- February 2, 2005
February 2 2005 * Eleven people die in a
Baghdad bombing, according to the Al-Zaman newspaper. Of these, eight are policemen or soldiers. [http://www.juancole.com (Informed Comment)]
* The IRA withdraws its weapons decommissioning offer because of claims that the organisation is connected to aBelfast bank raid last December in which £26.5m was stolen. [http://212.2.162.45/news/story.asp?j=108802780&p=yx88x336x&n=108803389 (Ireland Online)] [http://olympics.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=7518536 (Reuters)] [http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000087&sid=aHZ8othznuXE&refer=top_world_news (Bloomberg)] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/4231753.stm (BBC)] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/4231951.stm (BBC)]
*President of the United States George W. Bush delivers his 2005State of the Union address. The section on Social Security reform is booed by some members of Congress, a very rare show of open disdain for thePresident during such a speech. [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/transcripts/bushtext_020205.html Transcript (WP)]
* A former secret U.S. military investigative report on Guantanamo Bay is revealed to conclude there is no evidence of systemic detainee abuse but cited several cases of questionable physical force documented on videotape. Prisoners released have stated abuse is commonplace, and one former U.S. National Guardsman received brain damage after being beaten while posing undercover as a rowdy detainee. All Freedom of Information Act requests by theACLU for video and photographs depicting detainee treatment have been denied. [http://www.newsday.com/news/politics/wire/sns-ap-guantanamo-videotapes,0,901965.story (Newsday AP)]
* The German Federal Labour Agency reports that the Germanunemployment rate hit 12.1% in January. More than 5 million people are unemployed today in Germany. Ignoring the margin of error inherent in the usage of different statistical methods over different areas, this rate is the highest since theGreat Depression and theWeimar Republic . [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/4228739.stm (BBC World)] .
* The cancellation of "" is announced, marking the end of 18 consecutive years of "Star Trek " ontelevision . [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/tv_and_radio/4231873.stm (BBC)]
*Jerusalem /Israel :Horst Köhler , President ofGermany , has a special audience in theKnesset , the highest chamber ofIsrael . Speaking in German, he says that Germany has to fight more aggressively againstanti-semitism and far-right parties. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4229845.stm (BBC World)] .
*Arab-Israeli Conflict :
**Ariel Sharon , thePrime Minister of Israel , andAbu Mazen , the President of thePalestinian National Authority , are invited byEgypt to attend a summit atSharm el-Sheikh . AJordan ian delegation will also attend. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4229007.stm (BBC)]
**Abu Mazen , the President of thePalestinian National Authority , accepts anIran ian invitation to pay an official visit toTehran . [http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=574&ncid=721&e=1&u=/nm/20050202/wl_nm/mideast_abbas_iran_dc (Reuters)]
* King Gyanendra ofNepal forms a new cabinet and names himself as its head. His decision to dismiss his former cabinet has been widely condemned. [http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=7508300 (Reuters)] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4228309.stm (BBC)]
*Robert Mugabe , president ofZimbabwe , announces that a general election will be heldMarch 31 . The country's main opposition party,Movement for Democratic Change , has not yet decided whether to participate. [http://iafrica.com/news/worldnews/409845.htm (IAfrica)] [http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=7501618 (Reuters)]
* The Spanish parliament rejects an appeal from the Basque regional government for more and areferendum for eventualindependence . [http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000085&sid=aOyCCyMoyrBU&refer=europe (Bloomberg)] [http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L01183479.htm (Reuters AlertNet)] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4228297.stm (BBC)]
* The parliament ofSlovenia ratifies theEuropean Union Constitution . [http://www.euobserver.com/?sid=9&aid=18307 (EUobserver)] [http://www.euractiv.com/Article?tcmuri=tcm:29-134943-16&type=News (EurActiv)] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/4227685.stm (BBC)]
* InJapan , the first of the former residents of the island ofMiyakejima return to the homes they left after avolcanic eruption in2000 . [http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/T348402.htm (Reuters AlertNet)] [http://mdn.mainichi.co.jp/news/20050202p2a00m0dm004000c.html (Mainichi Daily News)]
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