and says that he foresees a time when there are no Jews in Gaza at all.
Pakistani nuclear scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan confesses to smuggling nuclear hardware on chartered planes, sharing secret designs for the centrifuges that produce the enriched uranium necessary to develop a nuclear weapon, and giving personal briefings to nuclear scientists from Iran, North Korea and Libya, believing that nuclear proliferation would "ease Western attention on Pakistan" and "help the Muslim cause"[7]
Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut, having earlier announced "Joementum", comes in second in Delaware
and announces his withdrawal from the race.
Nine
migrants attempt to reach Florida in a modified 1959 Buick that was converted to a boat. They are intercepted by the United States Coast Guard. The same group had made a similar attempt the summer before in a modified 1951 Chevrolettruck
.
The
Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack against www.microsoft.com at 13:09:18 (UTC).[16]
is reviewing the decision, that the Court's ruling is "deeply troubling", and that President Bush is "firmly committed to protecting and defending" marriage.
held that Jett was responsible for record keeping violations, but rejected the claim of SEC lawyers that he was guilty of securities fraud. Both the staff and Jett appealed to the full commission.
2003 invasion of Iraq: Responding to criticism that pre-war intelligence gathering was faulty, CIA director George Tenet states that analysts had never presented Saddam Hussein's Iraq as an "imminent threat" in the years immediately preceding the coalition invasion. Tenet states that an overall "objective assessment" for policymakers of a "brutal dictator who was continuing his efforts to deceive and build programs" that might "surprise" and "threaten" US interests was outlined in the 2002 National Intelligence Estimate.[25][26][27][28]
Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) with South Korea in 2001 that allowed such prosecutions, and this case marked the first time that an off-duty member of the U.S. military had been charged under that agreement.[29]
The
United States Department of Interior states that the survival of sea otters in southwest Alaska is threatened. The department proposes adding the sea otter, Enhydra lutris, to the government's endangered species list.[30]
The coalition government of Latvia, headed by PM Einars Repše, resigns, but will continue to work until the president appoints a new cabinet.[31]
Papua province of Indonesia and kills at least 23 people.[36]
At least 39 people are killed and around 120 injured in an explosion aboard a train on the
Chechen militants and their leader, Aslan Maskhadov. The Chechen rebel leadership issues a statement denying responsibility.[37][38][39]
A party of cockle pickers—believed to be Chinese immigrants – is caught by tides in Morecambe Bay, Lancashire, England, drowning at least 19 people.[40]
The UK
Ian Huntley concerning the Soham murders of 2001, could be released from prison in the next few days.[41]
New Orleans, Louisiana, starting that city's "Mardi Gras" season of parades
.
In a Gaza
military court, four suspects, without legal representation, are charged with possession of explosives and planting bombs in the same area as a bombing attack on a United States diplomatic convoy. The suspects are not charged with the bombing. The United States last week announced a $5 million reward for information leading to the apprehension of the attackers.[48]
Chechnya's
commuters and examine documents retrieved from the blast site.[52]
Islamic Jihad members in Gaza City, killing a leading Islamic Jihad militant and an 11-year-old boy.[53]
Up to 4000 protesters in
Prime Minister Fatos Nano whom they have accused of creating policies that impoverish Albanians.[54]
Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf admits that he had suspected for at least three years that Abdul Qadeer Khan, Pakistan's top nuclear scientist, was sharing nuclear technology with other countries, blaming the United States for not giving him convincing proof of the activities of his own scientist.[55]
Russian federal prosecutors close a murder investigation, one hour after it had been opened by Moscow's prosecutor office, in the case of missing presidential candidate, Ivan Rybkin. Rybkin was last seen five days ago.[56]
In Haiti, an armed uprising spreads to nearly a dozen towns in the western and northern areas of the island nation. The uprising is the strongest challenge yet to President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. At least 41 people have been killed.[57]
Judge
plea agreement with the Justice Department and has cooperated with the government in its investigation.[58]
An Italian intelligence report states that Italy is a departure point, as well as focus of logistic and financial support, for
al-Qaida and active against United States-led forces in Iraq. The suicide bombers were drawn from Muslim youths living on the fringes of society in Western Europe.[61]
The
French National Assembly votes (494 to 36) to banhijab and all other conspicuous religious symbols from state schools.[62]
The
National Guard service between May 1972 and May 1973.[63]
The oil cartel
crude by one million barrels a day beginning April 1, 2004. If all member states stick to the agreement, OPEC's daily output will be cut by about 10 percent.[64]
Recent violence in Haiti has spread as anti-government forces take control of eight towns in Western Haiti. 46 people are dead thus far. Government forces in Cap-Haïtien (second largest city in Haiti) built flaming barricades to keep the rebel forces out of the city. The United Nations urges Haitians on both sides to stop the violence.[65][66]
Hundreds of militants and their supporters staged a protest against the Palestinian Authority in the Gaza Strip for putting on trial four men charged in the bombing of a United States diplomatic convoy which killed three Americans. The closed military trial began on February 7.[67]
Occupation of Iraq: A large car bomb explodes in the central Iraqi town of Iskandariya, 25 miles (40 km) south of Baghdad, killing at least 50 people.[68]
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is seeking a full six-year term. The elections will be held on May 10.[70]
The missing Russian politician
Kiev, the capital of neighboring Ukraine, and is said to be on his way back to Moscow. According to his own words he "was entitled to two or three days of private life".[71]
Canada's
election. Alfonso Gagliano, a former cabinet minister involved in the scandal, is removed from his post as ambassador to Denmark and recalled to Canada.[72]
chips that can switch light like electricity.[77][78]
Comcast Corp. makes an uninvited bid for The Walt Disney Company. The US$50 billion to $66 billion deal would create the world's largest media company.
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission adopts enhanced mutual fund expense and portfolio disclosure, part of the continuing fall-out from the mutual fund late-trading scandal of 2003.[79]
U.S. Presidential Election, 2004: Retired General Wesley Clark officially announces his departure from the race.[80][81]
The Sudanese government cancels plans to attend scheduled peace talks in Geneva with western rebels just days after the Sudanese president proclaimed military victory in the insurgency. The talks were scheduled to begin February 14, 2004. At this time, the Sudanese government is contending with a southern rebellion as well.[82]
French prosecutors reveal that a
money-laundering probe into the transfers of millions of dollars to accounts held by the wife of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat was opened in October 2003. The probe was opened after discovering that nearly $1.27 million is transferred with some regularity from Switzerland to Mrs. Arafat's accounts in Paris. Tracfin, an organization that collates information about money laundering, detected the movements of funds.[83]
Occupation of Iraq: At least 47 people, mostly Iraqi army recruits, are killed by a car bomb in Baghdad in the second major bomb attack in two days.[84]
South Korea's parliament on Friday approves sending 3,000 troops to Iraq, responding to a call from the United States for military help in restoring stability to Iraq.[91]
Part of the source code for Microsoft's Windows NT 4 and Windows 2000 products has been leaked to the internet. It is thought that the leak constitutes only a part of the source, and may have originated from Mainsoft. Copies of something purporting to be the Windows source have been reported to be available on various file sharing networks.[92][93][94][95]
Occupation of Iraq: General John Abizaid, commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East, escapes injury when his convoy is attacked in Fallujah
French-Canadians, including telling them to speak English. The Canadian government condemns the comments. The Government of Ontario
, which had paid $1 million to sponsor the taping of four episodes of the show in Toronto to promote the city, also distances itself from the comments.
Mars Exploration Rover Mission: Mars surface temperatures appear to vary more frequently and dramatically than on Earth, preliminary data from NASA's Opportunity rover shows.[101]
Ivan Rybkin, a Russian presidential candidate and fierce critic of President Vladimir Putin, holds a press conference in London, stating that during his recent disappearance for several days he was drugged and made the subject of a compromising videotape.[105]
U.S. President George W. Bush opens his National Guard file for resolving questions about Vietnam era military service. Reportedly, released papers do not document Bush's Alabama service. Roswell businessman John Calhoun, 69, remembers Lt. George W. Bush worked weekends at an Air Force base in Montgomery.[106][107][108][109][110][111][112][113][114][115][116]
Wesley K. Clark endorses current Democratic favorite Senator John Kerry.[117]
United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan's plan for ending the partition of the island of Cyprus. The two sides will work under a tight timetable to agree by March 22 on reunification language that can be put to simultaneous islandwide referendums on April 21. Unless reunification is achieved, only the Greek Cypriot government will be entitled to enter the European Union on May 1.[118]
Iran admits it possesses a design for a far more advanced high-speed centrifuge to enrich uranium than it previously revealed to the International Atomic Energy Agency after being confronted with evidence obtained from the secret network of nuclear suppliers surrounding Pakistani scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan.[119]
The United States, in a major shift of policy on the Middle East, says it may support an
Occupation of Iraq: South Korea's parliament on Friday approves sending 3,000 troops to Iraq, responding to a call from the United States for military help in restoring stability to Iraq.[121]
The
Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, which has been involved in terror strikes." Their final report is expected in two months.[122]
A
United States National Guardsman stands accused of attempting to provide military data to Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda network.[123]
U.S. Constitution which would outlaw same-sex marriage and federalize marriage law, which has been set by individual states since the founding of the country.[127][128]
occupation of Iraq. The protests mark the one-year anniversary of the large protests against the U.S. invasion of Iraq. (Newsday)
Scientists at the California Institute of Technology announce the discovery of a galaxy which is the farthest known object in the universe. The galaxy was found with the help of the magnification effect from the Abell 2218 galaxy cluster. (AP)
Russian rescue workers are digging through what remains of an indoor water park in Moscow after the roof collapsed yesterday. At least 25 people have been killed, more than 100 people are injured, and at least 17 people are missing. (AP)(CNN)
Two fires sweep through China, one in a shopping center and the other in a temple, killing at least 90 and injuring 71. (AP)
The British government draws up plans to break up the
Temple in Jerusalem: An 800-year-old wall holding back part of the hill jutting out from the Western Wall leading up to the Mughrabim Gate partially collapses. Authorities believe a recent earthquake may be responsible. (BBC)(Sydney Morning Herald)
India and Pakistan begin formal peace negotiations, with Kashmir on the agenda. (BBC)
L. Paul Bremer, the United States administrator of Iraq states he will veto any interim constitution that would make Islam "the chief source of law", as opposed to "a source of inspiration for the law." Many Iraqi women express fears that the rights they hold under Iraq's longtime secular system may be denied them in the interim constitution based upon Islam as "the chief source of law." (NYT)
The United States states that Afghanistan's elections scheduled for this June may have to be postponed because of security problems and the failure to register enough voters. Only 8% of eligible Afghan voters have been enrolled to date. (NYT)
The
independence president, Chen Shui-bian, states that Taiwan may eventually reunify with Mainland China. Nonetheless, Chen rejects the People's Republic of China's one country, two systems formula which was applied to Hong Kong and Macau. This is a new step for Chen who, shortly after taking office in 2000, had said unification was just one option—comments widely seen as a push for independence for the island. (NYT)[permanent dead link
San Francisco, California, estimate by the end of the day that they will have issued 2,000 licenses for same-sex marriages in the four days since they started granting legal recognition to gay and lesbian unions. (Mercury News)
second general election since its creation. Of the 19 members, one is chosen by acclamation. Eight members of the previous government are returned to office, and five are defeated. The members will elect a premier
Roman Catholic diocese, is convicted of a hit and run making him the first Catholic bishop in the United States to be convicted of a felony. (Washington Post)[permanent dead link
The US FAA announces it will attempt to require a fuel tank inerting system in most large airliners in an effort to prevent fuel tank explosions such as the one which apparently destroyed TWA Flight 800 in 1996. The order could take two years to complete and then would require a retrofit of about 3,800 large Boeing and Airbus jets over the next seven years. (Newsday)(NYT)
A CNN survey finds that children made more than 11,000 allegations of sexual abuse by Catholic priests. The 4,450 accused priests represent about 4% of the 110,000 priests who served during the 52 years covered by the study. Nearly 3%, or 133 of the priests, had 10 or more allegations. (CNN)
Cardinal Walter Kasper, head of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity, a top
Russian Orthodox hierarchy, which accuses the Catholic Church of aggressive proselytizing in traditionally Orthodox lands. (NYT)(Russian Orthodox Church)
An outbreak of
Java, including the city of Yogyakarta. The number hospitalized is double that of last year. (BBC)(NYT)
Walt Disney Company unanimously rejects a hostile buyout offer by Comcast, saying the cable television giant's $66 billion bid is too low, but does not rule out accepting a higher bid in the future. (AP)
AT&T Wireless by offering to pay $40.7 billion to become the United States' largest wireless telephone company. (Forbes)
Proposition 22 Legal Defense and Education Fund's order for San Francisco to "cease and desist issuing marriage licenses to and/or solemnizing marriages of same-sex couples; to show cause before this court ..." had an improper semicolon; to do both, rather than one or the other, would have exceeded the judge's jurisdiction. (MSNBC)
The California state agency that records marriages states that forms that have been altered, which San Francisco has done slightly on its same-sex marriage licenses, will not be registered. (Washington Times)
Democratic presidential candidates would beat President Bush by at least 10 points. (VOA)
Palestinian land and property and deprived thousands of Palestinians access to water, health care and education. (ICRC)
A federal appeals court in the United States ruled that district court judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum, presiding judge in the much-watched Martha Stewart trial, was in the wrong in barring the media from the voir dire process at the beginning of that trial. (AP)
Scientists at NASA and the ESA witness a supermassive black hole in galaxyRX J1242−11 graze, partially consume, and tear apart a star. This is the first time such a phenomenon has been observed. (NASA)
Soviet bloc nations and NATO in peacekeeping and other areas. (NYT)
Arab immigrant communities in France, Belgium and other European countries are blamed for the rise in attacks against Jews in Europe. The European Union's European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia in Vienna, Austria, found the increase of anti-Semitic attacks was "committed above all either by right-wing extremists or radical Islamists or young Muslims mostly of Arab descent." (Haaretz)
Laura Bush states that same-sex marriage is "a very, very shocking issue" for some people. She hopes the subject can be debated by Americans together, rather than it be settled by a Massachusettscourt or the mayor of San Francisco. (USA Today)
States of emergency are declared in Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island, Canada, after a prolonged blizzard dumps 90 centimetres of snow on the provinces. This doubles the previous record, set in the 1950s. Roads are completely impassable, blocked with drifts of up to 3 to 4 metres. (CBC)
Lithuania's parliament starts impeachment proceedings against President Rolandas Paksas, who is charged with violating the constitution by leaking state secrets, rewarding a financial supporter with citizenship and illegally influencing companies. (Bloomberg)
11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals during the U.S. Congress's recess period, avoiding U.S. Senate confirmation. Pryor was first nominated in April 2003. (ABC US)
San Francisco judge denies request to immediately stop same-sex weddings. (Reuters)Archived 2005-04-08 at the Wayback Machine Homosexual couples win reprieve when the judge declines to stop San Francisco from granting them marriage licenses. (ABC US)
Democratic leaders try to withdraw from the divisive political issue of same-sex marriage. A Public Policy Institute of Californiapoll indicates that half of Californians oppose same-sex marriage. Some California Democratic officeholders were discontented over the matter becoming a national political issue. (SF Chronicle)
King Norodom Sihanouk, the constitutional monarch of Cambodia, states that he believes his country ought to allow same-sex marriage. He says he decided this upon seeing footage of same-sex couples marrying in San Francisco. He also says that transvestites ought to be well-treated in Cambodia. (Advocate)
suicide bombing of a city bus in Jerusalem, Israel. The Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades branch of Fatah claimed responsibility. The attack occurs one day before the start of hearings at the International Court of Justice regarding the Israeli West Bank barrier. "This attack proves just how urgent it is to build the fence", Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said. "It is a clear preventive measure … We will continue building it because it saves lives." The suicide bomber came from Husan, a populated area near Bethlehem. (NYT)(Haaretz)
Prime Minister Fatos Nano resign for failing to improve the economy. This protest, though a peaceful one, comes on the heels of a more violent protest two weeks ago in which protesters threw rocks at police and tried to storm the Prime Minister's office. (BBC)(ChannelNewsAsia)
No Child Left Behind's historic education reforms." (CNSNews)
The
Fatemeh Haghighatjou who is among the few female members.k[134]
The
RAH-66 Comanche helicopter program with US$8 billion already invested in the project and an additional US$450–680 million in contract cancellation fees to pay. The reconnaissance helicopter project is being phased out in favor of unmanned aerial vehicles. (Forbes)(Reuters)Archived 2004-12-10 at the Wayback Machine
domestic partnerships. However, he said that the FMA "meets his principles" in protecting the "sanctity of marriage" between men and women.(CNN)(USA Today)
Russian president Vladimir Putin dismisses Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov and implicitly the entire Russian cabinet less than a month prior to presidential elections. (CNN)(BBC)
2004 Haitian coup d'état: in the lead-up to the coup, rebels in Haiti have wrested large parts of the island from government control. The capital, Port-au-Prince is still held by supporters of the president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide. Supporters of the president vowed to defend the city and fight to the death.
Abdulrahman Shalgam, issues a statement reaffirming its acceptance of culpability for the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, after the Prime Minister Shukri Ghanem, in an interview for the BBC, claimed Libya had "bought peace" with the $2.7bn compensation payments, but had not accepted guilt. (BBC)(Mercury News)
, has been spotted in that state for the first time in 200 years.
The California Public Employees' Retirement System, CalPERS, a major shareholder in The Walt Disney Company, indicated that it will withhold its votes from Disney chief executive Michael Eisner at next week's shareholders' meeting, a new sign of a growing rebellion against Eisner's leadership, (TheStreet)
The controversial film, The Passion of the Christ opens in theaters in the United States. Jewish leaders fear the film will stoke antisemitism, while some Christians laud the realistic depiction of the last 12 hours in the life of Jesus. (Washington Post) A woman in Wichita, Kansas, collapses and dies of a massive heart attack while viewing the harrowing Crucifixion scene. (KAKE)
In the northern Uganda city of Lira, protests and riots cause at least nine deaths after the Ugandan army announces it killed 21 members of the Lord's Resistance Army, a rebel group, in retaliation for an attack on a refugee camp at Barlonyo. (CNN)
Ibrahim Ahmed Mahmoud al Qosi, both alleged to be Al-Qaeda members and charged with "conspiracy to commit war crimes". (BBC) The Pentagon also confirms that even if cleared by the tribunals, the defendants may still not be released. (BBC)
IDF soldiers fire against protesters against the Israeli West Bank barrier killing two and injuring 20, several of them seriously. (CNN)
The United States lifts a ban on travel to Libya, ending travel restrictions to the nation that had lasted for 23 years. (Reuters)Archived 2004-05-04 at archive.today
Expressions by Disney shareholders of a lack of confidence in its management continue. Five more state pension funds announced that they will not vote for the re-election of chairman (and chief executive) Michael Eisner at next week's meeting. These pension funds – New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Virginia – are following the lead of California – CalPERS made its announcement to the same effect Wednesday. (TheStreet)
Russian President Vladimir Putin opens the 2,165 km (1,345 mi)
Amur Highway connecting the Russian Far East alongside the Pacific to the rest of the country. Construction of the highway was begun in 1978. (Guardian)(Tri-Valley Herald)
The mayor of New Paltz, a village in New York State, announces that the town will start performing civil marriages for same-sex couples. It will not attempt to issue marriage certificates, but married couples in New York State have six months from the date of their wedding to seek a certificate. (365Gay)
Rosie O'Donnell marries her partner Kelli Carpenter at San Francisco City Hall. (AP)
