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Worldwide current events
Sports events

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EgyptAir Airbus A320-200 involved in hijack

An overpass collapses in Kolkata, India, killing at least 25 people.
EgyptAir Flight 181 (aircraft pictured) is hijacked shortly after takeoff and forced to land at Larnaca International Airport in Cyprus.
A suicide bombing in Lahore, Pakistan, targeting Christians celebrating Easter, kills at least 74 people and injures more than 340.
The Syrian Army recaptures Palmyra from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
In rowing, Cambridge win the 162nd Boat Race and Oxford win the 71st Women's Boat Race.

Ongoing events:
- Zika virus outbreak
Recent deaths:

April 3, 2016 (Sunday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
- Azerbaijan calls a unilateral ceasefire in its fight with ethnic Armenians one day after 30 soldiers died. (AP), (BBC)

Business and economics

Aftermath of the 2016 Brussels bombings
- Two weeks after the deadly suicide bombings, the Brussels Zaventem International Airport will reopen today with three symbolic flights to Faro, Athens, and Turin. On Thursday, the airport had said it was "technically ready" to resume partial services, but the opening was held up because police unions threatened to strike unless additional security checks were introduced. (AsiaOne) (The Jewish Press)

Disasters and accidents

At least 11 people are killed and 16 injured following heavy rain in the Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. (Dawn)
A 6.9 magnitude earthquake occurs off the coast of Vanuatu with a tsunami warning issued.

(USGS), (USGS)

Sport

ICC Women's World Twenty20, 2016 ICC Women's World Twenty20
- Defending champions Australia women's national cricket team plays West Indies women's national cricket team in the final in Kolkata. (ABC News Australia)
2016 ICC World Twenty20
- The West Indies take on England in the final in Kolkata. (International Business Times)

April 2, 2016 (Saturday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Armenian–Azerbaijani border conflict
- 2016 Armenian–Azerbaijani clashes
  - Armenia and Azerbaijan exchange gunfire for the third successive day after an escalation of a dispute over the boundaries between Azerbaijan and the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. (RT)
Syrian Civil War
- The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights claims that the Al-Nusra Front as well as other insurgents have captured the village of Tel el-Ais in a strategic position overlooking the highway between Aleppo and Damascus. (AP)
- The official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reports a mass grave, containing the bodies of beheaded women and children, has been found in the former ISIL-controlled city of Palmyra, recently retaken by the Syrian government. (The Independent)
Libyan Civil War (2014–present)
- Two security guards are killed while repelling an ISIL attack on the Bayda oil field, near the town of Marada, Libya. (Reuters)
Iraqi Civil War (2014–present)
- Hīt offensive (2016)
  - Iraqi security forces free a large number of prisoners from an underground ISIL-operated jail in the city of Hīt. Malallah al-Obeidi, a local official in the Al Anbar Governorate, put the number of freed prisoners at around 1,500, saying most of them were civilians. (AFP via Al Arabiya)
PKK rebellion (2015–present)
- A bombing kills at least five Turkish soldiers and one special forces police officer in the southeastern city of Nusaybin, near the Syria–Turkey border. (BBC)

Arts and culture

Archaeologists claim to have discovered a probable Viking settlement in North America on Newfoundland's Point Rosee. (AFP via ABC Australia)

Disasters and accidents

In the United States, a Lancair IV plane crashes into a car stopped along a highway, 50 miles north of San Diego, California, killing car passenger Antoinette “Toni” Frances Isbelle, a member of the WFTDA's San Diego Starlettes roller derby team. Five others, including the pilot, are hospitalized. (The San Diego Union Tribune) (New York Daily News)

International relations

European migrant crisis, Austria–Italy relations
- Austria plans to deploy soldiers on its border with Italy to stem an expected increase in migrants trying to get to northern Europe, according to Austrian Defence Minister Hans Peter Doskozil. "As the EU's external borders are not yet effectively protected, Austria will soon ramp up strict border controls. That means massive border controls on the Brenner Pass, and with soldiers," Doskozil told German daily newspaper Die Welt. (Reuters)
Burundian unrest (2015–present)
- The United Nations Security Council unanimously adopts a resolution setting the stage for the deployment of UN Police to Burundi, where political unrest that has lasted nearly a year killed over 400 people and displaced tens of thousands. The resolution asks Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to present options within 15 days for the deployment of UN police in order to monitor the security situation, promote respect for human rights and advance the rule of law. (Al Jazeera)
NATO–Russia relations
- The United States Air Force sends 12 F-15C Eagles and 350 personnel to Iceland and the Netherlands to deter further Russian aggression in Europe. (CNN)
Greek government-debt crisis
- Greece demands an explanation from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) after an apparent leaked transcript suggested the IMF may threaten to pull out of the country's bailout as a tactic to force European lenders to offer more debt relief. Whistleblowing site WikiLeaks published what it said was the transcript of a March 19 conference call of three senior IMF officials discussing tactics to apply pressure on Greece, Germany and the EU to reach a deal in April. (Reuters)

Law and crime

Indian women's rights activists are barred by angry villagers and local authorities from entering Shani Shingnapur temple despite a court ruling guaranteeing access. Breaking with a centuries-old tradition, the high court in Mumbai ruled women have a fundamental right to enter Hindu temples across the state of Maharashtra, and the government has the responsibility to protect their rights. Bhumata Ranragini Brigade leader Trupti Desai and 25 other supporters were detained by police. All India Mahila Congress President Shobha Oza and Delhi Commission for Women chairwoman Swati Maliwal called the actions of locals and authorities "completely shameful." (UPI)

Politics and elections

United States presidential election, 2016, Republican Party presidential candidates, 2016
- The Republican National Committeeman for North Dakota, Curly Haugland, says that the likelihood for outsiders such as Donald Trump to get state electoral votes are slim as the party honor its own elders. (Politico)
Trần Đại Quang is sworn in as the President of Vietnam. (Reuters via The Star)
The Saudi-owned news channel Al Arabiya shuts its offices in Beirut, Lebanon and dismisses 27 employees in a sudden move reflecting tensions between Saudi Arabia and Lebanon-based Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran. Saudi Arabia interpreted Lebanon's lack of public solidarity as a sign that it had become beholden to Hezbollah. (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)
The Governor of the U.S. territory of Guam Eddie Calvo announces his intention to hold a plebiscite to decide the future political status of the island. Calvo said he hopes to start a successful "education campaign" on the issue before filing a petition to start a referendum. If the plebiscite does take place, voters on Guam would be asked to select which political status they would prefer; independence, statehood, or free association However, the possible vote would be non-binding as any change in political status would require an act of Congress in Washington, D.C.. Guam is a currently on the United Nations list of Non-Self-Governing Territories in need of decolonization. (Radio New Zealand)
Aftermath of the 2016 Brussels bombings
- Police in Brussels, Belgium arrest multiple right-wing and anti-racist protesters, with riot squads engaged in a tense confrontation with local youths in the district of Sint-Jans-Molenbeek. A standoff grew when far-right protesters faced a counter-demonstration, despite protests being banned by local authorities who were fearful of last Sunday's event, in which police forcefully dispersed a right-wing protest with water cannons. (Reuters)

Sport

2016 World Figure Skating Championships
- Spanish figure skater Javier Fernández defends his world title after making a stunning comeback from behind Japanese figure skater Yuzuru Hanyu, who was ahead by 12 points, to win gold. (The Guardian)
2015–16 NBA season
- In basketball, the visiting Boston Celtics defeat the Golden State Warriors, snapping the Warrior's 14-month, 54-game home win streak which leaves the San Antonio Spurs with the only undefeated home record this season. (Basketball-Reference.com) (SBNation) (ESPN)
2016 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
- In the U.S. men's national college basketball tournament semifinals in Houston's NRG Stadium, the North Carolina Tar Heels defeat the Syracuse Orange by 17 points, and the Villanova Wildcats top the Oklahoma Sooners by 44 points, to set up a 2016 Title Game between 'Nova, champs in 1985, and five-time title holder UNC on Monday evening. (NBC Sports) (Toronto Sun)

April 1, 2016 (Friday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian Civil War
- The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reports airstrikes on the village of Deir al-Asafir, Rif Dimashq Governorate, have killed at least 30 people and left dozens more injured. (The Telegraph)
War in Donbass
- International monitors from the OSCE report that fighting has intensified in Eastern Ukraine as a second year of a shaky truce begins. The worst of the fighting is located between government-controlled Avdiivka and separatist-controlled Yasynuvata. (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)
War in Somalia (2009–present)
- A U.S. drone strike reportedly kills a key Al-Shabaab leader, Hassan Ali Dhoore, and two other militants, near the town of Jilib, Somalia, according to several U.S. officials. (AP)

Disasters and accidents

In a second day of severe weather, at least seven people are injured as tornadoes sweep across the Midwestern and Southern part of the United States, with more severe weather expected. (Al Jazeera)

Health and medicine

Health authorities in Fiji are urging people to observe strict personal hygiene as the country goes through a massive outbreak of conjunctivitis. In the past 14 days alone the number of cases of the virus in one district of Suva have jumped from 700 to 5000 cases. (Radio New Zealand)

International relations

North Korea and weapons of mass destruction
- North Korea fires another ballistic missile off its east coast, according to South Korean officials. This occurred while world leaders are attending the annual Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, D.C., where North Korea is on the agenda for discussion. (The Guardian) (Yonhap)

Politics and elections

Moldovan presidential election, 2016, 2015–16 protests in Moldova
- The Parliament of Moldova announces that the country will hold a Presidential election on October 30. A court in early March ruled in favor of having a direct national election to choose a president rather than a vote in parliament, a concession to protesters who have been demonstrating for months against the political elite. This will be the first time since 2001 that the public will choose their country's president directly. (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)
2015–16 protests in Brazil
- President Dilma Rousseff loses another key member of the country's 2016 Summer Olympics organization. Colonel Adilson Moreira of the National Public Security Force, who was in charge of organizing security, in an email to his colleagues reportedly criticizes the President and other senior officials, saying he is ashamed of the country's being led by an "unscrupulous group." Brazilian officials, who earlier received Sports Minister George Hilton's resignation, say the planning for the Olympic Games will not be affected. (BBC) (International Business Times)

March 31, 2016 (Thursday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Israeli–Palestinian conflict (2015–present)
- Israeli security forces arrest 16 Palestinian suspects on the West Bank. (Jerusalem Post)
War in Somalia
- A suicide bomber in Somalia’s Puntland region detonates while hugging Saeed Ali, the treasurer of Galkayo, killing him and several police officers guarding him. Islamic militant group Al-Shabaab claims responsibility. (International Business Times) (Reuters)
PKK rebellion, Turkey–ISIL conflict
- A car bomb, targeting an armored vehicle transporting police personnel, explodes close to a bus terminal in the Bağlar district of Diyarbakır, Turkey, killing at least seven police officers and wounding 27 more people, including 13 officers, according to a joint statement by Turkish officials and the police. The attack comes one day before Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu's scheduled visit to the city. There has been no claim of responsibility. CNN points out both Kurdish rebels and ISIL militants have claimed similar recent incidents. (Al Jazeera) (CNN) (AP) (Arab News)
Syrian Civil War
- The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reports a drone attack, “most likely operated by the US-led coalition,” kills Abu al-Hija, a high-ranking Tunisian ISIL commander, near the Islamic State's de facto Syrian capital Raqqa. (Al Arabiya)

Business and economics

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission files an anti-trust suit against Endo Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and several other drug companies for using pay-for-delay settlements to block consumers’ access to lower-cost generic versions of pain medications, Opana ER and Lidoderm. (StreetInsider.com)
A consortium led by China's Anbang Insurance Group announces it will walk away from its $14 billion takeover bid for Starwood Hotels. This restores Marriott International as the highest bidder ($13.6 billion). (CNBC) (Bloomberg)

Disasters and accidents

2016 Kolkata overpass collapse
- At least 21 people are killed, 70 injured and up to 150 people are feared trapped after a half-built overpass collapses in the Indian city of Kolkata. (Indian Express) (NBC News)

International relations

2016 Nuclear Security Summit
- More than 50 heads of state as well as representatives from international organizations attend the annual Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, D.C., with the notable exception of Russia, which declined to attend. The main agenda of the two-day gathering is the discussion of North Korea and the threat it poses with its nuclear weapons and the possibility of ISIS extremists getting a nuclear weapon. (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)

Law and crime

Yugoslav Wars
- Former Deputy Prime Minister of Serbia and nationalist politician, Vojislav Šešelj, is acquitted of all nine charges of committing atrocities in Bosnia and Croatia during the early 1990s by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. (The Guardian)
A U.S. official announces that The Pentagon plans to transfer about a dozen inmates from the Guantanamo Bay detention camp to at least two countries that have agreed to take them, in the latest move in Barack Obama’s final push to close the facility. The official declined to name the countries ready to take them in. (The Guardian)
Malaysia Airlines Flight 370
- A Malaysian court dismisses Malaysia Airlines's bid to throw out a lawsuit filed by relatives of three people who went missing on Flight 370. The company argued that the disappearance of MH370 on March 8, 2014, occurred before the company came into existence as Malaysia Airlines Berhad (MAB) on September 1, 2015, and therefore has no liability to relatives. The court ruled MAB's liability would be determined in a trial. (UPI) (Malay Mail)
A 37-year-old Virginia State Police trooper taking part in a police training mission is killed by a gunman inside the Greyhound bus station in Richmond, Virginia. Two officers standing nearby return fire and fatally strike the suspect. Two civilian women are injured. (WTVR) (NBC News)

Politics and elections

Vietnam elects Nguyễn Thị Kim Ngân chairwoman of the National Assembly. Ngân, who won 95.5 percent of the votes, is the first woman to lead Vietnam's legislature. In January, she was re-elected to the powerful Politburo at the Communist Party Congress. (AP)
The Constitutional Court of South Africa delivered a unanimous judgement that President Jacob Zuma and the National Assembly failed to uphold the country's constitution by ignoring the findings of the Public Protector regarding public expenditure on Zuma's private homestead. (Daily Maverick)
United States presidential election, 2016, Republican Party presidential candidates, 2016
- Pennsylvania's Supreme Court upholds the previous court ruling that dismissed the case against Ted Cruz which challenged his eligibility to appear on the state's GOP primary ballot, and serve as president. (ABC News)
- Japan's Prime Minister Shinzō Abe and Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida forcibly reject, as has the White House, candidate Donald Trump's suggestion that the U.S. military be withdrawn from Japan and South Korea with nuclear weapons replacing them. A small minority in South Korea, such as the think tank Sejong Institute, agree with Trump on this issue, but this is not mainstream policy. (CNN) (Vox Media)
  - Another Trump statement, "South Korea is a money machine but they pay us peanuts," is greeted with "howls of inaccuracy" from the South Korean Foreign Ministry and the White House. U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Mark Lippert says "Seoul pays for 55% of all non-personnel costs." (CNN)
Venezuela's National Assembly, responding to last month's Central Bank of Venezuela report that the country experienced a 180.9 percent inflation increase in 2015, passes legislation, The Law of Bonds for Food and Medicine for Retirees and Pensioners, that could make it easier for pensioners and retirees to pay for food and medicine. The approved bill has been forwarded for President Nicolás Maduro's signature. (UPI)
Italy's Minister of Economic Development, Federica Guidi, resigns amid allegations that she passed along confidential information to her boyfriend that helped his business interests. (AP via Fox News)
Brazil protests
- Brazil's Supreme Court voted 8-2 to take over the corruption investigation of former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Silva alleges Judge Sérgio Moro unfairly targets him. The court also overruled Moro's decision to release the recording of Silva's call with President Dilma Rousseff, since it is the only court that can authorize a wiretap on presidential conversations. The full court is still to rule on the injunction that prevents Silva from taking office as the President's Chief of Staff. (AP via ABC news) (Reuters)
- Today, thousands of demonstrators gathered in more than 20 states in support of Silva and Rousseff. (Reuters²) (AP via ABC news)
- Brazil sports minister George Hilton resigns and will be replaced on an interim basis by Ricardo Leyser, a senior official in the ministry. Leyser, 45, has worked in the sports ministry since 2003, and has been heavily involved with the Olympic Games, which will be held in Rio de Janeiro, August 5-21, 2016. (The Rio Times) (insidethegames)

Science and technology

Astronomers' study reveals the surface of exoplanet 55 Cancri e has a 2500°C liquid face, constantly facing its star 55 Cancri, while the other side is relatively colder and solid. (Discovery via ABC News)

Sport

Five U.S. women’s national soccer team players file federal wage discrimination complaints with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission against the U.S. Soccer Federation (USSF). In the filing, the players cite 2015 USSF figures which show they were paid nearly four times less than men’s players despite generating nearly $20 million more revenue. A U.S. Soccer statement says, "... we are disappointed about this action." (The Washington Post) (ESPN)

March 30, 2016 (Wednesday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Libyan Civil War (2014–present)
- Blasts and gunfire are reported in Tripoli. (Reuters)
Naxalite–Maoist insurgency
- At least seven Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel are killed in an IED attack on their vehicle in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh's Dantewada district. Naxalite insurgents are suspected to have been behind the attack. (International Business Times)

Business and economy

Taiwanese electronics company Foxconn agrees to buy 60% of the Japanese Sharp Corporation for 389 billion yen ($3.5 billion). (Bloomberg)

Disasters and accidents

Thailand and neighbouring countries suffer from the worst drought in decades as an El Niño-induced water shortage reduces reservoirs to critical levels. (Al Jazeera)
At least nine people are injured in severe storms that spawned multiple tornado touchdowns in northeastern Oklahoma and sections of the Southwestern United States. One patient is in critical condition; the others suffered serious injuries, according to the Emergency Medical Services Authority. Parts of Texas, Louisiana, and Arkansas are also impacted. A flash flood watch has been issued through Thursday evening. Two (2) to 4 inches of rain is expected, with perhaps 6 inches in some locations. (AP)

Health and medicine

A new study by researchers at McGill University and the University of California, Los Angeles, finds that each additional month a woman has paid maternity leave is associated with decreased infant mortality by more than 10 percent. Researchers noted that paid maternity leave reduces stress because of the guarantee of income and job security, increases the chances for breastfeeding and other infant care, and allows a mother to seek more medical attention for herself. (UPI) (PLOS Medicine)
The United States Food and Drug Administration announces it has relaxed its official requirements regarding the use of the abortion drug Mifeprex (RU-486). The current guidelines were based on 1990s medical evidence. Changes include reducing the number of physician visits required by abortion-seeking women, reducing drug dosage, and allowing women to take the drug for three weeks longer -- now a total of 70 days. (UPI)
Air pollution in Mexico City
- Mexico City, facing the capital's worst air-quality crisis in over a decade, issues a temporary order that all cars remain idle one day a week. Today, authorities report a pollution index of 108 (bad) after low readings during Holy Week. Vehicles will also be forced from the roads one Saturday a month. The measure will begin next Tuesday, April 5, and run until Thursday, June 30, 2016. Starting July 1, improved technology will be in place at smog-check centers where all vehicles must be tested every six months. (AP via Fox News)

International relations

The Wallenberg family files an application to formally declare Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg (born in 1912) to be dead. Wallenberg saved the lives of thousands of Jews in World War II only to disappear at the hands of the Soviet forces. (Times of Israel)
Russia–Ukraine relations
- The Ukrainian parliament votes to ban all Russian films released after January 1, 2014, saying the move is aimed at improving “national security"; more than 430 Russian films and TV series fall under the new measures. Last month, the State Committee in Television and Radio-broadcasting in Ukraine removed 15 Russian TV channels from being broadcast in Ukraine. (RT)
U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron, at the upcoming Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, D.C., will announce a three-way deal with the United States and Euratom, the European Union nuclear agency, to turn nuclear waste into medical isotopes to help fight cancer. (Bloomberg)

Law and crime

A Bangladesh Court issues an arrest warrant, the second one so far, for former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia and 27 opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party members over political violence, mostly petrol-bomb attacks, that occurred during anti-government protests last year that killed at least 120 people. (Al Jazeera)
EgyptAir Flight 181
- A Larnaca, Cyprus, court orders that 59-year-old Seif Eddin Mustafa, who was arrested by Cypriot police yesterday, remain in local police custody for eight days to assist Cyprus's own investigation. Mustafa faces charges of hijacking, illegal possession of explosives, kidnapping, and threats to commit violence. It's unclear if Mustafa had any explosives; the bomb belt he wore was fake, and officials are waiting for testing results on unidentified liquids found among his possessions. (AP via The Daily Courier)
- Egypt General Prosecutor Nabil Sadek formally requests Mustafa's extradition from Cyprus. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

United States presidential election, 2016:
- The National Border Patrol Council (NBPC), which organizes some 16,500 border patrol agents, endorses Donald Trump for President of the United States, NBPC's first-ever endorsement in a presidential election. (CNN)
Myanmar general election, 2015
- In Myanmar's capital Naypyidaw, Htin Kyaw is sworn in by House Speaker Mahn Win Khaing Than as the first civilian president in 54 years. Htin Kyaw, a close aide to Aung San Suu Kyi, takes power from former general Thein Sein. (Daily Mail)
The government of Pakistan warns that it will push to clear the Islamist protests occurring in Islamabad. Protests have broken out in the capital and other cities ever since Mumtaz Qadri was executed last February for his role in killing Punjab governor Salmaan Taseer in 2011 because he opposed Pakistan's blasphemy laws. (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)
Libyan Civil War (2014–present)
- The United Nations-backed Libyan Presidential Council arrives in Tripoli despite warnings by hardliners opposed to any unity government that they will attempt to keep them out of the city. (The Guardian)
The opposition controlled National Assembly of Venezuela passes an amnesty bill that could potentially free over 70 opposition leaders and activists jailed during protests last year, including prominent leader Leopoldo López. (BBC)
- Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro vows to veto this amnesty bill. The opposition can override the veto since it holds a supermajority in the National Assembly. Maduro can also send the bill to the Supreme Tribunal to determine its constitutionality. (UPI)
- The opposition plans to generate a recall referendum that would ask voters if President Maduro should be removed from office. The Constitution states a recall referendum can be held once the president has served half of his six-year term (Maduro became President on April 19, 2013) and at least 20 percent of registered voters sign the petition. (UPI²)

Sports

Two Russian cyclists, former world champion Anastasia Chulkova and Pavel Yakushevskiy, test positive for meldonium. (AP)
Three-time Kentucky Derby winning jockey Calvin Borel announces his retirement. (Louisville Courier-Journal)

March 29, 2016 (Tuesday)

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Armed attacks and conflicts

2016 Brussels bombings
- Belgium officials lower the official death toll from 35 to 32, with nearly 100 still hospitalized. (UPI)
- Brussels Zaventem International Airport CEO Arnaud Feist says the airport will reopen at less than a quarter capacity Wednesday, as ongoing tests determine which flights can resume. It could take months for the airport to return to full capacity, Feist added. (UPI)

Business and economics

The U.S. Supreme Court's even split among the current eight justices turns down a group of California teachers' challenge to agency fees public sector unions representing government employees charge employees for collective bargaining costs, whether or not they choose to join the union. Twenty-four other states and the District of Columbia have a similar provision. The ninth circuit federal appellate court ruling in the union’s favor stands. Employees challenging the law may bring the appeal again, once the vacancy on the nation’s highest court is filled. (Boston Herald)
The U.S. National Labor Relations Board files an official complaint against a California warehouse after finding evidence it violated workers' rights to organize. The allegations of wrongdoing submitted by a worker group against California Cartage Company, LLC, which serves Amazon.com, Inc., Lowe's Companies. Inc., New Balance, and Sears Holdings Corp., will be heard by an NLRB administrative law judge in June 2016. None of the retailers were named in the NLRB complaint. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

Alaska Airlines cancels additional flights, due to the ongoing eruption of Mount Pavlof on the Alaska Peninsula. (Alaska Dispatch News)
2016 Aero Teknic MU-2 crash
- Seven people die in a plane crash on the Magdalen Islands in the Canadian province of Quebec. Former minister Jean Lapierre was one of the people on board the plane. (CBC), (CTV News)
A United States Air Force F-16 crashes during takeoff from Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan. The pilot ejected safely and was recovered by coalition forces, according to a U.S. military statement. (Reuters)

Health and medicine

Terminix, in the U.S. District Court in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, admits it "knowingly" applied fumigants including methyl bromide, which the EPA banned for residential use in 1984, at a resort in St. John that seriously sickened a family of four, and agrees to pay $10 million in fines and restitution. (NBC News) (NBC News²)
New research, published in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, finds women who have endometriosis, the abnormal growth of uterine tissue outside the uterus, may face a 60 percent higher risk of developing heart disease than women without the disorder. The potential risk was especially high for women 40 or younger. At least 10 percent of women of reproductive age suffer from endometriosis (endo) says Dr. Stacey Missmer of Brigham and Women's Hospital, who co-authored the study. (UPI) (NBC News)

International relations

Falkland Islands sovereignty dispute
- A United Nations commission rules in favour of Argentina to expand its maritime territory in the South Atlantic Ocean by 35% to include the Falkland Islands and beyond despite Argentina and the United Kingdom still having an unresolved dispute over the islands. (The Guardian)
Turkey–United States relations
- The United States State Department and the Pentagon order families of U.S. diplomats and military personnel to leave posts in southern Turkey due to “increased threats from terrorist groups” in the country. This order comes two days before Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's arrival in the U.S. for security meetings. (AP via New York Post)
Iran and weapons of mass destruction
- Reuters reports the United States and its European allies have notified the UN that Iran's launching of nuclear-capable missiles violated United Nations Security Council resolution 2231 which endorsed the Iran deal, i.e., the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), last year. (Reuters)

Law and crime

The Indonesian foreign ministry says 10 Indonesian nationals are being held hostage after their tug boat and coal barge was hijacked in Philippine waters. Islamist militant group, Abu Sayyaf is demanding a ransom. (AP)
EgyptAir Flight 181
- A hijacked EgyptAir flight lands in Cyprus. All hostages have been released, and the hijacker has no evident ties to any terrorist organizations. (The Guardian)
Corey Lewandowski, campaign manager for U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump, is charged with battery for allegedly grabbing former Breitbart News journalist Michelle Fields on March 8. (New York Times) (The Palm Beach Post)
Transgender rights in the United States
- Dozens of chief executive officers of major U.S. technology, biotech, and financial companies urge North Carolina to repeal a new state law forcing transgender people to use rest-rooms and changing-rooms according to the gender on their birth-certificate.(AP via WBT)
- North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper (D) says he won't defend the new state law in court. This year, Cooper is the state Democratic Party's candidate for governor. Republican Senate Leader Phil Berger says the attorney general should resign if he won't defend the law. (AP)
- The NC Values Coalition, which worked to get Charlotte's nondiscrimination ordinance overturned by the state legislature, says hundreds of North Carolina businesses support the new state law, though fear retaliation if they make that support public. The coalition did list 17 businesses willing to be identified as supporting the new law. (AP)
Obamacare constitutional challenges, Zubik v. Burwell
- In a move designed to head off a 4-4 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court directs lawyers for the Obama administration, and for the religious groups who challenge it, to submit written briefs on a possible remedy to the case: whether coverage could be provided through the group's insurance companies without any actual notice to the government. A 4-4 decision would not set a national precedent, and would let stand the preceding decision in each case. In these seven cases, the appeals court in six upheld the government mandate. (NBC News)
Samuel Moreno Rojas, the former mayor of the Colombian capital Bogota, is jailed for 18 years for taking bribes to award ambulance contracts. (AP via Town Hall)
El Salvador declares a state of emergency in seven prisons and transfers 299 prisoners in a crackdown on gang violence. (The Guardian)

Politics and elections

2015–16 protests in Brazil
- A legal request has been filed to impeach Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff for obstructing justice and fiscal accounting tricks, the second impeachment request against her. In response to the request, Minister of Tourism Henrique Eduardo Alves turned in a resignation letter while the Brazilian Democratic Movement Party is expected to hold a party vote on whether or not to leave Rousseff's coalition government. (Al Jazeera)
- The Brazilian Democratic Movement Party, the country's largest party, decides unanimously to leave President Rousseff's governing coalition. While Rousseff will remain in office, it's likely she could be impeached in a matter of months, which would make Vice President Michel Temer president. (Reuters)
- Chief of staff Jaques Wagner says President Rousseff will announce a new governing coalition before the end of the week. The President has an opportunity to form a new coalition for her remaining two years and nine months in office, Wagner added. (Reuters²)
Tanzanian general election, 2015
- The Millennium Challenge Corporation, a United States foreign aid agency, pulls $472m of funding for a Tanzanian electricity project after concluding that the election held in Zanzibar "was neither inclusive nor representative". Zanzibar, a semi-autonomous part of Tanzania, held a rerun of its election that was boycotted by the opposition after it was previously annulled because of supposed fraud. (BBC)
In the United States, the Tennessee state Senate will vote on a bill, which narrowly passed the House last year, to declare the Holy Bible the official book of Tennessee. Governor Bill Haslam (R) was among those who opposed the bill in 2015. (AP) (Chattanooga Times Free Press)
United States presidential election, 2016, Republican Party presidential candidates, 2016
- Candidate Donald Trump says he will no longer honor his pledge to support the eventual Republican Party pick for president because, "I have been treated very unfairly." (AP) (Fox News)
- At the CNN Town Hall in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, candidates Ted Cruz and John Kasich also back away from earlier pledges to support the Republican nominee, whomever it might be. (CNN) (UPI)
2014–16 Venezuelan protests
- Two police officers are killed and four others are wounded in the western Venezuelan city of San Cristóbal after they were run over by a bus driven by young men protesting a hike in public transport fares, according to government officials and Reuters witnesses. (Reuters)

Science and technology

U.S. Federal Communications Commissioner Michael O'Rielly says, during a speech at the American Action Forum, that Netflix's admission last week that it has been intentionally slowing its video streaming transmission on some wireless mobile carriers for five years "deeply disturbing" which might warrant an investigation by the Federal Trade Commission and/or Congress. (UPI)

March 28, 2016 (Monday)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

War in Afghanistan (2015–present)
- Taliban fighters fire explosives at Afghanistan's Parliament while it is in session. Members of Parliament said no one was wounded while a Taliban spokesperson claims it caused heavy casualities. (Al Jazeera)
War in Somalia (2009–present)
- At least 115 Al-Shabaab militants are killed and a further 110 are captured following heavy fighting with pro-government forces in the Galmudug region of Somalia, according to the regional government. There has been no independent confirmation of this claim. (BBC)
Aftermath of the Brussels bombings
- Belgian prosecutors release Faycal C., a man charged in connection with last week's deadly Brussels bombings. The prosecutor's office says the evidence which led to his arrest has not been backed up by the ongoing investigation. (Reuters)
2016 Lahore suicide bombing
- Pakistan officials tell Reuters its forces will launch a paramilitary crackdown on Islamist militants in Punjab. Sunday's attack was Taliban-affiliated Jamaat-ul-Ahrar's fifth bombing since December. (Reuters)

Business and economics

In response to the $13.6 billion cash-and-stock offer by the Marriott International to purchase Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide, Anbang Insurance Group raises its bidding offer to $14 billion. (AP) (Reuters) (UPI) (The Washington Post)

Disasters and accidents

2015–16 UK and Ireland windstorm season
- The United Kingdom's Met Office warns of major travel disruption due to heavy rain, flooding and "damaging" high winds as Storm Katie moves in from the Atlantic Ocean bringing winds of up to 75mph. (Sky News)
The Alaska village of Nelson Lagoon is coated in volcanic ash after an especially vigorous and ongoing eruption of Mount Pavlof. (Alaska Dispatch News)
- Alaska Airlines cancels 41 flights to and from six cities across the state, Barrow, Bethel, Fairbanks, Kotzebue, Nome, and Prudhoe Bay, due to Pavlof's "massive ash cloud." The carrier announces flights will remain grounded pending Tuesday's assessment of flying conditions. (KTUU-TV)

International Relations

Senkaku Islands dispute, China–Japan relations
- As part of its wider military build up along the Japanese archipelagos in the East China Sea, Japan activates a new radar station on the island of Yonaguni that is close to the disputed Senkaku Islands. (Reuters)
Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
- A Saudi coalition says it's traded 109 Yemeni prisoners for nine captive Saudis. (AP)

Law and crime

A three-year-old girl is decapitated in an apparently random killing by a man with a cleaver in Taipei, Taiwan. The man was arrested shortly afterwards. (The Guardian)
The United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. is on lockdown following reports of shots fired at the Capitol Visitor Center. The White House, in what appears to be an unrelated incident, was briefly locked down this afternoon. (CNN)
- Police lift the lockdown. An armed man was shot by police, is in police custody, and is undergoing surgery at MedStar Washington Hospital Center. A female bystander suffers what appears to be a minor injury. (The Washington Post)
FBI–Apple encryption dispute
- Federal prosecutors announce the case against Apple Inc., concerning encrypted data on an iPhone belonging to one of the San Bernardino shooters, has been dropped since the FBI has found a means to access the data without compromising any information on the phone. (Los Angeles Times) (Los Angeles Times²)
A U.S. federal district court, in a case filed by retailer Wal-Mart Stores. Inc., strikes down a Puerto Rican tax increase for on-island companies, with more than $2.75 billion in revenues that buy goods from off-island "related parties," because the levy clearly discriminates against interstate commerce. (Reuters)
The United States Secret Service says only law enforcement officers will be allowed to have guns inside the Republican National Convention to be held in the Cleveland, Ohio, arena on July 18–21, 2016; responding to an online petition demanding Quicken Loans Arena revoke its ban on open carrying of firearms. (USA Today)
The American Civil Liberties Union and Lambda Legal file a federal lawsuit against a new North Carolina law that bars transgender people from choosing bathrooms consistent with their gender identity, arguing the measure is discriminatory and threatens individuals' personal safety. (Reuters)
Ferguson unrest
- A Missouri court strikes down parts of a law, meant to address concerns raised after the police shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, that limit cities' ability to profit from traffic tickets and court fines. The judge wrote the law unconstitutionally targeted St. Louis-area municipalities with caps on revenues from traffic fines that were lower than other cities in the state. (AP)

Politics and elections

Thousands of protestors rally in front of the Parliament of Pakistan in Islamabad in support of Mumtaz Qadri, the killer of reformist Punjab governor Salmaan Taseer in 2011 who was subsequently executed last February. The Pakistan Army was called in to control the situation. (BBC) (Al Jazeera)
Governor Nathan Deal, of the American state of Georgia, vetoes a religious liberties bill that would have protected people whose religious beliefs don't include same-sex marriage. (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution) (The Washington Post) (ESPN)
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signs an order banning all non-essential travel to North Carolina, i.e., travel not necessary for the enforcement of New York state law, public health, and/or safety, following the state's passage of a law blocking local governments from passing anti-discrimination ordinances. (CBS News)

More March 2016 events...

Ongoing events
Health Zika virus outbreak Flint water crisis Law FBI–Apple encryption dispute Political War in Afghanistan Boko Haram insurgency Brazil protests Burundian unrest Iraqi Civil War Military intervention against ISIL American-led Iranian Israeli–Palestinian conflict Lebanese political deadlock Moldova protests Nagorno-Karabakh conflict Armenian–Azeri border conflict Nepal blockade PKK rebellion Yemeni Civil War Saudi Arabian-led intervention Second Libyan Civil War Sinai insurgency South China Sea disputes Syrian Civil War American-led intervention Russian military intervention Venezuelan protests War in Donbass Russian military intervention in Ukraine More details on ongoing conflicts below Sports 2015–16 UEFA Champions League 2015–16 La Liga season 2015–16 NBA season 2015–16 NHL season 2015–16 Premier League season 2016 ATP World Tour 2016 ICC World Twenty20 2016 WTA Tour 2016 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament edit sidebar

Recent deaths
April 3: Cesare Maldini 2: Gato Barbieri 1: Tom Coughlin 1: Artur Górski 1: Denise Robertson March 31: Béla Biszku 31: Ronnie Corbett 31: Hans-Dietrich Genscher 31: Zaha Hadid 31: Imre Kertész 31: Douglas Wilmer 30: Shirley Hufstedler 30: John King 30: Andy "Thunderclap" Newman 29: Patty Duke 29: Nil Hilevich 29: Jean Lapierre 29: Steven Sample 27: Mother Angelica 27: Vic Peters 26: Jim Harrison 25: Abu Ala al-Afri 25: Shannon Bolin 25: Lester Thurow 24: Johan Cruyff 24: Garry Shandling 23: Phife Dawg 22: Rob Ford 22: Harold J. Morowitz 21: Andrew Grove 21: Joseph Mercieca 21: Ricardo Larraín 20: Anker Jørgensen 19: Roger Agnelli 18: Guido Westerwelle 17: Paul Daniels 16: Sylvia Anderson 16: Better Loosen Up (death announced on this day) 16: Alexander Esenin-Volpin 16: Ali Ahmed Hussain Khan 16: Cliff Michelmore 16: Frank Sinatra, Jr. 15: Asa Briggs 15: Richard Burke 15: Tamara Grigsby 15: Seru Rabeni 14: Peter Maxwell Davies 14: Suranimala Rajapaksha 14: Davy Walsh (death announced on this day) 13: Adrienne Corri 13: Hilary Putnam 13: Martin Olav Sabo 13: József Verebes 12: Annastasia Batikis 12: Felix Ibru 12: Lloyd Shapley 11: Ben Bagdikian 11: Iolanda Balaș 11: Rómulo Macció 10: Ken Adam 10: Ernestine Anderson 10: Anita Brookner 10: Keith Emerson 10: Gogi Grant 10: Mohammed Irfan 10: Gary Jeter 10: Jovito Salonga 9: Jon English 9: John Gutfreund 9: Richard Horton 9: Ralph S. Larsen 9: Clyde Lovellette 8: Ross Hannaford 8: George Martin 7: Adrian Hardiman 7: Steve Kraly 7: Michael White 7: Quentin Young 6: Elizabeth Garrett 6: Kalabhavan Mani 6: Francis Pasion 6: Nancy Reagan 6: Harold H. Saunders 5: Hassan al-Turabi 5: Antoni Asunción 5: Paul Couch 5: Nikolaus Harnoncourt 5: Robert Redbird 5: Ray Tomlinson 5: Panayiotis Tetsis 5: Al Wistert 4: John Brooks 4: Bud Collins 4: Pat Conroy 4: Joey Feek 4: P. A. Sangma 4: Abbas Vaez-Tabasi 4: Zhou Xiaoyan edit sidebar

Ongoing conflicts
Africa Algeria, Tunisia and Niger Maghreb insurgency Central African Republic Civil war Democratic Republic of the Congo Kivu conflict ADF insurgency Katanga insurgency Ituri conflict Lord's Resistance Army insurgency Libya Civil war Mali Northern Mali conflict Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad, and Niger Boko Haram insurgency Somalia Civil war South Sudan South Sudanese Civil War Sudan War in Darfur South Kordofan conflict Americas Colombian conflict Internal conflict in Peru Mexican War on Drugs Asia Afghanistan War China Xinjiang conflict India Naxalite–Maoist insurgency Insurgency in Northeast India India and Pakistan Kashmir conflict Pakistan War in North-West Pakistan Balochistan conflict Philippines CPP-NPA-NDF rebellion Moro conflict Moro conflict in Sabah Southeast Asia Internal conflict in Burma Papua conflict South Thailand insurgency Europe European Migrant Crisis Georgia Abkhaz–Georgian conflict Georgian–Ossetian conflict Chechen–Russian conflict North Caucasus insurgency War in Ingushetia Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Nagorno-Karabakh conflict Ukraine War in Donbass Russian military intervention in Ukraine Middle East Arab–Israeli conflict Gaza–Israel conflict Israeli–Lebanese conflict Israeli–Palestinian conflict Egypt Sinai insurgency Iran Iran–PJAK conflict Iraqi civil war American-led intervention in Iraq Iranian intervention in Iraq Syrian Civil War American-led intervention in Syria Syrian Civil War spillover in Lebanon Turkey Turkey–PKK conflict Turkey–ISIL conflict Yemeni crisis Houthi rebellion Al-Qaeda insurgency South Yemen insurgency edit sidebar

Elections and Referendums
Recent February 28: Switzerland, Referendums March 4: Samoa, Fono 5: Slovakia, National Council 6: Benin, President (1st round) 9: Kiribati, President 20: Benin, President (2nd round) 20: Cape Verde, National Assembly 20: Republic of the Congo, President 20: Kazakhstan, Majilis 20: Niger, President (2nd round) 20: Senegal, Constitutional referendum Upcoming April 6: Netherlands, EU referendum 8: Djibouti, President (1st round) 10: Chad, President (1st round) 10: Comoros, President (2nd round) 10: Peru, President, Congress 13: South Korea, National Assembly 13: Syria, People's Council 17: Italy, Oil drilling referendum 24: Austria, President 24: Serbia, National Assembly edit sidebar

Trials
Recently concluded Australia: Brett Peter Cowan, Craig Thomson, Robert Hughes Brazil: Mensalão scandal Canada: Luka Magnotta China: Ji Jianye, Li Chuncheng, Jiang Jiemin, Liao Shaohua, Ni Fake, Chen Baihuai, Zhou Yongkang, Gu Junshan Croatia: Ivo Sanader Egypt: Hosni Mubarak, Peter Greste, Mohamed Morsi Germany: Bernie Ecclestone, Uli Hoeness, Christian Wulff Iran: Mohammad Reza Rahimi Israel: Hussam Qawasmeh Jordan: Abu Qatada Philippines: Joseph Scott Pemberton Romania: Liviu Dragnea, Dan Diaconescu Russia: Leonid Khabarov, Eston Kohver, Vladimir Kvachkov South Africa: Shrien Dewani, Oscar Pistorius Turkey: Kenan Evren, Tahsin Şahinkaya United Kingdom: Michael Adebolajo and Michael Adebowale, Kweku Adoboli, Tony McCluskie, Kevin Hutchinson-Foster, Chris Huhne, Nicola Edgington, Vicky Pryce, Derek Rose, Mick Philpott, Mairead Philpott, Paul Mosley, Stuart Hazell, Mark Bridger, Andrew Lancel, Dale Cregan, Ray Wilkins, Liam Adams, R v Grillo and Grillo, Ian Watkins, William Roache, Dave Lee Travis, Nicholas Jacobs, Nigel Evans, Max Clifford, Stuart Hall, Dappy, Rebekah Brooks, Andy Coulson, Rolf Harris, Tulisa Contostavlos, Chris Denning, Ray Teret, Gary Glitter, Fred Talbot, Adam Johnson United States: Abu Hamza al-Masri, Michael Grimm, Jesse Jackson Jr., Bob McDonnell, Vilma Bautista, Jared Lee Loughner, Lauryn Hill, Kermit Gosnell, George Zimmerman, Chelsea Manning, Ariel Castro, Whitey Bulger, Robert Bales, Nidal Malik Hasan, Jodi Arias, Anas al-Libi, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, James Eagan Holmes, Sheldon Silver International ECCC: Nuon Chea, Khieu Samphan ICC: Germain Katanga ICTY: Momčilo Perišić, Mladen Markač, Ante Gotovina, Zdravko Tolimir, Radovan Karadžić Ongoing China: Yao Mugen, Guo Youming, Zhu Zuoli Germany: Beate Zschäpe Iran: Babak Zanjani Netherlands: Geert Wilders Philippines: Andal Ampatuan, Jr., Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, Janet Lim-Napoles, Jovito Palparan Romania: Darius Vâlcov, Dan Șova, Elena Udrea, Radu Mazăre, Gheorghe Nichita, Marian Vanghelie, Cătălin Voicu, Relu Fenechiu, Gheorghe Ștefan, Gabriel Sandu, Dorin Cocoş, Dumitru Nicolae Russia: Alexei Navalny South Korea: MV Sewol crew members United Kingdom: Rolf Harris United States: Dean Skelos International ICTY: Ratko Mladić PCA: China Upcoming China: Wu Changshun, Ling Jihua Estonia: Edgar Savisaar Libya: Saif al-Islam Gaddafi Spain: Lionel Messi United Kingdom: Max Clifford United States: Paul Anthony Ciancia, Javaris Crittenton, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Dylan Quick, Aaron Hernandez, Graham Spanier, Tim Curley, Gary Schultz, Justin Bieber, Chris Brown, Rick Perry International ICC: Laurent Gbagbo edit sidebar