From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A listing of
2008 's items on
Template:In the news . The next archive is at
Wikipedia:ITN in 2009 .
Cyprus and
Malta become the 14th and 15th countries to
adopt the
euro as their
currency , replacing the
Cypriot pound and the
Maltese lira .
The
price of oil reaches a
record high of
US$ 100 per
barrel before falling.
The
2008 Dakar Rally is cancelled due to security concerns following the death of four
French
tourists in
Mauritania .
The
Indian cricket team 's
tour of Australia is temporarily suspended following a
controversial Test match , due to a
racism incident involving
Harbhajan Singh , along with claims of poor
sportsmanship and bad
umpiring .
The
65th Golden Globe Awards ceremony is cancelled due to the ongoing
Writers Guild of America strike .
Former
Colombian vice presidential candidate
Clara Rojas is released by
FARC guerrillas after nearly six years in captivity.
Mikheil Saakashvili wins the
Georgian presidential elections amidst allegations of
vote-rigging .
Indian car manufacturer
Tata Motors unveils the world's least expensive
production car, the
Tata Nano , priced at 100,000
rupees (
US$ 2,500).
Sir Edmund Hillary , one of the first two people to reach the summit of
Mount Everest in 1953, dies at age 88 in New Zealand.
The
Kuomintang and its
allies win a
landslide victory in the
Republic of China (Taiwan)
legislative elections , securing more than three quarters of the seats in the
Legislative Yuan .
NASA 's
MESSENGER flies by
Mercury , the first
spacecraft to do so in thirty-three years.
David Thompson of the
Democratic Labour Party becomes
Prime Minister of
Barbados following
parliamentary elections .
Two crew members of the
Sea Shepherd vessel
MV Steve Irwin are detained on a
Japanese
whaling ship after boarding it.
British Airways
Flight 38 crash lands short of the runway at
London Heathrow Airport , narrowly missing the perimeter fence and local homes; there are no fatalities.
Former
World Chess Champion
Bobby Fischer dies in
Iceland .
Tomislav Nikolić and
Boris Tadić advance to the
second round of
presidential elections in
Serbia .
Stock markets throughout the world
fall , resulting in the
U.S. Federal Reserve cutting
interest rates by 0.75%, the largest single cut in interest rates since October 1984.
Australian actor
Heath Ledger dies at the age of 28 in
Manhattan, New York .
An interim
flag of Iraq is adopted, removing three stars associated with the
Baath Party ; a permanent design is expected within the next year.
A peace deal ends the
Kivu conflict in the
Democratic Republic of the Congo .
Société Générale , one of the largest banks in Europe, says one of its
traders ,
Jérôme Kerviel , cost it
€ 4.9 billion by making unauthorized trades.
Hundreds of thousands of
Palestinians
cross through holes in the border between the
Gaza Strip and
Egypt to stock up on supplies cut off by an
Israeli blockade.
Prime Minister
Romano Prodi of
Italy
loses a confidence vote in the
Senate and resigns.
In
tennis ,
Novak Đoković of
Serbia and
Maria Sharapova of
Russia win the singles titles at the
2008 Australian Open .
Former
Indonesian
President
Suharto dies at age 86.
Severe winter storms cause at least 63 deaths across central and southern
China .
UFD rebels fight
Chadian
government troops in a
battle for the capital,
N'Djamena .
An
earthquake at
Lake Kivu kills at least 39 people in
Rwanda and the
Democratic Republic of the Congo .
Boris Tadić is
re-elected as
President of Serbia , defeating
Tomislav Nikolić .
In
American football , the
New York Giants defeat the
season's previously unbeaten
New England Patriots 17–14 in
Super Bowl XLII .
Damage to several
undersea cables
disrupts internet services in parts of
Asia and
Africa .
A
tornado outbreak across the
Southern United States kills at least 59 people and injures more than 100 others.
Space Shuttle Mission STS-122 launches from
Kennedy Space Center to deliver the
Columbus module to the
International Space Station .
A fire on the
Turkish
freighter
UND Adriyatik is extinguished, dispelling fears of an
oil spill and
environmental damage .
In
football (soccer) ,
Egypt wins the
2008 Africa Cup of Nations , defeating
Cameroon 1–0 in the final in
Accra ,
Ghana .
President
José Ramos-Horta of
East Timor is wounded in an
attack that leaves rebel leader
Alfredo Reinhado dead.
The
50th Annual Grammy Awards take place in
Los Angeles ,
USA .
Namdaemun , the southern gate of the original walls surrounding
Seoul during the
Joseon Dynasty , is
partially destroyed by
arson .
The
Columbus science laboratory built by the
European Space Agency is
attached to the
International Space Station during
space shuttle mission
STS-122 .
Prime Minister
Kevin Rudd issues a formal apology to the
indigenous
Stolen Generations on behalf of the
Parliament of Australia .
The
Writers Guild of America votes to end a
three-month strike pending approval of a new contract by guild members.
The
Swedish
government refuses to consider
Nord Stream 's application to build an underwater
gas
pipeline from
Russia to
Germany .
Václav Klaus is
re-elected as the
President of the
Czech Republic .
The
British
Chancellor of the Exchequer ,
Alistair Darling , announces plans to
nationalise the
Northern Rock bank following credit problems caused by the
subprime mortgage crisis .
Kosovo 's
parliament endorses a
unilateral declaration of independence from
Serbia and adopts a
flag ;
response from the international community is mixed.
Bank Julius Bär secures a permanent
injunction against the
domain registrar for
Wikileaks , making the
website unavailable .
Fidel Castro announces his retirement as the
President of
Cuba .
Toshiba announces it is ceasing production of
HD DVD equipment, conceding the
high definition format war to the rival
Blu-ray Disc format.
The
Pakistan Peoples Party wins a
plurality in the
Pakistani general election following a
state of emergency and
pre-election violence , and forms a
coalition with the
Pakistan Muslim League (N) .
Armenian
Prime Minister
Serzh Sargsyan is
elected
President of Armenia .
A
total lunar eclipse , visible from the
Americas ,
Europe , and
Africa , occurs.
American
spy satellite
USA 193 is destroyed by
a missile launched by the
U.S. Navy .
Forty-six people are killed in the crash of
Santa Bárbara Airlines
Flight 518 in
Venezuela .
Turkey launches a
ground incursion against the
Kurdistan Workers Party in northern
Iraq .
The
National Assembly of People's Power unanimously selects
Raúl Castro to succeed his brother
Fidel as
President of Cuba .
Dimitris Christofias of the
Progressive Party of Working People is
elected
President of
Cyprus , defeating
Ioannis Kasoulidis (
Democratic Rally ) in the
run-off .
The
80th Academy Awards are held in
Los Angeles , with
No Country for Old Men winning four
Oscars including
Best Picture .
The
New York Philharmonic becomes the first
Western
orchestra to
perform a concert in
North Korea .
The
euro reaches a record high closure
exchange rate of
US$ 1.5167.
The
European Union fines
Microsoft
€899 million for non-compliance with a 2003
antitrust ruling, the largest penalty the EU has ever imposed on a single company.
Kenyan
President
Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader
Raila Odinga agree to form a
coalition government to resolve the country's
political crisis .
Dmitry Medvedev is
elected to succeed
Vladimir Putin as
President of Russia .
Colombian
armed forces launch an attack in
Ecuadorian territory, killing
Raúl Reyes , a
FARC commander, and triggering a
diplomatic crisis with Ecuador and
Venezuela .
An
ongoing energy crisis in
Central Asia hits the mountainous nation of
Tajikistan during its coldest
winter in five
decades .
Senator
John McCain of
Arizona secures the
Republican nomination in the
upcoming U.S. presidential election .
Eight people are killed in a
shooting at the
Mercaz HaRav
yeshiva in
Jerusalem .
The
diplomatic crisis triggered by a
Colombian
military operation launched within
Ecuadorian territory against the
FARC is resolved.
The
European Space Agency sends the
resupply spacecraft
Jules Verne to the
International Space Station .
The
Barisan Nasional , despite
its largest loss of seats in forty years, maintains a majority in the
Parliament of Malaysia .
NASA announces evidence of
rings around the
Saturnian moon
Rhea , which would be the first known
rings around a
moon .
Serbian
Prime Minister
Vojislav Koštunica resigns following disagreements with his cabinet over the
EU and
Kosovo .
Warren Buffett surpasses
Bill Gates to become the
wealthiest person in the world , according to
Forbes magazine.
Spanish
Prime Minister
José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero of the
Socialist Workers' Party is
re-elected .
The
Nationalist Party of
Prime Minister
Lawrence Gonzi narrowly wins the
general election in
Malta .
Space Shuttle mission
STS-123 is launched on an
assembly mission to the
International Space Station , carrying the first
Japanese
component and
Canada 's
Dextre .
Eliot Spitzer announces his resignation as
Governor of
New York amidst
reports he was a client of an illegal
prostitution ring .
Mar Paulos Faraj Rahho , the
Chaldean Catholic
archbishop of
Mosul who was kidnapped in
Iraq last month, is found murdered.
Protests in
Tibet against the
Chinese government result in numerous fatalities.
The U.S.
Federal Reserve takes unprecedented action to stem
panic on Wall Street , including the provision of funding for
JPMorgan Chase 's buyout of collapsing rival
Bear Stearns .
The wreckages of
HMAS Sydney and the
German auxiliary cruiser Kormoran are
located off the coast of
Western Australia , 66 years after their
mutual destruction in battle .
David Paterson is sworn in as the first
black
Governor of
New York (and the fourth ever in the
U.S. ) after
Eliot Spitzer resigns amidst a
prostitution scandal .
A permanent coalition government agreement is reached in
Belgium , ending a
nine-month stalemate , as
Yves Leterme is sworn in as
Prime Minister .
French
swimmer
Alain Bernard sets a new
world record for the men's
100 metres freestyle in 47.50 seconds.
Kuomintang candidate
Ma Ying-jeou is
elected
President of the
Republic of China (Taiwan). Two referenda on
joining the United Nations
fail due to low turnout.
The
Bhutan Peace and Prosperity Party wins
Bhutan 's first democratic
general election .
African Union and
Comoros forces
invade the rebel-held island of
Anjouan .
A 405
km2 (156.4
sq mi ) piece breaks off from the
Wilkins Ice Shelf in
Antarctica .
Landmarks in cities around the world go dark as part of
Earth Hour , an international event to promote
energy conservation .
Jean Nouvel of
France wins the
Pritzker Architecture Prize .
Taoiseach (
Irish
prime minister )
Bertie Ahern announces he is to resign on
6 May , following continued controversy related to his testimony at the
Mahon Tribunal .
Ian Khama is inaugurated as
President of Botswana , succeeding
Festus Mogae .
The
Movement for Democratic Change secures a
plurality of seats in the
Zimbabwean
parliamentary election , defeating incumbent
President
Robert Mugabe 's
ZANU-PF . Results in the
presidential election remain unclear.
Greek and
Turkish
Cypriots open a crossing at
Ledra Street , a main shopping street in
Cyprus '
divided capital
Nicosia .
Jules Verne , the first
European
Automated Transfer Vehicle , successfully performs a fully automated
docking with the
International Space Station .
At its
summit in
Bucharest ,
NATO invites
Albania and
Croatia to join the alliance.
Filip Vujanović of the
Democratic Party of Socialists is
re-elected as
President of
Montenegro .
The Washington Post wins six
awards and
Bob Dylan receives a special citation in the
2008 Pulitzer Prizes .
The
Olympic torch relay is disrupted in
London ,
Paris and
San Francisco by protesters objecting to
China's human rights record .
Soyuz TMA-12 is launched, carrying
Yi So-yeon , the first
South Korean in space, for a mission to the
International Space Station .
The
Grand National Party of
President
Lee Myung-bak
wins a majority of seats in the
National Assembly of
South Korea .
The
Channel Island
Sark abolishes the last remaining
feudal system in
Europe .
Jacques-Édouard Alexis is ousted as
Prime Minister of
Haiti following
riots over the price of food .
Trevor Immelman of
South Africa wins the
2008 Masters Tournament at the
Augusta National Golf Club .
The infamous Fernando Lugo image represented a stagnant, slow-moving ITN, and
drew numerous complaints , which
led to ITN reform .
In
Zimbabwe , results of the
presidential election held in March 2008 are announced with no outright winner, necessitating a
run-off between
Morgan Tsvangirai and incumbent
Robert Mugabe .
HP Labs announces the creation of a
memristor , the fourth basic element of
electronic circuits with the
resistor ,
capacitor , and
inductor .
Yahya Ould Ahmed El Waghef takes office as
Prime Minister of
Mauritania .
An international
relief operation begins after
Cyclone Nargis strikes
Burma ,
Brian Cowen succeeds
Bertie Ahern as
Taoiseach (
prime minister ) of the
Republic of Ireland .
Dmitry Medvedev is sworn in as the third
President of
Russia , replacing
Vladimir Putin , who becomes the
Prime Minister .
Skirmishes erupt in
Beirut between supporters of
Lebanon 's government and the opposition.
A
tornado outbreak in
Oklahoma and
Missouri ,
United States , kills at least 25 people.
The
Burmese
military regime conducts a
constitutional referendum days after the cyclone's strike.
Sudan cuts diplomatic
relations with
Chad , blaming it for helping rebels from
Darfur to launch
an attack on Sudan's capital,
Khartoum .
President
Boris Tadić 's coalition
For a European Serbia wins a
plurality in
Serbia 's first
parliamentary election since the
Kosovo declaration of independence , displacing the
Serbian Radical Party as the largest party.
An
earthquake measuring 7.9
Mw strikes
Sichuan ,
China , with more than 51,000 people confirmed dead.
A
series of bomb blasts in
Jaipur ,
India , kills at least 63 people.
The
Nigerian Red Cross reports that at least 100 people are dead after a
pipeline explosion in
Lagos .
Leonel Fernández of the
Dominican Liberation Party is
re-elected
President of the
Dominican Republic .
Russia wins the
2008 World Championship in
ice hockey , defeating
Canada in the final.
At least 40 people are killed as a wave of
anti-foreign
violence spreads across
South Africa .
Ma Ying-jeou is sworn in as the
President of the
Republic of China (Taiwan) .
Manchester United
win the
UEFA Champions League , defeating
Chelsea in the final.
The
Union of South American Nations , a
supranational union modelled on the
European Union , is founded in
Brasília .
The
International Court of Justice awards
Pedra Branca to
Singapore and
Middle Rocks to
Malaysia , ending a 29-year
territorial dispute between the two countries.
Dima Bilan wins the
Eurovision Song Contest for
Russia with "
Believe ".
The
Lebanese Parliament elects General
Michel Sleiman , commander of the
Lebanese Armed Forces , to the six-month-vacant post of
president .
In
rugby union ,
Munster defeat
Toulouse to win the
Heineken Cup .
In
auto racing ,
Scott Dixon wins the
Indianapolis 500 and
Lewis Hamilton wins the
Monaco Grand Prix .
NASA 's
Phoenix lands on
Mars , the first successful
powered descent on the planet in over 30 years.
Ethiopia 's
Supreme Court upholds
former ruler
Mengistu Haile Mariam 's conviction and sentences him to death
in absentia for his role in the
Red Terror .
An
earthquake in
Colombia kills 11 and injures 54.
In the aftermath of the
Sichuan earthquake , the
People's Republic of China evacuates 100,000 people from
Mianyang as engineers prepare to drain the
landslide dam -created
Tangjiashan Lake .
The
State Peace and Development Council of
Burma extends opposition leader
Aung San Suu Kyi 's
house arrest by one year.
Nepal is declared a
republic by its
newly elected
government , and
King Gyanendra ends his reign as the last of a
240-year-old monarchy .
In
Dublin , over 100 countries adopt the
Convention on Cluster Munitions banning
cluster bombs .
Paleontologists discover
Materpiscis , a 380-million-year-old
placoderm fish which is the earliest known animal to
bear live young .
Snowstorms in eastern
Mongolia kill 26 people; 51 people remain missing.
Former
Croatian Army general
Mirko Norac is sentenced by a
Croatian court to seven years in prison for his role in the 1993
Operation Medak Pocket .
Grupo TACA
Flight 390 , an
Airbus A320 flying from
San Salvador ,
El Salvador , crashes in
Tegucigalpa ,
Honduras .
Space Shuttle mission
STS-124 launches, carrying the
Japanese laboratory
Kibō 's main module for the
International Space Station .
In
rugby union , the
Crusaders defeat the
New South Wales Waratahs in the
2008 Super 14 Final .
Usain Bolt of
Jamaica sets a new
world record of 9.72 seconds in the
100 metre sprint at the Reebok Grand Prix in
New York .
In the
Republic of Macedonia , the governing
Christian democratic
VMRO–DPMNE wins a landslide victory in
parliamentary elections amid reports of violence in
ethnic Albanian areas.
The
Australian Army ends
its combat role in
Iraq , as about
500 troops withdraw from
Nasiriyah .
A
car bomb
explodes outside the
Danish
embassy in
Islamabad ,
Pakistan , killing at least five.
The
United Nations
Security Council unanimously passes a declaration allowing foreign
naval vessels to enter
Somali territorial waters to deal with
pirates .
Senator
Barack Obama
secures the
Democratic Party nomination in the
U.S. Presidential campaign , the first
African American ever to do so.
Zimbabwean police briefly detain
foreign diplomats and
opposition leader
Morgan Tsvangirai before the second round of
the presidential election .
In
ice hockey , the
Detroit Red Wings win the
Stanley Cup by defeating the
Pittsburgh Penguins in six games in the
2008 Finals .
Turkey 's
Constitutional Court
reinstates a ban on the
hijab in
universities , citing the
constitution 's
secular principles.
Israeli minister
Shaul Mofaz
threatens an attack on
Iran 's
nuclear program .
The
Diet of Japan recognizes the
Ainu as an
indigenous people for the first time.
In
tennis ,
Rafael Nadal and
Ana Ivanović win the
singles titles in the
2008 French Open .
The government of
Southern Sudan withdraws its mediation efforts at the
Juba talks between
Uganda and the rebel
Lord's Resistance Army .
Seven people are killed and ten injured in a
stabbing spree in
Tokyo ,
Japan .
Following a
coal mine collapse in the
Donetsk region of
Ukraine , 24 miners are rescued with 12 still missing and one reported dead.
IBM and
Los Alamos National Laboratory break a
processing speed record with the world's first general-purpose
petaflop computer,
Roadrunner .
Sudan Airways Flight 109 crashes on landing at
Khartoum International Airport in
Khartoum ,
Sudan , killing dozens.
Japan 's
House of Councillors passes a
censure motion against
Prime Minister
Yasuo Fukuda , the first such motion to be passed since
World War II .
Amid an
outbreak of
tornadoes and
derechos in central and eastern
North America , a tornado hits a
Boy Scout camp in
Iowa , killing four.
Pakistan condemns a
United States
air strike near the
Afghan border that
killed 11
Pakistani paramilitary troops , along with eight
Taliban militants.
The
People's Republic of China and
Taiwan hold their first formal talks in a decade on improving
cross-Strait relations .
Irish voters reject the
Treaty of Lisbon in a
referendum , thus putting into question the reform program of the
European Union .
Flooding continues in the
Midwestern United States , leading to the
evacuation of thousands of homes.
NBC journalist
Tim Russert dies suddenly of a
heart attack at the age of 58.
A magnitude 6.8
Mw
earthquake strikes
Iwate and
Miyagi Prefectures on the
Japanese island of
Honshū .
A new
constitution takes effect in
Kosovo , whose February
declaration of independence has been
recognised by 43
United Nations
member states .
In golf,
Tiger Woods defeats
Rocco Mediate in a
playoff to win the
2008 U.S. Open , his 14th
major victory.
A
Taiwanese activist boat circumnavigates the disputed
Japanese -controlled
Diaoyutai/Senkaku Islands following a diplomatically charged ship collision the previous week.
Large areas of southern
China are hit by the
worst floods in decades with
Guangzhou and
Shenzhen most affected, and at least 169 fatalities and 1.66 million people evacuated.
In
basketball , the
Boston Celtics defeat the
Los Angeles Lakers to win the
2008 NBA Finals .
Afghan and
Canadian-led
ISAF forces begin
an offensive against
Taliban insurgents in the
Arghandab District of
Kandahar Province .
Sweden approves the
FRA law ,
anti-terrorism legislation allowing
e-mails and phone calls to be monitored by the
Swedish National Defence Radio Establishment .
Relatives of
Srebrenica massacre victims open a case in a Dutch court against the
United Nations and the
Netherlands for the failure of the
Dutchbat force to prevent the killings.
The
NASA /
CNES
Jason-2 satellite launches, with a mission of furthering the study of
physical oceanography .
Typhoon Fengshen hits the
Philippines , killing dozens on land, forcing tens of thousands to seek shelter and sinking the ferry
MV Princess of the Stars with hundreds of passengers missing.
Zimbabwean opposition leader
Morgan Tsvangirai withdraws his candidacy from the
June 27
run-off presidential election as election-related violence escalates.
A
U.S. appeals court rules that
Hozaifa Parhat , a
Chinese
Uyghur militant currently detained at the
Guantanamo Bay detention camp , cannot be ruled an "
enemy combatant " because he never took up arms against the
United States .
NASA confirms
ice at the
Phoenix lander site on
Mars after bright clumps uncovered by digging are found to have
sublimated .
The state government of
India 's
Jammu and Kashmir has rebuked the decision to transfer forested land to
Amarnath shrine following wide
protests across the state.
New Zealand agrees to hand over forestry assets to seven
Maori tribes as part of the
reconciliation process.
Pakistan holds
by-elections , with the contest for one seat delayed by the
Supreme Court until it can handle the appeal of disqualified candidate
Nawaz Sharif , former
Prime Minister and leader of the
Pakistan Muslim League (N) .
In
District of Columbia v. Heller , the
United States
Supreme Court rules that the
Second Amendment to the
U.S. Constitution protects an individual's
right to bear arms , with possible consequences for
existing gun control laws .
In
District of Columbia v. Heller , the
United States
Supreme Court rules that the
Second Amendment to the
U.S. Constitution protects an
individual 's
right to bear arms , with possible consequences for
existing gun control laws .
Serbian
President
Boris Tadić names
Mirko Cvetković as the new
Prime Minister following the
parliamentary election held in May.
Robert Mugabe is sworn in for his sixth term as
President of Zimbabwe after a controversial
run-off presidential election in which opposition leader
Morgan Tsvangirai withdrew his candidacy due to election-related violence.
Spain win the
European Football Championship , defeating
Germany 1–0 in
the final through a goal scored by
Fernando Torres .
Thousands of
Chinese
riot in
Guizhou ; targeting local government buildings and officials over an alleged
police
cover-up of the death of a teenage girl.
A
Palestinian man
drives a
front-end loader into several vehicles in
Jerusalem , killing three before being shot dead.
A four-day
state of emergency is declared in
Mongolia after violent protests follow the
legislative elections .
Íngrid Betancourt and 14 other
hostages are
rescued by the
Colombian government after being held captive by
FARC guerillas.
NASA announces the discovery of
water in the atmosphere of
Mercury by its
MESSENGER probe.
A
series of explosions at a depot storing 1,500 tonnes of obsolete munitions forces the evacuation of some 2,000 people in
Sofia and the closure of the
Bulgarian capital's
main airport .
Clashes are reported between
Georgian and
South Ossetian forces near
Tskhinvali .
In
tennis ,
Rafael Nadal of
Spain and
Venus Williams of the
United States win the
men's and
women's singles title, respectively, at the
2008 Wimbledon Championships .
An explosion near the
Lal Masjid in
Islamabad ,
Pakistan , kills at least 18 people on the first anniversary of the
deadly siege and storming of the mosque .
A
suicide bomber
rams a car bomb into the
Indian embassy in
Kabul ,
Afghanistan , killing 58 people.
Leaders of the nations meeting in
Japan for the
34th G8 summit agree to a target of cutting world
greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50 percent by 2050.
Iran
test-fires the
Shahab-3 , a
missile with an operating range of 2,100 km (1,300 mi), amid rising international tensions over the country's
nuclear program .
In
Grenada ,
Tillman Thomas succeeds
Keith Mitchell as the new
Prime Minister following the
National Democratic Congress ' win in the
general elections .
India submits its
nuclear safeguards agreement to the
International Atomic Energy Agency to implement the
Indo-US nuclear deal .
Three members of the
Turkish
police force are killed during an
armed attack on the
United States consulate in
Istanbul , with three attackers also dead.
Midnight's Children by
Salman Rushdie is awarded
The Best of the Booker , as the best novel to have won a
Man Booker Prize in the first 40 years of its existence.
IndyMac Bank is placed into
conservatorship by the
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation in one of the largest banking failures in
United States history .
Mount Okmok on the island of
Umnak in the
Aleutian Islands erupts.
European Union members and other nations bordering the
Mediterranean Sea form the 43-member
Union for the Mediterranean .
Dayana Mendoza from
Venezuela is crowned
Miss Universe 2008 .
The
International Astronomical Union classifies
Makemake as a
dwarf planet .
Belgian brewer
InBev agrees to buy
US -based
Anheuser-Busch for over 50 billion
dollars ; if successful, the merged firm would surpass
SABMiller as the world's largest
brewing company .
The
Taliban
attack an outpost in
Afghanistan , killing nine
ISAF soldiers.
The prosecutor for the
International Criminal Court ,
Luis Moreno-Ocampo , requests a
warrant for the arrest of
Sudanese president
Omar al-Bashir in connection to the
conflict in Darfur .
Malaysian opposition leader
Anwar Ibrahim is arrested over allegations that he
sodomised a male aide.
The
Sri Lankan military
captures a
coastal town in
Sri Lanka 's
Mannar District from rebel
Tamil Tigers .
Pope Benedict XVI speaks to 150,000
pilgrims in
Sydney ,
Australia for
World Youth Day 2008 .
Typhoon Kalmaegi strikes the
Philippines ,
Taiwan , and
China , killing at least fifteen.
Over a thousand soldiers from
Cambodia and
Thailand mass near
Preah Vihear Temple , the focus of a
military standoff over a disputed border.
In
golf ,
Pádraig Harrington
wins the
British Open for a second consecutive year.
Ram Baran Yadav of the
Nepali Congress party wins
Nepal 's
presidential election , defeating
Ram Raja Prasad Singh of the
Communist Party (Maoist) .
Former
Bosnian Serb leader
Radovan Karadžić is arrested by security forces in
Serbia on
war crimes charges, including
genocide , after a 12-year manhunt.
Hurricane Dolly , currently near the
United States–Mexico border , kills at least 17 in
Guatemala .
Zimbabwe introduces a new
100-billion-dollar bank note as the annual
inflation rate hits 2.2 million percent.
The first trial of a
Guantanamo Bay detention camp inmate begins with
Salim Hamdan , the former driver and bodyguard of
Osama bin Laden , pleading not guilty to charges of conspiracy and supporting
terrorism .
Two are killed and more are injured after
bus explosions in
Kunming ,
China .
India 's
United Progressive Alliance -led
government survives a
confidence vote , held after the
Left Front withdrew its support over the
Indo-US nuclear deal .
Cape Verde joins the
World Trade Organization , becoming its 153rd member.
The
International Olympic Committee bans
Iraq 's team from
competing in the
2008 Summer Olympics because of interference by
the government in the national-level committee.
Kapiliele Faupala is crowned the new
King of Wallis (Uvea) , succeeding the late
Tomasi Kulimoetoke II in
Wallis and Futuna .
A series of
bomb blasts in
Ahmedabad ,
India , kills at least forty-five people and injures over one hundred, one day after a similar
attack in
Bangalore killed two people and injured twenty.
In
cycling ,
Carlos Sastre of
Spain wins the
2008 Tour de France .
Two bombs
explode in
Istanbul ,
Turkey , killing at least seventeen and injuring more than 150.
King
George Tupou V of
Tonga relinquishes many of his powers, ending centuries of
absolute monarchy .
Navanethem Pillay of
South Africa is appointed to succeed
Louise Arbour as the
United Nations
High Commissioner for Human Rights .
The
International Olympic Committee lifts the ban imposed five days earlier on
Iraq 's team, allowing them to
compete in the
2008 Summer Olympics .
World Trade Organization
trade talks in
Geneva collapse after disagreements between developed and developing nations over access to
agricultural markets.
The
Constitutional Court of
Turkey rules against a ban on the ruling
Justice and Development Party after it was accused of
anti-secularism .
Amidst accusations of corruption,
Prime Minister of
Israel
Ehud Olmert announces he will resign following the
Kadima
party leadership election in September.
Georgia 's
parliament approves a
state of war for 15 days. Delegates from the
OSCE ,
EU , and
US head to Georgia to broker peace.
Monsoon rains in
India kill at least 40 people, with
flooding heaviest in
Andhra Pradesh .
The war over South Ossetia intensifies as
Russian forces advance deeper into
Georgia , and the
OSCE ,
EU , and
US continue diplomatic efforts to broker a ceasefire.
Pádraig Harrington of
Ireland becomes the first European
golfer in 78 years to win the
PGA Championship .
At least 92 people are confirmed dead after
Tropical Storm Kammuri caused
flash floods and
landslides in
Vietnam .
Russia calls an end to its
military offensive in
Georgia and agrees to a
European Union plan for a
ceasefire and peace talks, amid reports of more fighting around the city of
Gori .
American
swimmer
Michael Phelps , while competing at the
Beijing Olympics , breaks the
record for most career
Olympic
gold medals won by an individual athlete.
President
George W. Bush announces that
United States military aircraft and naval forces will be sent to
Georgia to provide humanitarian relief to victims of the
South Ossetia war , as
Russian forces reportedly occupy the city of
Gori .
Fernando Lugo takes office as
President of Paraguay .
Moulaye Ould Mohamed Laghdaf is appointed
Prime Minister of Mauritania , following a
coup d'etat .
Maoist leader
Prachanda is elected
Prime Minister of
Nepal , the first since the country's
transition from a monarchy to a republic .
American
swimmer
Michael Phelps wins his eighth
gold medal of the
Beijing Olympics , surpassing
Mark Spitz 's record for most gold medals won at a single Olympics.
Facing
impeachment ,
Pervez Musharraf announces his resignation as
President of Pakistan .
President
Levy Mwanawasa of
Zambia dies after suffering a
stroke in late June.
Usain Bolt of
Jamaica wins
gold medals in the
100-metre and
200-metre sprints at the
2008 Summer Olympics , setting new
world records of
9.69 and
19.30 seconds, respectively.
Spanair
Flight 5022 crashes immediately after
takeoff from
Barajas Airport in
Madrid ,
Spain , killing at least 150 people on board.
At least 60 people die following
twin suicide bombings outside the
Pakistan Ordnance Factories in
Wah ,
Pakistan .
Barack Obama chooses
Joe Biden , a
Democratic
Senator from
Delaware , as his
vice-presidential running mate in the
2008 U.S. presidential election .
The
2008 Summer Olympics in
Beijing come to an end after 16 days of competition.
Iran Aseman Airlines
Flight 6895 crashes upon
takeoff near
Manas International Airport in
Bishkek ,
Kyrgyzstan , killing 68 people.
Over 1.2 million people in
Bihar ,
India are affected by
flooding as the
Koshi River changes its course.
Russia
officially recognizes the independence of
Abkhazia and
South Ossetia .
Over 1.2 million people in
Bihar ,
India are affected by
flooding as the
Koshi River changes its course.
John McCain chooses
Sarah Palin , the
Republican
Governor of
Alaska , as his
vice-presidential running mate in the
2008 U.S. presidential election .
Hurricane Gustav makes landfall on the
U.S. Gulf Coast in
Louisiana after causing at least 66 deaths in
Haiti , 8 more in the
Dominican Republic , and 11 in
Jamaica .
Japanese
Prime Minister
Yasuo Fukuda resigns less than a year after taking office.
Thai
Prime Minister
Samak Sundaravej declares a
state of emergency in
Bangkok after
clashes between pro- and anti-government protesters result in one death and 43 injuries.
Tropical Storm Hanna moves towards the
U.S. South Atlantic coast after causing at least 529 deaths in
Haiti .
U.S. Special Forces
raid a village in
Waziristan ,
Pakistan using three
helicopter gunships , the first such ground incursion to take place in Pakistan in the
War on Terrorism .
The
Parliament of Pakistan
elects
Asif Ali Zardari of the
Pakistan People's Party as the next
President of Pakistan .
The
Nuclear Suppliers Group grants
India a waiver to carry out
civilian nuclear commerce with the rest of the world.
The
2008 Summer Paralympics open in
Beijing ,
China .
On the advice of
Prime Minister
Stephen Harper ,
Governor General
Michaëlle Jean dissolves the
39th Canadian Parliament and calls
early elections to be held October 14.
Hurricanes
Hanna and
Ike result in at least 590 deaths, mostly due to
floods and
mudslides , in
Haiti .
Flooding along the
Brahmaputra River displaces 2.1 million people and causes 24 deaths in
Assam ,
India .
In one of the largest
banking
interventions in
United States history ,
Fannie Mae and
Freddie Mac are
placed into conservatorship by the
Federal Housing Finance Agency .
In
tennis ,
Serena Williams and
Roger Federer win the
women's and
men's
singles titles, respectively, at the
2008 U.S. Open .
The first
particle beam is successfully steered around the
Large Hadron Collider
accelerator ring at
CERN near
Geneva ,
Switzerland .
President
Robert Mugabe of
Zimbabwe and
opposition leader
Morgan Tsvangirai reach a
power-sharing agreement .
A
commuter train and a
freight train
collide in
Los Angeles ,
California , killing at least 25 people and injuring 135.
The
All Blacks of
New Zealand defeat the
Australian
rugby union team to win the
2008 Tri Nations Series at
Suncorp Stadium in
Brisbane ,
Australia .
A
mudslide caused by an illegal
mine in
Linfen ,
Shanxi province ,
China kills at least 267 people.
A
series of five bomb blasts kills 30 people and injures 130 others at various locations in
Delhi ,
India .
Aeroflot Flight 821 crashes near
Perm ,
Russia , killing all 88 on board.
At age 21,
Sebastian Vettel of
Toro Rosso wins the
2008 Italian Grand Prix at
Monza , becoming the
youngest driver to win a Formula One Grand Prix.
In the first
parliamentary elections in
Angola since 1992, the ruling
MPLA party wins in a landslide.
Lehman Brothers files for
bankruptcy protection and
Merrill Lynch is to be sold to
Bank of America as part of the ongoing
subprime mortgage crisis .
A
series of bomb attacks kills eight people and injures 100 more at
El Grito
Independence Day celebrations in
Morelia ,
Mexico .
A
political crisis related to the
South Ossetia war brings down the government of
Ukraine .
Bolivian authorities declare a
state of emergency in
Pando Department and arrest Governor
Leopoldo Fernández following the death of at least 30 people in
clashes between supporters and opponents of
President
Evo Morales .
The
United States
Federal Reserve loans $85 billion to
AIG to avoid
bankruptcy ,
Lehman Brothers files for bankruptcy
protection , and
Bank of America announces plans to buy
Merrill Lynch , all part of the ongoing
subprime mortgage crisis .
Nineteen people (including six perpetrators) are killed in an
attack on the United States embassy in
San‘a’ ,
Yemen .
The
International Astronomical Union classifies
Haumea as the fifth
dwarf planet in the Solar System.
Somchai Wongsawat is selected to become the next
Prime Minister during an
ongoing political crisis in
Thailand .
Lloyds TSB announce a takeover of rival
UK bank
HBOS after a week of global
financial market instability .
A
truck bomb detonates outside a hotel in
Islamabad ,
Pakistan , killing at least 60 people and injuring 100 others.
Thabo Mbeki , as requested by the ruling
African National Congress , resigns as
President of
South Africa .
In
golf , Team
USA defeats Team
Europe to win the
37th Ryder Cup Matches .
More than 12,800 children in
China are hospitalized due to
adulterated milk products and infant formula .
Edward Natapei is elected the new
Prime Minister of
Vanuatu following the
2008 general elections .
Eleven people die in a
school shooting in
Kauhajoki ,
Finland .
The
Diet of Japan elects
Taro Aso of the
Liberal Democratic Party as the new
Prime Minister of Japan .
Eighteen people are killed after
Typhoon Hagupit hits the
Philippines and
China .
Shenzhou 7 , the
third manned
Chinese spaceflight , is successfully launched with three
taikonauts on board.
Kgalema Motlanthe is sworn in as the
President of South Africa , succeeding
Thabo Mbeki .
In the largest bank failure in U.S. history,
Washington Mutual is placed into
receivership by the
Office of Thrift Supervision . As
receiver , the
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation sells the bank's accounts and operations to
JPMorgan Chase .
CNSA
astronaut
Zhai Zhigang successfully performs a
spacewalk during the
Chinese space mission
Shenzhou 7 .
Turkmenistan
adopts a new constitution that abolishes the
People's Council and allows opposition parties.
A
car bombing in
Damascus ,
Syria , kills 17 and injures 14.
Haile Gebrselassie of
Ethiopia sets a
marathon world record of two hours, three minutes, 59 seconds at the
Berlin Marathon .
SpaceX
Falcon 1 becomes the first privately developed liquid fueled
space launch vehicle to successfully
make orbit .
The
Emergency Economic Stabilization Act is rejected by the
U.S. House of Representatives , and the
Dow Jones stock market index records a one-day point drop of 777.68 points, or seven percent.
Floods caused by
Typhoon Hagupit cause at least 67 deaths, including 41 in
Vietnam .
Three
bombs detonate in
Maharashtra and
Gujarat ,
India , killing 8 and injuring 80. The attack comes three days after a
bomb blast in
Delhi killed 3 and injured 30.
A
stampede in
Jodhpur ,
India , on the beginning of
Navratri kills 113 and injures more than 250.
Fifty
Somali pirates capture the
Ukrainian
cargo ship
MV Faina , along with its cargo of weapons and ammunition, and 33
T-72
tanks .
The
United States Congress approves the
civilian nuclear agreement between the
U.S. and
India .
U.S.
President
George W. Bush signs the revised
Emergency Economic Stabilization Act into law after passage in the
United States Congress .
In
rugby league , the
Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles defeat the
Melbourne Storm 40–0, a record-breaking margin, to win the
2008 NRL Grand Final .
Luc Montagnier and
Françoise Barré-Sinoussi , who discovered the
human immunodeficiency virus , and
Harald zur Hausen , who discovered that
human papilloma viruses can cause
cervical cancer in women, are announced as winners of the
2008 Nobel Prize in Medicine .
Yoichiro Nambu , who discovered the mechanism of
spontaneous symmetry breaking in
subatomic
physics , and
Makoto Kobayashi and
Toshihide Maskawa , who discovered the origin of the broken symmetry, win the 2008
Nobel Prize in Physics .
The
meteoroid
2008 TC3 burns up in
Earth's atmosphere , becoming the first such object to be discovered prior to
impact .
Voters go to the polls in the
Maldivian presidential election , the first
democratic elections held in the
Maldives , with six candidates including incumbent
Maumoon Abdul Gayoom .
Osamu Shimomura ,
Martin Chalfie , and
Roger Y. Tsien win the 2008
Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the discovery and development of the
green fluorescent protein .
The
British Government announces details of a
financial rescue package aimed at stabilizing and restoring confidence in the
banking sector .
French -
Mauritian
Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clézio wins the 2008
Nobel Prize in Literature .
With no candidate winning a majority in the first
democratic
presidential election in the
Maldives , the incumbent
Maumoon Abdul Gayoom and
Mohamed Nasheed move on to a
second-round runoff .
Martti Ahtisaari , a former
President of Finland and a
United Nations diplomat, wins the 2008
Nobel Peace Prize .
Iceland faces a
major financial crisis affecting all three major banks of the country.
A 5.8
Mw
earthquake kills 13 in
Chechnya ,
Russia .
Alphonsa Muttathupadathu , a
nun from
Kerala , becomes
India 's first female saint in the
Roman Catholic Church .
U.S.
economist
Paul Krugman wins the 2008
Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences .
The
2008 Canadian elections result in a second
minority government for
Prime Minister
Stephen Harper and the
Conservative Party .
Indian writer
Aravind Adiga wins the
Man Booker Prize for his debut novel,
The White Tiger .
Ilham Aliyev is
re-elected
president of
Azerbaijan .
The
United Nations General Assembly
elects
Turkey ,
Austria ,
Japan ,
Uganda , and
Mexico to two-year terms on the
Security Council .
India 's
Sachin Tendulkar becomes the leading scorer in
Test cricket and the first to pass 12,000 Test runs.
Several additional
amino acids are found in vials from the 1953
Miller–Urey experiment that probed the
origin of life .
A
bomb blast in
Imphal ,
India kills 17 and injures more than 30.
The
Indian Space Research Organisation successfully launches
Chandrayaan-1 , an unmanned
lunar exploration mission.
A
car bomb attack in
Zagreb ,
Croatia kills
Ivo Pukanić , the owner of the newspaper
Nacional .
Severe flooding in
Yemen caused by
Deep Depression ARB 02 kills 180 and displaces 20,000.
Kadima Party leader
Tzipi Livni calls for
early elections in
Israel following a failed attempt at forming a coalition government.
United States Special Forces enter
Syrian territory from
Iraq to carry out a
cross-border raid near
Abu Kamal .
United Nations peacekeeping forces engage in
heavy fighting with rebel forces led by
Laurent Nkunda in
Kivu ,
Democratic Republic of the Congo .
Mohamed Nasheed wins the
Maldives ' first democratic
presidential election in a runoff round, unseating incumbent
Maumoon Abdul Gayoom .
A 6.4
Mw
earthquake kills 215 in the
Pakistani province of
Balochistan .
Coordinated
suicide bombings kill 56 in
Hargeisa and
Bosaso ,
Somalia .
After 4 days of
heavy fighting with
United Nations peacekeeping forces in
Kivu ,
Democratic Republic of the Congo , rebel general
Laurent Nkunda orders a
ceasefire .
In
baseball , the
Philadelphia Phillies defeat the
Tampa Bay Rays to win the
2008 World Series .
Viswanathan Anand of India
defeats
Russia 's
Vladimir Kramnik , retaining his title as the
World Chess Champion .
After four days of
heavy fighting with
United Nations peacekeeping forces in
Kivu ,
Democratic Republic of the Congo , rebel general
Laurent Nkunda orders a
ceasefire .
A
series of bomb blasts in
Assam ,
India kills 84 and injures 470.
Heavy
floods affect
Vietnam and southern
China , flooding
Hanoi and killing at least 100.
The
Climatic Research Unit of the
University of East Anglia reports
conclusive evidence of human involvement in the warming of
Antarctica .
Sébastien Loeb of the
Citroën team becomes the first
driver to win the
World Rally Championship for a fifth consecutive time.
Lewis Hamilton wins the
2008 Formula One Drivers' Championship , beating
Felipe Massa by one point.
Rupiah Banda , of the
Movement for Multi-Party Democracy , is
elected
President of
Zambia .
An airplane
crashes amidst rush-hour traffic in
Mexico City , killing Mexican
Secretary of the Interior
Juan Camilo Mouriño and 12 others.
Barack Obama of the
Democratic Party becomes the first
African American to be
elected
President of the United States .
Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck , the world's youngest reigning monarch, is
crowned the fifth
Dragon King of
Bhutan .
Johnson Toribiong is elected
President of
Palau following
presidential elections .
At least 93 people are dead after a school
collapses in
Pétion-Ville ,
Haiti .
A
coalition consisting of the
National Party ,
ACT and
United Future
wins a majority of seats in the
Parliament of New Zealand .
A shipment of
cocaine , worth
€ 750 million,
is seized off the coast of
Ireland in the largest such seizure in the country's history.
An accident aboard
Russian
submarine
K-152 Nerpa kills 20 people, the worst Russian submarine disaster since
Kursk .
China announces a
stimulus package involving 4 trillion
yuan (
US$ 586 billion) to finance programs in 10 major domestic areas in the next two years.
Egypt 's antiquities chief,
Zahi Hawass , announces the discovery of a 4,300-year-old
pyramid belonging to Queen
Sesheshet , mother of King
Teti .
Three
planets orbiting the
star
HR 8799 and one
planet orbiting the star
Fomalhaut are optically verified, making them the first
extrasolar planets whose existences have been confirmed via direct imaging.
The
Moon Impact Probe , released by
Indian spacecraft
Chandrayaan-1 , is successfully crashed into the lunar south pole.
G-20 leaders meet at a
summit in
Washington, D.C. to discuss the current
financial crisis .
Somali pirates capture the
oil tanker
MV Sirius Star , the largest vessel to date to be
hijacked , off the coast of the
Horn of Africa .
War crimes are reported in the
Democratic Republic of the Congo after a ceasefire in the
Kivu conflict is broken and
fighting resumes, with at least 100 civilians dead.
New Zealand and
Australian researchers identify a new species of
penguin , the
Waitaha penguin , which lived in New Zealand until its extinction 500 years ago.
The first successful
tracheal
transplantation using a
tissue-engineered organ created from the patient's own
stem cells is performed in
Spain .
Rebel forces in
Nord-Kivu ,
Democratic Republic of the Congo ,
withdraw to promote peace talks, while the
United Nations Security Council votes on reinforcing
MONUC peacekeepers.
The
United Nations Security Council votes unanimously to
reinforce
MONUC , the largest peacekeeping force in the world, stationed in
Nord-Kivu ,
Democratic Republic of the Congo .
Ibrahim Nasir , the first
President of the
Second Republic of the
Maldives , dies of an unknown cause in
Singapore .
The eruption of
Nevado del Huila , a
volcano in southern
Colombia , causes at least 10 deaths and the evacuation of 12,000 people.
The
PAIGC wins a majority of seats in the
National People's Assembly after
legislative elections in
Guinea-Bissau .
Brazilian officials declare a
state of emergency as
flooding in the
Southern state of
Santa Catarina causes at least 128 deaths and forces the evacuation of over 78,700 people.
The
Thai political crisis deepens as
protesters seize two
Bangkok airports.
Attacks at the
Taj Mahal Palace Hotel , the
Nariman House and several other locations in
Mumbai ,
India , kill at least 173 and injure over 308.
The people of
Greenland pass a
referendum regarding greater
autonomy from
Denmark .
Rioting over disputed election results kills more than 381 people and injures hundreds in
Jos ,
Nigeria .
The
Constitutional Court of
Thailand
dissolves three parties in the ruling coalition , and
Prime Minister
Somchai Wongsawat resigns.
A
cholera outbreak in
Zimbabwe spreads, leaving hundreds dead and over 12,000 people infected since August 2008.
At the request of
Prime Minister
Stephen Harper ,
Governor General of Canada
Michaëlle Jean
prorogues the parliament until January 26, 2009, to avoid a
confidence motion by a newly-formed
coalition of opposition parties.
A
bombing in
Peshawar ,
Pakistan , kills 29 people and injures more than 100.
Patriarch
Alexy II , the head of the
Russian Orthodox Church , dies of
heart failure in
Peredelkino ,
Russia .
Ireland issues an international
recall of its
pork products following the discovery of contaminated
pig feed .
Anti-police riots break out in
Athens and spread to several cities across
Greece .
The
Channel Island of
Sark , a
British
crown dependency , holds its
first fully democratic elections under a new constitutional arrangement, becoming the last European territory to abolish
feudalism .
Switzerland becomes the 25th European country to join the
Schengen Agreement , whereby
cross-border passport checks will be abolished.
Bernard L. Madoff is arrested by the
FBI in the
United States , and charged with defrauding investors in a
US$ 50 billion
Ponzi scheme .
The
House of Representatives of
Thailand selects
Abhisit Vejjajiva of the
Democrat Party as the country's new
Prime Minister .
Flooding caused by
tidal
swells displaces approximately 75,000 people in
Papua New Guinea .
ASEAN meets in
Jakarta ,
Indonesia , to launch the
ASEAN Charter , which groups its 10 member states into a legal entity.
Ruins of an ancient
Wari city are discovered in northern
Peru .
The
International Criminal Tribunal for
Rwanda finds
Théoneste Bagosora and two other senior Rwandan army officers guilty of
genocide ,
crimes against humanity and
war crimes and sentences them to
life imprisonment .
Damaged
submarine communications cables cause
disruption in intercontinental communication throughout the
Middle East and
Asia .
The
United States and
Canada announce
automotive industry
bailout packages to counter the
global auto industry financial crisis .
In
Turkmenistan , the
first parliamentary election since the abolition of the
People's Council is held, and winners are announced for 123 of 125 seats.
Belgian
Prime Minister
Yves Leterme and
his government resign amid a controversy over the sale of the financial service company
Fortis .
In
Romania , the
Democratic Liberal Party and the
Social Democratic Party
form a coalition government with
Emil Boc as the new
Prime Minister .
In
Kingston ,
Tennessee , a retaining pond at a
coal-fired power plant fails, resulting in the
largest-ever spill of
coal
fly ash
slurry in the
United States .
A
military coup d'état in
Guinea is announced shortly after the death of
President
Lansana Conté .
Israel launches
Operation Cast Lead in response to recent attacks by
Hamas , killing more than 300 people in the
Gaza Strip .
Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed resigns as
President of
Somalia .
Kabiné Komara is appointed as the new
Prime Minister of
Guinea by the
ruling military junta .
A
new government is formed in
Belgium , with
Herman Van Rompuy succeeding
Yves Leterme as the new
Prime Minister .
A coalition led by
Sheikh Hasina and the
Awami League
wins a
supermajority in the
National Assembly of
Bangladesh .
Kabiné Komara is appointed as the new
Prime Minister of
Guinea by the
ruling military junta .
The discovery of a bed of
dinosaur
fossils near
Zhucheng in
Shandong ,
China , believed to be the world's largest fossil site, is announced.
Compiled diff-by-diff by
Spencer
T♦
C , with special thanks to
GP
Pande