical condition when a Cessna 206 Stationair aircraft crashes into the Pico Blanco mountain near San José, Costa Rica. (DW) (The Tico Times)

Law and crime

• Censorship in Iraq
  • The Iraqi Ministry of Communications blocks access to the IMDb website, citing concerns of "immoral content". (Intellinews) (Shafaq News)
• LGBT rights in Hong Kong
  • Chief justice Andrew Cheung of the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal rules to uphold housing and inheritance rights for same-sex couples in the city. (Al Jazeera)

Politics and elections

• The Bangladesh Police fire tear gas at more than 2,000 Hindus protesting in Chittagong, Bangladesh, against the arrest of Chinmoy Krishna Das, a Hindu leader and ISKCON monk, on sedition charges. One is killed, and 27 are injured. (Hindustan Times) (Al Jazeera) (The Times of India)

Science and technology

• Japanese space program
  • JAXA aborts an Epsilon S engine test after a fire occurs at the Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. (DW) (CNA)
• Social media platform Bluesky says it will comply with rules set by the European Union after being accused of violating digital regulations under the Digital Services Act. (Luxemburg Times) (Bloomberg)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Haitian crisis
  • The United Nations orders its staff to evacuate from Port-au-Prince, Haiti, as clashes between armed gangs, police, and civilian vigilantes escalate in the city. Nonprofit organization Food for the Poor also ceases operations in Haiti due to gang disruptions. (Al Jazeera)

Business and economy

• German economic crisis
  • Germany's largest steelmaker conglomerate, ThyssenKrupp, announces plans to layoff 11,000 workers, including 5,000 in Europe, by 2030. (DW)

Disasters and accidents

• 2024–25 Australian region cyclone season
  • Sixteen people are killed and six others are missing in flash floods caused by Tropical Low 01U in Sumatra, Indonesia. (AP) (The Irish Examiner)
• 2024 Red Sea tourist boat disaster
  • Sixteen people are missing and 28 others are rescued after a boat carrying tourists sinks off the coast of Marsa Alam, Red Sea Governorate, Egypt. (BBC News)
• Swiftair Flight 5960
  • One crew member is killed and three others are injured when a DHL Boeing 737-400F cargo plane operated by Swiftair crashes into the ground near a residential building while approaching Vilnius Airport in Lithuania. No one on the ground is injured. (Reuters) (DW)
• Nine migrants, including six children, are killed and 39 others are rescued from a shipwreck off the coast of Samos, Greece. (Al Jazeera) (The Express Tribune)

International relations

• Afghanistan–Russia relations
  • Secretary of the Security Council of Russia Sergei Shoigu pledges Russia's intent to build closer ties with the Taliban Government of Afghanistan, and states that the United States should lead rebuilding efforts due to its part in the War in Afghanistan. (Reuters)
• Foreign ministers of the G7 nations hold a meeting in Fiuggi and Anagni, Italy, to discuss ceasefire efforts between Israel and Lebanon as well as the International Criminal Court's arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Hamas military chief Mohammed Deif. (Digital Journal)

Law and crime

• Censorship in Australia
  • Australian Parliament vetoes a bill that would authorize the Australian Communications and Media Authority to implement detailed surveillance on digital platforms and enforce anti-misinformation punitive measures on them, which opposition politicians condemn as "censorship laws" and a betrayal to democracy. (AP)
• Indictments against Donald Trump
  • U.S. federal judge Tanya Chutkan of the District Court for the District of Columbia dismisses the two criminal cases by Jack Smith against President-elect Donald Trump, including the classified documents case and the case involving Trump's efforts to overturn his defeat to President Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election. (CBS News) (Politico)
• Five people are killed in a mass shooting in Saint Andrew, Kingston, Jamaica. (AP)

Politics and elections

• 2024 Jubaland presidential election
  • The Jubaland House of Representatives re-elects incumbent President Ahmed Madobe for the third time amid tensions with the Somali federal government that resulted in armed forces being deployed to Kamboni, Badhadhe District, Lower Juba, Somalia. (AFP) (Garowe Online) (The Eastleigh Voice)

Science and technology

• Microsoft reports widespread outages across Outlook, Teams, and other 365 programs. The outages are later resolved during the evening. (Forbes) (CNN)

Sports

• In auto racing, Formula One announces that General Motors will join the grid as a constructor under the Cadillac Team beginning in the 2026 season. (Formula 1) (Front Office Sports)
• In cricket, batter Vaibhav Suryavanshi becomes the youngest player to sign with the Indian Premier League at the age of 13. (DW) (Hindustan Times)
• The World Chess Championship 2024 starts in Singapore, with Ding Liren winning with black against Gukesh Dommaraju. (FIDE)