In Iraq, the radical Islamist group, Army of Ansar al-Sunna, kill 12 Nepali civilians employed as cooks and cleaners, stating "We have carried out the sentence of God against 12 Nepalis who came from their country to fight the Muslims and to serve the Jews and the Christians w/. believing in Buddha as their God" (Reuters)
Two amateur FrenchEgyptologists claim to have discovered, using radar, a previously unknown corridor inside the Great Pyramid of Khufu. They believe the corridor would lead directly to Khufu's burial chamber, a room which – if it exists – is unlikely to have been accessed since the burial and may still contain the king's remains. (The Guardian)(AustBC)
The Lebanese Cabinet, under Syrian pressure and despite widespread opposition, votes to modify the constitution to allow President Émile Lahoud a second term in office. Patriarch Sfeir states "we have completely lost sovereignty of our territory and our independence and freedom in choosing our rulers and deciding our own affairs." (NYT)
The British Royal Society, with 68 other organizations, urges the UN to ban reproductive but not therapeutic use of the technology in response to a US bid to ban human cloning altogether. (BBC)
Between 5,000 and 6,000 participants take part in the Critical Mass bicyclist ride as part of the 2004 Republican National Convention protest activity. The monthly NYC Critical Mass ride usually attracts about 1500 riders. Police eventually arrested 264 people for deliberately blockading roads during the event. This is the first time the NYPD made any significant arrests of Critical Mass participants. (NYC-IMC)
Interbrew completes its merger with Ambev. Both were among the top five largest breweries in the world, and together they will become the largest, when measured by volume. The merged company will be called InBev(Bloomberg)
The FBI has launched a full espionage investigation into Larry Franklin after obtaining evidence pointing to a high-ranking spy in the Pentagon. According to CBS News, the spy has been giving classified secrets to Israel which could compromise U.S.national security. Israel denies the charges.
Following the intervention of Grand AyatollahAli al-Sistani, an agreement is found to end the standoff in Najaf. Although the terms are not clear, the deal requires both the al-Sadrmilitia and U.S. troops to leave the city, to be replaced by the police interim government. Responsibility for the Imam Ali Mosque goes to Sistani. (BBC) This resolution occurs two days before the one year anniversary of the assassination of Sayed Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim, a prominent Shi'ite cleric from Najaf.
The Interior Minister of France announces that the number of anti-Semitic attacks in France this year is more than double that of the same period last year. (Reuters)
Twenty-five people are killed and 100 wounded during a mortar attack on the main mosque in the Iraqi city of Kufa. 20 Shiite marchers in Kufa are killed and 70 wounded by gunfire. The identity of the attackers is unknown, reportedly though a source of gunfire was near an Iraqi National Guard base. (BBC)(Reuters)(CNN)(Albawaba)
Grand AyatollahAli al-Sistani begins negotiations with ShiiteclericMoqtada al-Sadr in a bid to end the fighting in Najaf for three weeks. Sistani tells thousands of Iraqis heading to the holy city to wait on the outskirts of Najaf. (khaleejtimes) Ayatollah Sistani calls a pause in fighting, telling protesters to stay home, and urging all forces to withdraw. US and Iraqi troops suspend attacks for 24 hours. (CSMonitor)(Reuters)
Astronomers announce the discovery of a third extrasolar planet orbiting Mu Arae. The planet may be the first rocky world detected orbiting a star other than the Sun.
High-level American military leaders are said to be at least partly responsible for abuses of Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison in a report written by an investigative panel headed by James Schlesinger. (Toronto Star)
French police launch a manhunt as Cesare Battisti, a wanted left-wing extremist who was facing extradition from France to Italy, goes missing. (BBC)
Grenade attack on Bangladesh Awamee League, the bigest political party in this country. Party precident Sheikh Hasina was injured. Total 22 were Died, more than were 1000 injured. This is the 2nd Black day for Bangladesh after 15 August 1975.
At the Non-Aligned Movement summit in Durban, South African President Thabo Mbeki calls for reform of the UN and other international institutions, saying that developing countries should not allow powerful nations to dictate the world on their own terms. (BBC)
Israel's prime minister, Ariel Sharon, vows to press on with his disengagement plan, despite it receiving another rejection from his Likud party. (BBC)
Nature magazine reveals that five new satellites and a further candidate moon have been discovered orbiting Neptune, bringing its tally to 13. (BBC)
In a statement issued from his Baghdad office, Shiite Muslim cleric Muqtada al-Sadr agrees to order his militia to leave the Imam Ali Mosque in Najaf, Iraq, after threats by Prime Minister Iyad Allawi's government to "liberate" it. Al-Sadr further agrees to disband his Jaish-i-Mahdi militia, and enter the "mainstream political process". It remains unclear when the withdrawal will actually take place. (CNN)(Reuters)
After 60 mm (2.4 in) of rain in two hours, severe flash flooding at Boscastle in Cornwall, UK, results in buildings, roads, and over 50 cars swept away. Flood waters race through town at speeds up to 65 km/h (40 mph). Many have to leave their homes; helicopters airlift 150 people to safety. (BBC)(Reuters)
Same-sex marriage in Canada: Federal justice minister Irwin Cotler announces that the federal government will no longer resist court proceedings aiming to require provincial governments to issue same-sex marriage licences. (Toronto Star)
1,300 Iraqi delegates begin a three-day conference in Baghdad to select an interim national assembly. The area of the conference is attacked by mortars, which kill one person and wound 17. (Reuters)
1,600 Palestinians in Israeli jails begin a liquids-only diet, which they are describing as a hunger strike to protest against their prison conditions. Israeli Internal Security Minister Tzahi Hanegbi comments: "As far as I'm concerned, they can strike for a day, a month, until death." (BBC)
India's Independence Day celebrations are marred by a bomb blast that kills some 18 people at a parade in Dhemaji, Assam. Immediate suspicion falls on ULFA separatists. (BBC)
Same-sex marriage in Canada: Three Nova Scotia couples have filed suit requesting that the provincial government be ordered to issue them marriage licences. Such a ruling would make Nova Scotia the fifth province or territory to recognize same-sex marriages. (365Gay.com)
US planes bomb the city of Samarra, north-west of Baghdad. In Najaf, a fragile ceasefire holds, with Muqtada al-Sadr making defiant statements but continuing negotiations. The Allawi government decides to withdraw from the negotiations in the afternoon. (BBC)(BBC)(BBC)
Aides to rebel IraqiShia cleric Moqtada al Sadr report that he has been wounded in fighting in the holy city of Najaf; the government denies the reports. The Najaf offensive triggers pro-Sadr protests in cities all over Iraq. (BBC)(protest pictures - BBC)
New JerseyGovernorJim McGreevey resigns his post effective November 15, saying that his extramarital homosexual affair would leave the governor's office "vulnerable to rumors, false allegations and threats of disclosure.". (CNN)
Pakistan announces that it will soon release 449 Indian prisoners, a majority of them fishermen who were detained for allegedly entering the country's territorial waters. (Navhind Times)
Bombs explode at two small hotels and a gas plant in the Turkish city of Istanbul, killing two people and injuring at least nine. (BBC)
The U.S. deals a major blow to German prosecutors at the re-trial of MoroccanMounir al-Motassadek, one of the only 9/11 suspects to face justice to date, by refusing to allow an alleged al-Qaeda member to testify via videolink, citing security concerns and the need to protect secret information. (BBC)
Fierce fighting continues between U.S. forces and backers of Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr. Sadr threatens that he "will defend Najaf until my last drop of blood." According to the U.S. military, U.S forces have killed 300 supporters of Sadr in some of the most violent clashes since the fall of Baghdad. (democracy now!)
Scientists speaking at a news conference on natural disasters raise the alarm that the Cumbre Vieja volcano on La Palma, Canary Islands, could erupt at any time, sending a 250 sq.km. rock crashing into the Atlantic Ocean and producing a tsunami that could devastate the Atlantic's coastline, within hours. Very little seismological monitoring of the volcano is being carried out. (BBC)
U.S. intelligence officials and non-government experts conclude that diplomatic efforts to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons to Iran and North Korea have failed to slow their weapons development programs.
Militants in Iraq kidnap the Iranian Consul assigned to Karbala, stating that the consul has been acting in ways incompatible with his diplomatic status. (Reuters)
Palestinian Authority Justice Nahed Arreyes resigns, stating that he has been stripped of much of his authority over the legal system. (AP)
Israel reopens the Gazaa href="Egypt.html" title="Egypt">Egypt border crossing after a three-weeks shutdown, allowing 1,500 Palestinians on the Egyptian side to return home. (AP)
Radical IraqiShia cleric Moqtada Sadr calls for a truce to be restored after a day of heavy fighting between his militia and U.S. troops in Najaf. (BBC)
The U.S. claims that over 300 of Sadr's fighters have been killed in two days of clashes. (Reuters)
Chess master Bobby Fischer, apparently seeking to avoid deportation to, and trial in the U.S., says he is renouncing his U.S. citizenship. (AFP)