Portal:Current events/2005 April 27

April 27, 2005 (Wednesday)

The U.S. House of Representatives votes 406-20 to rescind controversial Republican ethics rules, in order to end a stalemate in the evenly-divided Ethics Committee since their introduction in January. (AP), (Reuters)^{[permanent dead link]}
Johnson Beharry becomes the first recipient of the UK's highest military honor, the Victoria Cross since 1982 and the first living recipient since 1965. (AFP)
Two Palestinians, both aged 15, are arrested in a checkpoint near Jenin after 11 explosive charges were found on them. One teenager told interrogators that he was recruited to act as a couriers by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the second by the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades. (Haaretz), (AP photo)
The new Airbus A380 performs its maiden flight, in Toulouse, France. The A380 replaces the Boeing 747 ("jumbo jet") as the world's largest passenger plane. (BBC)
The death toll in the Amagasaki rail crash in Japan exceeds 91, and may increase to over 100. (Japan Today) (Asahi Shimbun) (Reuters) Archived 2005-04-27 at the Wayback Machine (Bloomberg) (Reuters)^{[permanent dead link]}
Former Nepalese Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba is arrested for alleged corruption after he refuses to appear in court. (Reuters AlertNet) (United We Blog) (NDTV)
A Moscow court postpones verdict on the case of Mikhail Khodorkovsky until May 16. (Mosnews) (RIA Novosti) (Reuters)^{[permanent dead link]} (Bloomberg)
In central Sri Lanka, at Polgahawela, a passenger train crashes into a bus on a level crossing; 35–50 persons are feared to be dead. (BBC) (Bloomberg) (Reuters) Archived 2005-04-27 at the Wayback Machine
The date of the next elections in Lebanon is set for May 29. (Reuters)
Colombian president Álvaro Uribe sacks four top army generals for disagreeing with his army reforms. (Reuters AlertNet)
In Togo, opposition resistance against election victory of Faure Gnassingbé escalates into violence. At least 33 have died in the clashes. Opposition leader Bob Akitani declares himself president. (AllAfrica) (News24) (Reuters) Archived 2005-04-28 at the Wayback Machine (BBC)
Mexican president Vicente Fox accepts resignation of his attorney general Rafael Macedo and orders review of the contempt of court case of Andrés Manuel López Obrador. (El Universal) (Reuters) Archived 2005-04-28 at the Wayback Machine (Bloomberg)
Amnesty International appeals to the government of Yemen to stop execution of Amina Ali Abduladif. She is sentenced to death for murder and the execution is to take place May 2. (Yemen Times) (Reuters AlertNet)
Zimbabwe opposition party Movement for Democratic Change says that the country has run out of maize grain and asks Robert Mugabe to apply for foreign food aid. (IOL) (ReliefWeb) (Reuters AlertNet)
In India, Gautam Goswami, director of flood relief in Bihar, is accused of misdirecting funds. He denies any wrongdoing. (NDTV) (Times of India) (Times of India) (BBC)
Cherif Bassiouni, former United Nations human rights envoy to Afghanistan, says he lost his job due to US pressure. (BBC)
John Gudenus of the Austrian Freedom Party causes controversy when he questions the existence of Nazi gas chambers and later leaves the party. (Ha'aretz)^{[permanent dead link]} (BBC)
In Vietnam, six people are arrested for trying to sell human remains as remains of MIA US soldiers. (BBC)
In Côte d'Ivoire, opposition leader Alassane Ouattara welcomes President Laurent Gbagbo's decision to let him contest elections. South African president Thabo Mbeki welcomes it as well. (ReliefWeb) (Reuters AlertNet) (BBC)
In Scotland the M77 was opened by the First minister Jack Mcconnell, from Fenwick in East Ayrshire to Newton Mearns in East Renfrewshire replacing the old dangerous A77 which has claimed many lives, including a local police officer.