April 15, 2013 (Monday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Boston Marathon bombings:
- Two explosions in Boston, United States, near the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon leave 3 people dead and 183 injured. (BBC) (CNN) (Reuters)
- The Pakistani Taliban denies any involvement in the Boston marathon bombings. (Los Angeles Times)
- 15 April 2013 Iraq attacks:
- Somali Civil War (2009–present):
- Canadian and Somali security forces probe for evidence that Mahad Ali Dhore, a former York University student, was part of the Mogadishu suicide bombings. (BBC) (The Star)
Disasters and accidents
- The pilot and co-pilot of a Lion Air plane that crashed at Ngurah Rai International Airport in Bali, Indonesia, pass initial drug tests, as investigators probe the causes of the accident that left dozens injured. (AFP via Channel NewsAsia)
International relations
- 2013 Korean crisis:
- BBC says that an edition of Panorama filmed secretly on a university study trip to North Korea will be broadcast, despite claims by the London School of Economics that students may have been put in danger. (BBC)
- North Korea suggests that it is open to peaceful negotiations, on the condition that its status as a nuclear power is not challenged. (RT)
- Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard announces that the late Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg has been made an honorary Australian citizen. (AFP via The Australian)
- A hearing into the territorial row between Thailand and Cambodia begins at the International Court of Justice in The Hague. (ABC/AFP via Radio Australia)
Law and crime
- Kuwaiti opposition leader Musallam Al-Barrak is given a five-year prison sentence for insulting Emir Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. (BBC) (Al Jazeera) (The New York Times)
Politics and elections
- Nicolás Maduro wins a narrow victory in Venezuela's presidential election over Henrique Capriles. Maduro is due to be sworn in as President of Venezuela on 19 April and is set to serve until January 2019, to complete the term of recently deceased President Hugo Chávez. Capriles refuses to acknowledge defeat and calls for a recount. (BBC) (The Hindu) (Al Jazeera)
- Croatia’s opposition coalition led by the Croatian Democratic Union wins six out of twelve seats in the country’s first ever vote for the European Parliament, while the ruling coalition led by the Social Democratic Party manages to take five seats. (Euronews)
Sport
- Ethiopian long-distance runner Lelisa Desisa wins the 2013 Boston Marathon with a time of 2:10:22, two hours before the Boston Marathon bombings occur. (AP via USA Today)
- Formula One chief Bernie Ecclestone dismisses concerns over this week's 2013 Bahrain Grand Prix as pro-democracy protests threaten to overshadow the event for the third year running. (AFP via Channel NewsAsia)
- Two football fans killed in the Brazilian football clashes near Fortaleza, Brazil. (BBC Sport)