May 2005
May 2005 was the fifth month of that year. It began on a Sunday and ended after 31 days, on a Tuesday.
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| Other May 2005 events |
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| Monthly events, 2005 |
Events
May 1 2005 (Sunday)
- Lenovo Group, the largest Chinese computer company acquires the personal computer business of IBM for US$ 1.25 billion in cash, and Lenovo assumes $500 million of IBM's debt. (Reuters)
- More than thirty Iraqis are killed and more than fifty are wounded as a bomb goes off at a funeral. (CBC)
- The United States informs Japan that North Korea may have launched another test missile towards the Sea of Japan. The report is now said to be confirmed. (ABC News) (Forbes)
- Astronomers have directly confirmed the existence of an extrasolar planet orbiting the brown dwarf numbered 2M1207a. The team says that this is the first-ever infrared view of an exoplanet. (Seattle Times) (ESO) (CP)
- Taiwanese president Chen Shui-bian requests that the Chinese government meet directly with his government after China meets with Taiwan's opposition leader, Lien Chan. Taiwan and China are in conflict over Taiwan's increased calls for independence from the mainlaind. (CBC) (ABC)
- Iraqi and American militaries hold several suspects for questioning in the Margaret Hassan kidnapping case. Hassan, director of CARE's Iraq division, was kidnapped by insurgents in late October 2004 and subsequently believed to be killed. (CBC) (Reuters)
- In Nepal, 10,000 protesters march in Kathmandu against the policies of king Gyanendra and demand return of democracy. (Reuters AlertNet) (ABC)
- Italy intends to publish its own view of the killing of Nicola Calipari. Italian media has released classified details about a report the United States made. (BBC) (Reuters AlertNet) (ABC)
- Honduran president Ricardo Maduro, and his daughter survive with minor injuries when their plane crashes into the sea near Tela. (CNN) (Guardian Unlimited) (BBC)
May 2, 2005 (Monday)
- Data withheld from an annual report on terrorism by the U.S. State Department show a sharp increase in attacks in 2004. (BBC)
- Israeli-Palestinian conflict:
- Following an Israeli raid on the Palestinian city of Tulkarm, one Israeli soldier and one Islamic Jihad leader are killed. The soldier was killed in a gunfight with 3 members of Palestinian Islamic Jihad. The three were suspected to have been part of the cell which was involved in Tel Aviv "Stage" club bombing in February 2005. Shafiq Abdul Rani, the leader of the Jihad cell in Tulkarm was killed and another militant was arrested. (Haaretz)
- Palestinian militants fired 3 Qassam rockets on the Israeli town of Sderot. There were no casualties. (Haaretz)
- Israeli Minister of Jerusalem and Diaspora Affairs Natan Sharansky resigned from the government as a protest against Ariel Sharon's unilateral disengagement plan. (Haaretz), (BBC)
- Dozens of people reportedly die after a large explosion in a munitions dump in Pagja, Afghanistan 50 miles north of Kabul. (Seattle Times)
- Guardsman Anthony John Wakefield, from Newcastle upon Tyne, has been killed in Iraq after being injured in hostile action in the southern town of Al Amarah, bringing the total of UK servicemen killed in the Iraq conflict to 87. (BBC)
- Europe's largest sporting goods maker Adidas-Salomon sold its Salomon division for 485 million euros to Finnish company Amer Sports (which owns Wilson Sporting Goods). CNN News
- The government of Nepal ends the house arrest of two parliamentarian communist leaders, Madhav Kumar Nepal and Amrit Bohara. (BBC)
- In Togo, opposition party Union of Forces for Change refuses to join a new government, accusing Faure Gnassingbé of electoral fraud. About 12,000 people have fled the violence to Ghana and Benin. ECOWAS tries to mediate. (BBC) (Reuters AlertNet) (GhanaWeb) (ABC)
- Foreign ministers gather in New York to review the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. (Wired) (BBC) (Reuters AlertNet)
- Cairo terrorism: Following Saturday's terrorist incidents in Cairo, some 200 people are brought in for questioning by Egyptian police. Ten people were injured in the attacks, and three militants were killed. (BBC)
- In Germany, prosecutors demand 8-year sentence to neo-nazi leader Martin Weise and three others. (Reuters AlertNet)
- Former Haitian prime minister Yvon Neptune demands that the current government drops its claim that he organized a massacre in February 2004. Neptune has been on a hunger strike for 15 days and refuses treatment. (Haiti Action Committee) (BBC) (Reuters AlertNet)
- A gas cylinder explosion in Lahore, Pakistan causes collapse of three buildings - at least 16 people dead. (BBC) (Reuters)
- British rocket Skylark makes its last launch. (Independent) (BBC)
- United Nations chief prosecutor of Sierra Leone's war crimes court David Crane (prosecutor) claims that Charles Taylor, former president of Liberia, is still plotting to kill Guinean leader Lansana Conté. Conté has been in a hospital since he survived an assassination attempt in January. (Reuters AlertNet) (UN Regional Information) (World Peace Herald) (BBC)
May 3 2005 (Tuesday)
- Two United States Marine Corps F/A-18 Hornet jets collide over Iraq while flying a mission in Iraq. The body of one of the pilots is later recovered and an ejected seat was found, but the second one is still missing. (BBC) (Washington Post)
- India bans Monsanto genetically modified cotton seeds. (Al-Jazeera)
- In Nepal, thousands of journalists march in protest to restore press freedoms on World Press Freedom Day. (Guardian) (BBC)
- United Nations chief prosecutor of Sierra Leone's war crimes court David Crane claims that Charles Taylor, former president of Liberia, is still plotting to kill Guinean leader Lansana Conté. Conté has been in a hospital since he survived an assassination attempt in January. (Reuters AlertNet) (UN Regional Information) (World Peace Herald) (BBC)
- A Togolese constitutional court announces Faure Gnassingbé as a winner of presidential election. Refugees continue to flee to neighboring countries. (Reuters AlertNet) (News24)
- Indonesian authorities confirm second case of polio. (Jakarta Post) (BBC) (Reuters AlertNet)
- In Peru, four members of a government health team are found with their throats slit. (Reuters AlertNet)
- An explosion in a football stadium in Mogadishu, Somalia kills 15 people when new prime minister Ali Mohammed Ghedi begins his speech. Authorities later state that a security guard accidentally set off a grenade. (IOL) (IHT)
- Eight people are arrested in Senegal for an advance fee fraud e-mail scam that had fooled at least one American and one Norwegian victim. (BBC)
May 4 2005 (Wednesday)
- Israeli-Palestinian Conflict:
- Israel freezes the handover of West Bank Palestinian towns to the Palestinian Authority. Israel claims they will resume the handover process when militant groups are disarmed. The Prime Minister of Israel, Ariel Sharon, had agreed to hand over five West Bank towns to Palestinian control, but thus far has only handed over Tulkarm and Jericho. (BBC)
- Israeli troops shoot dead two teenage boys. The cousins were protesting against the building of the Israeli West Bank barrier among a group of people, many of whom were throwing stones at the soldiers. According to the Stop the Wall group, protestors were chased by Israeli soldiers using live ammunition. (BBC)
- War on Terrorism:
- The Pakistani government announces that it has captured Abu Faraj al-Libbi. If verified, this is the most important Al-Qaeda suspect to have been arrested thus far. (BBC)
- A former CIA agent reveals the CIA sent a team to Afghanistan only days after the September 11, 2001 attacks with orders to "Capture Bin Laden, kill him and bring his head back in a box on dry ice" and to leave other Al-Qaeda leaders' "heads up on pikes." (BBC) (Wikinews)
- Conflict in Iraq:
- A suicide bomberer in Irbil, a Kurdish city of Northern Iraq, kills more than 50 people. (BBC)
- Ayman Sabawi Ibrahim, the nephew of former President of Iraq Saddam Hussein, has been arrested, accused of aiding the insurgency. (BBC)
- Alexander Downer, the Foreign Minister of Australia, appears on al Jazeera to urge for the release of Douglas Wood, who is being held hostage by insurgents who demand the withdrawal of Australian troops from Iraq. John Howard, the Prime Minister of Australia has said he refuses to negotiate. (BBC)
- In Cambodia, the Municipality of Phnom Penh grants JC Royal Co. a 30-year charter to develop the memorial at the Choeung Ek killing fields. (Yahoo! News)
- A Peruvian congressional committee accuses President Alejandro Toledo of electoral fraud. (BBC)
- Peru suspends free trade talks with Chile due to allegations that Chile supplied arms to Ecuador during that nation's 1995 war with Peru. (BBC)
- Italy's supreme court clears three men who had received a life sentence for 1969 bombing in Milan bank. (Reuters) (BBC)
- U.S. firefighter Donald Herbert, blind and virtually silent due to brain injury since 1995, recovers unexpectedly, regaining the powers of speech. (New York Times) (Buffalo News) (Reuters AlertNet)
May 5 2005 (Thursday)
- Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem Irineos is dismissed following a controversy over the leasing of church-owned lands to groups eager to increase the Jewish presence in the Old City of Jerusalem. (BBC)
- Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: An Israeli commander is suspended, pending a full inquiry, from his position following the deaths of two teenage cousins in Beit Lakia, near Ramallah, on May 4. (BBC)
- British polls open in the 2005 general election. Voters will elect 645 of the 646 members of the House of Commons. Most expect Tony Blair and his Labour Party to win, but both Michael Howard and the Conservative Party along with Charles Kennedy and the Liberal Democrats are expected to make major gains in Parliament. (Wikinews) (BBC) (CNN)
- An explosion outside the United Kingdom consulate in New York City occurs at 07:35 GMT. There were no reported injuries. Police say they have found fragments of an explosive device. (Wikinews) (BBC) (Reuters)
- The Indian Space Research Organization launches a mapping satellite, CARTOSAT-1 and an Amateur Radio satellite HAMSAT, into Earth orbit (Tribune) (Space.Com) (Hindustan Times) (Reuters)
- A Hong Kong court overturns convictions of 8 members of Falun Gong. (Standard) (IHT) (Law & Order, HK) (BBC)
- The government of Kazakhstan closes the pro-opposition paper Respublica. (Reuters) (PolitInfo)
- The Ugandan parliament votes in favour of holding a referendum on the return of multi-party democracy. Political opposition intends to boycott the referendum because they think that president Yoweri Museveni would use it stay in power. (Reuters AlertNet) (AllAfrica) (BBC)
- In Niger, anti-slavery activist Ilguilas Weila is charged with attempted fraud. (Reuters AlertNet) (BBC)
- The Kansas evolution hearings, a six-day courtroom-style debate over how the origin of life should be taught in the state's public schools, open in Topeka. (CNN)
May 6 2005 (Friday)
- The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit rules that the FCC overstepped its authority in attempting to impose the "broadcast flag" on hardware manufacturers. (News.com) (EFF)
- Fatah wins 55 percent of the seats in municipal elections held in 84 cities across the West Bank and Gaza. Hamas wins about a third of the seats. Fatah won a majority of seats in Beit Lahiya, Hawara and Tulkarem, Hamas won the majority in Qalqiliya and El Boureij. Election participation was 70 percent in the West Bank and 80 percent in Gaza. (CNN)
- United Kingdom general election, 2005:
- At 04:28 BST, The Labour Party wins a parliamentary majority. Despite a substantially reduced majority, Tony Blair becomes the first Labour Prime Minister to lead his party to three election victories. (Reuters) (Scotsman) He ends up with a majority of 66, on the lowest percentage vote for a government in modern history.
- Northern Ireland's previously dominant Ulster Unionist Party is wiped out in the election, with all its MPs except one, including party leader and former First Minister David Trimble, losing their seats. Only Lady Sylvia Hermon holds her seat. (BBC) (Guardian)
- In the Foyle constituency, Social Democratic and Labour Party leader Mark Durkan wins a seat with a large majority over the expected victor, Sinn Féin's Mitchel McLaughlin. (BBC)
- Conservative Party leader Michael Howard announces that he plans to resign "sooner rather than later." (BBC)
- A meningitis outbreak in Delhi, India kills 14 people so far and health officials suspect many more. (WebIndia123) (Deccan Herald) (Reuters) (BBC)
- A suicide bomber in a car blows himself up near a vegetable market in a southern Iraqi town, killing at least 22 people and wounding 45. (Reuters)
- A 20 year old IDF soldier is arrested in Israel after telling military police that he considers himself a "Nazi", and hates Jews, blacks and the State of Israel. (Israel National News) (Reuters), (Courier-Mail) (Houston Chronicle)
- Reports emerge that the United States may be sending detainees to Uzbekistan, a regime notorious for torture. (Seattle Times) (ISN)
- Audioslave become the first US Rock band to play in Cuba
- Third Watch airs its final episode in the US after 6 years on NBC
May 7 2005 (Saturday)
- Northern Ireland's Ulster Unionist Party leader David Trimble, the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize winner who helped reach the Good Friday Agreement, resigns from the leadership post he has held for ten years, after losing his seat in the British general election the previous day. (BBC)
- George Peter Nanos announces that he will step down as the director of the Los Alamos National Laboratory, making his term the shortest of any previous director. (LA Times)
- 15 people die in a plane crash near the Lockhart River in the Australian state of Queensland, the worst civilian air disaster in Australia in 36 years. (ABC Online)
May 8 2005 (Sunday)
- Point guard Steve Nash of the NBA's Phoenix Suns makes history by becoming the first Canadian to win the NBA's MVP award. Nash edges out Shaquille O'Neal of the Miami Heat by seven votes to win the award. (CBC)
- Worldwide celebrations commemorate the 60th anniversary of V-E Day, the official end of World War II in Europe with the capitulation of Germany under Karl Dönitz. In several German cities, Germans also mourn today the millions of people massacred under the National Socialist (Nazi) regime in the 1930s and 1940s. (Wikinews)
- United States President George W. Bush uses the anniversary of V-E Day to call the Soviet Union's occupation of the Baltic states after World War II "one of the greatest wrongs of history". He also attended Europe's third largest war cemetery in the town of Margraten, the Netherlands. (CNN)
- Germans hold a candlelight vigil in Berlin against neo-Nazis. They stood in a 33 km (21 mile) chain from Spandau to Mahlsdorf passing through the Brandenburg Gate, protesting a planned march by neo-Nazis to mark the 60th anniversary of Nazi Germany's surrender. (Reuters)
- French Minister of Defense Michèle Alliot-Marie commemorates the end of World War II in Europe in Reims, where Alfred Jodl signed the documents of unconditional surrender on May 7, 1945 ending the war in Europe. (CNN)
- Abu Faraj al-Libbi, the al-Qaeda suspect captured in Pakistan on May 2 and thought to be third-in-command in al-Qaeda, turns out to be a mid-level member in the organization. Officials describe the mistake as a case of "mistaken identity". (TimesOnline)
- Exiled Christian army general Michel Aoun returns to Lebanon from France. His supporters in the Free Patriotic Movement call for his election as a new president. (Al-Jazeerah) (BBC) (Daily Star) (Reuters AlertNet)
- In Belgium, two Rwandan men, Etienne Nzabonimana and Samuel Ndashyikirwa, are put into trial accused of involvement with the Rwandan genocide. (IOL) (Reuters AlertNet)
- People in the Central African Republic vote in the second round of presidential election. Incumbent president François Bozizé, who took over in a coup in 2003, is in favorable position. (Reuters AlertNet)
- Algerian president Abdelaziz Bouteflika demands that France admits its part in Sétif massacre, the killing of 45,000 Algerians who demonstrated for independence on May 8 1945 when Europe celebrated the defeat of Nazi Germany. (ABC) (Reuters AlertNet)
- 6000 anti-Nazi demonstrators force cancellation of a National Democratic Party march in Berlin, Germany. (Deutsche Welle) (Reuters)
- The Spanish Royal Palace announces that princess Letizia is three months pregnant. (Reuters) (BBC)
- Seven Nepalese opposition parties join forces against King Gyanendra. (WebIndia123) (BBC)
May 9 2005 (Monday)
- Iran admits to having converted thirty-seven tons of raw uranium into a gas, a key step in uranium enrichment. (The Guardian)
- 88 members of U.S. Congress led by John Conyers write an open letter to the White House asking for answers concerning the new documents leaked which apparently reveal the secret U.S/U.K. agreement to attack Iraq in 2002. (Times of London) (The Raw Story) (Scoop) (uruknet)
- The Sellafield nuclear plant's Thorp reprocessing facility in Cumbria, England, is closed down due to a 20 tonne leak through a fractured pipe of water contaminated with radioactive uranium and plutonium. (The Guardian)
- More than 50 heads of state, including Vladimir Putin, George W. Bush and German chancellor Gerhard Schröder, are among the guests attending the official celebrations commemorating the end of World War II in Moscow, Russia. It is the first time a German chancellor has attended a world-wide commemoration for the victims of the Third Reich. (Wikinews) (The Hindu) (CNN) (Scotsman)
- Re-examination of old images taken by the Mars Global Surveyor several years ago may have led to the identification of the crash site of the Mars Polar Lander, which failed in December 1999. Using insights and techniques developed for analyzing images of the Mars Exploration Rovers, Malin Space Science Systems may have spotted the rocket blast zone, Mars Polar Lander and the parachute. (Spaceflight Now) (Space.com)
- Peter Friederich, former Swiss ambassador to Luxembourg, goes on trial for money laundering. (Swissinfo)
- Former Indonesian president Suharto is hospitalized; there are conflicting reports about his condition. (Jakarta Post) (Laksamana) (BBC) (Forbes)
- The death toll continues to rise due to flooding in Somalia and the Somalia Region of Ethiopia. In April 2005, heavy rains generated widespread flooding and caused the Shebelle River to burst its banks. As of May 5, the flooding in Somali Region alone has caused over 100 confirmed deaths and widespread property damage affecting over 100,000 persons. The floods have also destroyed shelters housing 25,000 Somali refugees in Kenya. (UN IRIN) (UN News)
- Twelve South American and 22 Arab countries begin a summit in Brazil. (Agencia Estado Brazil) (Arabic News) (Bloomberg) (Reuters)
- In Ecuador, former president Gustavo Noboa is placed under house arrest. (CBS) (BBC)
- In Italy, two Vatican Radio officials, Cardinal Roberto Tucci and Father Pasquale Borgome, have been convicted of polluting the atmosphere with unnecessarily powerful electromagnetic waves that might have causes increased risk of cancer. They receive 10-day suspended sentences. (Reuters AlertNet) (BBC)
- Hans Blix, former United Nations chief arms inspector, suggests that Iran and Israel could support a ban of uranium enrichment in the Middle East. (Al-Jazeera) (Reuters AlertNet)
- The Nigerian government charges 80 Biafran separatists with treason. (AllAfricA) (BBC) (Reuters AlertNet)
- Italian police in Rome reopen the investigation into the murder of Pier Paolo Pasolini. (BBC)
- Andrés Manuel López Obrador, mayor of Mexico City, announces that he will quit his post on July 31 to concentrate on his campaign to be president of Mexico. (El Universal) (Reuters)
- In the Democratic Republic of Congo, president Joseph Kabila visits Lumumbashi in Katanga province. At least 30 people have been arrested for an attempted separatist coup in the province. (AllAfrica) (ReliefWeb) (Reuters AlertNet) (BBC)
May 10 2005 (Tuesday)
- Leaders in Indonesia visit Suharto, the nation's former president, who is hospitalized with what has been diagnosed as intestinal bleeding. (Yahoo)
- A Haitian court overturns convictions of 38 military officers who were charged with killings in the town of Raboteau during the 1991 coup against Jean-Bertrand Aristide. The Ecumenical Center for Human Rights states that the trial was annulled on technicality. (Jamaica Observer) (ABC) (BBC)
- Human Rights Watch states that elections in the Oromia region of Ethiopia will be a "hollow exercise." (Human Rights Watch) (AllAfrica) (News24)
- Canadian House of Commons opposition members of parliament pass a motion to instruct a house committee to call for the resignation of the government. The 153 votes of the Conservatives and Bloc Québécois defeat the 150 votes of the Liberals and NDP due to three absences. Although the motion is classified as a procedural instruction to a committee and not a no confidence motion, the Tories and BQ call on the government to resign. (CBC)
- Germany unveils a Holocaust memorial. (Deutsche Welle) (Ha'aretz) (ABC) (Reuters AlertNet)
- G8 countries urge Ukraine to cover the Chernobyl nuclear plant. (Reuters AlertNet)
- The Maldives government releases dissident Fathimath Nisreen. Two others, Mohamed Zaki and Ahmad Didi, remain in custody. (Reporters Without Borders) (Minivan News, Maldives) (BBC)
- The Egyptian parliament approves a constitutional amendment that would allow presidential elections to be contested. (Arab News) (IHT) (BBC)
- President George W. Bush and Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili met in Tbilisi, Georgia.
May 11 2005 (Wednesday)
- Guantánamo Bay Qur'an desecration allegations: Riots over a Newsweek story (later retracted) lead to dozens of injuries and at least three deaths in Jalalabad, Eastern Afghanistan. Afghan police use live ammunition to stop the Anti-American rioting organized in protest of the alleged desecration of a copy of the Qur'an. (BBC), (Reuters)
- A Katyusha rocket hits the northern Israeli town of Shlomi, damaging a bakery but no injuries. The rocket appears to have been launched from within Lebanon while Israel celebrated its 57th Independence Day. (Haaretz)
- Justice officials in Kuwait, with assistance from United Nations war crimes expert Sharif Basyouni, complete an indictment against Saddam Hussein and several former Iraqi officials for crimes against humanity during the 1990 invasion of Kuwait. (Yahoo!)
- The Irish government gives the go-ahead for the building of the controversial M3 motorway through the archaeologically sensitive Tara-Skyrne Valley, amid an international outcry by academics and environmentalists. (RTÉ)
- The White House and United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. are evacuated, amid reports of an incoming aircraft. The US Secret Service subsequently issues an all-clear. (BBC)
- Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin has set May 19 for a vote in the House of Commons on the federal budget. He said if his government loses the vote of confidence, he will seek the dissolution of Parliament. This means an election could come as early as June 27. (CBC)
- The Austrian parliament ratifies the European Union constitution with only one dissenting vote. (ORF)
- Conflict in Iraq: At least 60 people die following a series of bombings throughout Iraq. (BBC)
- The Bulgarian parliament ratifies the EU membership treaty. (Bulgarian News Network) (Sofia News Agency) (BBC) (CNN)
- Authorities in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh investigate the attack of social worker Shakuntala Verma after she had investigated claims of illegal child marriages. One of her hands was severed and the other was badly wounded. (Newindpress) (Telegraph) (Times of India)
- In Yemen, the number of cases in a polio outbreak rises to 63. (BBC) (ABC) (Reuters AlertNet)
- Javier Zanetti, captain of the Inter Milan football club, says the team could accept the invitation to a game to play against Mexico's Zapatistarebels. (BBC)
- The presidents of Nigeria and Cameroon have not made progress in talks on the disputed Bakassi peninsula. They agree to negotiate a new date for the pullout of Nigerian troops. (Cameroon-Info) (BBC) (Reuters AlertNet)
- Medical researchers and health organizations condemn AIDS dissident Matthias Rath who had placed full-page ads in the New York Times and International Herald Tribune with a slogan "Stop AIDS Genocide by drug cartel". Rath claims that antiretroviral drugs are poisonous and his vitamin supplements can cure the disease. Researchers of Harvard University state that Rath misrepresents their findings. South Africa's Medicine Control Council announces investigation of the Rath Foundation. (Reuters AlertNet) (BBC) (Pretoria News) (Business Day) (News24)
May 12 2005 (Thursday)
- Malcolm Glazer wins control of UK football team Manchester United F.C. after securing a 70% share. (BBC) (ABC News) (NY Times)
- The British Air Accidents Investigation Branch states that it has reached "no definite conclusion" about the reason of air crash that claimed the life of billionaire Paul Louis Halley, his wife and their pilot in 2003. (BBC)
- Zimbabwe releases 60 South African mercenaries that were linked to an alleged coup attempt in the Equatorial Guinea last year. (BBC) (IOL) (Reuters AlertNet)
- A United States Senate probe releases evidence showing two prominent British and French politicians received vouchers for millions of barrels of Iraqi oil in exchange for their support of Saddam Hussein's regime. George Galloway is accused of using his children's leukemia foundation to conceal the transfer of 3 million barrels of oil, although he denies any wrongdoing. (BBC), (ABC News)
- The European Court of Human Rights rules that Turkey's 1999 trial of Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan was not fair. (Zaman Online, Turkey) (IHT) (Reuters)
- Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo opens the country's first blood transfusion centre. The centre is meant to screen blood to hinder the spread of the AIDS. (Reuters AlertNet)
- Western countries pledge funds to Ukraine so the country can cover the Chernobyl nuclear reactor. (Planet Ark) (Reuters AlertNet)
- In Colombia, former justice minister Alberto Santofimio Botero is arrested suspected of complicity in the murder of presidential candidate Luis Carlos Galan in 1989. (Reuters AlertNet) (ABC)
- A federal judge in Houston, Texas, sentences former Enron executive Dan Boyle to 3 years and 10 months in prison for his involvement with a barge scam with the Merrill Lynch. Two Merrill Lynch executies also receive sentences. (Houston Chronicle) (Businessweek) (Reuters)
- La Cumbre volcano on Ferdinanda Island in the Galápagos Islands begins to erupt. (ABC News)
- David Fagan and Michele Nelson got married.
- The Xbox 360 is announced on MTV.
May 13 2005 (Friday)
- Heavy exchanges of fire in the Israeli-Lebanese border. Hezbollah fired at least 9 mortar shells or Katyusha rockets on outposts in the disputed Shebaa Farms. The IDF retaliated by artillery fire and IAF aircraft bombed 3 Hezbollah positions. Israel maintains that Lebanon bears full responsibility for the border attacks, committed by Hezbollah and local Palestinian groups, while Hezbollah maintain that they are acting in retaliation for Israeli attacks on Lebanese territory including a hit on civilian houses in the village of Kfar Shouba. (Haaretz), (BBC)
- Guantánamo Bay Qur'an desecration allegations: United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice promises "prompt action" if investigations prove that the Quran was desecrated by U.S. soldiers in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. The Saudi Arabian government voices its "deep indignation" and has demanded a quick investigation and punishment for the perpetrators if found to be true. Seven people have died in Afghanistan following Anti-American protests in the wake of the allegations. There have also been protests in Pakistan and Indonesia. (BBC) (BBC) (The Jakarta Post)
- The Vatican announced that the late Pope, John Paul II, is to be beatified. This is the first step to becoming a saint. (BBC)
- Unrest In Uzbekistan:
- Thousands of Uzbeks take over a high security jail in Andijan, freeing thousands of prisoners in protest against the jail sentence of 23 businessmen who were accused of being Islamic extremists. (CBC)
- Violence breaks out in Andijan and in the capital Tashkent. There are reports of firefights in the streets and snipers firing into the crowd. A political rally in Andijan demands the resignation of the government, which claims that the situation is under control. (BBC) (Interfax) (CNN)
- At least twenty protesters – some reports say as many as 500 – are shot dead in Uzbekistan. Thirty soldiers have been taken hostage as a result. (Yahoo!) (BBC) (The Guardian)
- A man is fatally shot outside Israel's embassy in Tashkent. The man, who has a history of mental illness, was carrying wooden objects, and guards suspected him of being a suicide bomber. He walked through to the building, despite warning shots in the air and a bullet to the leg, and was eventually shot dead. The American embassy reported he was a suicide bomber and one Uzbek police officer said the man was carrying only a harmless package. However, it was later reported that the man was carrying a mock explosive belt. (Haaretz), (Ynet)
- Michael Ross becomes the first person executed in the U.S. state of Connecticut since 1960. He was convicted in 1987 of the murder of four girls and young women. He confessed to having committed four more killings. (CNN)
- Anime Central 8 kicks off today with over 10000 attendees.
May 14 2005 (Saturday)
- For the first time, a helicopter lands on top of the world's highest mountain, Mount Everest in Himalaya. The standard production model Eurocopter Ecureuil/AStar AS350 B3, piloted by the Eurocopter ex-test pilot Didier Delsalle, landed at the summit at 07:08 NPT (01:23 UTC). After staying for 2 minutes, Delsalle lifted off and returned to the base camp at Lukla. (MountEverest.net)
- South Korea announces it will restart bilateral talks with North Korea for the first time in over a year on Monday. Discussion topics are expected to include North Korea's nuclear weapons program. (Reuters)
- A 6.9 magnitude earthquake strikes Sumatra in Indonesia. (VOA) (Earth Times)
- Unrest In Uzbekistan:
- Thousands of protesters reappear on the streets of Andijan in Uzbekistan despite Friday's heavy bloodshed. (BBC)
- Uzbek President Islam Karimov blames militants for the violence. (National Post)
- In Taiwan, despite a low voter turnout, the Pan-Green Coalition wins the National Assembly election, with 49.6 % of the votes and 149 seats out of the 300 in the National Assembly of the Republic of China. (Reuters) (CNN)
- Peter Gloystein, financial minister for the German state of Bremen, resigns from his posts after he was photographed pouring a bottle of wine over a homeless man (Deutsche Welle) (SBS) (BBC)
- Suspected Guatemalan drug lord Otto Roberto Herrera Garcia escapes from prison in Mexico City. He was held pending extradition to United States. (BBC) (Reuters AlertNet)
- 28 men in Sudan are sentenced to 5–15 years in jail for connection in a coup attempt. The government claims that they are connected to Islamist Popular Congress Party, but the party denies the allegations. (BBC) (Reuters AlertNet)
- The new Big L Radio London International Studios are opened by Sir Cliff Richard
May 15 2005 (Sunday)
- Israeli-Palestinian conflict:
- Shin Bet head Avi Dichter finishes his 5-year term and Yuval Diskin is appointed as his replacement. (Ynet)
- Israeli right wing students begin a hunger strike in protest of the Israel unilateral disengagement plan of 2004. (Haaretz) (Ynet)
- Amid continuing unrest In Uzbekistan, the city of Andijan is sealed. British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw says there has been "a clear abuse of human rights" in Uzbekistan. (BBC)
- US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice visits Iraq and calls for patience in the political struggle against the insurgency. Meanwhile, the bodies of 34 people are found at locations in Baghdad, Iskandariya, and Ramadi, all apparently having been executed. (BBC)
- After a couple of days of delay, Zimbabwe frees 61 alleged mercenaries accused of connection to coup attempt in Equatorial Guinea and allows them return to South Africa. The men say they were told they were hired to guard mines in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. One man remains in Zimbabwe due to tuberculosis. (News24) (Iafrica) (IOL) (Telegraph) (Reuters)
- In the Côte d'Ivoire, government and rebels agree to begin disarmament and formation of unified army in June 27. (ReliefWeb) (Reuters AlertNet
- Burundi president Domitien Ndayizeye and Agathon Rwasa, leader of the last of the rebel groups, Hutu Forces of National Liberation, sign a peace deal in a meeting in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. (IPPMedia, Tanzania) (IOL) (ReliefWeb) (BBC)
- Las Vegas, Nevada celebrates its centennial on this date. Celebration is citywide and the mayor cuts the worlds largest birthday cake.
May 16 2005 (Monday)
- The National Assembly of Kuwait votes 35-23 in favor of women's suffrage, effective for the 2007 Parliamentary Election. Though the law mentions it should be subject to Islamic law, it is speculated this will only mean gender-segregated polling places. (Yahoo!)
- Many French workers stay at home to protest over government's cancellation of Whit Monday holiday. Seven unions ask their workers to strike and many businesses stay closed. (BBC) (Bloomberg) (Reuters), (Wikinews)
- Ethiopian prime minister Meles Zenawi bans demonstrations in the capital Addis Ababa for one month after Sunday's parliamentary elections. Opposition parties, especially Coalition for Unity and Democracy accuse government of electoral fraud and harassment of their election observers. No results have been published yet. (News24) (BBC) (Forbes) (Wikinews)
- Unrest in Uzbekistan: Uzbek soldiers seal off the town of Qorasuv after locals take over government buildings. The government denies giving an order to fire at protesters but they do not let journalists or the Red Cross visit the affected areas to evaluate the situation. Phone and internet access has been cut. There are varying reports of at least 700 people dead and continuing firefights in Andijan and other towns like Teshiktosh. Saidjahon Zaynabitdinov, head of the local human rights advocacy group Appeal, says that government troops had killed 200 in Pakhtabad and expects mass arrests. Opposition supporters and human rights campainers rally in the capital Tashkent. Hundreds of refugees have fled over the border of Kyrgyzstan; they believe that the death toll may be in thousands. (IHT) (CBC) (Reuters AlertNet)