Portal:Current events/2011 November 16

• Syrian uprising:
  • The opposition Free Syrian Army kills at least eight Syrian soldiers in attacks on bases near Damascus and other targets in the country. (Times of India) (CNN)
  • France recalls its ambassador to Syria following attacks against diplomatic missions and increasing violence in the Syrian uprising against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad. (Ynetnews) (Times of India)
• Suspected US drone missiles kill 13 militants in a compound in Pakistan's South Waziristan province. (AP via Google News)

• The chairman of the U.S. House of Representatives' Oversight Committee, Darrell Issa, whose panel has been investigating charges that defunct lender Countrywide Financial used its VIP-lending program to buy influence, says that a forthcoming report will include "significant new findings" on that point. (Morningstar)

• Thai authorities consider constructing a waterway linking existing natural canals into a 200-km long "super-canal" that would hold 1.6B cubic meters of water and speed the draining of run-off to prevent flooding like that currently inundating Bangkok and other parts of the country. (CNN)
• Eighteen children and two adults die after an overloaded school bus collides with a coal truck in northwest China's Gansu province. (CNN)

• 2011 Tibetan self-immolation protests:
  • Tibetans demonstrate near the Chinese embassy in New Delhi, India, following recent self-immolations by Tibetan monks and nuns protesting the Chinese government's repressive policies in Tibet. (VoA) (San Francisco Chronicle)
  • The chief abbot of a Tibetan monastery, Kirti Rinpoche, condemns what he calls new and harsh repressive measures against the monks at the monastery where a series of self-immolation protests have occurred against Chinese rule. (The New York Times)
• The President of the United States Barack Obama arrives in Australia for a visit to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the signing of the ANZUS treaty; the United States and Australia announce an agreement to expand military cooperation between them, including the stationing of up to 2,500 U.S. Marines near Darwin. (CNN) (The Australian) (The New York Times) (BBC)

• Two bullets are found to have been fired at the White House in Washington, DC., one into a window that was stopped by bullet-proof glass. (CNN)

• Mario Monti is sworn in as Italian prime minister and temporary finance minister, with the task of implementing austerity measures to prevent the euro area's third-biggest economy from collapsing as a result of the debt crisis. (Business Week) (CNN)
• Gordon Lilo Darcy of the ruling National Coalition for Reform and Advancement is elected Prime Minister of the Solomon Islands in a 29-20 parliamentary vote over Milner Tozaka. (Solomon Times)
• The new Greek prime minister, Lucas Papademos, wins a vote of confidence in Parliament, opening the way for his government of national unity to take the steps to restore financial stability in Greece. (CNN)