Portal:Current events/2013 June 4

June 4, 2013 (Tuesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

2013 protests in Turkey:
- Turkish public servants go on a two-day strike in support of the protests as a second fatality is reported. (AFP via The Daily Telegraph)
- Support for the protests in Turkey spread across Europe with demonstrators gathering outside the EU Parliament in Brussels, and France. (Al Jazeera)
War in Afghanistan (2001–2021):
- Three corpses are dug up near a former U.S. military base in Narkh bringing the number of corpses whose deaths locals blame on the presence of United States personnel to 10; people flood the streets of Maidan Shar calling for the U.S. to leave. (The Guardian)
- Two British soldiers are court martialed for "sexually and racially abusing civilians" during their time in Afghanistan. (RTT)
The United States expands its military presence in Jordan, sending a Patriot missile battery and an undeclared number of F-16 fighters to the area. (Al Jazeera) (RT) (BBC)
Syrian Civil War:
- A United Nations human rights team says there are "reasonable grounds" to believe that chemical weapons have been used in Syria. (Reuters via ABC News Australia)
- French foreign minister Laurent Fabius claims that the nerve agent sarin has been used on several occasions. (Haaretz)

Arts and culture

Krystian Zimerman, one of the world's leading concert pianists, angrily exits a concert in Essen, North Rhine-Westphalia, over a dispute with YouTube which he says is "destroying music". (The Guardian)
Ohio State University president E. Gordon Gee announces his retirement effective July 1 amidst controversy over insulting remarks he made in December 2012. (USA Today)

Business and economy

The United States trade deficit widens 8.5% during April as growth in imports outpaces growth in exports. (New York Times)
IBM agrees to buy cloud computing firm SoftLayer Technologies for US$2 billion. (San Francisco Chronicle)

Disasters and accidents

German chancellor Angela Merkel pledges 100 million euros of aid to flood victims as the death toll from ongoing flooding hits 11. The Australian
It is determined that the May 31 tornado that hit El Reno, Oklahoma, US, was the widest ever on record and a rare EF5. (USA Today)

Health and environment

More than 150 scientists urge the Australian Government to slow development near the Great Barrier Reef. (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

International relations

A Swiss diplomat is arrested in Paris on drunk driving charges after leading police on a high speed chase through the city. (ABC News)
Pope Francis, on June 3, meets with Patriarch Nerses Bedros XIX Tarmouni of Cilicia, the leader of the Armenian Catholic Church. The Armenian Patriarch was selected by the Armenian Synod in 1999, leads about 350,000 Armenian Catholics worldwide. (Catholic World News)

Law and crime

United States v. Bradley Manning:
- The trial of U.S. serviceman Bradley Manning for leaking classified material to WikiLeaks continues in Fort Meade, Maryland. Former computer hacker Adrian Lamo, who turned Manning in to his persecutors, gives evidence at the court martial. (The Guardian) (The Washington Post)
Lawyers gather outside Britain's Ministry of Justice to demonstrate against £220 million of proposed legal aid cuts and removal of the right of defendants to choose their own solicitor. (The Guardian)
South African athlete Oscar Pistorius appears in court charged with the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. (RTE)
A woman in Malleswaram, India is freed from an apparent four-year house confinement by her parents. (The Hindu)
An America tourist is allegedly gang raped and robbed by three men in Manali, India. (Times of India)

Politics and elections

A group of approximately 300 indigenous manifestants march toward the Brazilian capital of Brasilia to protest the death of Oziel Gabriel. (GloboNews)
A commemoration is held in Tehran to mourn Ruhollah Khomeini. (Al Jazeera) (Arab News)
Thousands commemorate the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's coronation at Westminster Abbey. (BBC)
Swaziland, Africa's last absolute monarchy, announces that it will hold elections in September. (South African Broadcasting Corporation)
Members of the House of Lords vote in favour of the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill, paving the way for gay marriage in the United Kingdom. (BBC)

Science and technology

Researchers describe the recently rediscovered Hula painted frog, long thought to be extinct, as a "living fossil". (BBC)
A newly discovered prehistoric lizard, Barbaturex morrisoni, is named after Doors singer Jim Morrison who called himself "The Lizard King". (BBC)

Sports

2014 FIFA World Cup:
- Japan becomes the first side to qualify for the 2014 World Cup with a 1–1 draw against Australia at Saitama Stadium. (Goal.com)
- Iran defeats Qatar 1–0 with a goal from Reza Ghoochannejhad at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium. (Goal.com)
In hockey, the NHL and the NHL Players Association reach an agreement, making the use of helmet visors mandatory. (NHL.com)
ESPN reports that Major League Baseball is preparing to suspend about 20 players that have used performance-enhancing drugs, the largest in American sports history. (ESPN)
In tennis, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga defeats Roger Federer in the quarter finals of the French Open. (The Telegraph)