June 2008

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June 2008 is the sixth month of the current leap year. It began on a Sunday and will end after 30 days on a Monday. It is the current month.

1 International holidays
2 Scheduled events
3 Portal:Current events
4 References

International holidays

June 9 - Shavuot
June 20 - June Solstice, also known as Midsummer or Litha

Scheduled events

June 12 - Referendum on the Treaty of Lisbon in Ireland
June 14 - Expo 2008 scheduled to begin in Zaragoza, Spain.
June 27 - Zimbabwean presidential election runoff vote, Zimbabwe.

Portal:Current events

Current events of June 1, 2008 (2008-06-01) (Sunday) edit history watch

Thirteen people are killed and 14 others injured in a bus crash in Anzoátegui, Venezuela. (Xinhua)
At least 8 people are suffocated at the Samuel K. Doe stadium in Monrovia, Liberia in a 2010 World Cup qualification match between Liberia and Gambia. (AP via CNNSI)
The Rajasthan Royals led by Shane Warne win the first Indian Premier League cricket competition defeating the Chennai Super Kings in the final at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai. (AAP via Fox Sports)
United States presidential election, 2008: New York Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton wins the Puerto Rico Democratic primary, 2008. (The Guardian)
The Australian Army ends its combat role in Iraq, as about 500 troops withdraw from Nasiriyah. (Reuters)
Macedonian voters go to the polls for the Macedonian parliamentary election, 2008 with reports of violence in ethnic Albanian areas. The Prime Minister of Macedonia Nikola Gruevski claims victory for his centre-right party. (Reuters) (BBC News)
Voters in the Bolivian departments of Beni and Pando go to the polls for autonomy referendums. (AP via CNN)
A large fire breaks out at Universal Studios Hollywood in Los Angeles. There was at least one explosion. (Sky News)

Current events of June 2, 2008 (2008-06-02) (Monday) edit history watch

A SNCF train runs into a school bus at a level crossing at Mesinges, near the town of Allinges in the mountainous Haute Savoie area of France with at least six people killed. (Reuters)
Astronomers using the Mount John University Observatory discover MOA-2007-BLG-192-L b, the smallest known extrasolar planet which does not orbit a pulsar (PhysOrg.com)
A suicide bomber strikes outside the Danish embassy in the Pakistani capital Islamabad with at least eight people dead. (CNN)
Subprime mortgage crisis
- Wachovia, the fourth largest bank in the United States, fires its Chief Executive Officer, G. Kennedy Thompson, due to losses incurred in the subprime mortgage crisis. (Bloomberg)
- The Bank of England says that new mortgage approvals in the United Kingdom in April were at record lows. (The Guardian)
Supreme Court of the United States:
- In United States v. Santos, by a 5-4 decision, the United States Supreme Court takes a narrow interpretation of federal laws regarding money laundering, and uses the decision in Cuellar v. United States to unanimously overturn the money laundering conviction of Humberto Cuellar. (Fox News)
- The Supreme Court refuses to hear Major League Baseball Advanced Media v. C.B.C. Major League Baseball had sought to overturn a judgement against them in state court in Missouri that permitted C.B.C. to run fantasy baseball leagues using real player names without a license from MLB. (Sports Illustrated)
The International Atomic Energy Agency will send an inspection team to Syria to investigate claims by the United States that it was secretly building a nuclear reactor. (Reuters)
The United Nations Security Council goes on a mission to Africa with the first leg of the mission to Djibouti to discuss the Somali Civil War. (BBC News)
The United Nations Security Council unanimously passes a declaration allowing foreign naval vessels to enter Somali territorial waters to deal with pirates. (BBC News)

Current events of June 3, 2008 (2008-06-03) (Tuesday) edit history watch

400 metre relay team at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney following an admission that he used EPO and human growth hormone between 1997 and 2003. Michael Johnson, another member of the team, returns his gold medal on the grounds that it was "tainted". (AP via Forbes) (AP via CNN)
Antonio Pettigrew hands back the gold medal he won as part of the United States 4
China National Petroleum Corporation signs an agreement to produce oil in Niger. (BBC News)
General Motors announces it will close 4 pickup truck and sports utility vehicle factories in Janesville, Wisconsin, Oshawa, Ontario, Moraine, Ohio, and Toluca, State of Mexico, eliminating 10,000 jobs; it also announces plans for a small car that will achieve 45 miles per gallon in response to rising fuel prices. (AP via Google News)
NASA reveals that Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center sustained unusual amounts of damage during the launch of STS-124. They are unsure what caused the damage, but are certain it will not cause any delay for the next launch, STS-125, in October. (CBS News via Spaceflight Now)
United States Democratic Party primaries, 2008:
- Illinois Senator Barack Obama wins the Democratic Party presumptive nomination, becoming the first African American to be nominated by a major party. (AP via Time), (BBC)
- Senator Obama wins the Montana Democratic primary, 2008.
- New York Senator Hillary Clinton wins the South Dakota Democratic primary, 2008. (BBC)
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization opens the High-Level Conference on World Food Security in Rome, focusing on the world food price crisis, climate change and agriculture and food vs fuel issues.
Three people are dead and many more injured as a result of flooding in the Zollernalbkreis region in the German state of Baden-Wuerttemberg. (CNN)

Current events of June 4, 2008 (2008-06-04) (Wednesday) edit history watch

The Detroit Red Wings defeat the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-2 in the sixth game to win the 2008 Stanley Cup Finals 4-2. (AP via Google News) (CBC)
Al-Qaeda claims responsibility for the 2008 Danish embassy bombing stating it was revenge for the Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy. (Bloomberg)
Tony Rezko, a Chicago property developer and former fundraiser for Barack Obama, is convicted on 16 charges of corruption. (Chicago Tribune via Los Angeles Times)
A coolant leak at Krško Nuclear Power Plant in Slovenia triggers the European Union's ECURIE nuclear emergency alert system. Slovenian authorities state the situation is under control, with no radiation leak into the environment. (BBC News)
Reassembly of the Obelisk of Axum begins in Axum, after the monument was returned to Ethiopia from Italy in 2005. (BBC News)
The International Olympic Committee releases a shortlist of 2016 Summer Olympics bids consisting of Chicago, United States; Tokyo, Japan; Madrid, Spain; and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Sports Network)
Zimbabwean police detain Movement for Democratic Change leader Morgan Tsvangirai while campaigning in the second round of the Zimbabwe presidential election. He is later released after eight hours in detention. (The Times) (BBC News)
Lithuanian Prime Minister Gediminas Kirkilas announces plans to avoid recession as growth of the Lithuanian economy slows. (Bloomberg)
The Malaysian government announces a 40% increase in fuel prices, with gasoline rising from 1.92 ringgit (US$0.61) per litre to 2.70 ringgit by midnight. (BBC News) (International Herald Tirbune)

Current events of June 5, 2008 (2008-06-05) (Thursday) edit history watch

An Irish opinion poll shows the EU Treaty of Lisbon heading for defeat. (The Irish Times)
American and British diplomats are detained in Zimbabwe. (France24)
The United States Secretary of Defence Robert Gates announces the resignation of United States Secretary of the Air Force Michael Wynne and his Chief of Staff General T. Michael Moseley over the 2007 United States Air Force nuclear weapons incident. (Washington Post)
The USS Essex, USS Juneau, USS Harpers Ferry and USS Mustin depart the coast of Burma as the State Peace and Development Council maintains its refusal of the ships' aid in Cyclone Nargis relief. (AP via Google News)
Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four others are arraigned at Guantanamo Bay detention camp under the Military Commissions Act of 2006, and charged with crimes related to the September 11, 2001 attacks. (AP via Google News)
Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo of the International Criminal Court reports that crimes in the War in Darfur "required the sustained mobilization of the entire State apparatus" of Sudan. (allAfrica.com) (BBC News)
A fire destroys major parts of the Rådhuset court house in Stockholm, the architectural landmark designed by Carl Westman. (The Local) (Svenska Dagbladet)
Turkey's Constitutional Court reinstates a ban on the hijab in universities, citing the constitution's secular principles. (BBC News)
Prime Minister of Israel Ehud Olmert says that "the end of Iran's nuclear program is near". (Haaretz)
Burma detains activist and comedian Zarganar who has been involved in private relief efforts for the victims of Cyclone Nargis and seize his computer and banned films including Rambo IV. (Reuters)

Current events of June 6, 2008 (2008-06-06) (Friday) edit history watch

After five years of searching, the Caribbean Monk Seal is declared officially extinct (MSNBC)
Japan and North Korea resume bilateral talks, last held in September 2007. (BBC News)
Colombia and Ecuador restore relations following the Andean diplomatic crisis in March. (BBC News) (Reuters)
A Venezuelan National Guard sergeant and 3 more people are captured in the Colombian Department of Vichada with 40,000 AK-47 rounds for the rebel group FARC. (El Tiempo) (Noticias24)
The Diet of Japan recognizes the Ainu as an indigenous people for the first time. (BBC News) (Yomiuri Shimbun)
The Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc-Our Ukraine Bloc coalition loses its majority in Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada after two deputies quit. (BBC News)
The America's Climate Security Act of 2007, a greenhouse gas emissions reduction bill, stalls in the U.S. Senate after a 48-36 vote fails to invoke cloture on a Republican filibuster. Presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama were among six senators absent from the vote who expressed support for the bill. (AP via San Jose Mercury News) (BBC News)
A rush-hour explosion targeting a bus in Colombo, Sri Lanka kills at least 21 people and injures 80. (BBC News)
The price of a barrel of crude oil rises a single-day record of nearly US$11, settling at a new record of US$138.54. (CNN)
Joseph Muscat becomes the leader of the Malta Labour Party, to become the opposition leader of Malta, to take the place of Charles Mangion, after the resignation of Alfred Sant. (Times of Malta)

Current events of June 7, 2008 (2008-06-07) (Saturday) edit history watch

Big Brown becomes the first Triple Crown favorite to place last in the 2008 Belmont Stakes in New York. The undefeated colt previously won the 2008 Kentucky Derby and the 2008 Preakness Stakes. The 38/1 longshot Da'Tara wins in a wire-to-wire finish. The last Triple Crown winner was Affirmed in 1978. (The Ledger)
The Lord's Resistance Army, reportedly drafting recruits and acquiring new weapons, kills at least 23 people in attacks against south Sudanese troops. (Reuters) (BBC News)
Hillary Clinton suspends her presidential campaign and endorses Barack Obama as the Democratic candidate for President of the United States in the 2008 election. (CNN)
UEFA Euro 2008 begins in Austria and Switzerland. (Swissinfo)
Attackers exchange gunfire with guards at Kosovo's Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi's home. (BBC News)
Cuba offers free sex reassignment surgery. (Reuters)
In tennis, Ana Ivanović defeats Dinara Safina to win the French Open. (ESPN)
Plymouth Argyle goalkeeper, Luke McCormick is held on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving. (Sky News)

Current events of June 8, 2008 (2008-06-08) (Sunday) edit history watch

Two bombs explode at a train station near Algiers, Algeria, killing at least 12 people. (BBC News)
A fire sweeps through the historic Texas Governor's Mansion, leaving much of the 152-year-old building charred and severely damaged. (AP via Google News)
A dispute between Southern Sudan and the central Sudanese government over Abyei will go to international arbitration. (BBC)
Robert Kubica of the BMW Sauber team wins the 2008 Canadian Grand Prix, becoming the first Pole to win a Formula 1 Grand Prix auto race, and giving BMW its first win as a constructor. (F1-live) (Formula1) (Wikinews)
At least two people have been killed as an earthquake rocked southern Greece, collapsing buildings and causing panic. (CNN)
The government of Southern Sudan withdraws its mediation efforts at the Juba talks between Uganda and the rebel Lord's Resistance Army. (The Uganda Monitor)
At least 37 miners go missing after an explosion in an Ukrainian coal mine causes it to collapse. (RTÉ) (BBC News)
At least 7 people are killed and 10 injured in a stabbing spree in Tokyo, Japan, coinciding on the 7th anniversary of the Osaka school massacre. (RTÉ) (BBC News)
In tennis, Rafael Nadal wins the men's singles title at the 2008 French Open for the fourth year in a row, equalling Bjorn Borg's record. (BBC News)
A day of mourning is declared in Russia's Kaliningrad Region as the death toll from Thursday's explosion and fire on the MV Yenisei reaches eight, with two missing. (Xinhua) (Wikinews)

Current events of June 9, 2008 (2008-06-09) (Monday) edit history watch

French foreign minister Bernard Kouchner warns Ireland, saying the Irish would be the "first victim" if they reject the EU Treaty of Lisbon. (RTL France)
June 2008 Midwest Flood: A stalled storm system in the midwest of the United States causes further heavy flooding in Indiana, Iowa and Wisconsin with storms on the weekend causing 10 deaths in four states. (The New York Times)
Pakistan lawyers begin a "Long March" of protests against the Government of the President of Pakistan Pervez Musharraf calling for the reinstatement of judges dismissed last year including the former Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry. (The Guardian)
24 miners are rescued from the Ukrainian coal mine collapse with 12 still missing and one reported fatality. (Reuters)
A further three British Conservative MEPs (Robert Atkins, Sajjad Karim, and John Purvis) are facing allegations of financial abuse, following the resignation of two fellow members from European Parliament positions last week. (The Independent) (The Daily Telegraph) (The Times) (The Courier)
Ali Al-Naimi, the Saudi Arabian oil minister calls for a meeting of oil producing and consuming nations to discuss record oil prices. (AP via ABC News)
Apple, Inc. introduces a new iPhone with 3G capabilities, a GPS, and new features. The device is called iPhone 3G. (Business Week)
IBM and Los Alamos National Laboratory break processing speed barrier with the world's first petaflop computer, Roadrunner. (Network World)
India's prime minister Manmohan Singh calls for global nuclear disarmament asking world countries to create 'timebound framework' to rid the world of atomic weapons. (VOA)

Indonesia makes the practice of the Ahmadiyya form of Islam in Indonesia a crime punishable by five years in prison. (BBC News)
McDonalds stops serving sliced tomatoes in its hamburgers in the United States following a Salmonella Saintpaul outbreak linked to raw tomatoes. (Chicago Tribune)
Tens of thousands of Spanish truck drivers start an indefinite strike over the increases in the price of diesel. (BBC)
The government of the Indian state of Rajasthan meets with leaders of the Gujjar community after two weeks of protests over the reservation system. (BBC News)
The President of the United States George W. Bush commences the last visit to Europe of his presidency. (USA Today)
The United States Secretary of Defense Robert Gates nominates Norton Schwartz to be the next Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force with Michael B. Donley nominated as the next United States Secretary of the Air Force. (RTT)

Current events of June 10, 2008 (2008-06-10) (Tuesday) edit history watch

Two Kenyan ministers – Roads Minister Kipkalya Kones and Assistant Home Affairs Minister Lorna Laboso – die in a plane crash near Narok in western Kenya while traveling to campaign in by-elections. (BBC)
President of Venezuela Hugo Chávez revokes an intelligence law that opposition groups and the Roman Catholic church claim would have forced citizens to become government informants and asks the National Assembly to develop new legislation. (Bloomberg)
A Moroccan court sentences 29 people to prison sentences for recruiting people to fight for militants in Iraq. (Reuters)
President George W. Bush attends the final United States-European Union summit of his Presidency with agreements to tighten sanctions against Iran for its nuclear program. (AP via Google News)
United States Republican senators block moves to levy a windfall profits tax on oil companies. (Marketwatch)
Water from the Tangjiashan Lake, created in the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, floods the abandoned town of Beichuan. (Reuters)
South Korea's cabinet, led by Prime Minister Han Seung-soo, offers to resign following widespread protests at decisions to resume US beef imports in South Korea. (BBC News) (CNN)
A plane crashes on landing at Khartoum International Airport in Khartoum, Sudan, with around 200 on board. The death toll is 28 with 66 people unaccounted for.(CNN) (BBC), (AFP/Reuters via ABC News)
A series of strong thunderstorms track through Southern Quebec, causing heavy damage south of Montreal and leaving over 250,000 people out of electricity. Champlain Bridge is closed for several hours after a wind gust causes over a half-dozen semi-trailer to tip on their side.(CBC), (SRC).