May 2004
2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June -
July - August - September - October -
November - December
- Thousands of people in Hong Kong take to the streets to commemorate the 15th
anniversary of the Tiananmen Square
massacre, and to protest Beijing's recent
moves to limit their autonomy.
(VOA) (http://www.voanews.com/article.cfm?objectID=63E57B00-8EFA-4040-977A3D3D18CAAF50&title=Hong%20Kong%20Marks%20Tiananmen%20Anniversary&catOID=45C9C78B-88AD-11D4-A57200A0CC5EE46C&categoryname=Asia%20Pacific)
(BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3761867.stm)
- Pakistan test-fires a ballistic missile capable of carrying a nuclear
warhead, but claims it will not increase tensions with India. (PakistanLink) (http://www.pakistanlink.com/headlines/May04/30/03.html)
- Saudi commandos storm the Khobar housing compound where Islamic militants were
holding several dozen hostages, ending with 22 dead. (BBC (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/3762423.stm))
- Thousands of Pakistani Sunni Muslims riot in Karachi, ransacking property,
setting fire to four banks, and stoning vehicles after Mufti Nizamuddin Shamzai, an influential pro-Taliban cleric, is killed in a drive-by shooting.
(NYT) (http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/international/AP-Pakistan-Cleric-Killed.html) (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3761409.stm)
- Buddy Rice wins the 2004 Indianapolis 500 driving for Rahal Letterman Racing.
(VOA) (http://www.voanews.com/article.cfm?objectID=37601F40-66FA-4895-A919F0BFCFC07A8F) (Sports Illustrated) (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2004/racing/05/30/bc.car.irl.indy500.fini.ap/)
- The World War II Memorial is
dedicated in Washington, DC, with around 200,000 people attending the
ceremony. (Reuters) (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=5294161) (CNN) (http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/05/29/war.memorial/index.html)
- Islamist militants attack two oil industry installations and a foreign workers'
housing complex in Khobar, Saudi
Arabia, killing at least 11 people and taking some 50 hostages. Saudi police attempt to storm the housing complex but
withdraw after taking casualties. A previously unknown militant group styling itself "The Jerusalem Squadron" claims
responsibility and says they are attacking "zionists and crusaders" who are there to "steal our oil and resources". (CNN) (http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/meast/05/29/saudi.shooting/index.html) (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3760287.stm)
- U.S. District Judge Nancy Gertner (in Massachusetts) rules that
stating that someone is homosexual does not constitute libel or slander.
(AP) (http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/apus_story.asp?category=1110&slug=Gay%20Defamation)
- India flies its first multi-purpose civilian aircraft Saras in Bangalore. (Times of India (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/cms.dll/html/uncomp/articleshow/708600.cms))
- An earthquake measuring 4.4 on the Richter scale occurs in the border area between Haiti and the
Dominican Republic. (BBC (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/3761171.stm))
- NASA announces the first Spitzer Space Telescope find: a planet that appears to be less than a million years old. (NYT) (http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/28/science/28planet.html)
- A signed peace accord marks an end to the 21-year civil war in Sudan. The Darfur conflict
continues. (AP) (http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/world/8773195.htm?1c)
- Archaeologists discover what they term the 'world's oldest university' in Alexandria, Egypt. It dates from the 5th century AD.
(Toronto Star) (http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1085609411132&call_pageid=968332188492&col=968705899037)
- FBI Director Robert Mueller and United States Attorney General John
Ashcroft state that Al Qaeda may be planning a terrorist strike over the coming
months. Multiple FBI officials contend that there is no recent intelligence to suggest a significant change in the USA's security
situation, and critics question the validity and timing of the public warning.(NYT) (http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/27/politics/27terror.html?th) Seven people wanted for questioning
are also named.
- Journalist Peter Hounam, who had revealed Israel's secret nuclear
program, is arrested in Jerusalem and denied access to a lawyer. He is
released and expelled from the country the following day. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/3752043.stm) (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3759119.stm)
- A man armed with a knife enters the mansion of Puerto Rican governor
Sila María Calderón and takes a secretary hostage.
Calderón negotiates with him for the hostage's release, and he is arrested soon after. (CNN) (http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/americas/05/27/puertorico.hostage.ap/index.html)
- Football: FC
Porto defeat AS Monaco FC 3-0 in the final of the UEFA Champions League (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/champions_league/3718645.stm)
- As many as 1,000 people are killed in floods in the Dominican Republic and Haiti.
(CNN) (http://www.cnn.com/2004/WEATHER/05/25/caribbean.storms/index.html) (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3756621.stm)
- France bans the use of Bayer CropScience Gaucho (insecticide) on maize seeds. Gaucho is claimed to be harmful to bees. (Rtrs)
(http://www.agriculture.com/worldwide/IDS/2004-05-25T172003Z_01_L25197546_RTRIDST_0_FOOD-FRANCE-GAUCHO-UPDATE-1.html)
- Viacom's MTV Networks unit
announces plans for the LOGO channel, the first LGBT-themed major cable television service in the United
States, set for a February 17, 2005
debut. (Bloomberg)
(http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000087&sid=aff59Spo3R3A&refer=top_world_news)
(Reuters) (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=domesticNews&storyID=5253784) (CNN) (http://money.cnn.com/2004/05/25/news/fortune500/mtv_gay_network/)
- The Abel Prize is awarded in a ceremony in Oslo for the Atiyah-Singer index
theorem. (AP)
(http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=624&ncid=753&e=10&u=/ap/20040525/ap_on_sc/norway_abel_prize)
- Tennis: At the French Open, a
new world record for the longest match in the sport's recorded history is set when Frenchman Fabrice Santoro beats Arnaud Clement 6-4, 6-3, 6-7 (5), 3-6,
16-14 after playing for 6 hours and 33 minutes, split over two days. (ESPN) (http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/tennis/french04/news/story?id=1809151)
- Villagers in Abga Rajil, western
Sudan, claim 56 people are killed in a raid by janjaweed militia. The UN says conflict in the Darfur area has displaced around a million people. (Reuters) (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=5228658&section=news)
- Iraq Occupation and resistance:
- Explosions occur at three banks in Jiutepec, Morelos state, Mexico. In a communiqué left at the blast stite, a
previously unheard-of rebel group called the Comando Jaramillista Morelense 23 de Mayo claims responsibility. (Reuters) (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=5228376&section=news)
- Prime Minister of Canada Paul Martin asks Governor General Adrienne
Clarkson to dissolve Parliament; an election will be held on June 28. (CBC) (http://www.cbc.ca/stories/2004/05/23/canada/elxncall040523)
- China announces that tests of a SARS vaccine have started on humans. (ABC AU) (http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/s1114114.htm)
- At least 28 people are killed in Indian-controlled Kashmir
when a bus carrying Indian soldiers and family hits a
landmine. Hizbul Mujahideen claim responsibility. (ABC AU) (http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/s1114155.htm)
- A bomb explodes in a discotheque in
Bogotá, Colombia, on Saturday night
(local time): five people are killed. The authorities blame the FARC paramilitary rebel group. (Reuters) (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=5227976&section=news)
- 2 Palestinians die and another suffers seriously injuries due to an
explosion in Nablus on the West Bank. It is believed the explosion resulted from improper handling of explosives.
(Reuters) (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=5227548&section=news)
- A ship carrying 4,000 Hyundai cars sinks south of Singapore after
colliding with an oil tanker. All crew are safe, there is no oil spill, and the cars were insured.
(ABC AU) (http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/s1114133.htm)
- Horst Köhler is elected as the President of Germany by a special federal assembly in the Reichstag. (Reuters) (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=5227391&section=news)
- Part of a new terminal roof collapses at Roissy-Charles de Gaulle International Airport near Paris just before 07:00 hrs local time, killing at least 6, and injuring several others. (CNN) (http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/europe/05/23/paris.roofcollapse.ap/index.html) (Reuters) (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=5227484&section=news)
- Two Bangladeshi river ferries
capsize at 03:30 hrs local time during a sudden storm; 240 passengers are reported
missing. (Reuters) (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=5227971&section=news)
- Libyan leader Moammar
Al Qadhafi walks out of the Arab League Summit in Tunis, Tunisia stating: "There is one agenda laid out by the Arab
people and another by the Arab governments." (NYT) (http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/23/international/23arab.html)
- Israeli Justice Minister Tommy
Lapid causes consternation when he says that an image of an old Arab woman rummaging
through rubble in Rafah reminded him of his grandmother, a Holocaust victim. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3742365.stm)
- Jarno Trulli wins Monaco F1 Grand Prix driving a Renault. (BBC Sport) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/formula_one/3738831.stm)
- Citing "insufficient evidence", US Federal Judge Adalberto Jordan acquits environmental group Greenpeace on charges under the "sailormongering" statute. A record total of more than 100,000 people worldwide
sent protest messages to George W. Bush and US Attorney General John Ashcroft demanding that the case be dropped. (Greenpeace) (http://www.greenpeaceusa.org/index.fpl/10386/article/1131.html) (OneWorld.net) (http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0520-12.htm) (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/3731003.stm)
- US Army kills 40 and wounds 117 others during an attack in Iraq near the border with Syria. Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt, deputy
director of operations for the US military in Iraq, tells Reuters the attack was
within the military's rules of engagement, denying reports that the victims were members of a wedding party. He says a large
amount of money, Syrian passports and
satellite communications equipment was found at the
site after the attack. (Guardian) (http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0521-01.htm) (Reuters) (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=5197140) (NYT) (http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/20/international/middleeast/20IRAQ.html?hp)
- At least ten Palestinians are killed in Rafah, Gaza Strip, by an explosion following warning shots fired by
the IDF. The road used by the Palestinians was strewn
with explosives. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3728681.stm) (CNN) (http://edition.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/meast/05/19/mideast/index.html) (FOX) (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,120331,00.html)
- Iraqi abuse scandal at Abu Ghraib prison:
- The Denver Post has
uncovered Pentagon documents that show more than twice as many allegations
of detainee abuse (75) are being investigated by the military than previously known. Twenty-seven of the abuse cases involve
deaths; at least eight are believed to be homicides. (Denver Post) (http://www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,1413,36%7E11676%7E2157003,00.html)
- The first U.S. soldier is sentenced after pleading guilty: Spc. Jeremy
Sivits receives one year in prison, demotion and a dishonorable discharge. (CNN) (http://www.cnn.com/2004/LAW/05/19/court.martial.sivits/index.html)
- At least one British soldier is arrested for creating the faked
British abuse photos. (CNN) (http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/meast/05/19/iraq.abuse.uk/index.html)
- The British House of Commons is temporarily
suspended after purple flour thrown by a Fathers 4 Justice protester hits Tony Blair during
Prime Minister's Questions. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3728617.stm)
- The Nationalist Party of China (KMT) and the People First Party announce plans to merge after a unanimous vote by
the KMT Central Standing Committee. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3727439.stm)
- A third outspoken Hong Kong radio
talk show host, Allen Lee, quits
his program, questioning the status of media freedom in the special administrative region; he also resigns from his seat in the Chinese National People's Congress.
(VOA) (http://www.voanews.com/article.cfm?objectID=06C1C7DD-EA55-470B-85C8D5096899B578&title=Another%20Hong%20Kong%20Radio%20Host%20Leaves%20Airwaves&catOID=45C9C78B-88AD-11D4-A57200A0CC5EE46C&categoryname=Asia%20Pacific)
(BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/3727539.stm)
- Rudy Giuliani testifies before the 9/11 panel. He defends the work of his commissioners
before the September 11th Commission. (AP) (http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/S/SEPT_11_COMMISSION?SITE=NYNYP&SECTION=HOME)
- Manmohan Singh is asked by India's Congress party to become Prime Minister and form new government. (Reuters) (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=5194611)
- In football, Valencia wins the UEFA Cup, defeating Olympique Marseille 2-0. (UEFA.com) (http://www.uefa.com/competitions/UEFACup/fixturesresults/round=1724/match=75432/Report=RP.html)
- Sonia Gandhi declines the post of Prime Minister of India. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3721863.stm)
- Preliminary field tests suggest that the shell found near Baghdad on May 15
contained about four liters of the chemical agent sarin, which attacks the nervous system. (New York Times/AP) (http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/international/AP-US-Iraq-Sarin.html) (Fox News) (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,120137,00.html) (Seattle Post-Intelligencer) (http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/173793_sarin18.html)
- Israeli-Palestinian conflict: Israel launches a large offensive against the city of Rafah dubbed Operation Rainbow, cutting it off from
the rest of Gaza. Amnesty International has called on Israel to stop and accused it of committing war crimes by its destruction of more than 3,000 Palestinian homes in Israel and the occupied territories since the intifada began three and a half years ago. (Independent) (http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0519-01.htm) (Democracy Now!) (http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=04/05/18/1350208) (AFP) (http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0519-03.htm)
- The International Olympic
Committee selects London, Madrid,
Moscow, New York City, and
Paris as finalists to host the 2012 Summer Olympics. The winner will be announced on June
6, 2005. (AP) (http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2004/05/18/sports0737EDT0213.DTL) (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/other_sports/olympics_2012/3720515.stm)
- Randy Johnson pitches the 17th perfect game in Major League Baseball
history in a 2-0 win by the Arizona Diamondbacks over the
Atlanta Braves. (ESPN) (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/recap?gameId=240518115)
- Civilian Space Xploration Team (CSXT) 21-foot GoFast amateur rocket is launched, carrying a ham radio, and reaches the
edge of space at 100 km altitude. (AARL) (http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2004/05/17/100/?nc=1)
- Hamas leader Khaled Meshal
rejects talk of cease-fire with Israel. Hamas has sent scores of suicide bombers into Israeli towns since the Palestinian uprising began in September 2000, killing hundreds of Israelis. "Our choice is between death
and death," he said. "Our people will defend themselves until the last breath. The world left us no other choice." (Haaretz) (http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/428620.html)
- Ceremonies in Topeka, Kansas commemorate the 50th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education. Both President George W. Bush and
presidential
candidate John Kerry attend separate ceremonies. (AP)
(http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=694&e=3&u=/ap/20040517/ap_on_el_pr/brown_at50)
- Iraqi WMD: Brigadier General Mark
Kimmitt says that an artillery shell with sarin agent was found after it exploded.
Two members of an explosives team are exposed to it, and have been treated. Hans
Blix doubts that this was part of a current Iraq WMD, and doubts have been cast as to the accuracy of the field
tests.(Reuters) (http://www.reuters.com/printerFriendlyPopup.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=5166415) (Melbourne HS) (http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5478,9593577%255E1702,00.html)
- Police in London foil an armed robbery at the Heathrow Cargo Centre, which attempted to steal £40 million (some USD 70 million) in gold and
£30-£40 million in cash. Six men are arrested and another is being sought by police. (BBC)
(http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3721333.stm)
- Massachusetts issues the first
fully legal same-sex marriage licences in the United States. This
follows a November 18, 2003 ruling of the Massachusetts Supreme Court requiring the state to issue same-sex marriage licences. The first licence
is issued at Cambridge to Marcia Hams and Susan
Shepherd at the stroke of midnight. See Same-sex marriage in the United States.(365Gay) (http://www.365gay.com/newscon04/05/051704licenseBegins.htm)
- Ezzedine Salim, head of the Iraqi Governing Council, is killed by a car
bomb in Baghdad. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/3720161.stm)
- Stock markets in India fall
sharply following frenetic panic selling minutes after opening business. Owing to uncertainties over the proposed economic
policies of the impending Sonia Gandhi government, Bombay Stock Exchange loses 800 points in the first 23 minutes,
or almost 15%, in the biggest ever intra-day slippage in its history. Regulators freeze the trading twice, in an attempt to
shelve the damage. Markets recover some ground after public assurances by the Indian National Congress party that the fears are unfounded. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/3721203.stm)
- Over 100 inmates – mostly Mara Salvatrucha
gang members – perish in a pre-dawn prison fire in San Pedro Sula, Honduras. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3721635.stm)
- Voters in the Dominican Republic go to the polls to
elect a
new president; with 79% of the vote counted, former president Leonel Fernández is declared the winner. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3718541.stm)
- The Israeli army announces its intention to demolish
hundreds of additional houses in the Rafah refugee camp in the Gaza Strip along the border with Egypt after the Supreme Court
rejects a petition against the demolitions. In the past, the IDF has found dozens of tunnels
hidden underneath homes allegedly used to smuggle guns, ammunition, explosives, fugitives, drugs and other illegal materials into
Gaza. The court had previously issued a temporary injunction after 88 homes had been destroyed leaving more than 1000 people
homeless (UNRWA figures disputed by the Israeli army). (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3719111.stm) (Haaretz) (http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/spages/427997.html) (Maariv) (http://www.maarivintl.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=article&articleID=7387)
- French European Union parliamentarian Paul Marie Couteax declares: "I have no hesitation in saying that we must consider
giving the Arab side a large enough force, including a large enough nuclear force, to persuade Israel that it cannot simply do
whatever it wants. That is the policy my country (France) pursued in the 1970s when it gave Iraq a nuclear force."(JPost)
(http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1085721253715&p=1006953079897)
- Vatican foreign minister Archbishop Giovanni Lajolo says torture of prisoners
is a "more serious" blow for U.S. than September
11 (Al
Jazeerah) (http://www.aljazeerah.info/News%20archives/2004%20News%20archives/May/13n/Abuse,%20beheading%20dogs%20US.htm).
American reaction is negative. (Catholic News) (http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/20040514c.htm)
- The British tabloid
newspaper The Daily
Mirror, which published photos allegedly depicting British Army
soldiers abusing Iraqi prisoners, concedes that it was hoaxed, apologises, and sacks its editor Piers Morgan. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3716151.stm) (Al Bawaba) (http://www.albawaba.com/news/index.php3?sid=276819&lang=e&dir=news) (Reuters) (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=5151422)
- Danish Crown Prince Frederik
marries Australian Mary Donaldson
in Copenhagen. The service is attended by royalty and dignitaries from around
the world, amidst very high security in the face of terrorism fears. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3711837.stm)
- Roh Moo-hyun is reinstated as President of South Korea after that
country's Constitutional Court overturns the National Assembly's March 12 impeachment vote against him. (KBS News) (http://english.kbs.co.kr/news/newsview_sub.php?menu=2&key=2004051411)
- Polish Prime Minister Marek Belka looses a parliamentary vote of confidence, less than two weeks after he was appointed to the post.
He will continue in a caretaker capacity until a new candidate is appointed. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3716461.stm) (PolitInfo) (http://www.politinfo.com/articles/article_2004_05_15_5312.html)
- The impact crater of the "Great Dying" — the end-Permian event, the largest extinction event in the history of life on Earth —
appears to be a 125 mile (200 km)-wide crater called "Bedout" off the northwestern
coast of Australia. (UCSB Press release) (http://beckeraustralia.crustal.ucsb.edu/)
- Iraqi Occupation and resistance:
- Mohammad's Army, in an interview with IWPR, states "We want to inform America that its attempt to stir up sectarian discord is a failure." (IWPR) (http://www.iwpr.net/index.pl?archive/irq/irq_63_1_eng.txt)
- FMDC Coinarama World Championships
held. Robert "Hog" Little defeats Alex "Fat" Malcom
- Scaled Composites sets a new civilian altitude record of 60
kilometres in a craft called SpaceShipOne during a test flight above California's
Mojave Desert in preparation for the X-Prize. (CNN) (http://edition.cnn.com/2004/TECH/space/05/13/private.space.ship/index.html) (SPACE) (http://www.space.com/businesstechnology/technology/rutan_flight_040513.html)
- Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse: Some members of
the British government begin to distance themselves from the Bush administration and Prime Minister Tony Blair.
Peter Hain, Leader of the House of Commons, tells Parliament that the pictures are "appalling and
possibly in breach of the Geneva Convention". (The Independent) (http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/story.jsp?story=520734) (Guardian) (http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1215446,00.html)
- Iraq Occupation and resistance:
- A poll commissioned by the US-led Coalition Provisional Authority has found that 80% of Iraqis distrust the occupying government and 82% want the U.S. and its allies to leave Iraq. (Seattle Times) (http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2001927572_iraqpoll13.html)
- Yang Jianli, a Chinese dissident with U.S. residency, is sentenced to
five years in prison by the People's Republic of
China for illegally entering the country and "spying for Taiwan". (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3709733.stm)
- Indian general elections:
Sonia Gandhi's opposition Congress Party scores an upset victory as the vote is tallied for the formation of the 14th Lok Sabha. The ruling BJP-led coalition concedes defeat, and Prime Minister Atal Behari
Vajpayee resigns. (Indian Express) (http://www.indianexpress.com/full_story.php?content_id=46793) (CNN) (http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/asiapcf/05/13/india.poll.counting/index.html)
- The television sitcom Frasier airs its final episode, bringing to an
end Kelsey Grammer's 23 years playing the character Frasier Crane. (Newsday) (http://www.newsday.com/entertainment/tv/nyc-frasier0514,0,4075992.story?coll=ny-television-bigpix)
- A joint Polish-Egyptian archaeological team claims to have discovered the Library of Alexandria. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3707641.stm)
- Ontario New Democratic Party candidate
Andrea Horwath wins the provincial riding of Hamilton East, returning the NDP to official party status in the
Ontario Legislature. The by-election was held to replace Liberal MPP Dominic Agostino, who had
died in office.
- Turkey begins construction of a tunnel
under the Bosporus. (Moscow Times) (http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2004/05/11/050.html)
- A judicial recount in the 2004
Taiwanese presidential election begins. (VOA) (http://www.voanews.com/article.cfm?objectID=B02E172B-B50A-431E-B1F02862D4A9A19C) (CNA) (http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/eastasia/view/84175/1/.html)
- The Arab League agrees to hold a summit in Tunis. The summit originally scheduled for March of this year was
scrapped over differences between the participants. (NYT) (http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/international/AP-Egypt-Arab-League.html)
- At the Commonwealth military cemetery in Gaza City where 3000 WWI casualties
are buried, Palestinian vandals desecrate 32 graves, breaking headstones and
affixing photographs of Iraqi POW abuse to others. (NYT) (http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/international/AP-Israel-Palestinians.html)
- The Palestinian Cabinet announces plans to hold municipal elections,
starting with Jericho and followed by some Gaza Strip municipalities. The elections, starting in August, will replace mayors appointed by the Palestine Authority. The previous elections, for president and legislature, were held in 1996. (NYT) (http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/international/AP-Israel-Palestinians.html), (VOA) (http://www.voanews.com/article.cfm?objectID=BB8BB139-EFB2-4CB1-B8D32491C1A449D5)
- President George W. Bush is
expected to impose economic sanctions on Syria, alleging support of terrorism and failure to stop guerrillas from entering Iraq. (NYT) (http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/politics/politics-syria-usa.html), (Reuters) (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=politicsNews&storyID=5095804)
- The United States Armed Forces destroy the
Baghdad headquarters of Moqtada al-Sadr. The building had been evacuated by al-Sadr's forces. There were no casualties. (NYT) (http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/10/international/middleeast/10CND-IRAQ.html)
- Philippine elections: About 40 million
Filipinos go to the polls to elect candidates for national and local positions from the President down to municipal councilors. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3699283.stm)
- Canadian bureaucrat Chuck Guite
and GroupeAction president
Jean Brault have been arrested and
charged with six counts each of fraud in connection with the Liberal sponsorship
scandal. (CTV) (http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/1084204352744_45/?hub=TopStories)
- The Department of Justice reopens an investigation into the 1955 murder of Emmett Till, an important event
during the American civil rights
movement.
(NYT) (http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/10/national/10CND-TILL.html?ex=1084852800&en=94feeb3c6f280f5b&ei=5062&partner=GOOGLE)
- Voting concludes in the marathon
elections in India. (IHT) (http://www.iht.com/articles/519230.html)
- The first Dutch soldier dies in the occupation of Iraq. (Radio Netherlands) (http://www.rnw.nl/hotspots/html/irq040511.html)
- Chechen president Akhmad
Kadyrov is killed in a landmine bomb blast under a VIP stage during a World War II memorial victory parade in Grozny, Chechnya. (Reuters) (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=5081717&section=news)
(AP)
(http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/R/RUSSIA_EXPLOSION?SITE=CAWOO&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT)
(BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3697715.stm)
- The scandal about U.S. torture in Iraq widens as The New Yorker reports about guards setting dogs against naked prisoners. (New Yorker) (http://www.newyorker.com/fact/content/?040517fa_fact2)
- Twenty-two passengers, two stoweaways and crew are injured when an American Eagle ATR 42, flight 1450, crash-lands in San Juan, Puerto Rico. (AP)
(http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=589&e=1&u=/ap/20040510/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/puerto_rico_crash_landing)
- Israel makes the first permanent appointment of an Arab to its Supreme Court as Salim Jubran is selected
unanimously; Esther Hayut and
Elyakim Rubinstein are also selected unanimously. Edna Arbel, the former state prosecutor who
recommended indicting Prime Minister Ariel Sharon on bribery charges, is
selected amongst considerably more controversy and opposition. (Haaretz) (http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/424730.html)
- Computer security: German authorities arrest an 18-year-old high school student on suspicion that he is responsible for creating the
Sasser worm, which
has infected hundreds of thousands of computers worldwide by exploiting a flaw in the Windows 2000 and Windows XP operating systems. According to CNET, a US$5 million reward from Microsoft was instrumental in leading investigators to the suspect. (AP)
(http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/wire/sns-ap-germany-computer-worm,0,1719391.story?coll=sns-ap-world-headlines)
(CNET) (http://news.com.com/2100-7349_3-5208762.html?tag=nefd.top)
- Turkish prime minister
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan wraps up a landmark visit to
Greece. Both sides pledge cooperation—Erdoğan visits the Turkish minority in
Thrace and urges reconciliation, and his Greek counterpart Costas Karamanlis says Greece will support Turkey's EU bid, marking a high point in Greco-Turkish relations. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3689687.stm) (BBC)
(http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3697293.stm) (BBC)
(http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3694221.stm)
- Japan's longest-serving chief cabinet secretary, Yasuo Fukuda, resigns to take
responsibility for not making pension payments.
(VOA) (http://www.voanews.com/article.cfm?objectID=441EEFF5-552F-4F27-89AE2CCBDF968092&title=Japan%27s%20Cabinet%20Secretary%20Resigns&catOID=45C9C78B-88AD-11D4-A57200A0CC5EE46C&categoryname=Asia%20Pacific)
- A report from the UN's High Commissioner for Human Rights describes a "reign of
terror" imposed by government-backed militias in Sudan's western province of Darfur. (UN) (http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=10664&Cr=sudan&Cr1=)
- A bomb blast during Friday prayers at a Shia mosque in Karachi, Pakistan kills 10 people and injures 100. A suicide bombing is suspected. The head cleric of the mosque is among the
dead. (NYT) (http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/07/international/asia/07CND-STAN.html) (National Post) (http://www.canada.com/national/story.html?id=4344b709-0578-463d-9248-095fc73ff773)
- Vladimir Putin is sworn in for his second (and final) four-year
term as Russian president. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3692719.stm)
- Iraq Occupation and resistance:
- Chilean President Ricardo Lagos signs
legislation legalizing divorce. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3693627.stm)
- U.S. attorney Brandon Mayfield is detained in the investigation
of the 11 March Madrid attacks. (CNN) (http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/West/05/06/spain.us.arrest/index.html) (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/3692741.stm)
- The Prime
Minister of Nepal Surya Bahadur Thapa resigns amid protests by oppostion parties. Prime Minister Thapa was appointed by
King Gyanendra eleven months ago. The opposing parties are demanding formation of
an all party government with a Prime Minister of their choice. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3693233.stm)
- The FDA blocks the Over-the-counter sale of a morning-after pill despite the (23-4) recommendation of a federal advisory panel. (NYT) (http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/08/politics/08FDA.html)
- Iraq Occupation and resistance:
- The United States Senate votes (95-3) to approve
John Negroponte as the head of the new U.S. embassy in Iraq despite concerns over his role in allegedly supporting widespread campaigns of terror and
human rights abuses as ambassador of Honduras in the 1980s. (Los Angeles Times)
(http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-negroponte7may07,1,5504289.story?coll=la-home-world)
(IPS) (http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0430-03.htm) (Democracy Now!) (http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=04/04/28/1449257)
- In Baghdad, a suicide
bomber using a car packed with explosives and artillery shells kills 5 Iraqis and one
American soldier and injures 25 people, including two American soldiers. (NYT) (http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/international/AP-Iraq.html)
- Israeli-Palestinian conflict:
- Hamas co-founder Mohammad Taha, aged 68, is released from an Israeli
prison. (INN) (http://www.israelnn.com/news.php3?id=61947)
- Iraqi abuse scandal at Abu Ghraib prison
- President George W. Bush states that a resolution of the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians would be the
result of negotiations and that the United States would oppose "any developments in the region that might endanger your (Jordan's) interests." (NYT) (http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/07/politics/07prexy.html)
- The television sitcom Friends airs its final episode in the United States and Canada. (CNN) (http://www.cnn.com/2004/SHOWBIZ/TV/05/07/tv.friends.ap/index.html) (NBC) (http://www.nbc.com/Friends/index.html)
- It is announced that John Scarlett is to succeed Sir Richard Dearlove as the head of the Secret Intelligence Service with Dearlove becoming
master of Pembroke College at Cambridge University. Scarlett is the first head of the SIS ever to
have a current photograph published.
- President George W. Bush calls for Israel to
withdraw to her borders prior to the Six Day War of 1967, and to give the occupied territories
to the Palestinians for a homeland. (Guardian Unlimited (http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-4061451,00.html))
- Parliament grounds and adjoining footpaths in New Zealand host 15,000 people (many of whom have participated in several days of route march -
"hīkoi") protesting about the proposed law that is expected to change the ownership of foreshore and seabed.
- The Dalai Lama ends his visit to Canada with a ceremony initiating thousands in Tibetan
Buddhism.
(Toronto Star) (http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1083751689544&call_pageid=968332188492&col=968705899037)
- Israeli company Givot Olam announces that from a previously known oil reserve near
Kfar Sava believed to contain 980 million barrels of oil, 20% of it is
extractible. (INN) (http://www.israelnn.com/news.php3?id=61904) (Haaretz) (http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/423668.html)
- During a raid in Gaza Israeli troops kill a
police captain and wound 15 people, in an area that is used to fire Qassam rockets into Israeli towns. (Reuters) (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=5043281&section=news)
- Maya artifacts are discovered in Cival, a ruined city in the
Peten region of Guatemala, suggesting an
earlier development of dynastic customs than previously known. (Washington Post) (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A2151-2004May4.html)
- Three bombs explode in Athens outside a single police station, 100 days before the start of the Olympic
Games. One policeman was injured. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3684967.stm) (Boston Herald) (http://news.bostonherald.com/international/view.bg?articleid=19242)
- George W. Bush speaks on the Al Arabiya and Alhurra Arabic-language television networks,
stating he was 'appalled' at the conduct of U.S.
soldiers in Abu Ghraib
prison in Iraq.
(Toronto Star) (http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1083751689557&call_pageid=968332188492&col=968793972154)
- Houston Astros baseball pitcher Roger Clemens records his 4,137th career
strikeout to place him second on the all-time list behind Nolan Ryan. (AP)
(http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BBN_PIRATES_ASTROS?SITE=APWEB&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT)
(Reuters) (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=5054135)
- A judge of the Ontario Superior Court, overseeing the bankruptcy and reorganization of Air Canada, approved an
amended "standby purchase agreement" from Deutsche Bank, which stands to
become a major owner of equity in the revived airline. (Globe and Mail) (http://www.globeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20040505.wairca0505/BNStory/Business/)
- President of the breakaway Georgian republic of Ajaria, Aslan Abashidze is forced
to resign by Georgian president Mikhail Saakashvili. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3688435.stm) (Independent) (http://news.independent.co.uk/europe/story.jsp?story=518592) (Guardian) (http://www.guardian.co.uk/georgia/story/0,14065,1210367,00.html) (Washington Post) (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A5642-2004May5.html)
- The Legislative Yuan in Taiwan passes a bill mandating that official documents in Chinese be written from left to right instead of right to left, ending centuries of tradition. (Straits Times) (http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/asia/story/0,4386,249302,00.html?) (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/3683825.stm)
- The United
Nations Commission on Human Rights elects thirteen countries to serve on it for 3-year terms. Sudan is elected unopposed to represent the African bloc, prompting a
walk-out by the U.S. delegation. (NYT) (http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/international/international-un-rights-elections.html) (CNN) (http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/africa/05/03/un.human.rights.ap/index.html)
- Hundreds of Muslim cattle herders are killed by Christian farmers in central Nigerian town of Yelwa. (Reuters) (http://www.reuters.co.uk/newsPackageArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=504383&section=news)
- U.S. Democratic and Republican leaders in Congress condemn the alleged mistreatment of Iraqi detainees in the strongest terms and call for a congressional
investigation. (Reuters)
(http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=politicsNews&storyID=5038835&section=news)
(PolitInfo) (http://www.politinfo.com/articles/article_2004_05_4_5255.html)
- Iraq Occupation and resistance:
- The Pentagon announces that it plans to keep as many as 138,000 U.S.
troops in Iraq through the end of 2005. (Bloomberg) (http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000103&sid=a7blD21HSPzc) (NYT) (http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/05/international/middleeast/05TROO.html)
- The U.S. Department of
Defense announces that 37,000 National
Guardsmen and 10,000 active duty Army and Marine Corps troops are to be called up to serve a
one-year tour of duty in Iraq by early 2005. (AP) (http://www.guardian.co.uk/uslatest/story/0,1282,-4053336,00.html)
- A Chicago laboratory announces
they helped choose embryos by genetic testing to yield five babies who could donate
stem cells to sick siblings. (CNN) (http://www.cnn.com/2004/HEALTH/05/05/donor.babies.ap/index.html)
- William Krar, a Texan with ties to white
supremacists, is sentenced to 11 years in prison after he pled guilty to building and possessing chemical weapons in what has been described as one of the most serious
cases of domestic terrorism since the Oklahoma City bombing. (Reuters) (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=5039866) (KRT) (http://www.sanluisobispo.com/mld/sanluisobispo/news/nation/8589208.htm) (AP)
(http://www.napanews.com/templates/index.cfm?template=story_full&id=9D892811-4D6D-42DE-BE5E-3CD674CE1E7C)
- The USA is starting to lose its dominance in the sciences; "the rest of the world is catching up", according to John E. Jankowski of the National Science Foundation. Scientists from Europe and now other countries are now publishing more papers in major professional journals
than scientists from the US. New York
Times p.A1.
- An Egyptian court rejects the petition of an Egyptian movie producer seeking to
establish an Egyptian-Israeli friendship organization stating: "Egyptian society does
not need a friendship association with Israel. The Egyptian public and Arabs do not need such false friendships, as demonstrated
by the attacks on the Palestinian people."" (INN) (http://www.israelnn.com/news.php3?id=61801)(HaAretz) (http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/spages/423598.html)
- French police seek 500 kg (1,100 lb)
of ammonium nitrate fertilizer stolen from the port of Honfleur at the mouth of the Seine River. The
fertilizer can be converted easily into a powerful explosive. Such an explosive was used in the 1995 Oklahoma City Bombing. AZF recently suspended operations inside France while the group seeks to upgrade its arsenal.
(NYT) (http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/04/international/europe/04CND-FRAN.html?hp)
- Mexico and Peru recall their ambassadors from
Cuba, citing recent "offensive" comments by Cuban head of state Fidel Castro. The Cuban ambassador to Mexico is also expelled, for "activities
incompatible with his diplomatic status". (VOA) (http://www.voanews.com/article.cfm?objectID=F41057E8-EFC6-4319-9FBFA4BF033FA9DB) (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3679469.stm)
- At US$38.21 per barrel of crude, oil prices hit their highest level since 1990. (AP) (http://apnews.myway.com/article/20040504/D82BDU4G0.html)
- In an open letter to George W. Bush more than 50 former
high-ranking United States diplomats (including former ambassadors to Saudi
Arabia and Qatar) complain about the Bush administration's policy towards the
Middle East claiming that the President's approach, and specifically his
endorsement of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's disengagement plan, is
losing the U.S. "credibility, prestige and friends". The letter follows a similar one written by 52 former British diplomats sent
to Tony Blair a few days ago. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/3681641.stm)
- Investment banker Frank Quattrone of Credit Suisse First Boston is convicted of obstructing
justice and witness tampering. Quattrone played a significant role in the Initial Public Offerings of Amazon, Netscape, Intuit and other Internet companies. (NYT) (http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/business/AP-Star-Banker-Trial.html)
- Polish Prime Minister Leszek Miller resigns one day after Poland becomes a member of the European Union. His government was the most unpopular of the nine that have
ruled Poland since the fall of the communist regime in 1989. Miller's Left Democratic Alliance party, plagued by a series of
corruption scandals (including the Rywin affair), hit a record low in popularity
rankings in the last months which led some of its members to break away and form a new party, the Social Democracy of Poland. President Aleksander Kwaśniewski announces he will designate
Marek Belka, a liberal economist, as new prime minister. (Reuters) (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=5008662)
- Israeli-Palestinian conflict:
- Israel's Likud Party votes in a
referendum not to pull out of the Gaza Strip unilaterally. The referendum's
defeat is seen as a major blow to the Sharon government. Sharon
subsequently says that he will not resign and may modify the plan. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3680679.stm)
- Palestinian gunmen kill an Israeli mother, Tali Hatuel, and four of her young children near the Kissufim Crossing in the
Gaza Strip. The killers are shot dead by security forces. The incident is
believed to have influenced voting intentions in the referendum held the same day. (INN)
(http://www.israelnn.com/news.php3?id=61758) (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3678031.stm)
- Martín Torrijos wins Panama's presidential election. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3677499.stm)
- U.S. civilian contractor Thomas Hamill, who was taken hostage by
Iraqi insurgents on April
9, is found by U.S. forces south of Tikrit after escaping his captors. (MSNBC) (http://msnbc.msn.com/ID/4884602/)
- The Sasser worm is spreading. It has the chance of becoming as big as the
Blaster worm epidemic because it can infect computers running Microsoft
Windows directly without user interaction.
(AP) (http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1512&ncid=1512&e=2&u=/afp/20040501/wl_afp/internet_virus_finland_040501203913)
- A government report has found that secret searches in the U.S. are up 85% since 2001.
(Baltimore
Sun) (http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nationworld/bal-te.patriot02may02,0,3416237.story?coll=bal-nationworld-headlines)
- A shell containing mustard gas, was found in the middle of street west of
Baghdad. Officials from the Defense Department commented that this was part of an Improvised Explosive Device (IED). It was not certain
that use was to be made as a bomb. (Fox News) (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,120137,00.html) (Seattle Post-Intelligencer) (http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/173793_sarin18.html)
- EU enlargement: Ten new
member states (Cyprus, the Czech
Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and
Slovenia) join the European
Union, increasing the EU's population by 75 million people to a total of roughly 455 million. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3672813.stm) (Guardian) (http://www.guardian.co.uk/eu/0,7368,396838,00.html)
- In Yanbu, Saudi
Arabia, gunmen kill five Westerners and a Saudi security guard in a
shooting spree and car chase. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3675891.stm)
- A fire at the Parco
dei Principe hotel in Rome kills three, and
forces the evacuation of a number of professional tennis stars, including Andy Roddick, Marat Safin,
Mariano Zabaleta, and
Max Mirnyi. (AP)
(http://home.peoplepc.com/psp/newsstory.asp?cat=sports&referrer=welcome&id=501110605_5309_lead_story.xml)
- Smarty Jones wins the Kentucky Derby.
(AP) (http://sports.yahoo.com/rah/news;_ylc=X3oDMTBpZTVxN2k3BF9TAzk2MDY4Mzc1BHNlYwN0bQ--?slug=ap-derby-winningowner&prov=ap&type=lgns)
- The separatist region of Ajaria attempts to sever its links from Georgia by blowing up the three bridges connecting it to the rest of
the country over the Choloki River. (AP) (http://www.globeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20040502.waszh0502/BNStory/International/)
Past events by month
2004: January February March April
2003: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2002: January February March April May June July August September October November December
- Logarithmic timeline of
current events
-This article has been brought to you by BambooWeb and Wikipedia-
