Portal:Current events/2015 December 13

December 13, 2015 (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

War in North-West Pakistan
- At least 25 people are killed and dozens injured in a bombing at a second-hand clothes market in the city of
  Kurram Valley. (Pakistan Tribune) (The News)

Syrian Civil War

Eastern Ghouta and Saqba, that kill at least 35 people and injure many more, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. (AP via The Washington Post) (Reuters)

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant

Israel says an Arab-Israeli man who served in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has joined Islamic State militants in Syria. (Reuters)
2015 Burundian unrest
- The U.S. State Department issues a travel advisory for Burundi and advises its citizens there to leave as soon as possible due to the increased violence in the capital Bujumbura where 87 people were killed this weekend. Families of U.S. government personnel and non-emergency personnel have been ordered to leave immediately. (UPI) (US State)
Gaza–Israel conflict
- rocket fire from the Palestinian territory. (Ynet News) (The Times of Isarel)

The X Factor after beating Ghanaian duo Reggie N Bollie, becoming the show's youngest ever winner at the age of 17. her cover of Bob Dylan's 1974 track "Forever Young" released after she won.(Daily Mail)

International relations

European migration crisis
- On the eve of the
  immigration skeptics within the CDU to include a quota in the refugee policy motion the convention will vote on. (Jerusalem Post) (Bloomberg) (Reuters via International Business Times) (The Financial Times)

Russia–Turkey relations
- A Russian warship fires warning shots at a Turkish vessel in the Aegean Sea to "avoid a collision", according to the Russian Defence Ministry. (BBC)

Politics and elections

Houston mayoral election, 2015
- Veteran Texas lawmaker Sylvester Turner edges out businessman Bill King by just over 4,000 votes in Houston's runoff mayoral election. Turner, a Democratic member of the Texas House of Representatives since 1989, took 51 percent of the vote. King conceded defeat and encouraged Houston citizens to support the incoming mayor. Turner succeeds Annise Parker who was not eligible to run for re-election. (Reuters) (KHOU)
Saudi Arabian municipal elections, 2015
- Unofficial results show at least 17 Saudi Arabian women won municipal council seats in the kingdom's third-ever election, and the first to allow female participation. Voters elected representatives for two thirds of the municipal council seats. The government announced that 979 women were candidates. (Reuters) (NPR) (Daily Pakistan)
French regional elections, 2015
- With most of the votes counted, the
  National Front (FN) fails to win a single region but did record its best showing in its history. Voter turnout was 58 percent. Definitive results are expected Monday. (The Guardian) (Politico) (The Straits Times) (Sky News) (Reuters)

Central African Republic constitutional referendum, 2015

While voters in
Muslim neighborhood, killing at least two and injuring over 20. PK5 residents, visited by Pope Francis two weeks ago, marched to the U.N. headquarters in the country to complain they were unable to cast their ballots. The proposed constitution would limit a president to two terms, add an upper house to go along with the National Assembly, and fight institutional corruption. (France24) (Reuters) (Al Jazeera)

2015 protests in Brazil

Tens of thousands of Brazilians protest in cities around the country to demand that Congress impeach President Dilma Rousseff. The lower house of Congress opened impeachment proceedings on 2 December 2015. (Reuters) (AP via ABC News) (Reuters-Congress)