May 17, 2011 (Tuesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- 2011 Libyan civil war:
- A NATO airstrike on the Libyan capital Tripoli damages two government buildings. (Los Angeles Times)
- The Libyan oil minister, Shukri Ghanem, reportedly defects to Tunisia. (Al Jazeera)
- Libyan forces claim to have hit a NATO warship near Misrata, but NATO dismisses this as a "fabrication." (Reuters)
- 2011 Syrian uprising: At least one mass grave is reported to have been discovered in the city of Daraa; the government denies it exists. (BBC)
- NATO invasion of Pakistani airspace:
- A NATO helicopter based in Afghanistan intrudes into North Waziristan in Pakistan and fires at a Pakistan Army checkpoint, wounding two soldiers. (Reuters)
- The Pakistan Army protests, saying NATO "violated Pakistan airspace". (BBC)
- The U.S. killing of Osama Bin Laden may act as a precedent for "targeted killings," according to a report prepared by the library of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. (BBC)
- A "state of siege" is declared in northern Guatemala after a massacre is committed by The "Zetas" Drug Cartel. (AFP via Google News)
- A suicide bombing occurs in Aktobe, western Kazakhstan, injuring three people. (AFP via Google News)
Arts and culture
- The final episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show is recorded in the US city of Chicago. (Chicago Tribune)
Business and economy
- The publisher Condé Nast agrees to be the anchor tenant at One World Trade Center, the largest building of the World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan, and prospectively the tallest building in the United States. (New York Times)
Disasters
- Fukushima I nuclear accidents:
- Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) announces new plans to tackle the ongoing Fukushima I nuclear crisis, after it is discovered that the problems with the number 1 reactor at the Fukushima I plant are worse than thought. (Nikkei)
- TEPCO will also start pumping water from the flooded number 3 reactor. (Japan Times)
- The President of South Korea, Lee Myung-bak, calls for transparent release of nuclear safety information. (Yonhap)
International relations
- The Prime Minister of Pakistan Yusuf Raza Gilani commences a state visit to the People's Republic of China. (Reuters)
- Queen Elizabeth II's visit to the Republic of Ireland:
- Queen Elizabeth II starts her first state visit to the Republic of Ireland, the first visit of a British monarch since Ireland's independence from the United Kingdom in 1921. Elizabeth is also the first British monarch to visit Ireland since George V's state visit in 1911. (BBC) (RTÉ) (The Guardian)
- A suspect package is found in Dublin ahead of the Queen's visit. (Sky News) (The Daily Telegraph)
- Israel reopens its embassy in Cairo a day after it was closed following the 2011 Nakba Day protests. (Jerusalem Post)
- The Government of Canada expels five diplomats from the Libyan embassy in Ottawa. (Montreal Gazette)
Law and crime
- Burma begins to release thousands of prisoners in a general amnesty, though few political prisoners are released. (BBC) (The Hong Kong Standard) (Al Jazeera)
- The gold mining company African Barrick Gold says seven "intruders" have been shot dead and several injured at one of its mines in northern Tanzania. (Bloomberg)
- Dominique Strauss-Kahn rape scandal:
- IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn is remanded in custody at New York City's notorious Rikers Island jail after being dragged from a plane, charged with trying to rape a hotel maid and denied bail. (BBC)
- Pressure mounts for the jailed Dominique Strauss-Kahn to resign as head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). (BBC)
- Former Rwandan Armed Forces (FAR) chief of staff Augustin Bizimungu is sentenced to 30 years imprisonment for his role in the 1994 Rwandan genocide. (BBC)
- The US state of Arizona proposes that a $50 fine should be in place for overweight Medicaid recipients who do not follow a strict health regime discussed with the recipient and their doctor.(BBC)
- The Environmental Protection Agency delays its proposed rules for the United States for cutting pollution from industrial boilers used at oil refineries, chemical plants, paper mills and other factories. (Marketwatch)(WSJ)
Natural history
Politics and elections
- Indian National Congress MP Rahul Gandhi alleges that police murdered farmers and raped women during recent protests against a new road in Uttar Pradesh. (BBC)
- Former Governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger admits to fathering the child of a longterm member of his household staff. (Los Angeles Times)
Sport
- In golf, France is declared the host country for the 2018 Ryder Cup, defeating the favourite, Spain. (BBC Sport)
- The Cleveland Cavaliers win the NBA Draft Lottery earning first and fourth picks in the 2011 NBA Draft. (Cleveland Plain Dealer)
- An outbreak of Equine herpesvirus 1 in the western United States leads to the cancellation of scores of horse events such as equestrian events and rodeos. (Reuters)
- In Australia, football legend Bob Davis dies.