August 25, 2009 (Tuesday)
- At least 40 people are killed and 57 wounded in a car bomb explosion in Kandahar, southern Afghanistan. (Reuters) (BBC) (The New York Times) (Aljazeera)
- British Prime Minister Gordon Brown repeats that the British Government played no role in the release from prison of Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, it being a matter for the Scottish Government. (Daily Telegraph)
- The Malaysian opposition party PAS defeats the government party UMNO in the by-election at Permatang Pasir, Penang. (Bernama)
- A suicide bombing in Mesker-Yurt, Chechnya, kills three police officers. (Yahoo! news) (BBC News)
- Madagascar's political rivals meet for a second round of talks in Maputo, Mozambique. (Reuters Africa)
- South Korea launches its first space rocket, Naro-1, but fails to put the STSAT-2A satellite into the planned orbit. (BBC News) (The Korea Times) (Yonhap)
- U.S. President Barack Obama nominates Ben Bernanke for his second term as chairman of the Federal Reserve. (Bloomberg)
- A bomb in Afghanistan kills four American soldiers, making 2009 the deadliest year for foreign troops since the 2001 invasion. (BBC)
- A gas explosion at a coal mine in Shanxi, China, kills at least 14 people. (China Daily) (BBC)
- The United States budget deficit for 2009 will reach $1.6 trillion, the highest ever recorded. (BBC)
- 42 people are injured after a car bomb explodes at a crowded restaurant with government officials in Narathiwat, southern Thailand. (Bangkok Post)[permanent dead link] (The Age)
- Syria and Iraq recall their ambassadors over a dispute following the recent bombings in Baghdad last week. (The Daily Star Lebanon) (Al Jazeera) (Syrian News Station)
- Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez announces plans to break off diplomatic relations with Colombia over the neighboring country's plan to allow U.S. troops access to its military bases. (CNN)
- The Morris Fire begins near Morris Dam in the Angeles National Forest. This fire is thought to have been caused by arson and is the first in a series of wildfires to burn through Southern California in 2009.