Portal:Current events/2007 October 15
October 15, 2007 (Monday)
- Montenegrin Prime Minister Željko Šturanović signs a Stabilisation and Association Agreement with the European Union, saying that Montenegro is hoping to lodge an official application for EU membership in the first half of 2008. (EUobserver)
- Battle of Las Anod: Troops from the breakaway Somali republic of Somaliland seize a town inside Puntland, a rival region loyal to the interim Somali government, killing at least 10 people. (Al Jazeera)
- Sir Menzies Campbell resigns as the leader of the Liberal Democrats in the United Kingdom, starting a leadership election. (The Guardian)
- Leonid Hurwicz, Eric S. Maskin and Roger B. Myerson are announced as winners of the 2007 Nobel Prize in Economics for having laid the foundations of mechanism design theory. (Nobelprize.org)
- Ibrahim Gambari, the United Nations special envoy to Myanmar, warns the Burmese government to stop arresting dissidents. (Reuters Canada)
- Airbus delivers its first A380 aircraft to launch customer Singapore Airlines in a ceremony in Toulouse, France, almost 18 months behind schedule, but denies rumours that further delays to the programme are looming. (BBC News) (Reuters UK)
- William Street underground platforms and The Esplanade Station begin service in Perth, Western Australia. Part of the New MetroRail project, they are the first stations to open on the new Mandurah Line. (ABC News Australia)
- Police raids are made across New Zealand under the Terrorism Suppression Act, with individuals supporting Māori sovereignty targeted, and arrested, for their alleged involvement in paramilitary activities. Activist Tame Iti is among those arrested. (The New Zealand Herald)
- The 17th National Congress of the Communist Party of China opens in Beijing, China, marking the beginning of a 7-day conclave of China's top leadership. General Secretary Hu Jintao delivers the work report for the past five years, and sets the party's direction in the coming five years. Hu also said in the keynote speech that the Communist Party has "fallen short of the people's expectations". (BBC News) Xinhua
- Richard Brunstrom, the Chief Constable of North Wales Police, calls for all classified drugs to be legalised in the United Kingdom. He argues that the current policy of prohibition is not working, and is based on dogma. (The Independent)