August 9, 2005 (Tuesday)
- Space Shuttle Discovery, the craft for the STS-114 mission, lands at 05:12 PDT (12:12 UTC) at Edwards Air Force Base in California. (BBC) (BBC)
- Mahmoud Abbas, President of the Palestinian Authority, has announced that there is to be a Palestinian general election in January 2006. (BBC)
- Israel orders Israeli settlers on the Gaza Strip to leave their settlements or face eviction. (BBC)
- Conflict in Iraq:
- The Mayor of Baghdad, Alaa al-Tamimi, has been removed from office after 120 armed men, operating on behalf of the Interim Iraqi Government, stormed his office and installed the provincial governor in his place. (BBC)
- 10 members of the Iraqi police have been shot dead following insurgent attacks across Baghdad and in Baqouba, Iraq. (BBC)
- At least three civilians have died following a suicide car bomb in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad. (BBC)
- Mamadou Tanja, the President of Niger, has denied reports claiming a famine in Niger. (BBC)
- A committee in Sudan is formed to investigate the death of vice-president John Garang in a helicopter crash. (BBC)
- American actor Matthew McGrory dies from natural causes at his home.
- A chemical plant explodes in Romulus, Michigan (20 miles southwest of Detroit). No persons were injured; nearby residents were evacuated from their homes.