March 4, 2011 (Friday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- 2011 Libyan civil war:
- The United Kingdom Foreign and Commonwealth Office is investigating claims that a man from the English city of Manchester has been killed in the 2011 Libyan civil war. (Sky News)
- Al Arabiya reports that the city of Brega has been bombed by forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi. (Reuters)
- The Gaddafi regime blocks foreign journalists in a Tripoli hotel to stop them from reporting on the conflict supposedly for their safety. (AGI)
- Shots are fired by government forces during an anti-government protest in Tripoli. (Reuters)
- Interpol issues an international alert for Gaddafi and 15 of his family members and close associates to help enforce the UN sanctions against his regime. (AP via Forbes)
- Heavy fighting occurs in the town of Zawiya with at least 30 people dead. (AAP via SBS), (Sky News), (Reuters)
- Law enforcement in Tripoli uses tear gas to disperse protestors after Friday prayers. (BBC News)
- Anti-Gaddafi forces take control of the port town of Ra's Lanuf. (Reuters)
- A bomb explodes outside a mosque in Peshawar in the Pakistani province of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa with casualties feared. (DPA via Trends)
- North Yemen rebels claim that Government of Yemen forces have bombed a protest resulting in two people dead and seven injured. (Sky News), (Reuters)
- Protesters storm the State Security Intelligence building in Alexandria, Egypt after police officers had previously fired on the crowd. (Al Jazeera) (BBC)
- Fifty-three African Union peacekeepers were killed in fighting in Somalia. (Yahoo)
Arts and culture
- The Broadway production Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark is cited for three serious occupational safety and health violations by the US OSHA. (The New York Times)
Business and economy
- The marketing chief at Research in Motion, the Canadian company best known for the BlackBerry smart phone, is leaving. This surprise announcement concerning Keith Pardy may have an impact on the launch of a new product, the PlayBook tablet. (Reuters)
- A report by the Government Accountability Office claims that the US Government could save $5.5 billion over the next 30 years by replacing dollar bills with coins. (MyFox8)
Disasters
- An earthquake occurs offshore near the Philippines city of Surigao causing property damage. (AP via Atlanta Journal Constitution)[permanent dead link]
- The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board believes that there may have been a fundamental safety design problems with the device that failed to stop the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and has asked for more time to test it. (AP via MSNBC)
International relations
- North Korea steps up a campaign to block out news of the uprisings in the Middle East and North Africa to its population. (The Straits Times)
- The Blue House, the executive office and residence of the President of the Republic of Korea, and other Government of South Korea and South Korean financial corporations come under attack from a distributed denial-of-service. (Yonhap)
- The United Nations is investigating suspected transfer of weapons from Zimbabwe to Ivory Coast's incumbent President of the Ivory Coast Laurent Gbagbo in violation of UN sanctions. (Reuters)
- Queen Elizabeth II accepts an invitation from President of Ireland Mary McAleese to visit Ireland in May. (The Irish Times) (BBC) (RTÉ)
Law and crime
- Jared Lee Loughner has been indicted on 49 counts in relation to the 2011 Tucson shooting in the US state of Arizona. (Politico) (The Washington Post)
Politics
- China is to boost defence spending by 12.7% this year. (Mainichi Shimbun)
- Japan's Prime Minister Naoto Kan apologises over a fundraising scandal. (The Straits Times)
- Following a Yes vote in the referendum held across Wales on 3 March 2011, the Welsh Assembly obtains primary law-making powers, making it possible for it to legislate without having to consult the United Kingdom parliament, nor the Secretary of State for Wales in 20 previously devolved areas of legislation. (BBC)
- The British Labour Party retains the seat of Barnsley Central following a by-election. The Lib Dems, who had come second at the 2010 general election slump to sixth place behind the British National Party and UKIP. (BBC)
Science
Sport
- Real Madrid soccer coach José Mourinho evades being stabbed to death after a man wielding a knife attacks a member of the club's security staff at an airport in A Coruña, Galicia. (BBC News)
- ESPN reports that the US National Football League and the National Football League Players Association have agreed to extend talks on a collective bargaining agreement. (ESPN)