Portal:Current events/2012 September 17

Current events of September 17, 2012 (2012-09-17) (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Syrian Civil War: Human rights investigators from the United Nations expand a secret list of people in Syria suspected of committing war crimes. Diplomat Pinheiro urges the U.N. Security Council to bring the situation to the International Criminal Court. (Reuters)
• 2012 diplomatic missions attacks fallout
  • The United States ambassador to the United Nations says there was no plot in the U.S. Consulate attack in Benghazi. (AP via Newsday)
  • A thousand Afghans hold a violent protest in Kabul about the short film Innocence of Muslims. (BBC)
  • Protesters in Indonesia clash violently with police protecting the US embassy in Jakarta. (AP via Mainichi Shimbun)

Business and economy

• Rip Curl, the last major Australian surf wear producer with its "own" capital, considers an offer for sale to private buyers. (Wall Street Journal)
• Senkaku Islands dispute
  • Japanese electronics company Panasonic suspends operations at its three factories in the People's Republic of China until Tuesday as a result of the Senkaku Islands dispute. (CNN)
  • Chinese state media warned that violent protests "cannot be tolerated", while the city of Xian imposes a ban on "illegal" protests. (Bloomberg via The Japan Times) (AP via Mainichi Shimbun)
  • China dispatches 1000 fishing boats to the Senkaku Islands to counter Japan's nationalization of the islands. Six Chinese surveillance ships may join them. (Kyodo News via Mainichi Shimbun)
• The United States and the People's Republic of China exchange WTO trade complaints: the US complaining of China's support for automobile exports, and China complaining of new U.S. duties on several of their products. (Reuters) (Los Angeles Times)
• ArcelorMittal announces the likely loss of two thousand cold process jobs in Liège, Belgium, after the failure of talks with unions. Unions say the steel maker wants to force an agreement before even starting talks. Wallonia wants to see the long-term plan. (Le Vif)

Disasters

• Typhoon Sanba makes landfall in South Korea near the port of Yeosu causing the cancellation of flights and other transport services; one person is reported dead. (Sky News Australia) (Yonhap)
• At least 13 people, including ten Indians, are killed in a bus accident in Jubail, Saudi Arabia. (IBN)

International relations

• United States and Japanese government officials agree to put a second missile defense system in Japan. (AP via Google News)
• Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi begins a 17-day tour of the United States in a bid to help ease economic sanctions on Myanmar. (AP)

Law and crime

• French police announce that they are exploring the possibility that Sylvain Mollier, and not the al-Hilli family, may have been the intended target in the Annecy murders. (The Telegraph)

Politics and elections

• Protests continue at a Chinese co-owned copper mine in the Sagaing Region of Burma over alleged land grabbing and environmental concerns. (Myanmar Times)

Science

• A three-man crew lands safely after four months in the International Space Station. (Fox News)