Tag: domestic-international news

Nuclear Power/IAEA Fast Facts | CNN

CNN
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Here’s a look at the International Atomic Energy Agency and nuclear power.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspects nuclear and related facilities under safeguard agreements. Most agreements are with countries that have committed to not possessing nuclear weapons. The IAEA is the verification authority to enforce the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT).

The IAEA has 173 member states (as of April 7, 2021).

Rafael Grossi has been the director general of the IAEA since December 3, 2019.

There are 35 member countries on the IAEA Board of Governors, which meets five times a year.

The IAEA has about 2,500 employees.

IAEA safeguard programs monitor nuclear reactors to make sure nuclear material is not being diverted for making weapons.

The IAEA sends out inspectors to monitor reactors.

The IAEA helps countries prepare and respond to emergencies.

There are more than 420 nuclear power reactors in operation.

There are more than 50 nuclear power reactors under construction.

There are more than 90 operational nuclear reactors in the United States.

France has a 69% share of nuclear power to total electricity generation, the highest percentage of nuclear energy in the world.

1939 – Nuclear fission is discovered.

1942 – The world’s first nuclear chain reaction takes place in Chicago as part of the Manhattan Project, a US research program aimed at developing the first nuclear weapons.

July 16, 1945 – The United States conducts its first nuclear weapons test in New Mexico.

August 6, 1945 – An atomic bomb is dropped on Hiroshima, Japan.

August 9, 1945 – An atomic bomb is dropped on Nagasaki, Japan.

August 29, 1949 – The Soviet Union conducts its first nuclear weapons test.

December 1951 – Electricity is first generated from a nuclear reactor at the National Reactor Testing Station in Idaho.

October 3, 1952 – The United Kingdom conducts its first nuclear weapons test.

December 8, 1953 – In a speech to the United Nations General Assembly, President Dwight D. Eisenhower asks the world’s major powers to work together in developing peacetime uses of the atom. This is known as the Atoms for Peace program, and 40 countries participate. Also during this speech, Eisenhower proposes the creation of an international agency to monitor the spread of nuclear technology.

June 26, 1954 – In the Soviet Union, the first nuclear power plant is connected to an electricity grid to provide power to residences and businesses in a town near Moscow.

1957 – The IAEA is established to facilitate the peaceful use of nuclear energy.

1950’s – Brazil and Argentina begin research and development of nuclear reactors.

February 13, 1960 – France conducts its first nuclear weapons test.

October 16, 1964 – China conducts its first nuclear weapons test.

March 5, 1970 – The NPT goes into effect.

May 18, 1974 – India conducts its first nuclear weapons test.

March 28, 1979 – A partial meltdown of the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant occurs in Middletown, Pennsylvania. It is determined that equipment malfunctions, design-related problems and human error led to the accident.

April 26, 1986 – Reactor number four explodes at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, releasing large amounts of radiation into the atmosphere.

September 24, 1996 – The United States, China, France, the United Kingdom, Russia and 66 other UN member countries sign the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, barring the testing of nuclear weapons.

December 1997 – Mohamed ElBaradei is appointed IAEA director-general.

May 1998 – India and Pakistan test nuclear devices amid tensions between the neighboring countries.

January 10, 2003 – North Korea announces its withdrawal from the NPT.

August 2003 – IAEA inspectors find traces of highly enriched uranium at an electrical plant in Iran.

December 19, 2003 – Libya announces that it will dismantle its WMD program, in cooperation with the IAEA as well as the United States and the United Kingdom.

October 7, 2005 – The IAEA and ElBaradei are named the winners of the Nobel Peace Prize.

December 1, 2009 – Yukiya Amano replaces ElBaradei as director general of the IAEA.

March 11, 2011 – A 9.0 magnitude earthquake strikes near the coast of Honshu, Japan, creating a massive tsunami. The tsunami knocks out the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant’s cooling systems. The cores of three of six reactors are damaged by overheating. Resulting hydrogen explosions blow apart the buildings surrounding two reactors.

May 30, 2011 – Germany announces it will abandon the use of all nuclear power by the year 2022. This repeals a 2010 plan to extend the life of the country’s nuclear reactors.

November 11, 2013 – Iran signs an agreement with the IAEA, granting inspectors access to nuclear sites.

July 14, 2015 – After 20 months of negotiations, Iran reaches a comprehensive agreement (The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)), with the United States and other countries that is aimed at reining in Iran’s nuclear program. In exchange for limits on its nuclear activities, Iran will get relief from sanctions while being allowed to continue its atomic program for peaceful purposes.

August 11, 2015 – Japan restarts a nuclear reactor on the island of Kyushu. It’s the country’s first reactor to come back online since the 2011 tsunami.

January 16, 2016 – The IAEA confirms that Iran has taken all of the steps outlined in the nuclear deal, allowing for sanctions to be lifted, as per the agreement.

May 8, 2018 – US President Donald Trump announces that the United States will withdraw from JCPOA and will be imposing “the highest level of economic sanction” against Iran. In Tehran, Rouhani says Iran will take a few weeks to decide how to respond to the US withdrawal, but Rouhani says he had ordered the country’s “atomic industry organization” to be prepared to “start our industrial enrichment without limitations.”

May 8, 2019 – Rouhani announces a partial withdrawal from the JCPOA.

February 16, 2021 – The IAEA reports it received a February 15 letter from Iran stating that it will stop implementing provisions of the additional monitoring protocol as of February 23. This will effectively limit which facilities nuclear inspectors can scrutinize and when they can access them, making it harder for experts to determine if Tehran is attempting to develop nuclear weapons.

February 18, 2021 – The Joe Biden administration releases a statement indicating that the United States is willing to sit down for talks with Tehran and other signatories to the Iran nuclear deal, before either side has taken tangible action to salvage or return to compliance with the agreement.

February 21, 2021 – In a joint statement, the IAEA and Iran announce they have reached a deal in which Iran will give IAEA inspectors continued access to verify and monitor nuclear activity in the country for the next three months.

March 15, 2023 – A spokesman from the IAEA tells CNN in an email that “approximately 2.5 tons of natural uranium” contained in 10 drums were found to be missing from supplies held in Libya during an inspection on March 14, 2023.

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April 26, 2024
David Beckham Fast Facts | CNN

CNN
—

Here’s a look at the life of retired professional soccer player David Beckham.

Birth date: May 2, 1975

Birth place: London, England

Birth name: David Robert Joseph Beckham

Father: David Edward “Ted” Beckham, an appliance repairman

Mother: Sandra (West) Beckham, a hairdresser

Marriage: Victoria (Adams) Beckham (July 4, 1999-present)

Children: Harper, Cruz, Romeo and Brooklyn

Retired professional soccer (European football) player.

Married to Spice Girl Victoria (Adams) Beckham, nicknamed “Posh Spice.”

Midfielder known for his ability to “bend” his free kicks, curving the ball around or over defenders to score. The movie title “Bend it like Beckham” is a tribute to his kicking style.

Won league titles in four different countries while playing for Manchester United, Real Madrid, Los Angeles Galaxy and Paris Saint-Germain.

Played 115 times for England between 1996 and 2009.

Leadership Council Member of Malaria No More UK.

1991 – At age 16, leaves home to play in Manchester United’s training league.

April 2, 1995 – Premier League debut with Manchester United.

1996 – Gains recognition when he scores a goal from the halfway line, a kick of almost 60 yards.

September 1996 – Makes his international debut in the World Cup qualifier against Moldova. England wins 3-0.

1998 – Is named to the English national team for 1998 World Cup.

1998 – Beckham is given a red card and ejected from a second round World Cup match for kicking out at Argentina’s Diego Simeone, which contributed to England’s elimination.

1999 – Leads Manchester United to a treble, winning the English Premier League, FA Cup and European Champions League trophies.

November 15, 2000 – Is named captain of England’s national team.

April 2002 – Breaks a bone in his foot but later competes in the World Cup finals in June. England ultimately loses to Brazil in the quarterfinals.

May 2003 – Breaks his hand during a 2-1 win over South Africa in Durban.

June-July 2003 – Traded by Manchester United to Real Madrid. He signs a four-year contract with Real Madrid for $40 million.

November 27, 2003 – Receives an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) from Queen Elizabeth II.

January 10, 2005 – Appointed UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, with a focus on the program Sport for Development.

August 3, 2005 – Is awarded libel damages from the tabloid, the People, that accused him of making hate calls to a former nanny.

March 9, 2006 – Settles a libel case against the British tabloid, News of the World, over a 2004 headline that read, “Posh and Becks on the Rocks.”

January 2007 – Signs on with the Los Angeles Galaxy, an American Major League Soccer team.

July 21, 2007 – Plays his first game with the LA Galaxy. It is initially reported he will receive an estimated $250 million over the life of his five-year contract, but later revealed that the Galaxy will pay him $32.5 million over five years.

March 26, 2008 – Appears for the 100th time in an England uniform. During the England/France game Beckham receives a standing ovation from both sides as he leaves the field during a substitution.

January 2009 – Loaned by the LA Galaxy team to the AC Milan club. He initially agrees to a three-month stint with the Milan team but the loan is extended to six months.

December 2009 – Is loaned to AC Milan a second time until the end of the Italian season in May.

March 14, 2010 – Tears an Achilles tendon during an AC Milan match and is unable to play in the World Cup.

December 1, 2012 – Plays his final game with the LA Galaxy.

January 31, 2013 – Announces that he has signed with Paris Saint-Germain for five months and will donate the pay to a children’s charity in Paris.

May 16, 2013 – Announces that he will retire from professional soccer at the end of his season.

February 5, 2014 – Announces he will establish a Major League Soccer franchise in Miami.

February 9, 2015 – Launches 7: The David Beckham UNICEF Fund, a collaboration with UNICEF to help kids in danger zones around the world.

January 29, 2018 – MLS announces that Miami has been awarded the league’s 25th franchise, about four years after Beckham first announced his intention to exercise his right to buy an MLS franchise in February 2014. The Beckham franchise will be backed by Cuban-American businessmen Jorge and Jose Mas, CEO of Sprint Corporation Marcelo Claure, entertainment producer Simon Fuller and the founder of Japanese telecommunications firm SoftBank, Masayoshi Son.

September 5, 2018 – Beckham’s Miami expansion team announces it name, Club Internacional de Futbol Miami, Inter Miami for short.

March 1, 2020 – Inter Miami plays its debut MLS game.

October 2, 2020 – A company co-founded by Beckham, Guild Esports, lists on the London Stock Exchange, becoming the first esports franchise to go public on the LSE.

March 20, 2022 – Beckham hands over control of his Instagram account to a doctor in Ukraine, in a bid to highlight the work of medical professionals caring for patients amid the Russian invasion of the country.

October 4, 2023 – Netflix’s four-part documentary series titled “Beckham” is released.

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April 24, 2024
Notable US Spies Fast Facts | CNN

CNN
—

Here is a look at some US citizens who have been convicted of spying against the United States.

1962 – Aldrich Ames, son of a CIA analyst, joins the agency as a low-level documents analyst.

1967-1968 – Enters the Career Trainee Program at the CIA and becomes an operations officer.

1970s – Specializes in Soviet/Russian intelligence services.

April 16, 1985 – Volunteers to spy against the United States to KGB agents at the Soviet Embassy in Washington, DC. He receives a payment of $50,000.

1986-1989 – Ames is stationed in Rome and continues to pass information to Soviet agents. He is paid approximately $1.8 million during this period.

Late 1980s – The CIA and FBI learn that a number of Russian double agents have been arrested and some executed.

May 1993 – The FBI begins investigating Ames, with both physical and electronic surveillance.

February 21, 1994 – Ames and his wife, Rosario, are arrested in Arlington, Virginia, by the FBI, accused of spying for the Soviet Union and later, Russia. It is estimated that Ames has received approximately $2.5 million from Russia and the Soviet Union for his years of spying.

April 28, 1994 – Ames pleads guilty and is sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. In October 1994, Ames’ wife receives 63 months in prison.

October 31, 1995 – CIA Director John Deutch testifies before Congress about the scope of Ames’ espionage. He states that more than 100 US spies were compromised and that tainted intelligence was given to Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton.

1970-1991 – David Boone serves in the US Army as a signals intelligence analyst. During the late 1980s, he is assigned to the National Security Agency as a senior cryptologic traffic analyst.

October 1988 – In the midst of a divorce and financial problems, Boone goes to the Soviet embassy in Washington, DC, and offers to spy on the United States. He is paid about $20,000 a year for his work over the next three years. He continues spying after being transferred to a post in Germany.

1991 – Boone loses his security clearance and retires from the Army, remaining in Germany.

1998 – He is contacted by a retired FBI agent posing as a Russian agent. The agent meets with Boone in London and the United States and pays him $9,000 to return to spying for Russia.

October 14, 1998 – Boone is charged with passing defense documents to the Soviet Union. He pleads guilty in December 1998.

February 26, 1999 – He is sentenced to 24 years in prison.

January 14, 2020 – Boone is released from prison.

1996 – Peter Rafael Dzibinski Debbins makes visits to Russia to meet with their intelligence agents. He is given a code name and signs a settlement “attesting that he wanted to serve” them.

1998-2005 – Debbins joins the Army, where he serves in chemical units before being selected for the US Army Special Forces.

August 21, 2020 – The Department of Justice announces that Debbins has been charged with providing information about US national defenses to Russian agents.

May 14, 2021 – The DOJ announces that Debbins is sentenced to 188 months in federal prison for conspiring with Russian agents to provide them with US defense intelligence.

1968-1986 – Noshir Gowadia is employed by Northrop Grumman where he works on technology relating to the B-2 Spirit Bomber, aka the “Stealth” bomber.

July 2003-June 2005 – Travels to China six times to “provide defense services in the form of design, test support and test data analysis of technologies to assist the PRC with a cruise missile system by developing a stealthy exhaust nozzle.” He is paid over $100,000 during this period.

October 2005 – Arrested and charged with passing national defense information to China. Superseding indictments are issued in 2006 and 2007.

August 9, 2010 – Gowadia is found guilty.

January 24, 2011 – He is sentenced to 32 years in prison.

January 12, 1976 – Robert Hanssen joins the FBI.

1979 – Begins spying for the Soviet Union.

1980 – Begins working for the counterintelligence unit, focusing on the Soviet Union.

1981 – Transfers to FBI headquarters, initially tracking white-collar crime and monitoring foreign officials assigned to the United States. He is later assigned to the Soviet Analytical Unit.

1981 – Hanssen’s wife catches him with classified documents and convinces him to stop spying.

October 4, 1985 – Resumes spying.

1991 – Breaks off relations with the KGB.

1999 – Resumes spying, this time for the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service.

2000 – The FBI identifies Hanssen from a fingerprint and from a tape recording supplied by a disgruntled Russian intelligence operative. The FBI also obtains the complete original KGB dossier on Hanssen.

December 2000 – The FBI begins surveillance of Hanssen.

February 18, 2001 – Hanssen is arrested in a Virginia park after making a drop of classified documents. Agents find a bag nearby containing $50,000 that they believe is Hanssen’s payment for the documents.

July 6, 2001 – Pleads guilty to 15 counts of espionage and conspiracy in exchange for the government not seeking the death penalty.

May 10, 2002 – He is sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

June 5, 2023 – Hanssen dies in prison.

1984 – Ana Montes is recruited to spy for Cuba. She is never paid for her spying.

1985-2001 – She is employed by the Defense Intelligence Agency as an analyst. She is promoted several times, eventually becoming the DIA’s top Cuba analyst.

Fall 2000 – The FBI and DIA begin investigating Montes.

September 11, 2001 – In response to attacks on the United States, Montes is named acting division chief, which gives her access to the plans to attack Afghanistan and the Taliban.

September 21, 2001 – Montes is arrested in Washington, DC, and is charged with conspiracy to deliver defense information to Cuba.

March 20, 2002 – Pleads guilty to espionage and is sentenced to 25 years in prison.

January 6, 2023 – Montes is released from prison.

1977 – Walter Kendall Myers begins working for the US State Department on contract, as an instructor.

1978 – Myers travels to Cuba and is recruited by Cuban intelligence.

1979 – Myers and his girlfriend [later his wife], Gwendolyn, begin spying for Cuba. It is believed they receive little to no payment for their services.

1985 – He is hired by the State Dept. as a senior analyst.

October 31, 2007 – Myers retires from the State Dept.

June 4, 2009 – The Myers are arrested.

November 20, 2009 – He pleads guilty to wire fraud and conspiracy to commit espionage. Gwendolyn Myers pleads guilty to conspiracy to gather and transmit national defense information.

July 16, 2010 – Myers is sentenced to life in prison. His wife is sentenced to 81 months.

1980 – Harold Nicholson joins the CIA after serving in the United States Army.

1982-1989 – Nicholson works for the CIA in the Philippines, Thailand and Japan.

1992-1994 – Deputy Chief of Station/Operations Officer in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

June 1994-November 1996 – Provides Russian Intelligence with sensitive information.

November 16, 1996 – Arrested at Dulles International Airport carrying classified CIA information.

November 27, 1996 – Nicholson pleads not guilty.

June 5, 1997 – He is convicted of espionage and sentenced to 23 years in prison.

2008 – Nicholson’s son, Nathaniel, is arrested on charges he met with Russian agents to collect money owed to his father.

January 18, 2011 – Harold Nicholson is sentenced to an additional eight years in prison on charges of conspiracy to act as an agent of a foreign government and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Nathaniel Nicholson is sentenced to five years probation.

1965-1979 – Ronald Pelton works for the National Security Agency, with top-level security clearance.

1979 – Pelton leaves the NSA due to financial problems.

January 1980 – After declaring bankruptcy in 1979, Pelton begins spying for the Soviet Union. He discloses classified information on the United States’ ability to intercept Soviet communications.

November 25, 1985 – After a KGB defector reveals his name, Pelton is arrested and charged with espionage.

June 5, 1986 – He is convicted of spying.

December 17, 1986 – Pelton is sentenced to three concurrent life sentences plus 10 years.

November 24, 2015 – Pelton is released from prison.

1983-1996 – Earl Edwin Pitts works at the FBI.

1987-1992 – Pitts passes information on FBI operations to the Soviet Union and Russia.

1995 – A Russian diplomat at the UN names Pitts as a former spy. FBI agents posing as Russian intelligence officers contact Pitts to attempt to lure him back to spying. Pitts delivers documents in exchange for $65,000.

December 18, 1996 – Pitts is arrested. He is charged two days later with conspiring and attempting to commit espionage.

February 28, 1997 – Pleads guilty. At the time, he is only the second agent in the FBI’s history to be found guilty of espionage.

June 23, 1997 – He is sentenced to 27 years in prison.

December 20, 2019 – Pitts is released from prison.

1979 – Pollard is hired to work at the Navy Field Operational Intelligence Office. He had been rejected previously from employment at the CIA due to drug use. His specialty is North America and the Caribbean.

June 1984 – He begins spying for Israel, passing on information on Arab countries. He earns $1,500-$2,500 a month.

November 21, 1985 – Pollard is arrested outside the Israeli Embassy after his request for asylum is denied.

June 4, 1986 – Pleads guilty to conspiracy to commit espionage.

March 4, 1987 – US District Judge Aubrey Robinson Jr. rejects a plea agreement reached by federal prosecutors and Pollard. Instead, he sentences Pollard to life in prison. Pollard is the only person in US history to receive a life sentence for spying on behalf of a US ally. Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama have rejected pleas for clemency.

1995 – Israel grants Pollard citizenship.

May 11, 1998 – Israel admits for the first time that Pollard was working as its agent.

2002 – Former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visits Pollard in prison.

July 28, 2015 – Pollard’s attorney announces that Pollard has been granted parole and will be released in November.

November 20, 2015 – Pollard is released on parole.

November 20, 2020 – Pollard completes his parole. A month later Pollard and his wife arrive in Israel to start a new life.

1969-1994 – George Trofimoff, a naturalized American citizen of Russian parentage, works as a civilian for the US Army at the Joint Interrogation Center in Nuremberg, Germany. He also attains the rank of colonel in the Army reserve.

1994 – Trofimoff and a priest in the Russian Orthodox church, Igor Susemihl, are arrested in Germany on spying charges. The charges are later dropped.

1994 – Retires and moves to South Florida.

June 14, 2000 – Trofimoff is arrested. US Attorney Donna Bucella describes him as “the highest-ranking US military officer ever charged with espionage. He is accused of passing classified information on Soviet and Warsaw Pact military capabilities from 1969-1994. Allegedly, he received payment of over $250,000 during that time.

June 27, 2001 – He is convicted of spying for the Soviet Union and Russia. He is later sentenced to life in prison.

September 19, 2014 – Trofimoff dies in prison.

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April 24, 2024
Genocide Fast Facts | CNN

CNN
—

Here’s a look at genocide, the attempted or intentional destruction of a national, racial, religious or ethnic group, whether in wartime or peace.

The Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide was adopted by the United Nations after World War II.

Article II of the Convention defines genocide as any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group:
(a) Killing members of the group;
(b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;
(c) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part;
(d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;
(e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.

1932-1933 – Joseph Stalin and the Soviet Union inflict a famine upon Ukraine after people rebel against the imposed system of land management known as “collectivization,” which seizes privately owned farmlands and puts people to work in collectives. An estimated 25,000-33,000 people die every day. There are an estimated six million to 10 million deaths.

December 1937-January 1938 – The Japanese Imperial Army marches into Nanking, China, and kills an estimated 300,000 Chinese civilians and soldiers. Tens of thousands are raped before they are murdered.

1938-1945 – Nazi Germany, under Adolf Hitler, deems the Jewish population racially inferior and a threat, and kills six million Jewish people in Germany, Poland, the Soviet Union and other areas around Europe during World War II.

1944 – The term “genocide” is coined by lawyer Raphael Lemkin.

December 9, 1948 – The United Nations adopts the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Genocide.

January 12, 1951 – The Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide enters into force. It is eventually ratified by 142 nations.

1975-1979 – Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot’s attempt to turn Cambodia into a Communist peasant farming society leads to the deaths of up to two million people from starvation, forced labor and executions.

1988 – The Iraqi regime under Saddam Hussein attacks civilians who have remained in “prohibited” areas. The attacks include the use of mustard gas and nerve agents and result in the death of an estimated 100,000 Iraqi Kurds.

1992-1995 – Yugoslavia, led by President Slobodan Milosevic, attacks Bosnia after it declares its independence. Approximately 100,000 people – the majority of whom are Muslims, or Bosniaks, – are killed in the conflict. There are mass executions of “battle-age” men and mass rape of women.

1995 – Ratko Mladic, former leader of the Bosnian Serb army, is indicted by the UN-established International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia for war crimes and atrocities. In 2011, Mladic is arrested in Serbia. On November 22, 2017, Mladic is sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of genocide and crimes against humanity.

1994 – In Rwanda, an estimated 800,000 civilians, mostly from the Tutsi ethnic group, are killed over a period of three months.

July 17, 1998 – The Rome Statute, to establish a permanent international criminal court, is adopted.

1998 – The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) establishes the precedent that rape during warfare is a crime of genocide. In Rwanda, HIV-infected men participated in the mass rape of Tutsi women.

1998 – The first genocide conviction occurs at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. Jean Paul Akayesu, the Hutu mayor of the town, Taba, is convicted of genocide and crimes against humanity.

July 1, 2002 – The International Criminal Court (ICC) opens at The Hague, Netherlands, as the first permanent war crimes tribunal, with jurisdiction to try perpetrators of genocide. Previously, the UN Security Council created ad hoc tribunals to try those responsible for genocide in the former Yugoslavia and in Rwanda.

2003-2004 – In the Darfur region of Sudan, the United Nations estimates that 300,000 people have been killed. In July 2004, the US House of Representatives and the Senate pass resolutions declaring the crisis in Darfur to be genocide.

2008 – Fugitive Radovan Karadzic, former Bosnian Serb leader, is arrested. He is charged with genocide in connection with the Srebrenica massacre of 1995. On March 24, 2016, Karadzic is found guilty of 10 of the 11 charges against him, including one count of genocide. He is sentenced to 40 years in prison. Three years later, the sentence is changed to life in prison by appeal judges at a UN court in the Hague, Netherlands.

March 4, 2009 – The ICC issues an arrest warrant for Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir on charges of crimes against humanity and war crimes.

June 4, 2013 – The ICTR unseals a 2012 updated indictment against Ladislas Ntaganzwa. The former mayor of a town in south Rwanda is indicted on charges of genocide, crimes against humanity and other violations of international humanitarian law during the 1994 killings in Rwanda.

August 2014 – ISIS fighters attack the northern Iraqi town of Sinjar, home of a religious minority group called the Yazidis. A Yazidi lawmaker says that 500 men have been killed, 70 children have died of thirst and women are being sold into slavery.

December 9, 2015 – The arrest of Ntaganzwa is announced. On May 28, 2020, Ntaganzwa is convicted of genocide, crimes against humanity and other serious violations of international humanitarian law by the High Court Chamber for International Crimes in Rwanda. He is sentenced to life in prison for his role in the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

January 2016 – According to a 2016 United Nations report, ISIS is believed to be holding 3,500 people as slaves, most of which are women and children from the Yazidi community and other minority groups. On March 17, 2016, US Secretary of State John Kerry announces that the United States has determined that ISIS’ action against the Yazidis and other minority groups in Iraq and Syria constitutes genocide.

September 18, 2018 – In its “Report of the independent international fact-finding mission on Myanmar,” the United Nations finds that “there is sufficient information to warrant the investigation and prosecution of senior officials” on charges of genocide against Rohingya Muslims.

November 2018 – Two Khmer Rouge senior surviving leaders are found guilty of genocide and other charges against Cambodians between 1975 and 1979. Nuon Chea and Khieu Samphan, now 92 and 87, are sentenced to life in prison by an international tribunal in Cambodia.

January 23, 2020 – The UN’s top court orders Myanmar to prevent acts of genocide against the country’s persecuted Rohingya minority and to stop destroying evidence, in a landmark case at The Hague. The case was brought to the International Court of Justice by the tiny West African nation of The Gambia, which in November alleged that Myanmar committed “genocidal acts.”

May 16, 2020 – Félicien Kabuga, one of the last key suspects in the Rwandan genocide, is captured in Asnières-Sur-Seine, a Paris suburb. Indicted in 1997 on seven counts including genocide, he has been a fugitive for more than 20 years. Kabuga is transferred to the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT) October 26. In an order published June 6, 2023, the IRMCT rules that Kabuga is no longer capable of “meaningful participation” in his trial.

March 21, 2022 – US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announces that the United States has determined that the military of Myanmar committed genocide against the country’s Rohingya population in 2016 and 2017.

December 29, 2023 – According to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), South Africa has filed an application at the court to begin proceedings over allegations of genocide against Israel for its war against Hamas in Gaza. In a hearing on January 26, 2024, the ICJ orders Israel to prevent genocide against Palestinians in Gaza but stopped short of calling for Israel to suspend its military campaign in Gaza, as South Africa had requested.

February 2, 2024 – The ICJ says that it will move forward with a 2022 case brought by Ukraine over Russia’s justification of its February 2022 invasion. Kyiv had asked the court to declare it did not commit genocide in eastern Ukraine – a claim made by Russia as a pretext for launching its attack.

Remembering the Rwanda genocide, 25 years on

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April 24, 2024
Vietnam War Fast Facts | CNN

CNN
—

Here’s a look at the Vietnam War.

1883-1945 – Cochin-China, southern Vietnam, and Annam and Tonkin, central and northern Vietnam, along with Cambodia and Laos make up colonial empire French Indochina.

1946 – Communists in the north begin fighting France for control of the country.

1949 – France establishes the State of Vietnam in the southern half of the country.

1951 – Ho Chi Minh becomes leader of Dang Lao Dong Vietnam, the Vietnam Worker’s Party, in the north.

North Vietnam was communist. South Vietnam was not. North Vietnamese Communists and South Vietnamese Communist rebels, known as the Viet Cong, wanted to overthrow the South Vietnamese government and reunite the country.

1954 – North Vietnamese begin helping South Vietnamese rebels fight South Vietnamese troops, thus BEGINS the Vietnam conflict.

April 30, 1975 – South Vietnam surrenders to North Vietnam as North Vietnamese troops enter Saigon, ENDING the Vietnam conflict.

The war was estimated to cost about $200 billion.

Anti-war opinion increased in the United States from the mid-1960s on, with rallies, teach-ins, and other forms of demonstration.

North Vietnamese guerrilla forces used the Ho Chi Minh Trail, a network of jungle paths and mountain trails, to send supplies and troops into South Vietnam.

The bombing of North Vietnam surpassed the total tonnage of bombs dropped on Germany, Italy and Japan in World War II.

Today, Vietnam is a communist state.

Source: Dept. of Defense

8,744,000 – Total number of US Troops that served worldwide during Vietnam
3,403,000 served in Southeast Asia
2,594,000 served in South Vietnam

The total of American servicemen listed as POW/MIA at the end of the war was 2,646. As of April 12, 2024, 1,577 soldiers remain unaccounted for.

Battle: 47,434
Non-Battle: 10,786
Total In-Theatre: 58,220

1.3 million – Total military deaths for all countries involved

1 million – Total civilian deaths

September 2, 1945 – Vietnam declares independence from France. Neither France nor the United States recognizes this claim. US President Harry S. Truman aids France with military equipment to fight the rebels known as Viet Minh.

May 1954 – The Battle of Dien Bien Phu results in serious defeat for the French and peace talks in Geneva. The Geneva Accords end the French Indochina War.

July 21, 1954 – Vietnam signs the Geneva Accords and divides into two countries at the 17th parallel, the Communist-led north and US-supported south.

1957-1963 – North Vietnam and the Viet Cong fight South Vietnamese troops. Hoping to stop the spread of communism in Southeast Asia, the United States sends more aid and military advisers to help the South Vietnamese government. The number of US military advisers in Vietnam grows from 900 in 1960 to 11,000 in 1962.

1964-1969 – By 1964, the Viet Cong, the Communist guerrilla force, has 35,000 troops in South Vietnam. The United States sends more and more troops to fight the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese, with the number of US troops in Vietnam peaking at 543,000 in April 1969. Anti-war sentiment in the United States grows stronger as the troop numbers increase.

August 2, 1964 – Gulf of Tonkin – The North Vietnamese fire on a US destroyer anchored in the Gulf of Tonkin. After US President Lyndon Johnson falsely claims that there had been a second attack on the destroyer, Congress passes the Gulf of Tonkin resolution, which authorizes full-scale US intervention in the Vietnam War. Johnson orders the bombing of North Vietnam in retaliation for the Tonkin attack.

August 5, 1964 – Johnson asks Congress for the power to go to war against the North Vietnamese and the Communists for violating the Geneva Accords against South Vietnam and Laos. The request is granted August 7, 1964, in a Congressional joint resolution.

January 30, 1968 – Tet Offensive – The North Vietnamese launch a massive surprise attack during the festival of the Vietnamese New Year, called Tet. The attack hits 36 major cities and towns in South Vietnam. Both sides suffer heavy casualties, but the offensive demonstrates that the war will not end soon or easily. American public opinion against the war increases, and the US begins to reduce the number of troops in Vietnam.

March 16, 1968 – My Lai Massacre – About 400 women, children and elderly men are massacred by US forces in the village of My Lai in South Vietnam. Lieutenant William L. Calley Jr. is later court-martialed for leading the raid and sentenced to life in prison for his role but is released in 1974 when a federal court overturns the conviction. Calley is the only soldier ever convicted in connection with the event.

April 1970 – Invasion of Cambodia – US President Richard Nixon orders US and South Vietnamese troops to invade border areas in Cambodia and destroy supply centers set up by the North Vietnamese. The invasion sparks more anti-war protests, and on June 3, 1970, Nixon announces the completion of troop withdrawal.

May 4, 1970 – National Guard units fire into a group of demonstrators at Kent State University in Ohio. The shots kill four students and wound nine others. Anti-war demonstrations and riots occur on hundreds of other campuses throughout May.

February 8, 1971 – Invasion of Laos – Under orders from Nixon, US and South Vietnamese ground troops, with the support of B-52 bombers, invade southern Laos in an effort to stop the North Vietnamese supply routes through Laos into South Vietnam. This action is done without consent of Congress and causes more anti-war protests in the United States.

January 27, 1973 – A cease-fire is arranged after peace talks.

March 29, 1973 – The last American ground troops leave. Fighting begins again between North and South Vietnam, but the United States does not return.

April 30, 1975 – South Vietnam surrenders to North Vietnam as North Vietnamese troops enter Saigon, now called Ho Chi Minh City.

May 25, 2012 – US President Barack Obama signs a proclamation that puts into effect the “Commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of the Vietnam War” that will continue until November 11, 2025. Over the next 13 years, the program will “honor and give thanks to a generation of proud Americans who saw our country through one of the most challenging missions we have ever faced.”

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April 12, 2024
Dominique Strauss-Kahn Fast Facts | CNN

CNN
—

Here is a look at the life of Dominique Strauss-Kahn, former International Monetary Fund (IMF) Director.

Birth date: April 25, 1949

Birth place: Neuilly-sur-Seine, France

Birth name: Dominique Gaston Andre Strauss-Kahn

Father: Gilbert Strauss-Kahn, a legal and tax advisor

Mother: Jacqueline Fellus, a journalist

Marriages: Myriam L’Aouffir (October 2017-present); Anne Sinclair (1991-2013, divorced); Brigitte Guillemette (1984-date unavailable publicly, divorced); Helene Dumas (1967-date unavailable publicly, divorced)

Children: with Brigitte Guillemette: Camille; with Helene Dumas: Vanessa, Marine and Laurin

Education: HEC Paris (École des Hautes Études Commerciales de Paris), Public Law, 1971; Paris Institute of Political Studies (Institut d’Études Politiques de Paris), Political Science, 1972; University of Paris, Ph.D., Economics, 1977

His 2010 IMF salary was tax free, amounting to more than $500,000 with perks.

Taught economics at the prestigious Institut d’Etudes Politiques de Paris, commonly known as Sciences Po, and at Stanford University in California.

Was considered to be the leading contender to run against Nicolas Sarkozy for the 2012 presidency of France.

1981-1986 – Deputy Commissioner of the Economic Planning Agency.

1986 – Wins election to France’s National Assembly – the lower house of parliament.

1988-1991 – Chairs the Finance Commission.

1991- 1993 – Minister of Industry and International Trade under President Francois Mitterrand.

1997-1999 – Minister of Economy, Finance and Industry. Resigns amid allegations that as a practicing lawyer he was involved in party campaign funding irregularities. Strauss-Kahn is later cleared of the charges.

2001-2007 – Elected three times to the French National Assembly.

2006 – Loses to Segolene Royal for the Socialist Party’s presidential nomination.

November 1, 2007-May 18, 2011 – IMF Managing Director.

2008 – Is reprimanded by the IMF for a relationship with a subordinate, Piroska Nagy.

May 14, 2011 – Is escorted off an Air France flight headed to Paris and taken to a New York police station for questioning about the alleged sexual assault of a Sofitel Hotel housekeeping employee. The hotel employee says that Strauss-Kahn attempted to force himself on her when she came to clean his room. By the time police officers arrived, Strauss-Kahn had already left the Manhattan hotel.

May 14, 2011 – Is charged with attempted rape and imprisonment of the hotel employee.

May 16, 2011 – Is denied bail and transferred to New York’s Rikers Island jail.

May 18, 2011 – Resigns his position with IMF. His 2007 contract includes a severance package with a $250,000 one-time payout and a smaller annual pension.

May 19, 2011 – Is indicted on seven counts: two counts of a criminal sexual act, two counts of sexual abuse, and one count each of attempt to commit rape, unlawful imprisonment and forcible touching.

May 19, 2011 – Is granted bail based on these conditions: home confinement, the surrender of his travel documents, and the posting of $1 million in cash bail and a $5 million bond.

June 6, 2011 – Pleads not guilty to all seven charges.

July 1, 2011 – Is released from house arrest after prosecutors disclose that the accuser admitted to lying about certain details.

July 4, 2011 – French journalist Tristane Banon’s lawyer says that Banon will be filing a complaint claiming Strauss-Kahn attempted to rape her in 2003. In anticipation of the filing, Strauss-Kahn files a counterclaim against Banon for “false declarations.”

July 5, 2011 – Banon files a criminal complaint against Strauss-Kahn, alleging attempted rape.

August 8, 2011 – Nafissatou Diallo, the Manhattan maid who accused Strauss-Kahn of sexual assault, files a civil lawsuit against him.

August 23, 2011 – All sexual assault charges against Strauss-Kahn, related to Diallo, are dismissed at the request of the prosecutor.

September 3, 2011 – Leaves New York to return to France.

September 18, 2011 – In an interview with French television station TF1, Strauss-Kahn says the incident at the Sofitel Hotel was “not only an inappropriate relationship, but more than that – an error, a mistake, a mistake concerning my wife, my children, my friends, but also a mistake that the French people placed their hope in change on me.”

October 13, 2011 – French prosecutors announce that charges will not be filed against Strauss-Kahn for the alleged sexual assault of Banon due to a lack of sufficient evidence and a statute of limitations that applies to the case.

February 21-22, 2012 – Is questioned by French police about an alleged prostitution ring possibly operated out of luxury hotels.

March 26, 2012 – Strauss-Kahn is warned that he is under investigation for “aggravated pimping” for his alleged participation in a prostitution ring.

May 14, 2012 – Files a countersuit for at least $1 million against Diallo, the Manhattan maid who accused him of sexual assault.

May 21, 2012 – A French investigation into Strauss-Kahn’s alleged involvement in a prostitution ring widens. Authorities say that police will open a preliminary inquiry into acts that allegedly took place in Washington, DC, in December 2010, which they believe could constitute gang rape.

October 2, 2012 – A French prosecutor drops the investigation connecting Strauss-Kahn to a possible gang rape in Washington, DC. The testimony on which the investigation is based has been withdrawn and the woman is declining to press charges.

December 10, 2012 – Diallo and Strauss-Kahn reach a settlement in her civil lawsuit against him. Terms of the settlement are not released.

July 26, 2013 – Prosecutors announce that Strauss-Kahn will be tried on charges of “aggravated pimping” for his alleged participation in a prostitution ring.

September 17, 2013 – It is announced that Strauss-Kahn has been appointed as an economic adviser to the Serbian government.

February 2, 2015 – The trial concerning “aggravated pimping” charges against Strauss-Kahn begins.

February 17, 2015 – A prosecutor tells a French criminal court that Strauss-Kahn should be acquitted of aggravated pimping charges because of insufficient evidence. The Lille prosecutor’s office said in 2013 that evidence didn’t support the charges, but investigative magistrates nevertheless pursued the case to trial.

June 12, 2015 – Strauss-Kahn is acquitted of charges of aggravated pimping.

February 2016 – Is named to the supervisory board of Ukrainian bank Credit Dnepr.

June 2016 – Strauss-Kahn and seven others are fined in civil court after the anti-prostitution group Mouvement du Nid appeals the June 2015 acquittal. Strauss-Kahn is ordered to pay more than $11,000 in damages to the group.

December 7, 2020 – Netflix releases “Room 2806: The Accusation,” a documentary series covering the 2011 sexual assault case involving Strauss-Kahn and Diallo.

December 15, 2022 – Le Monde reports that French authorities are investigating Strauss-Kahn for potential tax fraud related to his consulting activities in Morocco. Strauss-Kahn was one of dozens whose financial secrets and offshore dealings were released in the “Pandora Papers” by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) in 2021.

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April 10, 2024
Melania Trump Fast Facts | CNN

CNN
—

Here is a look at the life of Melania Trump, wife of 45th US President Donald Trump.

Birth date: April 26, 1970

Birth place: Novo Mesto, Yugoslavia (now Slovenia)

Birth name: Melanija Knavs

Father: Viktor Knavs

Mother: Amalija (Ulcnik) Knavs

Marriage: Donald Trump (January 22, 2005-present)

Children: Barron

Education: University of Ljubljana, Yugoslavia (now Slovenia)

Changed the spelling of her name from Melanija Knavs to Melania Knauss while modeling professionally.

Speaks six languages: Slovenian, French, Serbian, German, Italian and English.

She is the second foreign-born first lady in US history, after Louisa Adams, the English-born wife of sixth US president John Quincy Adams, who served from 1825 to 1829.

Became a model in Yugoslavia at the age of 16.

She has appeared in magazines such as GQ, Vanity Fair and Sports Illustrated.

1996 – Moves to the United States, heading to New York to work for ID Models.

1998 – Meets Trump at a party at the Kit Kat Club in New York.

2000 – Appears in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue.

March 19, 2001 – Obtains her green card.

July 2006 – Becomes a US citizen.

2010 – Launches her jewelry line, Melania Timepieces and Jewelry, on QVC.

April 2013 – Launches a caviar-based skincare line, Melania Caviar Complexe C6.

July 18, 2016 – Parts of her campaign speech during the 2016 Republican National Convention are alleged to have been plagiarized from a speech delivered by First Lady Michelle Obama at the Democratic National Convention in 2008. A speechwriter working for Donald Trump’s company later assumes responsibility for the similarities in the two speeches.

September 1, 2016 – Files a defamation lawsuit against British newspaper The Daily Mail and the US-based blog Tarpley, accusing them of publishing claims that she was an escort in the 1990s. The Daily Mail and Tarpley both issue retractions.

November 3, 2016 – During a campaign speech in Philadelphia, Trump announces she intends to make ending social media bullying her focus as first lady.

November 20, 2016 – Donald Trump confirms he will live in the White House as president, but says Melania and their son, Barron, will remain in New York initially, so that Barron can finish out the year at the same school.

January 20, 2017 – Becomes first lady of the United States.

February 2, 2017 – A Maryland judge dismisses Trump’s defamation lawsuit against British newspaper The Daily Mail on jurisdictional grounds. Previously, it was ruled that Trump’s lawsuit against blogger Webster Griffin Tarpley will move forward.

February 6, 2017 – Trump’s lawyers refile the defamation lawsuit against British newspaper The Daily Mail. This time it is filed in the Supreme Court of New York where its publisher, Mail Media Inc., has offices.

February 7, 2017 – Trump’s defamation lawsuit against Tarpley is settled.

April 12, 2017 – Trump’s defamation lawsuit against The Daily Mail and Mail Online is settled for $2.9 million.

September 23, 2017 – Trump arrives in Canada for her first solo foreign trip as first lady, traveling to Toronto to lead the US delegation to the Invictus Games. She meets with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Great Britain’s Prince Harry, before attending the opening ceremony of the Paralympic-style games.

March 20, 2018 – At a roundtable event with technology executives, Trump addresses those who have criticized her for taking on a platform that includes cyberbullying saying, “I have been criticized for my commitment to tackling this issue and I know that will continue. But it will not stop me from doing what I know is right.”

May 7, 2018 – Trump announces her formal platform during a ceremony at the White House Rose Garden. The initiative, called “Be Best,” focuses on well-being, combating opioid abuse and positivity on social media.

May 14, 2018 – Undergoes a procedure to treat a benign kidney condition, according to a White House statement.

June 6, 2018 – Makes her first public appearance after the kidney procedure, attending a hurricane season preparedness briefing.

June 17, 2018 – Issues a statement, via her spokeswoman, expressing concern about family separation at the border: “Mrs. Trump hates to see children separated from their families and hopes both sides of the aisle can finally come together to achieve successful immigration reform. She believes we need to be a country that follows all laws, but also a country that governs with heart.”

June 21, 2018 – Visits facilities in Texas that are housing children separated from their parents at the border.

August 9, 2018 – Trump’s parents, Viktor and Amalija Knavs, are granted US citizenship, according to their immigration attorney. They obtain their citizenship through the sponsorship of their adult daughter, one of the categories of family visas that the Trump administration has sought to end.

October 2-6, 2018 – Makes a solo trip abroad, visiting Ghana, Malawi, Kenya and Egypt on a tour of Africa.

January 26, 2019 – British magazine, The Telegraph, issues an apology to Trump for the article titled “The Mystery of Melania,” that included several inaccuracies about her life and her family.

March 5, 2020 – Receives criticism after she shares pictures on social media of the private White House tennis pavilion renovations amidst the coronavirus outbreak.

October 2, 2020 – Donald Trump announces that he and Melania have tested positive for coronavirus.

October 13, 2020 – The Justice Department files a lawsuit against Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, an ex-friend and former adviser to Trump, claiming she breached a confidentiality agreement by publishing a tell-all book. The complaint asserts that neither the first lady, her chief of staff nor the White House counsel’s office received a draft of the book from Wolkoff and that the former adviser never sought authorization to disclose details of her work for the first lady. On February 8, 2021, the Justice Department drops the lawsuit.

December 16, 2021 – Trump announces she is selling an NFT, or a non-fungible token, titled “Melania’s Vision.” The NFT is the first digital art to be sold on her newly launched platform, which will release NFTs regularly and is powered by Parler.

January 4, 2022 – Trump announces an auction of some of her personal items, including a white hat she wore during a visit from French President Emmanuel Macron in 2018, a watercolor painting, and an NFT of the white hat.

April 11, 2023 – The Office of Melania Trump issues a statement after she did not appear at her husband’s court appearance on April 4.

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April 10, 2024
Kurdish People Fast Facts | CNN

CNN
—

Here’s a look at Kurdish people. Kurds do not have an official homeland or country. Most reside within countries in the Middle East including northern Iraq, eastern Turkey, western Iran and small portions of northern Syria and Armenia.

Area: Roughly 74,000 sq mi

Population: approximately 25-30 million (some Kurds reside outside of Kurdistan)

Religion: Most are Sunni Muslims; some practice Sufism, a type of mystic Islam

Kurds have never achieved nation-state status, making Kurdistan a non-governmental region and one of the largest stateless nations in the world.

Portions of the region are recognized by two countries: Iran, where the province of Kordestan lies; and northern Iraq, site of the autonomous region known as Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) or Iraqi Kurdistan.

Kurds were mostly nomadic until the end of World War I and the breakup of the Ottoman Empire.

Kurds make up about 10% of the population in Syria, 19% of the population of Turkey, 15-20% of the population of Iraq and are one of the largest ethnic minorities in Iran.

The Peshmerga is a more than 100,000-strong national military force which protects Iraqi Kurdistan, and includes female fighters.

October 30, 1918 – (TURKEY) The Armistice of Mudros marks the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War I.

November 3, 1918 – (IRAQ) With the discovery of oil in the Kurdish province of Mosul, British forces occupy the region.

August 10, 1920 – (TURKEY) The Treaty of Sèvres outlines the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire, with Turkey renouncing rights over certain areas in Asia and North Africa. It calls for the recognition of new independent states, including an autonomous Kurdistan. It is never ratified.

July 24, 1923 – (TURKEY) The Allies and the former Ottoman Empire sign and ratify the Treaty of Lausanne, which recognizes Turkey as an independent nation. In the final treaty marking the conclusion of World War I, the Allies drop demands for an autonomous Turkish Kurdistan. The Kurdish region is eventually divided among several countries.

1923 – (IRAQ) Former Kurdish Governor Sheikh Mahmud Barzinji stages an uprising against British rule, declaring a Kurdish kingdom in Sulaimaniya in northern Iraq.

1924 – (IRAQ) British Forces retake Sulaimaniya.

1943-1945 – (IRAQ/IRAN) Mustafa Barzani leads an uprising, gaining control of areas of Erbil and Badinan. When the uprising is defeated, Barzani and his forces retreat to Kurdish areas in Iran and align with nationalist fighters under the leadership of Qazi Muhammad.

January 1946 – (IRAN) The Kurdish Republic of Mahābād is established as a Kurdish state, with backing from the Soviet Union. The short-lived country encompasses the city of Mahābād in Iran, which is largely Kurdish and near the Iraq border. However, Soviets withdraw the same year and the Republic of Mahābād collapses.

August 16, 1946 – (IRAQ) The Kurdish Democratic Party of Iraq (KDP) is established.

1957 – (SYRIA) 250 Kurdish children die in an arson attack on a cinema. It is blamed on Arab nationalists.

1958 – (SYRIA) The government formally bans all Kurdish-language publications.

1958 – (IRAQ) After Iraq’s 1958 revolution, a new constitution is established, which declares Arabs and Kurds as “partners in this homeland.”

1961 – (IRAQ) KDP begins a rebellion in northern Iraq. Within two weeks, the Iraqi government dissolves the Kurdish Democratic Party.

March 1970 – (IRAQ) A peace agreement between Iraqi government and Kurds grants the Kurds autonomy. Kurdish is recognized as an official language, and an amendment to the constitution states: “the Iraqi people is made up of two nationalities: the Arab nationality and the Kurdish nationality.”

March 6, 1975 – (ALGERIA) Iraqi President Saddam Hussein and Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi of Iran sign a treaty. Iraq gives up claims to the Shatt-al-Arab waterway, while Iran agrees to end its support of the independence seeking Kurds.

June 1975 – (IRAQ) Former KDP Leader Jalal Talabani, establishes the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK). The following year, PUK takes up an armed campaign against the Iraqi government.

1978 – (IRAQ) KDP and PUK forces clash, leaving many dead.

1978 – (TURKEY) Abdullah Öcalan forms the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a Kurdish separatist group.

Late 1970s – (IRAQ) The Baath Party, under Hussein’s leadership, uproots Kurds from areas with Kurdish majorities, and settles southern-Iraqi Arabs into those regions. Into the 1980s, Kurds are forcibly removed from the Iranian border as Kurds are suspected of aiding Iranian forces during the Iran-Iraq War.

1979 – (IRAQ) Mustafa Barzani dies in Washington, DC. His son, Massoud Barzani, is elected president of KDP following his death.

1980 – (IRAQ) The Iran-Iraq War begins. Although the KDP forces work closely with Iran, the PUK does not.

1983 – (IRAQ) PUK agrees to a ceasefire with Iraq and begins negotiations on Kurdish autonomy.

August 1984 – (TURKEY) PKK launches a violent separatist campaign in Turkey, starting with killing two soldiers. The conflict eventually spreads to Iran, Iraq and Syria.

1985 – (IRAQ) The ceasefire between Iraq and PUK breaks down.

1986 – (IRAQ) After an Iranian-sponsored reconciliation, both KDP and PUK receive support from Tehran.

1987 – (TURKEY) Turkey imposes a state of emergency in the southeastern region of the country in response to PKK attacks.

February-August 1988 – (IRAQ) During Operation Anfal (“spoils” in Arabic), created to quell Kurdish resistance, the Iraqi military uses large quantities of chemical weapons on Kurdish civilians. Iraqi forces destroy more than 4,000 villages in Kurdistan. It is believed that some 100,000 Kurds were killed.

March 16, 1988 – (IRAQ) Iraq uses poison gas against the Kurdish people in Halabja in northern Iraq. Thousands of people are believed to have died in the attack.

1990-1991 – (IRAQ) The Gulf War begins when Hussein invades Kuwait, seeking its oil reserves. There is a mass exodus of Kurds out of Iraq as more than a million flee into Turkey and Iran.

February 28, 1991 – (IRAQ) Hussein agrees to a ceasefire, ending the Gulf War.

March 1991 – (IRAQ) Kurdish uprising begins, and in two weeks, the Kurdish militia gains control of Iraqi Kurdistan, including the oil-rich town of Kirkuk. After allied support to the Kurds is denied, Iraq crushes the uprising. Two million Kurds flee, but are forced to hide out in the mountains as Turkey closes its border.

April 1991 – (IRAQ) A safe haven is established in Iraqi Kurdistan by the United States, the United Kingdom and France. Iraqi forces are barred from operating within the region, and Kurds begin autonomous rule, with KDP leading the north and PUK leading the south.

1992 – (IRAQ) In an anti-PKK operation, 20,000 Turkish troops enter Kurdish safe havens in Iraq.

1994-1998 – (IRAQ) PUK and KDP members engage in armed conflict, known as the Fratricide War, in Iraqi Kurdistan.

1995 – (IRAQ) Approximately 35,000 Turkish troops launch an offensive against Kurds in northern Iraq.

1996 – (IRAQ) Iraq launches attacks against Kurdish cities, including Erbil and Kirkuk.

October 8, 1997 – (TURKEY) The United States lists PKK as a terrorist group.

1998 – (IRAQ) The conflict between KDP and PUK ends, and a peace agreement is reached. This is brokered by the United States, and the accord is signed in Washington.

1999 – (TURKEY) PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan is captured in Nairobi, Kenya, by Turkish officials.

2002 – (TURKEY) Under pressure from the European Union, Turkey legalizes broadcasts and education in the Kurdish language. Turkish forces still combat PKK, including military incursions into northern Iraq.

May 2002 – (TURKEY) The European Union designates the PKK as a terrorist organization.

February 1, 2004 – (IRAQ) Two suicide bombs kill more than 50 people in Erbil. The targets are the headquarters of KDP and PUK, and several top Kurdish officials from both parties are killed.

March 2004 – (SYRIA) Nine people are killed at a football (soccer) arena in Qamishli after clashes with riot police. Kurds demonstrate throughout the city, and unrest spreads to nearby towns in the following days, after security forces open fire at the funerals.

June 2004 – (TURKEY) State TV broadcasts Kurdish-language programs for the first time.

April 6-7, 2005 – (IRAQ) Kurdish leader Talabani is selected the country’s president by the transitional national assembly, and is sworn in the next day.

July 2005 – (TURKEY) Six people die from a bomb planted on a train by a Kurdish guerrilla. Turkish officials blame the PKK.

2005 – (IRAQ) The 2005 Iraqi constitution upholds Kurdish autonomy, and designates Kurdistan as an autonomous federal region.

August-September 2006 – (TURKEY) A wave of bomb attacks target a resort area in Turkey, as well as Istanbul. Separatist group Kurdistan Freedom Falcons (TAC) claims responsibility for most of the attacks and threatens it will turn Turkey into “hell.”

December 2007 – (TURKEY) Turkey launches attacks in Iraqi Kurdistan, targeting PKK outposts.

2009 – (TURKEY) A policy called the Kurdish Initiative increases Kurdish language rights and reduces military presence in the mostly Kurdish southeast.

September 2010 – (IRAN) A bomb detonates during a parade in Mahābād, leaving 12 dead and dozens injured. No group claims responsibility for the attack, but authorities blame Kurdish separatists. In 2014, authorities arrest members of Koumaleh, a Kurdish armed group, for the attack.

April 2011 – (SYRIA) Syria grants citizenship to thousands in the Kurdish region. According to Human Rights Watch, an exceptional census stripped 20% of Kurdish Syrians of their citizenship in 1962.

October 2011 – (SYRIA) Meshaal Tammo, a Syrian Kurdish activist, is assassinated. Many Kurds blame Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime for the assassination.

October 19, 2011 – (TURKEY) Kurdish militants kill 24 Turkish troops near the Iraqi border, a PKK base area.

June 2012 – (TURKEY) Turkish forces strike PKK rebel bases in Iraq after a PKK attack in southern Turkey kills eight Turkish soldiers.

July 2012 – (SYRIA) Amid the country’s civil war, Syrian security forces retreat from several Kurdish towns in the northeastern part of the country.

August 2012 – (TURKEY) Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan warns that any attempts by the PKK to launch cross-border attacks from Syria would be met by force; the Turkish Army then performs a large exercise less than a mile from border villages now controlled by the Syrian Kurdish group Democratic Union Party (PYD).

December 2012 – (TURKEY) Erdogan announces the government has begun peace talks with the PKK.

January 10, 2013 – (FRANCE) Three Kurdish women are found shot dead in Paris, one of whom was a founding member of the PKK.

March 21, 2013 – (TURKEY) Imprisoned PKK founder Abdullah Ocalan calls for dialogue: a letter from him is read in the Turkish Parliament, “We for tens of years gave up our lives for this struggle, we paid a price. We have come to a point at which the guns must be silent and ideas must talk.”

March 25, 2013 – (TURKEY) Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan and Iraqi Kurdistan Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani negotiate a framework deal that includes an outline for a direct pipeline export of oil and gas. The pipeline would have the Kurdish crude oil transported from the Kurdish Regional Government directly into Turkey, allowing the KRG to be a competitive supplier of oil to Turkey.

June 2014 – (IRAQ) Refugees flee fighting and flood into Iraqi Kurdistan to the north as ISIS militants take over Mosul. Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) closes then reopens, with restrictions, border crossings used by those fleeing ISIS.

June 23, 2014 – (IRAQ) Iraqi Kurdistan President Barzani says that “Iraq is obviously falling apart, and it’s obvious that the federal or central government has lost control over everything.”

Early August 2014 – (IRAQ) Reportedly 40,000 Yazidi, a minority group of Kurdish descent, flee to a mountainous region in northwestern Iraq to escape ISIS, after the group storms Sinjar, a town near the Syrian border. Also, 100,000 Christians flee to Erbil, after Kurdish leadership there promises protection in the city.

August 11, 2014 – (IRAQ) Kurdish fighters in Kurdistan, who are called Peshmerga, work with Iraqi armed forces to deliver aid to Yazidis stranded on Mount Sinjar after fleeing ISIS fighters.

August 12, 2014 – (IRAQ) Some Yazidi tell CNN that PKK fighters control parts of the mountain, and have offered food and protection from ISIS.

December 2, 2014 – (IRAQ) The government of Iraq and the government of Iraqi Kurdistan sign an agreement to share oil revenues and military resources. Iraq will now pay the salaries of Peshmerga fighters battling ISIS and act as an intermediary to deliver US weapons to Kurdish forces. The Kurdistan government will deliver more than half a million barrels of oil daily to the Iraqi government. Profits from the sale of the oil will be split between the two governments.

January 26, 2015 – (SYRIA) After 112 days of fighting, the YPG, Kurdish fighters also known as the People’s Protection Units, take control of the city of Kobani from ISIS.

March 21, 2015 – (TURKEY) In a letter read to thousands during a celebration in the city of Diyarbakir, imprisoned PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan urges fighters under his command to lay down their arms, stop waging war against the Turkish state and join a “congress.”

May 18, 2015 – (TURKEY) In the run-up to parliamentary elections on June 7, an explosion rocks the office of the Kurdish People’s Democratic Party (HDP) in Adana, in southeastern Turkey. Six people are injured.

June 7, 2015 – (TURKEY) Three-year-old fledgling party Kurdish People’s Democratic Party (HDP) receives more than 13% of the vote, winning 80 seats in the 550-seat parliament.

June 16, 2015 – (SYRIA) Kurdish forces in the Syrian town, Tal Abyad say they have defeated ISIS fighters and taken back the town on the Turkish border.

June 23, 2015 – (SYRIA) Kurdish fighters announce that they have taken back the town of Ain Issa, located 30 miles north of the ISIS stronghold, Raqqa, a city proclaimed to be the capital of the caliphate. A military base near Ain Issa, which had been occupied by ISIS since last August, is abandoned by the terrorist group the night before the Kurdish forces seize the town.

February 17, 2016 – (IRAQ) Turkish airstrikes target some of the PKK’s top figures in northern Iraq’s Haftanin region. Airstrikes come after a terrorist attack in Turkey kills 28, although no Kurdish group has claimed responsibility for those attacks.

March 13, 2016 – (TURKEY) A car bomb attack kills at least 37 people in Ankara. The Kurdistan Freedom Falcons, or TAK – an offshoot of the Kurdish separatist group PKK – takes responsibility for the attack.

March 17, 2016 – (SYRIA) Kurds declare that a swath of northeastern Syria is now a separate autonomous region under Kurdish control. The claim stirs up controversy, as Syrian and Turkish officials say it goes against the goal of creating a unified country after years of civil war.

July 20, 2016 – (TURKEY) Following a failed coup attempt, President Erdogan declares a state of emergency. In the first three months, pro-Kurdish media outlets are shut down, and tens of thousands of civil servants with alleged PKK connections are dismissed or suspended. The purge includes ministers of parliament, military leaders, police, teachers and mayors, including in the Kurdish-majority city of Diyarbakir.

September 25, 2017 – (IRAQ) Iraqi Kurds vote in favor of declaring independence from Iraq. More than 92% of the roughly 3 million people vote “yes” to independence.

March 23, 2019 – (SYRIA) Kurdish forces announce they have captured the eastern Syrian pocket of Baghouz, the last populated area under ISIS rule.

October 9, 2019 – (TURKEY/SYRIA) Turkey launches a military offensive into northeastern Syria, just days after US President Donald Trump’s administration announced that US troops would leave the border area. Erdogan’s “Operation Peace Spring” is an effort to drive away Kurdish forces from the border, and use the area to resettle around two million Syrian refugees. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) who operate in the region are Kurdish-led, and still hold thousands of ISIS fighters captured in battle.

October 17, 2019 – (TURKEY/SYRIA) US Vice President Mike Pence announces that he and Erdogan agreed to a ceasefire halting Turkey’s incursion into northern Syria. The Turkish government insists that the agreement is not a ceasefire, but only a “pause” on operations in the region.

November 15, 2019 – (TURKEY/SYRIA) Turkey’s decision to launch a military operation targeting US-Kurdish partners in northern Syria and the Trump administration’s subsequent retreat allowed ISIS to rebuild itself and boosted its ability to launch attacks abroad, the Pentagon’s Inspector General says in an Operation Inherent Resolve quarterly report.

March 24, 2020 – (SYRIA) The SDF releases a statement calling for a humanitarian truce in response to a United Nations appeal for a global ceasefire to combat the coronavirus.

July 30, 2020 – (SYRIA) During a US Senate committee hearing, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo confirms the Trump administration’s support for the Delta Crescent Energy firm’s deal to develop and modernize oil fields in northeast Syria under control of the SDF. The following week, Syria’s foreign ministry calls the deal an attempt to “steal” the oil.

February 8, 2021 – (SYRIA) Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby is questioned about the Delta Crescent Energy deal during a press conference. He says that the US Department of Defense under the Joe Biden administration is focused on fighting ISIS. It is not aiding a private company.

January 20-26, 2022 – (SYRIA) ISIS lays siege to a prison in northeast Syria, in an attempt to break out thousands of the group’s members who were detained in 2019. In coordination with US-led coalition airstrikes, SDF regains control of the prison. This is believed to be the biggest coordinated attack by ISIS since the fall of the caliphate three years prior.

September 16, 2022 – (IRAN) Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian woman, dies after being detained by “morality police” and taken to a “re-education center,” allegedly for not abiding by the country’s conservative dress code. Public anger over her death combines with a range of grievances against the Islamic Republic’s oppressive regime to fuel months of nationwide demonstrations, which continue despite law makers urging the country’s judiciary to “show no leniency” to protesters.

November 12, 2022 – (IRAN) The Norway-based Iran Human Rights NGO (IHRNGO) group claims Iranian security forces have killed at least 326 people since nationwide protests erupted two months ago. Authorities have unleashed a deadly crackdown on demonstrators, with reports of forced detentions and physical abuse being used to target the country’s Kurdish minority group.

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April 10, 2024
The haunting Masters meltdown that changed Rory McIlroy’s career | CNN

Editor’s Note: This story was originally published in April 2023.

CNN
—

Slumped on his club, head buried in his arm, Rory McIlroy looked on the verge of tears.

The then-21-year-old had just watched his ball sink into the waters of Rae’s Creek at Augusta National and with it, his dream of winning The Masters, a dream that had looked so tantalizingly close mere hours earlier.

As a four-time major winner and one of the most decorated names in the sport’s history, few players would turn down the chance to swap places with McIlroy heading into Augusta this week.

Yet on Sunday afternoon of April 10, 2011, not a golfer in the world would have wished to be in the Northern Irishman’s shoes.

A fresh-faced, mop-headed McIlroy had touched down in Georgia for the first major of the season with a reputation as the leading light of the next generation of stars.

An excellent 2010 had marked his best season since turning pro three years earlier, highlighted by a first PGA Tour win at the Quail Hollow Championship and a crucial contribution to Team Europe’s triumph at the Ryder Cup.

Yet despite a pair of impressive top-three finishes at the Open and PGA Championship respectively, a disappointing missed cut at The Masters – his first at a major – served as ominous foreshadowing.

McIlroy shot 74 and 77 to fall four strokes short of the cut line at seven-over par, a performance that concerned him enough to take a brief sabbatical from competition.

But one year on in 2011, any lingering Masters demons looked to have been exorcised as McIlroy flew round the Augusta fairways.

Having opened with a bogey-free seven-under 65 – the first time he had ever shot in the 60s at the major – McIlroy pulled ahead from Spanish first round co-leader Alvaro Quirós with a second round 69.

It sent him into the weekend holding a two-shot cushion over Australia’s Jason Day, with Tiger Woods a further stroke behind and back in the hunt for a 15th major after a surging second round 66.

And yet the 21-year-old leader looked perfectly at ease with having a target on his back. Even after a tentative start to the third round, McIlroy rallied with three birdies across the closing six holes to stretch his lead to four strokes heading into Sunday.

The youngster was out on his own ahead of a bunched chasing pack comprising Day, Ángel Cabrera, K.J. Choi and Charl Schwartzel. After 54 holes, McIlroy had shot just three bogeys.

“It’s a great position to be in … I’m finally feeling comfortable on this golf course,” McIlroy told reporters.

“I’m not getting ahead of myself, I know how leads can dwindle away very quickly. I have to go out there, not take anything for granted and go out and play as hard as I’ve played the last three days. If I can do that, hopefully things will go my way.

“We’ll see what happens tomorrow because four shots on this golf course isn’t that much.”

The truth can hurt, and McIlroy was about to prove his assessment of Augusta to be true in the most excruciating way imaginable.

His fourth bogey of the week arrived immediately. Having admitted to expecting some nerves at the first tee, McIlroy sparked a booming opening drive down the fairway, only to miss his putt from five feet.

Three consecutive pars steadied the ship, but Schwartzel had the wind in his sails. A blistering birdie, par, eagle start had seen him draw level at the summit after his third hole.

A subsequent bogey from the South African slowed his charge, as McIlroy clung onto a one-shot lead at the turn from Schwartzel, Cabrera, Choi, and a rampaging Woods, who shot five birdies and an eagle across the front nine to send Augusta into a frenzy.

Despite his dwindling advantage and the raucous Tiger-mania din ahead of him, McIlroy had responded well to another bogey at the 5th hole, draining a brilliant 20-foot putt at the 7th to restore his lead.

The fist pump that followed marked the high-water point of McIlroy’s round, as a sliding start accelerated into full-blown free-fall at the par-four 10th hole.

His tee shot went careening into a tree, ricocheting to settle between the white cabins that separate the main course from the adjacent par-three course. It offered viewers a glimpse at a part of Augusta rarely seen on broadcast, followed by pictures of McIlroy anxiously peering out from behind a tree to track his follow-up shot.

Though his initial escape was successful, yet another collision with a tree and a two-putt on the green saw a stunned McIlroy eventually tap in for a triple bogey. Having led the field one hole and seven shots earlier, he arrived at the 11th tee in seventh.

By the time his tee drive at the 13th plopped into the creek, all thoughts of who might be the recipient of the green jacket had long-since switched away from the anguished youngster. It had taken him seven putts to navigate the previous two greens, as a bogey and a double bogey dropped him to five-under – the score he had held after just 11 holes of the tournament.

Mercifully, the last five holes passed without major incident. A missed putt for birdie from five feet at the final hole summed up McIlroy’s day, though he was given a rousing reception as he left the green.

Mere minutes earlier, the same crowd had erupted as Schwartzel sunk his fourth consecutive birdie to seal his first major title. After starting the day four shots adrift of McIlroy, the South African finished 10 shots ahead of him, and two ahead of second-placed Australian duo Jason Day and Adam Scott.

McIlroy’s eight-over 80 marked the highest score of the round. Having headlined the leaderboard for most of the week, he finished tied-15th.

Tears would flow during a phone call with his parents the following morning, but at his press conference, McIlroy was upbeat.

“I’m very disappointed at the minute, and I’m sure I will be for the next few days, but I’ll get over it,” he said.

“I was leading this golf tournament with nine holes to go, and I just unraveled … It’s a Sunday at a major, what it can do.

“This is my first experience at it, and hopefully the next time I’m in this position I’ll be able to handle it a little better. I didn’t handle it particularly well today obviously, but it was a character-building day … I’ll come out stronger for it.”

Once again, McIlroy would be proven right.

Just eight weeks later in June, McIlroy rampaged to an eight-shot victory at the US Open. Records tumbled in his wake at Congressional, as he shot a tournament record 16-under 268 to become the youngest major winner since Tiger Woods at The Masters in 1997.

The historic victory kickstarted a golden era for McIlroy. After coasting to another eight-shot win at the PGA Championship in 2012, McIlroy became only the third golfer since 1934 to win three majors by the age of 25 with triumph at the 2014 Open Championship.

Before the year was out, he would add his fourth major title with another PGA Championship win.

And much of it was owed to that fateful afternoon at Augusta. In an interview with the BBC in 2015, McIlroy dubbed it “the most important day” of his career.

“If I had not had the whole unravelling, if I had just made a couple of bogeys coming down the stretch and lost by one, I would not have learned as much.

“Luckily, it did not take me long to get into a position like that again when I was leading a major and I was able to get over the line quite comfortably. It was a huge learning curve for me and I needed it, and thankfully I have been able to move on to bigger and better things.

“Looking back on what happened in 2011, it doesn’t seem as bad when you have four majors on your mantelpiece.”

McIlroy’s contentment came with a caveat: it would be “unthinkable” if he did not win The Masters in his career.

Yet as he prepares for his 15th appearance at Augusta National this week, a green jacket remains an elusive missing item from his wardrobe.

Despite seven top-10 finishes in his past 10 Masters outings, the trophy remains the only thing separating McIlroy from joining the ranks of golf immortals to have completed golf’s career grand slam of all four majors in the modern era: Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, and Tiger Woods.

A runner-up finish to Scottie Scheffler last year marked McIlroy’s best finish at Augusta, yet arguably 2011 remains the closest he has ever been to victory. A slow start in 2022 meant McIlroy had begun Sunday’s deciding round 10 shots adrift of the American, who teed off for his final hole with a five-shot lead despite McIlroy’s brilliant 64 finish.

At 33 years old, time is still on his side. Though 2022 extended his major drought to eight years, it featured arguably his best golf since that golden season in 2014.

And as McIlroy knows better than most, things can change quickly at Augusta National.

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April 9, 2024
Boston Marathon Fast Facts | CNN

CNN
—

Here’s a look at the Boston Marathon, run from Hopkinton to Boston. The finish line is in front of the Boston Public Library on Boylston Street.

April 15, 2024 – The 128th Boston Marathon is scheduled to take place.

April 17, 2023 – The 127th Boston Marathon takes place. The winners are Evans Chebet of Kenya in the men’s division and Hellen Obiri of Kenya in the women’s division.

The race is organized by the Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.), and the principal sponsor is John Hancock Financial Services.

Runners are categorized by gender, then by age. Qualifying times depend on the age of the participant on the day of the race.

Participants must be 18 years of age on the day of the race and must meet certain time standards to qualify for their age group.

Visually impaired runners are allowed to participate, but they must have a five hour qualifying time. There are also categories for wheelchairs and handcycles.

Runners come from all over the world to participate.

Best Men’s Open time – 2:03:02 – Geoffrey Mutai, Kenya – (2011)
Best Women’s Open time – 2:19:59 – Buzunesh Deba, Ethiopia – (2014)
Best Men’s Wheelchair time – Marcel Hug, Switzerland, 1:18:04 (2017)
Best Women’s Wheelchair time – Manuela Schar, Switzerland – 1:28:17 (2017)

April 19, 1897 – The first marathon is run and is 24.8 miles. The winner is John J. McDermott of New York, with a time of 2:55:10. There are 18 entrants, 15 starters and 10 finishers.

1897-1968 – The race is run on April 19, Patriots’ Day, a holiday commemorating the start of the Revolutionary War only recognized in Massachusetts and Maine. In those years that April 19 falls on a Sunday, the race is held the next day, Monday the 20th.

1918 – A military relay is held instead of the marathon due to the United States’ involvement in World War I.

April 19, 1924 – The race is lengthened to 26.2 miles to conform to Olympic standards.

April 17, 1967 – Kathrine Switzer becomes the first woman to receive a number to run in the Boston Marathon. She enters the race under the name K.V. Switzer and wears baggy clothes to disguise herself. Females are not officially allowed to enter until 1972.

1969 – Patriots’ Day is changed to the third Monday in April, so the date of the race is also changed.

1975 – A wheelchair division is added to the marathon. Bob Hall finishes the race in two hours and 58 minutes in a wheelchair.

April 15, 1996 – The 100th Boston Marathon is run. There are a record 35,868 finishers.

April 15, 2013 – Two bombs explode near the finish line of the 117th Boston Marathon, killing three people and injuring at least 264 others.

May 15, 2015 – Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is sentenced to death for his role in the 2013 marathon bombings. In July 2020, an appeals court vacates Tsarnaev’s death sentence and rules he should be given a new penalty trial. In March 2021, the Supreme Court agrees to review the lower court opinion that vacated Tsarnaev’s death sentence. The Supreme Court upholds his death sentence in March 2022. In January 2023, attorneys for Tsarnaev request his death sentence be vacated during a federal appeals court hearing.

October 26, 2016 – Three-time winner Rita Jeptoo of Kenya, loses her 2014 title and record for the fastest women’s finish ever (2:18:57), as part of a ruling on her two-year ban for doping.

May 28, 2020 – Boston Mayor Marty Walsh announces that the 2020 marathon is canceled because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. A virtual event, in which participants can earn their finisher’s medal by verifying that they ran 26.2 miles on their own within a six-hour time period, will take place September 7-14.

October 28, 2020 – The B.A.A. announces that the 2021 marathon will be postponed until the fall of 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

April 7, 2022 – Sixty-three entrants living in Russia and Belarus are banned from participating in the 2022 Boston Marathon and Boston Athletic Association 5K. After the invasion of Ukraine, various sports teams from Russia and Belarus have been banned entirely from competition as part of a sanctions package.

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April 4, 2024
Syrian Civil War Fast Facts | CNN

CNN
—

Here’s a look at ongoing civil war in Syria.

Bashar al-Assad has ruled Syria as president since July 2000. His father, Hafez al-Assad, ruled Syria from 1970-2000.

The ongoing violence against civilians has been condemned by the Arab League, the European Union, the United States and other countries.

Roughly 5 million Syrians have fled to neighboring countries, according to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, and more than 6.8 million people are displaced internally.

According to UNICEF’s Representative in Syria, Bo Viktor Nylund, “Since 2011, nearly 12,000 children were verified as killed or injured in Syria, that’s one child every eight hours over the past ten years.” Nylund said that the actual figures are likely much higher.

When the civil war began in 2011, there were four main factions of fighting groups throughout the country: Kurdish forces, ISIS, other opposition (such as Jaish al Fateh, an alliance between the Nusra Front and Ahrar-al-Sham) and the Assad regime.

March 2011 – Violence flares in Daraa after a group of teens and children are arrested for writing political graffiti. Dozens of people are killed when security forces crack down on demonstrations.

March 24, 2011 – In response to continuing protests, the Syrian government announces several plans to appease citizens. State employees will receive an immediate salary increase. The government also plans to study lifting Syria’s long standing emergency law and the licensing of new political parties.

March 30, 2011 – Assad addresses the nation in a 45-minute televised speech. He acknowledges that the government has not met the people’s needs, but he does not offer any concrete changes. The state of emergency remains in effect.

April 21, 2011 – Assad lifts the country’s 48-year-old state of emergency. He also abolishes the Higher State Security Court and issues a decree “regulating the right to peaceful protest, as one of the basic human rights guaranteed by the Syrian Constitution.”

May 18, 2011 – The United States imposes sanctions against Assad and six other senior Syrian officials. The Treasury Department details the sanctions by saying, “As a result of this action, any property in the United States or in the possession or control of US persons in which the individuals listed in the Annex have an interest is blocked, and US persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with them.”

August 18, 2011 – The US imposes new economic sanctions on Syria, freezing Syrian government assets in the US, barring Americans from making new investments in the country and prohibiting any US transactions relating to Syrian petroleum products, among other things.

September 2, 2011 – The European Union bans the import of Syrian oil.

September 23, 2011 – The EU imposes additional sanctions against Syria, due to “the continuing brutal campaign” by the government against its own people.

October 2, 2011 – A new alignment of Syrian opposition groups establishes the Syrian National Council, a framework through which to end Assad’s government and establish a democratic system.

October 4, 2011 – Russia and China veto a UN Security Council resolution that would call for an immediate halt to the crackdown in Syria against opponents of Assad. Nine of the 15-member council countries, including the United States, voted in favor of adopting the resolution.

November 12, 2011 – The Arab League suspends Syria’s membership, effective November 16, 2011.

November 27, 2011 – Foreign ministers from 19 Arab League countries vote to impose economic sanctions against the Syrian regime for its part in a bloody crackdown on civilian demonstrators.

November 30, 2011 – Turkey announces a series of measures, including financial sanctions, against Syria.

December 19, 2011 – Syria signs an Arab League proposal aimed at ending violence between government forces and protesters.

January 28, 2012 – The Arab League suspends its mission in Syria as violence there continues.

February 2, 2012 – A UN Security Council meeting ends with no agreement on a draft resolution intended to pressure Syria to end its crackdown on anti-government demonstrators.

February 4, 2012 – A UN Security Council resolution condemning Syria is not adopted after Russia and China vote against it.

February 6, 2012 – The United States closes its embassy in Damascus and recalls its diplomats.

February 7, 2012 – The Gulf Cooperation Council announces its member states are pulling their ambassadors from Damascus and expelling the Syrian ambassadors in their countries.

February 16, 2012 – The United Nations General Assembly passes a nonbinding resolution endorsing the Arab League plan for Assad to step down. The vote was 137 in favor and 12 against, with 17 abstentions.

February 26, 2012 – Syrians vote on a constitutional referendum in polling centers across the country. Almost 90% of voters approve the changes to the constitution, which include the possibility of a multi-party system.

March 13, 2012 – Kofi Annan, the UN special envoy to Syria, meets in Turkey with government officials and Syrian opposition members. In a visit to Syria over the weekend, he calls for a ceasefire, the release of detainees and allowing unfettered access to relief agencies to deliver much-needed aid.

March 15, 2012 – The Gulf Cooperation Council announces that the six member countries will close their Syrian embassies and calls on the international community “to stop what is going on in Syria.”

March 27, 2012 – The Syrian government accepts Annan’s plan to end violence. The proposal seeks to stop the violence, give access to humanitarian agencies, release detainees and start a political dialogue to address the concerns of the Syrian people.

April 1, 2012 – At a conference in Istanbul, the international group Friends of the Syrian People formally recognizes the Syrian National Council as a legitimate representative of the Syrian people.

July 30, 2012 – The Syrian Charge d’Affaires in London, Khaled al-Ayoubi, resigns, stating he is “no longer willing to represent a regime that has committed such violent and oppressive acts against its own people.”

August 2, 2012 – UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon announces that Annan will not renew his mandate when it expires at the end of August.

August 6, 2012 – Syrian Prime Minister Riyad Hijab’s resignation from office and defection from Assad’s regime is read on Al Jazeera by his spokesman Muhammad el-Etri. Hijab and his family are said to have left Syria overnight, arriving in Jordan. Hijab is the highest-profile official to defect.

August 9, 2012 – Syrian television reports that Assad has appointed Health Minister Wael al-Halki as the new prime minister.

October 3, 2012 – Five people are killed by Syrian shelling in the Turkish border town of Akcakale. In response, Turkey fires on Syrian targets and its parliament authorizes a resolution giving the government permission to deploy its soldiers to foreign countries.

November 11, 2012 – Israel fires warning shots toward Syria after a mortar shell hits an Israeli military post. It is the first time Israel has fired on Syria across the Golan Heights since the 1973 Yom Kippur War.

November 11, 2012 – Syrian opposition factions formally agree to unite as the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces.

November 13, 2012 – Sheikh Ahmed Moaz al-Khatib is elected leader of the Syrian opposition collective, the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces.

January 6, 2013 – Assad announces he will not step down and that his vision of Syria’s future includes a new constitution and an end to support for the opposition. The opposition refuses to work with Assad’s government.

March 19, 2013 – The National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces elects Ghassan Hitto as its prime minister. Though born in Damascus, Hitto has spent much of his life in the United States, and holds dual US and Syrian citizenship.

April 25, 2013 – US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel announces the United States has evidence that the chemical weapon sarin has been used in Syria on a small scale.

May 27, 2013 – EU nations end the arms embargo against the Syrian rebels.

June 13, 2013 – US President Barack Obama says that Syria has crossed a “red line” with its use of chemical weapons against rebels. His administration indicates that it will be stepping up its support of the rebels, who have been calling for the US and others to provide arms needed to battle Assad’s forces.

July 6, 2013 – Ahmad Assi Jarba is elected the new leader of the Syrian National Coalition.

August 18, 2013 – A team of UN weapons inspectors arrives in Syria to begin an investigation into whether chemical weapons have been used during the civil war.

August 22, 2013 – The UN and the US call for an immediate investigation of Syrian activists’ claims that the Assad government used chemical weapons in an attack on civilians on August 21. Anti-regime activist groups in Syria say more than 1,300 people were killed in the attack outside Damascus, many of them women and children.

August 24, 2013 – Medical charity Doctors Without Borders announces that three hospitals near Damascus treated more than 3,000 patients suffering “neurotoxic symptoms” on August 21. Reportedly, 355 of the patients died.

August 26, 2013 – UN inspectors reach the site of a reported chemical attack in Moadamiyet al-Sham, near Damascus. En route to the site, the team’s convoy is hit by sniper fire. No one is injured.

August 29, 2013 – The UK’s Parliament votes against any military action in Syria.

August 30, 2013 – US Secretary of State John Kerry says that US intelligence information has found that 1,429 people were killed in last week’s chemical weapons attack in Syria, including at least 426 children.

September 9, 2013 – Syria agrees to a Russian proposal to give up control of its chemical weapons.

September 10, 2013 – In a speech, Obama says he will not “put American boots on the ground in Syria,” but does not rule out other military options.

September 14, 2013 – The United States and Russia agree to a plan to eliminate chemical weapons in Syria.

September 16, 2013 – The United Nations releases a report from chemical weapons inspectors who investigated the August 21 incident. Inspectors say there is “clear and convincing evidence” that sarin was used.

September 20, 2013 – Syria releases an initial report on its chemical weapons program.

September 27, 2013 – The UN Security Council passes a resolution requiring Syria to eliminate its arsenal of chemical weapons. Assad says he will abide by the resolution.

September 30, 2013 – At the UN General Assembly in New York, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem says that Syria is not engaged in a civil war, but a war on terror.

October 6, 2013 – Syria begins dismantling its chemical weapons program, including the destruction of missile warheads and aerial bombs.

October 31, 2013 – The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons announces that Syria has destroyed all its declared chemical weapons production facilities.

November 25, 2013 – The United Nations announces that starting January 22 in Geneva, Switzerland, the Syrian government and an unknown number of opposition groups will meet at a “Geneva II” conference meant to broker an end to the Syrian civil war.

December 2, 2013 – UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay says that a UN fact-finding team has found “massive evidence” that the highest levels of the Syrian government are responsible for war crimes.

January 20, 2014 – The Syria National Coalition announces it won’t participate in the Geneva II talks unless the United Nations rescinds its surprise invitation to Iran or Iran agrees to certain conditions. The United Nations later rescinds Iran’s invitation.

February 13, 2014 – The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons tells CNN that Syria has shipped out 11% of its chemical weapons stockpile, falling far short of the February 5 deadline to have all such arms removed from the country.

February 15, 2014 – A second round of peace talks ends in Geneva, Switzerland, with little progress in ending Syria’s civil war.

February 23, 2014 – The UN Security Council unanimously passes a resolution boosting access to humanitarian aid in Syria.

June 3, 2014 – Assad is reelected, reportedly receiving 88.7% of the vote in the country’s first election since civil war broke out in 2011.

September 22-23, 2014 – The United States and allies launch airstrikes against ISIS targets in Syria, focusing on the city of Raqqa.

September 14-15, 2015 – A Pentagon spokesperson says the Russian military appears to be attempting to set up a forward operating base in western Syria, in the area around the port city of Latakia. Russian President Vladimir Putin says that Russia is supporting the Syrian government in its fight against ISIS.

October 30, 2015 – White House spokesman Josh Earnest says that the US will be deploying “less than 50” Special Operations forces, who will be sent to Kurdish-controlled territory in northern Syria. The American troops will help local Kurdish and Arab forces fighting ISIS with logistics and are planning to bolster their efforts.

February 26, 2016 – A temporary cessation of hostilities goes into effect. The truce calls for the Syrian regime and rebels to give relief organizations access to disputed territories so they can assist civilians.

March 15, 2016 – Russia starts withdrawing its forces from Syria. A spokeswoman for Assad tells CNN that the Russian campaign is winding down after achieving its goal of helping Syrian troops take back territory claimed by terrorists.

September 15, 2016 – At least 23 people, including nine children, are killed during airstrikes in Syria, with the United States and Russia accusing each other of violating the ceasefire in effect since September 12.

September 17, 2016 – US-led coalition airstrikes near Deir Ezzor Airport intended to target ISIS instead kill 62 Syrian soldiers.

September 20, 2016 – An aid convoy and warehouse of the Syrian Arab Red Crescent are bombed; no one claims responsibility. The strike prompts the UN to halt aid operations in Syria.

September 23-25, 2016 – About 200 airstrikes hit Aleppo during the weekend, with one activist telling CNN it is a level of bombing they have not seen before.

December 13, 2016 – As government forces take control of most of Aleppo from rebel groups, Turkey and Russia broker a ceasefire for eastern Aleppo so that civilians can be evacuated. The UN Security Council holds an emergency session amid reports of mounting civilian deaths and extrajudicial killings. The ceasefire collapses less than a day after it is implemented.

December 22, 2016 – Syria’s state-run media announces government forces have taken full control of Aleppo, ending more than four years of rebel rule there.

April 4, 2017 – Dozens of civilians are reportedly killed in a suspected chemical attack in the rebel-held town of Khan Sheikhoun. The Russian Defense Ministry claims that gas was released when Syrian forces bombed a chemical munitions depot operated by terrorists. Activists, however, say that Syrians carried out a targeted chemical attack.

April 6, 2017 – The United States launches a military strike on a Syrian government airbase in response to the chemical weapon attack on civilians. On US President Donald Trump’s orders, US warships launch 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles at the airbase which was home to the warplanes that carried out the chemical attacks.

July 7, 2017 – Trump and Putin reach an agreement on curbing violence in southwest Syria during their meeting at the G20 in Hamburg, Germany. The ceasefire will take effect in the de-escalation zone beginning at noon Damascus time on July 9.

October 17, 2017 – ISIS loses control of its self-declared capital, Raqqa. US-backed forces fighting in Raqqa say “major military operations” have ended, though there are still pockets of resistance in the city.

October 26, 2017 – A joint report from the United Nations and international chemical weapons inspectors finds that the Assad regime was responsible for the April 2017 sarin attack that killed more than 80 people. Syria has repeatedly denied it had anything to do with the attack and also denies it has any chemical weapons.

February 24, 2018 – The UN Security Council unanimously approves a 30-day ceasefire resolution in Syria, though it is unclear when the ceasefire is meant to start, or how it will be enforced.

February 27, 2018 – Within minutes of when a five-hour “humanitarian pause” ordered by Putin – from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. – is meant to start, activists on the ground report shelling and artillery fire from pro-regime positions, killing at least one person in the rebel-held enclave of Eastern Ghouta.

April 7, 2018 – Helicopters drop barrel bombs filled with toxic gas on the last rebel-held town in Eastern Ghouta, activist groups say. The World Health Organization later says that as many as 500 people may have been affected by the attack.

April 14, 2018 – The United States, France and the United Kingdom launch airstrikes on Syria in response to the chemical weapons attack in Eastern Ghouta a week earlier.

September 17, 2018 – Russia and Turkey announce they have agreed to create a demilitarized zone in Syria’s Idlib province, potentially thwarting a large-scale military operation and impending humanitarian disaster in the country’s last rebel stronghold. The zone, which will be patrolled by Turkish and Russian military units, will become operational from October 15.

December 19, 2018 – Trump tweets, “We have defeated ISIS in Syria, my only reason for being there during the Trump Presidency.” A US defense official and an administration official tell CNN that planning for the “full” and “rapid” withdrawal of US military from Syria is already underway.

March 23, 2019 – Kurdish forces announce they have captured the eastern Syrian pocket of Baghouz, the last populated area under ISIS rule.

October 9, 2019 – Turkey launches a military offensive into northeastern Syria, just days after the Trump administration announced that US troops would leave the border area. Erdogan’s “Operation Peace Spring” is an effort to drive away Kurdish forces from the border, and use the area to resettle around two million Syrian refugees.

March 5, 2020 – Turkey and Russia announce a ceasefire in Idlib, Syria’s last opposition enclave, agreeing to establish a security corridor with joint patrols.

April 8, 2020 – The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons’ Investigation and Identification Team (IIT) releases a report concluding that Syrian government forces were responsible for a series of chemical attacks on a Syrian town in late March 2017.

May 26, 2021 – Assad is reelected.

In photos: Syria’s civil war

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April 4, 2024
Antony Blinken Fast Facts | CNN

CNN
—

Here is a look at the life of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

Birth date: April 16, 1962

Birth place: Yonkers, New York

Birth name: Antony John Blinken

Father: Donald Blinken, investment banker and US ambassador to Hungary

Mother: Judith (Frehm) Pisar, UNESCO Special Envoy for Cultural Diplomacy

Marriage: Evan Ryan

Children: Two

Education: Harvard College, A.B., 1984; Columbia Law School, J.D., 1988

Religion: Jewish

His stepfather, Samuel Pisar, was a famed lawyer and Holocaust survivor.

Attended grade school and high school in Paris.

Was a writer for The Harvard Crimson. Worked as a reporter at The New Republic and has written about foreign policy for publications such as The New York Times and Foreign Affairs.

Before his career in government, Blinken practiced law in New York and Paris.

Former CNN global affairs analyst.

Blinken is visible in the famous photo of the “Situation Room” during the raid which killed Osama bin Laden in 2011.

1987 – His thesis, “Ally Versus Ally: America, Europe and the Siberian Pipeline Crisis,” is published.

1993-1994 – Special assistant to the assistant secretary of state for European and Canadian Affairs at the State Department.

1994-2001 – Holds multiple roles in the administration of President Bill Clinton, including special assistant to the president, senior director for speech writing and member of the National Security Council staff.

2001-2002 – Senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a policy research institute in Washington.

2002-2008 – Democratic staff director for the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

2008 – Works on Sen. Joe Biden’s presidential campaign.

2009-2013 – National security adviser to Vice President Biden.

January 2013-2015 – Deputy national security adviser to President Barack Obama.

January 9, 2015-2017 – Deputy secretary of state.

2017 – Co-founds WestExec Advisors, a consulting firm that offers geopolitical risk advisement.

January 26, 2021 – Is sworn in as the 71st secretary of state.

April 15, 2021 – Blinken arrives in Kabul, Afghanistan, in an unannounced visit less than 24 hours after the United States and the NATO coalition formally announced they would withdraw their troops from the country after nearly two decades. During remarks to Afghan political leaders, Blinken underscores the United States’ commitment to the people and the country.

May 25, 2021 – Blinken meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials, marking his first official visit to the Middle East. His trip will take him to Israel, the West Bank, Egypt and Jordan. Blinken pledges that the United States will make “significant contributions” to rebuild Gaza and reopen its consulate in Jerusalem following the recent conflict between Israel and Hamas.

March 23, 2022 – In a statement, Blinken announces the US government has formally declared that members of the Russian armed forces have committed war crimes in Ukraine.

April 24, 2022 – Blinken and US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin make an unannounced trip to Kyiv and meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

May 4, 2022 – Blinken tests positive for Covid-19, according to State Department spokesman Ned Price.

September 8, 2022 – Blinken makes an unannounced visit to Kiev – his second since the war with Russia began more than six months ago – which coincides with the announcement of an additional $625 million tranche of security assistance to support Ukraine, as well as an intended $2.2 billion in long-term investments to bolster the security of Ukraine and 18 other regional countries.

January 30-31, 2023 – Blinken makes his first visit to Israel since the new Israeli government, which includes ultra-nationalists and ultra-religious parties, took power.

March 2, 2023 – Blinken meets with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov for the first time since the war in Ukraine began more than a year earlier.

March 28, 2023 – House Foreign Affairs Chairman Michael McCaul subpoenas Blinken for a dissent cable written by US diplomats in Kabul criticizing the Biden administration’s plans to withdraw troops in 2021. On March 7, 2024, McCaul announces the House Foreign Affairs Committee has postponed a meeting for the markup to consider holding Blinken in contempt of Congress after Blinken agrees to deliver documents pertaining to the 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan.

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April 3, 2024
OPEC Fast Facts | CNN

CNN
—

Here’s a look at the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, headquartered in Vienna, Austria.

The purpose of OPEC is to “coordinate and unify the petroleum policies of its Member Countries and ensure the stabilization of oil markets in order to secure an efficient, economic and regular supply of petroleum to consumers, a steady income to producers and a fair return on capital for those investing in the petroleum industry.”

OPEC members collectively supply about 28.89% of the world’s crude oil production.

Together, OPEC members control about 79.49% of the world’s total proven crude reserves.

OPEC member countries monitor the market and decide collectively to raise or lower oil production in order to maintain stable prices and supply.

A unanimous vote is required on raising or lowering oil production.

Each member country controls the oil production of its country, but OPEC aims to coordinate the production policies of member countries.

Oil and energy ministers from OPEC member countries usually meet twice a year to determine OPEC’s output level. They also meet in extraordinary sessions whenever required.

Read More: Oil and Gasoline Fast Facts

Algeria – 1969-present
Congo – 2018-present
Equatorial Guinea – 2017-present
Gabon – 1975-1995; 2016-present
Iran – 1960-present
Iraq – 1960-present
Kuwait – 1960-present
Libya – 1962-present
Nigeria – 1971-present
Saudi Arabia – 1960-present
United Arab Emirates – 1967-present
Venezuela – 1960-present

Angola – 2007-2024
Ecuador – 1973-1992; 2007-2020
Indonesia – 1962-2009; 2016
Qatar – 1961-2019

September 14, 1960 – OPEC is formed in Baghdad, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela.

November 6, 1962 – OPEC is registered with the United Nations Secretariat (UN Resolution No. 6363).

1973-1974 – Due to United States support of Israel in the Arab-Israeli conflict, the members of OPEC decide to raise the cost of oil from $3/barrel to around $12/barrel.

October 1973 – OPEC issues an embargo against the United States, halting oil exports. Customers in the United States experience long lines at gas stations and shortages.

March 18, 1974 – At an OPEC meeting, seven members lift the ban on exports to the United States: Algeria, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Egypt and Abu Dhabi. Libya and Syria refuse to drop the ban, and Iraq boycotts the talks.

December 31, 1974 – Libya lifts its oil embargo against the United States.

November 2007 – Ecuador rejoins OPEC after a 15-year absence.

May 2008 – Indonesia announces that it will leave OPEC in 2009.

January 1, 2009 – Indonesia suspends its membership in OPEC.

January 1, 2016-November 30, 2016 – Indonesia rejoins OPEC, but suspends its membership after 11 months.

July 2016 – Gabon rejoins OPEC.

May 25, 2017 – Equatorial Guinea joins OPEC.

June 22, 2018 – OPEC announces that the Republic of the Congo has joined the organization.

December 3, 2018 – Qatar’s state oil company, Qatar Petroleum, announces that the country will leave OPEC on January 1, 2019. One of OPEC’s oldest members, Qatar says it plans to focus on natural gas production.

January 1, 2020 – Ecuador leaves OPEC.

March 2020 – To offset the collapse in demand caused by the coronavirus pandemic, OPEC unveils a plan to reduce output among its members by 1 million barrels per day, and says it will seek an additional 500,000 barrels per day in cuts from longstanding allies, including Russia.

April 1, 2021 – OPEC and allied producers announce that they have agreed to gradually increase their output over the next three months. The move follows a sharp increase in oil prices, and a call from the United States to keep energy affordable.

October 5, 2022 – OPEC and its allies, known as OPEC+, announce they will cut oil production by 2 million barrels per day, the biggest cut since the start of the pandemic.

January 1, 2024 – Angola leaves OPEC. Oil minister Diamantino Azevedo said earlier that membership was not serving Angola’s interests.

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April 3, 2024
Easter dishes from around the world | CNN

CNN
—

Honey-glazed ham, garlic mashed potatoes and fluffy dinner rolls might be staples at American Easter meals, but around the world, there are many distinct ways to savor the holiday – ones that incorporate both local ingredients and unique cultural traditions.

“Italians go all out,” said Judy Witts Francini, creator of the Italian food blog Divina Cucina. She’s from California but has lived in Florence and Tuscany for decades.

Witts Francini’s Easter lunch starts with an assortment of antipasti. For the first course, she serves a savory tart called torta pasqualina, which has 33 layers of phyllo dough to symbolize the 33 years of Christ’s life. The second course includes roast lamb, fried artichokes, peas with pancetta and roasted potatoes. Dessert is chocolate eggs (which can be up to 3 feet tall) with a gift inside and a dove-shaped cake, called colomba.

And that’s just lunch.

Other countries take a similar “more is more” approach to Easter meals, but a few dishes really stand out. Here are just five.

Before you roll your eyes at the mere mention of this circular classic, know that the pizza Italians crave on Easter bears little resemblance to what you find on most US delivery menus.

Pizza rustica, also known as pizzagaina, is stuffed with meat and cheese and enclosed in a flaky crust. Like most Italian recipes, pizza rustica varies from region to region, town to town and chef to chef. It originally comes from Naples, which is known as the birthplace of pizza.

“It’s basically a ricotta cheesecake, but it’s super savory – to the max,” said Rossella Rago, an Italian American author and host of the popular online cooking show “Cooking with Nonna” who wrote a cookbook with the same name.

To make the pie, first, you need to make the pastry dough, which includes flour, eggs, salt, milk and lard.

“Everybody always asks me, ‘Can I make this with shortening?’ And the answer is always: ‘No,’” Rago said. “If it’s any other time of year, I will say, ‘Yes, fine, use shortening,’ but when it’s actually Easter you have got to use lard.”

Inside, the pie – at least Rago’s version – contains ricotta, provolone, mozzarella, soppressata (an Italian dry salami), prosciutto, eggs and more.

“Everybody has their own combination that they swear by. If you want Italian people to fight right now, ask them, ‘What’s the real pizzagaina?’ That’s what everybody is obsessed with in Italian America,” Rago said. “It makes me laugh every single time, because there is no right way. It’s ridiculous to think that.

“Italy had 600 languages until its unification,” Rago added. “So, you think we have one recipe for anything? Absolutely not.”

Rago’s recipe is from her grandma, Nonna Romana, and is a true Italian American story. Romana is from Puglia, a region in southern Italy where they don’t make the dish. She learned about it from other Italian Americans while she was working at a clothing factory in Brooklyn, New York. She took their version and made some additions and subtractions. After years and years of tweaks, she created her own Italian American tradition.

“She swears it’s the best,” Rago said. Her secret is extra-sharp provolone. Rago said it’s one of the most popular dishes on her website, and everyone who tries it says they have success their first try.

Traditionally, this dish is made on Good Friday and served at room temperature on Easter Sunday.

When you think of authentic Mexican cuisine, there are many things that come to mind: rice, beans and tortillas, to name a few.

Now, you can add capirotada to the list.

Capirotada is a Mexican dessert that’s similar to bread pudding. It’s made from bread drenched in syrup and layered among nuts, cheese, fruit and sometimes sprinkles.

“If you are into salty, sweet, soft, crunchy, spongy mixed all together with a dash of spice, this is for you,” said Mely Martinez, creator of the blog Mexico in My Kitchen. “Yes, this concoction sounds really weird, but it is an explosion of flavors in your mouth.”

Martinez was born and raised in Tampico, Mexico. She serves this dish for dessert every Easter.

To make Martinez’s traditional capirotada, layers of sliced white bread are baked with butter and then dipped in syrup made from piloncillo (an unrefined type of sugar), cinnamon and cloves. The bread is placed in a ovenproof dish between layers of cotija cheese, roasted peanuts and raisins. It’s baked and then topped with bananas and sprinkles.

Capirotada is usually served at room temperature on Easter Sunday, but many serve it throughout Holy Week.

“It’s addicting. Once you start eating it, you can’t stop eating it,” Martinez told CNN.

Brought to Mexico by the Spaniards, capirotada became popular in Mexico because it’s easy to make and uses ingredients people have on hand.

It was originally a savory dish using beef broth, but evolved into today’s sweet version using syrup, according to Martinez. Some believe the bread represents the body of Christ and the syrup represents his blood.

There are many variations of capirotada all over Mexico.

My Latina Table blogger Charbel Barker makes hers with milk. Her recipe was created by her “abuelita,” meaning grandma.

“My abuelita would always say, it’s good but something is missing. It needs more sweetness,” Barker said. So she added two types of milk: evaporated milk and sweetened condensed milk.

Barker said the milk adds more flavor and creates a pudding-like texture.

“It tastes like a Snickers,” Barker said.

Poland: Żurek

In Poland, a dish that takes center stage on Easter is żurek. It’s a creamy and smoky fermented soup made from rye flour starter. This soup is often served with a boiled egg and sausage, and then garnished with spicy horseradish.

Żurek is regarded as something of a national treasure in the Central European country.

“It’s sour, tangy and meaty,” said Anna Hurning, the creator of the blog Polish Your Kitchen. Hurning was born and raised in Poland and now lives in the city of Szczecin.

She makes żurek every Easter and serves it as an appetizer.

To make the soup, first, you need to make a rye starter: Mix flour and cold water with aromatics (including garlic, allspice, peppercorns, marjoram and bay leaves). Then, let it sit on your counter for several days to ferment. Hurning said this is how it gets its “funky” flavor. Don’t be intimated by this step – she said it’s supereasy. You just let nature do the trick.

Next, the sour starter is boiled with the soup base. Hurning’s version consists of bacon, carrots, parsnip and onion.

This soup is served all over the country year-round and on Easter with many variations. Some have it with sauerkraut and smoked goat cheese. Others add potatoes and wild mushrooms.

The cuisine in Singapore is truly a mélange of cultures: Chinese, Malay, Indian, Eurasian and Peranakan. Pinpointing dishes authentic to Singapore might seem like an impossible feat, but that’s exactly the endeavor chef Damian D’Silva has chosen.

“If I don’t do anything to preserve the cuisine of our heritage, one day it will all disappear,” said D’Silva, chef at Rempapa in Singapore. He has been cooking heritage cuisine professionally for more than two decades.

“The cuisine is very unique. You can have one dish in Singapore, but you have five different ways of preparing it,” he said. “And no one is wrong because every ethnicity puts in their own story and ingredients.”

D’Silva grew up in Singapore, and one of his childhood favorites was beef murtabak. His granddad made it on Easter and served it after Mass – marking the end of Lent. D’Silva remembers looking forward to the savory dish after going 40 days without meat.

“When Easter happened, it was a celebration and, of course when it’s a celebration, the thing that comes to mind is meat,” he said. “We only ate beef on very, very special occasions.”

Beef murtabak is an egg crepe wrapped around ground beef. The beef is marinated in curry powder, then cooked with an onion and garlic paste and spices (star anise, cinnamon and nutmeg). The dish is served with fresh lime, chili sauce and raita.

“The aromatics are the one that lifts the entire dish and bring it to another level,” D’Silva said.

D’Silva has tried to find the origin of the dish. But like many Singaporean dishes, it goes so far back that nobody knows where it started.

D’Silva’s beef murtabak celebrates Singapore’s heritage.

“Singapore is a lot more than chili crab and chicken rice. It’s a lot, lot more than that,” D’Silva said. “If you have an opportunity to go to a restaurant that serves Singapore’s heritage cuisine, go, because it’s mind-blowing: the flavor, the ingredients. Everything about it.”

Loud, large and plentiful – that’s how Lola Osinkolu, who’s behind the blog Chef Lola’s Kitchen, describes Easter in Nigeria.

Osinkolu, who was born and raised in Nigeria, said after church Easter Sunday morning, her family would go home and start cooking.

“We cook, cook and cook. We would cook for hours.”

The dish that was the star of the show? Nigerian jollof rice.

Osinkolu compares the tomato-based rice dish – which likely originated in Senegal and spread to West African countries – to jambalaya. It’s a party staple in Nigeria.

“It’s spicy and delicious,” she said.

Jollof contains long-grain rice and Nigerian-style curry powder for seasoning, and there are many ways to cook the dish that involve endless permutations of meat, spices, chiles, onions and vegetables.

Osinkolu’s recipe, called The Party Style With Beef, comes from her mom. But Osinkolu added her own secret step: roasting the bell peppers, tomatoes, onion and garlic.

“At home, whenever we are having parties, we don’t cook our jollof rice on the stovetop. We use open fire, so the jollof rice has a smoky taste, which makes it more delicious,” Osinkolu said. “So, I roast the bell peppers to achieve a similar, or very close, taste. It makes a lot of difference.”

Her jollof is so popular that she now knows to always make extra for her guests to take home. “I get the same comment over and over about how delicious it is,” she said.

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March 31, 2024
North Korea Nuclear Timeline Fast Facts | CNN

CNN
—

Here is a look at North Korea’s nuclear capabilities and the history of its weapons program.

North Korea signs the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) demands that inspectors be given access to two nuclear waste storage sites. In response, North Korea threatens to quit the NPT but eventually opts to continue participating in the treaty.

North Korea and the United States sign an agreement. North Korea pledges to freeze and eventually dismantle its old, graphite-moderated nuclear reactors in exchange for international aid to build two new light-water nuclear reactors.

January 29 – US President George W. Bush labels North Korea, Iran and Iraq an “axis of evil” in his State of the Union address. “By seeking weapons of mass destruction, these regimes pose a grave and growing danger,” he says.

October – The Bush Administration reveals that North Korea has admitted operating a secret nuclear weapons program in violation of the 1994 agreement.

January 10 – North Korea withdraws from the NPT.

February – The United States confirms North Korea has reactivated a five-megawatt nuclear reactor at its Yongbyon facility, capable of producing plutonium for weapons.

April – Declares it has nuclear weapons.

North Korea tentatively agrees to give up its entire nuclear program, including weapons. In exchange, the United States, China, Japan, Russia and South Korea say they will provide energy assistance to North Korea, as well as promote economic cooperation.

July – After North Korea test fires long range missiles, the UN Security Council passes a resolution demanding that North Korea suspend the program.

October – North Korea claims to have successfully tested its first nuclear weapon. The test prompts the UN Security Council to impose a broad array of sanctions.

February 13 – North Korea agrees to close its main nuclear reactor in exchange for an aid package worth $400 million.

September 30 – At six-party talks in Beijing, North Korea signs an agreement stating it will begin disabling its nuclear weapons facilities.

December 31 – North Korea misses the deadline to disable its weapons facilities.

June 27 – North Korea destroys a water cooling tower at the Yongbyon nuclear facility.

December – Six-party talks are held in Beijing. The talks break down over North Korea’s refusal to allow international inspectors unfettered access to suspected nuclear sites.

May 25 – North Korea announces it has conducted its second nuclear test.

June 12 – The UN Security Council condemns the nuclear test and imposes new sanctions.

November 20 – A Stanford University professor publishes a report that North Korea has a new nuclear enrichment facility.

October 24-25 – US officials meet with a North Korean delegation in Geneva, Switzerland, in an effort to restart the six-party nuclear arms talks that broke down in 2008.

February 29 – The State Department announces that North Korea has agreed to a moratorium on long-range missile launches and nuclear activity at the nation’s major nuclear facility in exchange for food aid.

January 24 – North Korea’s National Defense Commission says it will continue nuclear testing and long-range rocket launches in defiance of the United States. The tests and launches will feed into an “upcoming all-out action” targeting the United States, “the sworn enemy of the Korean people,” the commission says.

February 12 – Conducts third nuclear test. This is the first nuclear test carried out under Kim Jong Un. Three weeks later, the United Nations orders additional sanctions in protest.

March 30-31 – North Korea warns that it is prepping another nuclear test. The following day, the hostility escalates when the country fires hundreds of shells across the sea border with South Korea. In response, South Korea fires about 300 shells into North Korean waters and sends fighter jets to the border.

May 6 – In an exclusive interview with CNN, the deputy director of a North Korean think tank says the country has the missile capability to strike mainland United States and would do so if the United States “forced their hand.”

May 20 – North Korea says that it has the ability to miniaturize nuclear weapons, a key step toward building nuclear missiles. A US National Security Council spokesman responds that the United States does not think the North Koreans have that capability.

December 12 – North Korea state media says the country has added the hydrogen bomb to its arsenal.

January 6-7 – North Korea says it has successfully conducted a hydrogen bomb test. A day after the alleged test, White House spokesman Josh Earnest says that the United States has not verified that the test was successful.

March 9 – North Korea announces that it has miniature nuclear warheads that can fit on ballistic missiles.

September 9 – North Korea claims to have detonated a nuclear warhead. According to South Korea’s Meteorological Administration, the blast is estimated to have the explosive power of 10 kilotons.

January 1 – In a televised address, Kim claims that North Korea could soon test an intercontinental ballistic missile.

January 8 – During an interview on “Meet the Press,” Defense Secretary Ash Carter says that the military will shoot down any North Korean missile fired at the United States or any of its allies.

January 12 – A US defense official tells CNN that the military has deployed sea-based radar equipment to track long-range missile launches by North Korea.

July 4 – North Korea claims it has conducted its first successful test of an intercontinental ballistic missile, or ICBM, that can “reach anywhere in the world.”

July 25 – North Korea threatens a nuclear strike on “the heart of the US” if it attempts to remove Kim as Supreme Leader, according to Pyongyang’s state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

August 7 – North Korea accuses the United States of “trying to drive the situation of the Korean peninsula to the brink of nuclear war” after the UN Security Council unanimously adopts new sanctions in response to Pyongyang’s long-range ballistic missile tests last month.

August 9 – North Korea’s military is “examining the operational plan” to strike areas around the US territory of Guam with medium-to-long-range strategic ballistic missiles, state-run news agency KCNA says. The North Korea comments are published one day after President Donald Trump warns Pyongyang that if it continues to threaten the United States, it would face “fire and fury like the world has never seen.”

September 3 – North Korea carries out its sixth test of a nuclear weapon, causing a 6.3 magnitude seismic event, as measured by the United States Geological Survey. Pyongyang claims the device is a hydrogen bomb that could be mounted on an intercontinental missile. A nuclear weapon monitoring group describes the weapon as up to eight times stronger than the bomb dropped in Hiroshima in 1945. In response to the test, Trump tweets that North Korea continues to be “very hostile and dangerous to the United States.” He goes on to criticize South Korea, claiming that the country is engaging in “talk of appeasement” with its neighbor to the north. He also says that North Korea is “an embarrassment to China,” claiming Beijing is having little success reining in the Kim regime.

November 1 – A US official tells CNN that North Korea is working on an advanced version of its intercontinental ballistic missile that could potentially reach the United States.

November 28 – A South Korean minister says that North Korea may develop the capability to launch a nuclear weapon on a long-range ballistic missile at some point in 2018.

January 2 – Trump ridicules Kim in a tweet. The president says that he has a larger and more functional nuclear button than the North Korean leader in a post on Twitter, responding to Kim’s claim that he has a nuclear button on his desk.

January 10 – The White House releases a statement indicating that the Trump administration may be willing to hold talks with North Korea.

March 6 – South Korea’s national security chief Chung Eui-yong says that North Korea has agreed to refrain from nuclear and missile testing while engaging in peace talks. North Korea has also expressed an openness to talk to the United States about abandoning its nuclear program, according to Chung.

March 8 – Chung, standing outside the White House, announces that Trump has accepted an invitation to meet Kim.

June 12 – The final outcome of a landmark summit, and nearly five hours of talks between Trump and Kim in Singapore, culminates with declarations of a new friendship but only vague pledges of nuclear disarmament.

December 5 – New satellite images obtained exclusively by CNN reveal North Korea has significantly expanded a key long-range missile base, offering a reminder that Kim is still pursuing his promise to mass produce and deploy the existing types of nuclear warheads in his arsenal.

January 18 – Trump meets with Kim Yong Chol, North Korea’s lead negotiator on nuclear talks, and they discuss denuclearization and the second summit scheduled for February.

February 27-28 – A second round of US-North Korean nuclear diplomacy talks ends abruptly with no joint agreement after Kim insists all US sanctions be lifted on his country. Trump states that Kim offered to take some steps toward dismantling his nuclear arsenal, but not enough to warrant ending sanctions imposed on the country.

March 8 – Analysts say that satellite images indicate possible activity at a launch facility, suggesting that the country may be preparing to shoot a missile or a rocket.

March 15 – North Korea’s foreign minister tells reporters that the country has no intention to “yield to the US demands.” In the wake of the comment, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo insists that negotiations will continue.

May 4 – South Korea’s Defense Ministry states that North Korea test-fired 240 mm and 300 mm multiple rocket launchers, including a new model of a tactical guide weapon on May 3. According to the defense ministry’s assessment, the launchers’ range is about 70 to 240 kilometers (43 to 149 miles). The test is understood to be the first missile launch from North Korea since late 2017 – and the first since Trump began meeting with Kim.

October 2 – North Korea says it test fired a new type of a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM), a day after Pyongyang and Washington agreed to resume nuclear talks. The launch marks a departure from the tests of shorter range missiles North Korea has carried out in recent months.

December 3 – In a statement, Ri Thae Song, a first vice minister at the North Korean Foreign Ministry working on US affairs, warns the United States to prepare for a “Christmas gift,” which some interpret as the resumption of long-distance missile testing. December 25 passes without a “gift” from the North Korean regime, but US officials remain watchful.

October 10 – North Korea unveils what analysts believe to be one of the world’s largest ballistic missiles at a military parade celebrating the 75th anniversary of the Workers’ Party broadcast on state-run television.

August 27 – In an annual report on Pyongyang’s nuclear program, the IAEA says North Korea appears to have restarted operations at a power plant capable of producing plutonium for nuclear weapons. The IAEA says that clues, such as the discharge of cooling water, observed in early July, indicated the plant is active. No such evidence had been observed since December 2018.

September 13 – North Korea claims it successfully test-fired new long-range cruise missiles on September 11 and 12, according to the country’s state-run KCNA. According to KCNA, the missiles traveled for 7,580 seconds along oval and figure-eight flight orbits in the air above the territorial land and waters of North Korea and hit targets 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) away. The US and neighboring South Korea are looking into the launch claims, officials in both countries tell CNN.

October 14 – An academic study finds that North Korea can get all the uranium it needs for nuclear weapons through its existing Pyongsan mill, and, based on satellite imagery, may be able to increase production above its current rate.

January 12 – The United States announces sanctions on eight North Korean and Russian individuals and entities for supporting North Korea’s ballistic missile programs.

January 20 – North Korea says it will reconsider its moratorium on nuclear and long-range missile tests, according to state media.

March 24 – North Korea fires what is believed to be its first intercontinental ballistic missile since 2017. Analysts say the test could be the longest-range missile yet fired by North Korea, possibly representing a new type of ICBM.

September 9 – North Korean state media reports that North Korea has passed a new law declaring itself a nuclear weapons state. Leader Kim Jong Un vows the country will “never give up” its nuclear weapons and says there will be no negotiations on denuclearization.

October 4 – North Korea fires a ballistic missile without warning over Japan for the first time in five years, a highly provocative and reckless act that marks a significant escalation in its weapons testing program.

October 10 – North Korea performs a series of seven practice drills, intended to demonstrate its readiness to fire tactical nuclear warheads at potential targets in South Korea. Quoting leader Kim Jong Un, who oversaw the drills, KCNA says the tests, which coincided with nearby military drills between the United States, South Korea and Japan, showed Pyongyang was ready to respond to regional tensions by involving its “huge armed forces.”

January 1 – Pyongyang’s state media reports that Kim Jong Un is calling for an “exponential increase” in his country’s nuclear weapons arsenal in response to what he claims are threats from South Korea and the United States.

July 18 – South Korea’s Defense Ministry announces the presence of a nuclear capable US Navy ballistic missile submarine in the South Korean port city of Busan. The arrival of the submarine follows a period of heightened tensions on the peninsula, during which North Korea has both tested what it said was an advanced long range missile and threatened to shoot down US military reconnaissance aircraft.

September 28 – The state-run Korean Central News Agency reports North Korea has amended its constitution to bolster and expand its nuclear force, with leader Kim Jong Un pointing to the growing cooperation between the United States, South Korea and Japan. The law added into North Korea’s constitution reinforces North Korea’s view that it is a forever nuclear power and that the idea of denuclearizing or giving up its weapons is not up for discussion.

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March 29, 2024
Vatican Fast Facts | CNN

CNN
—

Here’s a look at the Vatican, also known as the Holy See, the spiritual and governing center of the Roman Catholic Church.

The full name of the country is State of Vatican City.

It stands on Vatican Hill in northwestern Rome, Italy west of the Tiber River. It is comprised of roughly 100 acres.

Tall stone walls surround most of Vatican City.

Historical documentation says that St. Peter was crucified at or near the Neronian Gardens on Vatican hill and buried at the foot of the hill directly under where the main altar of St. Peter’s Basilica now stands. Excavations at the basilica between 1940 and 1957 located the tomb believed to be St. Peter’s.

Vatican City has its own pharmacy, post office, telephone system and media outlets. The population is 1,000 (2022 est.)

The Vatican is an absolute monarchy. Full legislative, judicial and executive authority resides with the pope.

The world’s second-largest Christian church after the Yamoussoukro Basilica in Cote d’Ivoire. St. Peter’s is not a cathedral, which is a bishop’s principal church. The pope is the bishop of Rome, and his cathedral church is in Rome.

Built on the foundation of the first St. Peter’s, the new basilica took 120 years to complete. Masonry, sculpture, painting and mosaic work continued for nearly 200 years.

The dome of the basilica was designed by Michelangelo.

The church is shaped like a cross and is almost 650 feet long.

In the grottoes, beneath the basilica, is a papal burial chamber.

The Vatican Palaces consist of several connected buildings with over 1,000 rooms. Within the palaces there are apartments, chapels, museums, meeting rooms and government offices.

The Palace of Sixtus V is the pope’s residence.

The Vatican museums, archive, library, gardens and other offices make up the remainder of the palaces.

A separate structure from the basilica, designed for the papal court, was commissioned by Pope Sixtus IV della Rovere.

It is the site of the papal conclave and where elections for the new pope are held.

It is one of the world’s most famous galleries of biblical art with the ceiling by Michelangelo, tapestries by Raphael and Rosselli’s Last Supper.

320s – Construction begins on the first St. Peter’s, by order of Constantine the Great.

1473-1481 – The Sistine Chapel is constructed.

April 18, 1506 – Pope Nicholas V begins rebuilding and expanding St. Peter’s Basilica.

1508-1512 – Michelangelo paints the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

February 11, 1929 – The signing of the Lateran Pacts between the Holy See and Italy establishes Vatican City State, the smallest independent nation in the world, covering only 109 acres.

June 7, 1929 – The Treaty of the Lateran is ratified. Pope Pius XI gives up all claims to the Papal States, and Italy agrees to the establishment of the independent State of Vatican City.

October 11, 1962-November 21, 1964 – The 21st Ecumenical Council of the Roman Catholic Church, known as Vatican II, is held under orders of Pope John XXIII. The council included 2,700 clergymen from all walks of Christiandom looking to improve relations with the Catholic Church. By the end of the council there is a new pope, Paul VI, a new constitution for the Church and new reforms.

June 2011 – Pope Benedict XVI sends the first Vatican tweet announcing the opening of a news site, “Dear Friends, I just launched News.va Praised be our Lord Jesus Christ! With my prayers and blessings, Benedictus XVI.”

October 6, 2012 – The pope’s former butler Paolo Gabriele is convicted of aggravated theft for leaking confidential papal documents and sentenced to 18 months in prison. In December 2012, Gabriele is pardoned by the pope and released to his family.

November 10, 2012 – Claudio Sciarpelletti, a computer technician, receives a two-month suspended sentence for leaking Vatican secrets to the media.

May 2013 – Missio, a smartphone app, is launched by Pope Francis. The app provides Catholic news from the Vatican and around the world.

November 24, 2013 – The Vatican exhibits the bones of a man long believed to be St. Peter, one of the founding fathers of the Christian church, for the first time.

January 10, 2019 – The Holy See launches its official athletics team after receiving the blessing of the Italian Olympic Committee. Among the first members of the Vatican Athletics track team are nuns, priests, Swiss Guards, museum workers, carpenters and maintenance workers.

March 2, 2020 – The Vatican opens its secret archives containing World War II-era documents from the controversial papacy of Pope Pius XII.

December 24, 2020 – Due to Covid-19 restrictions, the pope holds a sparsely attended Christmas Eve mass with only 200 people in attendance, including 30 cardinals. The Christmas Eve mass, which usually attracts up to 10,000 people, is a landmark event in Vatican City.

July 3, 2021 – The Vatican releases a statement saying that it has indicted 10 people, including an Italian cardinal, for several alleged financial crimes including extortion, corruption, fraud, forgery, embezzlement and abuse of power. The investigation, which started in July 2019, was carried out by the Vatican in cooperation with Italian authorities and revealed “a vast network of ties between financial market operators who generated substantial losses for the Vatican finances.” In December 2023, Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu is sentenced to five and a half years in prison for his role in financial crimes. Others indicted are convicted on some counts and acquitted on others. One, Monsignor Mauro Carlino, former secretary to Becciu, is acquitted on all counts.

June 22, 2023 – The Vatican announces it will hand over evidence in the disappearance of a 15-year-old daughter of one of its employees 40 years ago to the Rome city prosecutor. Emanuela Orlandi, who was the daughter of a prominent Vatican employee and lived within the walls of the holy city, disappeared in the summer of 1983 while on her way home from a music lesson in central Rome. The Vatican – which has come under scrutiny over the years for its handling of the case – announced in January that it had opened a fresh investigation.

November 16, 2023 – The Vatican announces that, as part of a move to reduce its carbon emissions, it will gradually electrify its fleet of vehicles. The Holy See also pledges to build a charging network within Vatican City and in other areas it controls. The city state plans to ensure that electricity for its charging network comes from renewable sources.

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March 28, 2024
Jacob Zuma Fast Facts | CNN

Here’s a look at the life of Jacob Zuma, former president of South Africa. Zuma survived at least half a dozen no-confidence votes during his presidency.

Birth date: April 12, 1942

Birth place: Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa

Birth name: Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma

Father: Gcinamazwi Zuma, police officer

Mother: Nobhekisisa Bessie, domestic worker

Marriages: Bongi Ngema (2012-present); Thobeka Stacy Mabhija (2010-present); Nompumelelo Ntuli (2008-present); Nkosazana Clarice Dlamini (1982-1998, divorced); Kate Mantsho Zuma (1976-2000, her death); Gertrude Sizakele Khumalo Zuma (1973-present)

Children: Reportedly has more than 20 children

ANC Work and Exile

1958 – Joins the African National Congress (ANC).

1962 – Becomes a member of the Umkhonto we Sizwe (Spear of the Nation), the military arm of the ANC.

1963 – Arrested with other Spear of the Nation members and convicted of conspiring to overthrow the South African government. Zuma spends 10 years in prison on Robben Island.

1975 – Flees South Africa and lives in exile for 15 years in Swaziland, Mozambique, Zambia and several other African countries, while continuing his work with the ANC.

February 1990 – President F. W. de Klerk lifts the ban on the ANC and other opposition groups. Zuma returns to South Africa.

ANC Leadership and Corruption Charges

1990 – At the ANC’s first Regional Congress in KwaZulu-Natal province, Zuma is elected chairperson of the Southern Natal region and takes a leading role in fighting violence in the region. This results in peace accords between the ANC and the Inkatha Freedom Party.

December 1994 – Is elected as the national chairperson of the ANC.

1997-2007 – Deputy president of the ANC.

October 1998 – Receives the Nelson Mandela Award for Outstanding Leadership.

1999-2005 – Deputy president of South Africa.

June 2, 2005 – A South African court finds businessman Schabir Shaik guilty of bribing Zuma between 1995 and 2002.

June 14, 2005 – President Thabo Mbeki fires Zuma over his alleged involvement in the Shaik bribery scandal.

December 6, 2005 – Charged with raping a young female family friend; he claims the sex was consensual. He is acquitted on May 8, 2006.

September 5, 2006 – Brought to trial and charged with corruption for allegedly accepting bribes from French arms company Thint Holdings. On September 20, the charges are dismissed by the court after numerous extensions by prosecutors to build the state’s case.

2007-2017 – President of the ANC.

December 28, 2007 – New corruption charges are brought against Zuma, along with counts of racketeering and money laundering. The corruption charges are tossed by the court in September 2008.

May 1, 2008 – Named one of Time’s 100 Most Influential People.

January 12, 2009 – The Supreme Court of Appeal overturns the lower court ruling that threw out corruption charges against Zuma, stating that the ruling was riddled with errors. This new ruling means that the National Prosecuting Authority can press new charges against Zuma.

April 6, 2009 – Prosecutors drop all corruption charges against Zuma.

Presidency and Resignation

April 26, 2009 – The ANC wins a majority of votes in South African elections, ensuring that Zuma will be the country’s next president.

May 9, 2009 – Inaugurated as president.

February 2010 – Zuma admits to fathering a child out of wedlock with the daughter of the head of South Africa’s World Cup organizing committee.

December 2010 – Zuma files a $700,000 defamation lawsuit over a 2008 political cartoon which portrays him raping a female figure symbolizing justice.

March 20, 2012 – The Supreme Court of Appeal rules that the Democratic Alliance (an opposition party) can challenge a previous court’s decision to drop corruption charges against Zuma.

May 7, 2014 – Zuma secures a second term as president, with the ANC winning a majority of votes.

March 31, 2016 – The South African Constitutional Court rules that Zuma defied the constitution when he used 246 million rand ($15 million) in state funds to upgrade his private home. The court says Zuma must repay money spent on renovations unrelated to security.

April 29, 2016 – A South African court rules that prosecutors acted “irrationally” when they decided to drop more than 700 corruption and fraud charges against Zuma in 2009. The court says the decision should be set aside and reviewed. It remains up to prosecutors whether to reinstate the charges.

November 2, 2016 – A report containing corruption allegations against Zuma is published. The 355-page “State of Capture” report contains allegations, and in some instances evidence, of cronyism, questionable business deals and ministerial appointments, and other possible large-scale corruption at the very top of government. Zuma denies any wrongdoing.

November 10, 2016 – Zuma avoids a vote of no-confidence in parliament, with 214 votes against the motion, 126 for and 58 abstentions. It’s the third time Zuma has faced such a vote in less than a year. The Democratic Alliance brought the motion of no confidence to parliament in an attempt to remove the president amid charges of corruption.

November 29, 2016 – Members of the ANC say that Zuma will not step down as president, despite calls from people within his own party to resign.

August 8, 2017 – A motion of no-confidence in Zuma is defeated, 198 votes to 177.

October 13, 2017 – South Africa’s Supreme Court of Appeal upholds an April 2016 ruling by the High Court to reinstate corruption charges against Zuma.

February 13, 2018 – The ANC announces a “recall” of Zuma, demanding that he resign. He resigns the next day.

Charges and Prison Sentence

March 16, 2018 – South Africa’s national prosecuting authority announces that Zuma will be charged with 16 counts of corruption, money laundering and racketeering.

February 4, 2020 – A South African judge issues Zuma an arrest warrant after he fails to appear to face charges in his long-running corruption case.

February 2021 – A South African inquiry into corruption during Zuma’s time in power is seeking the former president’s imprisonment for two years, after he defied a summons and court order to appear and give evidence. In an application in the constitutional court seen by Reuters, the “state capture” inquiry is seeking an order that Zuma is guilty of contempt of court. Zuma has denied wrongdoing and refuses to cooperate with the inquiry.

June 29, 2021 – South Africa’s highest court finds Zuma guilty of contempt of court and sentences him to 15 months in prison. On July 3, the court agrees to hear Zuma’s application for a review of their decision. In the application, Zuma and his lawyers claim that the 15-month prison sentence threatens his life and that the constitutional court’s decision is unfair.

July 4, 2021 – At a press conference at his homestead in Nkandla, Zuma likens his treatment to Apartheid-era detention without trial, saying, “Things like detention without trial should never again see the light of day in South Africa. The struggle for a free South Africa was a struggle for justice that everyone was treated equally before the law.”

July 7, 2021 – Zuma hands himself over to police to begin serving his 15-month prison sentence for contempt of court.

August 6, 2021 – Is admitted to an outside hospital where he undergoes surgeries for an undisclosed ailment, according to prison authorities.

September 5, 2021 – The government’s correctional services department says Zuma has been released from prison on medical parole due to ill health.

December 15, 2021 – The Gauteng High Court in South Africa rules that the decision to place Zuma on medical parole was unlawful and that Zuma needs to be returned into custody to serve the remainder of his sentence. Zuma appeals and remains on parole.

October 7, 2022 – South Africa’s Correctional Services department announces Zuma has been released from the correctional services system.

November 21, 2022 – South Africa’s Supreme Court of Appeal rules Zuma should return to prison, saying the decision to release Zuma on medical parole was unlawful.

August 11, 2023 – Zuma is returned to prison to comply with a ruling that his release on ill health was unlawful – but is freed after just an hour under a remission process to address overcrowding in jail.

January 29, 2024 – The ANC announces it has suspended Zuma’s membership. In December 2023, Zuma announced his support for a rival political party.

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March 28, 2024
The world’s tastiest dumplings | CNN

CNN
—

How to define a dumpling? In its most basic sense, it’s a pocket of dough filled with some form of savory or sweet stuffing.

And the easy ideas are surely the best, because dumplings are a popular food across the globe: both simple and complex, local and global, adaptable yet fixed in their home regions as cheap, tasty staples to snack on.

Here are no fewer than 35 of our favorites around the world to get your taste buds flowing.

Served steamed in bamboo baskets, xiaolongbao look different from other types of Chinese dumplings, as the skin is gathered and pinched at the top instead of folded in half.

Xiaolongbao are also unique in that aside from the traditional pork filling, a small piece of aspic is folded into the dumpling, which melts when steamed.

Thanks to the broth, the filling stays moist and flavorful.

Italy is, of course, the global home of filled pasta, and ravioli is one of its most famous offerings – so famous that it has been exported across the world.

Ravioli – as well as other Italian filled pastas – can be packed with anything from meat to cheese to vegetables, or any combination thereof.

If the processed canned or bagged varieties familiar to lazy college students makes up your only impression of ravioli, rectify that as soon as possible. Preferably with a trip to Rome.

The spicy Sichuan wonton, or chao shou, comes to the table drenched in a spicy chili oil flavored with Sichuan peppercorn and a black vinegar sauce.

The chao shou is boiled and the very best specimens are so slippery they’re nearly impossible to pick up with chopsticks.

The combination of savory meat, smooth wonton skin and tongue-numbing sauce, makes for the most pleasant runny nose you’ve ever had.

Manti hail from Central Asia – they’re eaten in places such as Turkey, northwestern China, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan – and are very closely related to East Asian variants of dumplings.

Adopted by Turks who traveled across Central Asia during the Mongol Empire, these dumplings can be filled with lamb, beef, quail or chicken – or be left unfilled.

Turkish manti are served with yogurt and spiced with red pepper and melted butter.

A national dish in Slovakia, bryndzové halušky is a dish of potato dumplings served with bryndza, a Slovakian sheep’s cheese, and sprinkled with bacon or pork fat.

A steamed fish dumpling served with vegetables and peanut sauce, think of siomay as the Indonesian street food equivalent of shumai, traditionally found in Cantonese dim sum restaurants.

Adopted from Chinese Indonesian cuisine, the most popular variant of siomay is found in Bandung. The best way to sample these dumplings is from a street vendor carting a steamer on his bicycle.

The Hong Kong-style shrimp wonton is a thick dumpling holding shrimp and minced pork. It’s commonly served with thin egg noodles or on its own in a seafood broth.

Many a heated debate over the best shrimp wonton has been heard locally, but there’s never any arguing over its prime place in the Hong Kong diet.

Originating in Central and Eastern Europe, pierogi are most commonly thought of as Polish.

These dumplings can be stuffed with potato, minced meat, cheese, fruit or sauerkraut. They’re usually boiled, then pan-fried in butter with onions.

This finishing flourish is the selling point of the dish, adding another layer of flavor.

Modak is a sweet from Maharashtra, offered to Lord Ganesha during Ganesh Chathurthi, the festival dedicated to him every year between August and September.

The teardrop-shaped dumpling is kneaded from rice flour and stuffed with coconut and jaggery – an unrefined whole cane sugar.

These Azerbaijani dumplings are filled with lamb or beef, and usually served in broth.

Rather like the most fiddly of Italian pasta dumplings, they’re folded by hand, a process made more difficult by their small size. Vinegar and garlic sauce tops it off with an extra kick.

Found across Germany, kartoffelknoedel, or potato dumplings, usually accompany meat dishes.

The Bavarian variant combines both raw and cooked potato, stuffed with a crouton or bread filling.

This is a popular street food in Brazil: effectively chicken dumplings, made from fried dough with shredded chicken in the middle.

They’re shaped in the form of a teardrop, supposedly to resemble a chicken thigh – the dish was originally made from thigh meat. Some add potato to the dough before frying, for an extra carby oomph.

Pelmeni are Russian dumplings from Siberia, likely introduced to Russian cuisine by the Mongols.

Similar to Chinese jiaozi, Turkish manti and eastern European pierogi, pelmeni are distinguished by the thickness of the dumpling skin.

Pelmeni may be stuffed with anything from meat to mushrooms to cheese, but never with anything sweet.

Some dumpling purists say that the Australian dim sim is merely a bastardized version of Chinese dumplings.

But we say, if a dumpling has fans standing in line, it’s a worthy dumpling.

Dim sim is a combination of meat or fish mixed with cabbage and enclosed in a wrapper. It may be steamed, deep-fried or barbecued, and is usually much larger than a Chinese dumpling.

Dim sims usually taste gingery – a feature of westernized Chinese cuisine found in Australia, North America and Europe.

The word “brik” is thought to derive from Turkish, but this is a thoroughly Tunisian dumpling, a deep-fried triangle of deliciousness, often with an egg popped inside for extra gooey flavor. It can be filled with tuna, harissa and parsley, or anything from capers to cheese and meat.

Banh bot loc are Vietnamese pork and shrimp dumplings, with wrappers made from tapioca flour.

When cooked, tapioca flour becomes clear, giving the dumpling its appearance and the wrapper its chewy texture.

There are two major variants: wrapped in banana leaves and steamed, or boiled.

If you’ve ever been to Argentina (or neighboring Latin American countries) you’ll almost certainly have eaten an empanada: pastry stuffed with meat, fish or other fillings, then baked or fried.

In Argentina, the traditional fillings depend on where you are – olives are often worked into the filling in Mendoza, for example. Usually, though, you’ll have a choice of meat – chicken and beef are classics.

Tangyuan is a Chinese dessert – sticky balls made from glutinous rice flour containing a sweet filling, such as ground peanuts or black sesame paste, and served in a bowl of sweet soup or rolled in ground peanuts.

Some tangyuan are served as smaller, unfilled rice balls in a soup made from cane sugar.

In dessert shop chains all over Hong Kong, tangyuan are served with ice cream, topped with a drizzle of syrup.

Chicken and dumplings

Chicken and dumplings is probably the ultimate in Southern comfort food in the United States.

Chicken soup is a dish found all over the world, but the addition of dumplings gives the soup an extra something.

American dumplings are usually a mix of flour, vegetable shortening and milk – in this case, dropped directly into the chicken broth. The broth may be a clear chicken soup, or thickened with flour or cream.

Kimchi mandu

Mandu, the Korean take on dumplings, are more closely related to manti found in Central Asian cuisine than to Chinese or Japanese dumplings.

Mandu are often folded into circular shapes, a technique rarely found in Chinese cuisine.

As ubiquitous as kimchi is in Korea, it was probably inevitable that somewhere along the way someone would chop up kimchi and stick it in a dumpling.

When winter nights are closing in and the temperatures are dropping, what could be better than a golf ball-sized dumpling made from bread, stuffed with things like speck (a type of cured ham), cheese and onion, washed down with a tanker of beer?

Italians flock to Alto Adige, the autonomous region in the north of the country, which was part of Austrian Tyrol until being annexed to Italy under Fascism, for these traditional Tyrolean dumplings. Eat them in broth, or order a plateful (some restaurants do canederli “flights” of different fillings). Just be warned – these are huge, and you’ll likely find your eyes are far bigger than your stomach.

Bawan is a Taiwanese street snack commonly found in night markets around the island.

A translucent wrapper made from rice flour, corn starch and sweet potato starch holds a stuffing of pork, bamboo shoots and mushrooms. Bawan is served with a sweet and savory sauce.

The dumplings are steamed, then deep-fried to keep the wrapper from drying out.

Momo are dumplings found in northern Indian, Nepali and Tibetan cuisine. They may be filled with meat, vegetables or cheese, and are usually served with a tomato-based dipping sauce.

Enterprising Nepali vendors in Kathmandu have also taken to filling momos with Snickers and Mars bars, especially in areas frequented by tourists.

Uszka are similar to Polish pierogi – the word “uszka” means “little ears” in Polish. They’re usually filled with minced meat and mushrooms and put in borscht soup.

Uszka stuffed with bolete mushrooms and chopped onions without meat are served in clear borscht for Christmas Eve meals in Poland.

Related to Chinese pot stickers, Japanese gyoza tend to be made with thinner wrappers and filled with minced pork.

Frozen gyoza are found in most grocery stores all over the world, but the best restaurants for gyoza always turn out to be holes-in-the-wall outside of Tokyo subway stations.

Found on Chinese takeout menus in the United States, crab rangoon are deep-fried dumplings served as a side dish.

They’re stuffed with cream cheese and imitation crab meat made from a fish-based paste.

It may not be an authentic Chinese dish, but love of fried cheese crosses cultures.

Not your typical pork-filled dumpling, the Teochew fun gor is usually packed with peanuts, chives, dried shrimp, pork, radish, mushrooms and cilantro.

The wrapper is made of a combination of wheat flour, tapioca flour, corn starch and potato starch, giving the fun gor its translucent appearance.

Teochew fun gor is most popular in Cantonese dim sum restaurants.

Usually triangular in shape, samosas are a deep-fried snack popular in south and southeast Asia.

They may be filled with a variety of stuffings, including potato, onions, peas, lentils and ground lamb.

Straddling Eastern Europe, Russia and Central Asia, it’s not surprising that Georgia has its own dumpling.

The khinkali resembles the xiaolongbao. It’s formed by gathering the pleats of the wrapper at the top and stuffed with spiced beef and pork.

Khinkali are usually served with coarse ground black pepper.

Gnocchi are small, thick pasta shapes that can be made from semolina flour, potato, flour, eggs, cheese – or a combination of the lot. They originated in northern Italy, though are eaten throughout the country today, with recipes varying from region to region.

Gnocchi are prepared like other pasta dishes, and may be served in tomato-based sauces, pesto sauces or with any other sauce you might find on pasta.

Duty-free shops in Japanese airports are packed with what look like mountains of pre-wrapped boxes of Japanese treats. Many of these boxes actually contain daifuku.

They are a type of mochi (glutinous rice cakes), only they’re stuffed – usually with sticky-sweet red azuki.

Daifuku are popular as gifts in Japan – specialty stores that create a dazzling array of varieties move countless boxes over holiday periods.

The apple dumpling is popular across the United States, and common among the Amish, especially in and around Pennsylvania.

A peeled and cored apple is stuffed with cinnamon and sugar, then wrapped in a piece of dough and baked until the apple becomes tender. The pairing of the apple dumpling, fresh from the oven, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top makes for a divine dessert.

Every region of Italy produces its own filled pasta, of course, but these, from southern Piedmont, are particularly prized. Much smaller than regular ravioli – they’re barely bigger than Bolognese tortellini – they’re filled with either a meat mix (which often includes rabbit) and served with a glaze of meaty sauce, or contain a vegetable mix, often cabbage with rice.

As well as being small in size, the pasta is also rolled super thin, so the dumplings seem to melt in the mouth. “Plin” isn’t the place where they came from; the word derives from a local dialect word for “pinch,” as the pockets are pinched together by hand.

This is the ultimate Lebanese comfort food: lamb dumplings, similar to manti, and served drenched in yoghurt – usually goat, rather than cow, to give the flavor a bit more bang.

The lamb is mixed with pine nuts and spices before being wrapped in the dough, and slow-cooked in the yoghurt with water. It’s labor-intensive – requiring constant stirring, to keep the consistency.

These vegetarian dumplings hail from Afghanistan, and are also similar to manti. Recipes vary, but the stalwart is some kind of green vegetable inside – which can be chives, scallions, or celery, as they make it in Venice’s refugee-run Orient Experience restaurant.

Ashak are normally topped with a stewy lentil kind of sauce, and yogurt.

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March 28, 2024
Princess Catherine Fast Facts | CNN

CNN
—

Here is a look at the life of the Princess of Wales, the former Catherine (Kate) Middleton.

Birth date: January 9, 1982

Birth place: Reading, Berkshire, England

Birth name: Catherine Elizabeth Middleton

Father: Michael Middleton, former airline pilot, now mail-order business owner

Mother: Carole (Goldsmith) Middleton, former flight attendant

Marriage: Prince William, The Prince of Wales (April 29, 2011-present)

Children: George Alexander Louis, Charlotte Elizabeth Diana and Louis Arthur Charles

Education: University of St. Andrews, Fife, Scotland, 2005, MA, Art History

Is the eldest of three children of self-made millionaires.

Her engagement ring belonged to Princess Diana.

2001 – Meets Prince William at University of St. Andrews.

2002-2005 – Shares living quarters with William and several other college students.

2003 – Begins dating Prince William around Christmas.

April 1, 2004 – First public sighting of the couple, a ski trip in Switzerland, is reported.

2006-2007 – Works as an accessories buyer for British ladies’ fashion chain store Jigsaw.

March 2007 – Ends relationship with Prince William, but within months they are on again.

October 2010 – Becomes engaged to Prince William during a trip to Kenya.

November 16, 2010 – Prince Charles officially announces the engagement to the world.

April 19, 2011 – The Middleton family coat of arms is unveiled.

April 29, 2011 – Marries Prince William at Westminster Abbey and becomes Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cambridge.

June 2011 – The Duke and Duchess make an apartment on the grounds of Kensington Palace their London home.

June 30-July 8, 2011 – The couple’s first official trip to a foreign country, Canada.

July 8-10, 2011 – Visits Los Angeles, where she and William visit a job fair for veterans and an arts center in a low-income neighborhood. It is her first trip to the United States.

July 22, 2011 – Her wedding dress is put on display at Buckingham Palace.

January 5, 2012 – Announces the four charities she will support as a patron: the Art Room, which helps disadvantaged children express themselves through art; the National Portrait Gallery, which houses a famous collection of royal paintings and photographs; East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices, which helps children with life-threatening conditions; and Action on Addiction, which assists those with addiction issues.

March 19, 2012 – Gives her first official public address at East Anglia’s Children’s Hospice facility in Ipswich, England.

September 2012 – The French magazine Closer runs photographs of the Duchess privately sunbathing topless. The pictures also run in the Irish Daily Star newspaper.

September 17, 2012 – The Duchess and William file a complaint in France against the photographer who took the topless sunbathing pictures. They are seeking damages and would like to prevent further publication of the photos. The French magazine Closer, the Irish Daily Star and the Italian magazine Chi have each published some of the topless photos.

December 3, 2012 – The royal household announces that the Duchess is pregnant. According to the announcement, she is admitted to hospital with acute morning sickness.

July 22, 2013 – The Duchess gives birth to the couple’s first child, a son weighing 8 lbs., 6 oz. The baby is named Prince George Alexander Louis of Cambridge.

May 2, 2015 – The Duchess gives birth to the couple’s second child, a daughter weighing 8 lbs, 3 oz. The baby is named Princess Charlotte Elizabeth Diana of Cambridge.

February 17, 2016 – Guest edits Huffington Post UK as part of her Young Minds Matter initiative.

April 30, 2016 – As part of a partnership with the British National Portrait Gallery, the Duchess will appear on the cover of the centenary issue of fashion magazine British Vogue, and have two of her portraits hung in the gallery.

September 4, 2017 – Kensington Palace issues a statement that the Duchess is pregnant. The baby will be her and Prince William’s third child.

September 5, 2017 – A French court rules that the topless sunbathing pictures of the Duchess were an invasion of privacy, awarding her and William 100,000 euros (about $119,000) in damages.

April 23, 2018 – The Duchess gives birth to the couple’s third child, a son weighing 8 lbs., 7 oz. The baby is named Prince Louis Arthur Charles of Cambridge.

November 27, 2020 – The Duchess and the Royal Foundation release the findings of a study on how Covid-19 has impacted parents and caregivers of those raising children under the age of five. The study relied in part on a survey of more than half a million people about the early childhood years in the UK.

June 18, 2021 – The Duchess launches The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood. In a video announcing the center’s creation, the duchess says the goal is to “raise awareness of why the first five years of life are just so important for our future life outcomes.”

September 8, 2022 – Queen Elizabeth II dies, and Charles ascends to the throne.

September 10, 2022 – King Charles III announces William will be given the title Prince of Wales, making Catherine Princess of Wales.

January 17, 2024 – Kensington Palace says the Princess of Wales will spend up to two weeks recovering in hospital after undergoing abdominal surgery.

March 11, 2024 – Apologizes for an edited official photograph that was recalled by a number of international news agencies over concerns it had been manipulated. Catherine says she is sorry for “any confusion” caused by the image after her “experiment” with photo editing. The photograph, released to mark Mother’s Day in the UK, was the first official picture of Catherine since she underwent abdominal surgery in January.

March 22, 2024 – Reveals she has been diagnosed with cancer and is in the “early stages” of treatment.

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March 27, 2024
Hillsborough Stadium Disaster Fast Facts | CNN

CNN
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Here is a look at the Hillsborough Disaster, a 1989 tragedy at a British soccer stadium. Overcrowding in the stands led to the deaths of 97 fans in a crush. Another 162 were hospitalized with injuries. It was the worst sports disaster in British history, according to the BBC.

On April 15, 1989, more than 50,000 people gathered at the Hillsborough Stadium in Sheffield, England, for the FA Cup Semi-Final football (soccer) match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest. In order to relieve a bottleneck of Liverpool fans trying to enter the venue before kickoff, police opened an exit gate and people rushed to get inside. More than 3,000 fans were funneled into a standing-room-only area with a safe capacity of just 1,600. The obvious crush in the stands prompted organizers to stop the game after six minutes.

Police initially concluded the crush was an attempt by rowdy fans to surge onto the field, according to the Taylor Interim Report, a 1989 government investigation led by Justice Peter Taylor. As officers approached the stands, it became apparent people were suffocating and trying to escape by climbing the fence.

The Taylor Interim Report describes the scene: “The dead, the dying and the desperate became interwoven in the sump at the front of the pens, especially by the gates. Those with strength left clambered over others submerged in the human heap and tried to climb out over the fence…The victims were blue…incontinent; their mouths open, vomiting; their eyes staring. A pile of dead bodies lay and grew outside gate 3.”

The emergency response was slow, according to the Hillsborough Independent Panel, a 2012 follow-up investigation. The problems were rooted in poor communication between police and ambulance dispatchers, according to the panel.

Fans tried to help each other by tearing up pieces of advertising hoardings, creating improvised stretchers and carrying injured spectators away from the throngs, according to the Taylor Interim Report. People who had no first aid training attempted to revive the fallen. From the report: “Mouth to mouth respiration and cardiac massage were applied by the skilled and the unskilled but usually in vain. Those capable of survival mostly came round of their own accord. The rest were mostly doomed before they could be brought out and treated.” It took nearly 30 minutes for organizers to call for doctors and nurses via the public address system.

South Yorkshire Police Supervisor David Duckenfield was in charge of public safety at the event. He was promoted to match commander weeks before the game and was unfamiliar with the venue, according to his testimony at a hearing in 2015. He acknowledged that he did not initiate the police department’s major incident plan for mass casualty disasters, even as the situation spiraled out of control. Duckenfield had originally blamed Liverpool fans for forcing the exit gate open, a crucial detail that he later admitted was a lie. He retired in 1990, conceding he was probably “not the best man for the job on the day.”

August 1989 – The Taylor Interim Report is released, offering a detailed overview of how the tragedy unfolded. The report is named for Justice Peter Taylor, who is leading the investigation.

January 1990 – The Taylor Final Report is published, proposing a number of reforms for soccer venues. Among the recommendations: football stadiums should replace standing room terraces with seated areas to prevent overcrowding.

August 1990 – Although the Taylor Interim Report faulted police for poor planning and an inadequate response, the Director of Public Prosecutions announces that no officers will face criminal charges.

1991 – The deaths of the fans are ruled accidental by a jury during an inquest. The members of the jury could have returned a verdict of unlawful killing, faulting the police for acting recklessly and compromising the safety of fans. Their other option was an open verdict, an inconclusive ruling.

August 1998 – A group of victims’ families files civil manslaughter charges against South Yorkshire Police supervisors Duckenfield and Bernard Murray.

2000 – The case goes to trial. The jury deadlocks on Duckenfield and finds Murray not guilty of manslaughter. Murray dies of cancer in 2006.

April 2009 – As England observes the 20th anniversary of the tragedy, a new investigation is launched by a group called the Hillsborough Independent Panel.

September 2012 – The panel releases its findings, detailing the numerous failings of authorities on the day of the tragedy and a subsequent cover up that shifted the blame from police to fans. The panel also proclaims that 41 of 96 victims could have been saved if police responded to the crisis more rapidly. The findings prompt Prime Minister David Cameron to issue an apology to the victims’ families.

December 2012 – The High Court quashes the accidental death ruling for the victims, setting the stage for a new investigation and possible criminal charges.

March 31, 2014 – A new round of inquests begins in a courtroom in Warrington, England, built specifically for the case. There are nine members of the jury. They will consider a number of issues relating to the incident, including whether Duckenfield was responsible for manslaughter by gross negligence.

April 2016 – After hearing testimony from more than 800 witnesses, the jury retires to deliberate.

April 26, 2016 – The verdict is delivered, in what is called the longest case heard by a jury in British legal history. The jury finds, by a 7-2 vote, 96 fans were unlawfully killed due to crushing, following the admission of a large number of fans through an exit gate. It is decided Duckenfield’s actions amounted to “gross negligence,” and both the police and the ambulance service caused or contributed to the loss of life by error or omission after the crush began. Criminal charges will now be considered.

June 28, 2017 – Britain’s Crown Prosecution Service announces that it has charged six people, including Duckenfield, with criminal offenses related to the disaster.

March 14, 2018 – The BBC and other British media report that police officers would not be charged who were alleged to have submitted a misleading or incomplete report on the disaster to prosecutors in 1990.

September 10, 2018 – Duckenfield pleads not guilty to the charges of manslaughter by gross negligence.

January 14, 2019 – Duckenfield’s trial begins. Graham Mackrell, a safety officer at the time of the disaster, also stands trial.

March 13, 2019 – The BBC and other media report that Duckenfield will not be called to present evidence during his trial.

November 28, 2019 – Duckenfield is found not guilty of gross negligence manslaughter.

July 27, 2021 – Andrew Devine, a fan injured in the Hillsborough disaster, dies. A coroner confirms Devine as the 97th victim of the disaster and rules he was unlawfully killed.

January 31, 2023 – Britain’s National Police Chiefs Council and College of Policing apologize to families of the victims of the Hillsborough disaster. They also publish a response to a report published in 2017 that detailed the experiences of the Hillsborough families.

December 6, 2023 – UK Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden announces that the UK government has signed the Hillsborough Charter, acknowledging “multiple injustices” and vowing that no families will suffer the same fates as the relatives of the victims.

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March 27, 2024