Portal:Current events/2010 February 19
February 19, 2010 (Friday)
- Bill McKibben and 350.org reacted to President Barack Obama and Copenhagen Accord. (Huffington Post)
- Professional golfer Tiger Woods make a public apology over reports of having extramarital affairs. (BBC) (CBS News)
- International Atomic Energy Agency says Iran could be making nuclear warheads. (The Hindu)
- Anti-government protestors are killed by police fire in Gagnoa, Côte d'Ivoire. (Reuters South Africa) (The Washington Post)
- Element 112 is officially named Copernicium and assigned the symbol Cn on the 537th anniversary of the birthday of Nicolaus Copernicus. (RiaNovosti) (Der Spiegel) BBC and IUPAC
- The Supreme Council for the Restoration of Democracy that took power in a military coup in Niger yesterday lifts a curfew and reopens the country's borders. (African Press Agency)[permanent dead link] (BBC)
- French businessman Yazid Sabeg joins roster of UNESCO Goodwill Ambassadors. (UN)
- Romania is set to introduce a tax on fast food in March.(AP) (EurActiv) (The Scotsman)
- To persuade its volatile – and poor -- Niger Delta's oil region to reduce the conflict in the Niger Delta, Nigeria proposes handing over 10% stakes in its biggest energy industry to “host communities”. (China Dialogue News)
- Assassination of senior Hamas commander Mahmoud al-Mabhouh in Dubai:
- Hamas threatens Western nations and trades accusations with rival Palestinian faction Fatah over alleged involvement in the affair. (The Jerusalem Post)
- Dubai's police chief calls for the head of Mossad to be arrested if Israel's spy agency is found to have been behind the killing of a Hamas boss in the emirate. (BBC)
- Israel denies involvement in the assassination and claims that there is no evidence "that even remotely connects this incident to Israel" (The Jerusalem Post)
- Social networking site Facebook closes down spontaneous support groups for a pilot who crashed his plane in Austin, United States. (Wikinews) (Politico) (NY Daily News)
- Ex-IAEA head Mohamed ElBaradei is set to return to Egypt hoping to run for the presidency in the 2011 election. (BBC News) (BBC News) (AFP) (Al Jazeera)
- Mary MacKillop is to become Australia's first saint, after being approved by the Holy See for canonization. (The Australian)
- Plans for a Rudyard Kipling museum in his Mumbai home are scrapped due to the uncertainty of his legacy. (BBC)