January 16, 2011 (Sunday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- 2010–2011 Tunisian protests:
- Ali Seriati, the former head of presidential security, is arrested and accused of threatening state security by fomenting violence. (BBC)
- Gunfire is heard in the capital Tunis as political leaders attempt to form a new government. (Al Jazeera)
- Southern Sudanese leader Salva Kiir calls on the people of South Sudan to forgive the north for killings during the civil war. (BBC) (AFP)
- The online edition of The New York Times reports that U.S. and Israeli intelligence services collaborated in the development of the destructive computer worm Stuxnet to record Iranian operations and send them spinning out of control ahead of a sabotage attack against Iran. Testing is reported to have occurred at the heavily guarded Dimona complex in the Negev desert in Israel. (The New York Times)
- Nine civilians are killed in Baghlan, Afghanistan on their way to a wedding when they were blown up: 6 civilians are killed and 3 civilians are injured in Helmand after a minibus and a bomb collide. (BBC) (Al Jazeera)
Arts and culture
- The Social Network wins Best Motion Picture – Drama, while Colin Firth and Natalie Portman win Best Actor and Best Actress- Drama at the 68th Golden Globe Awards. (Moviefone)
Disasters
- A ship carrying 263 migrants sinks off the coast of Greece; 22 are missing. (AP)
- Further landslides and more rain are feared in Brazil which is dealing with the worst disaster in its history. (Al Jazeera)
- Three people are killed in a stampede at a three-storey nightclub in the Hungarian capital Budapest. (BBC)
Law and crime
- A man is sentenced to death in Egypt for killing Copts at a Christmas mass a year ago. (CNN) (Xinhua)
- Mark Kennedy, the undercover British police officer who posed as an activist, flees to the United States after his cover is blown. (Scottish Daily Record) (The Independent on Sunday)
- Supporters of the Pirate Party of Canada hold a protest in Calgary for increased freedom of the press and government transparency in defense of Julian Assange and the WikiLeaks website. (Calgary Herald)
- Magistrate Ilda Boccassini promises to cut pre-trial hearings and have Silvio Berlusconi's prostitution case in court by the summer. (The Observer)
Politics and elections
- Iran has continued covert attempts to purchase technology for its nuclear program through more than 350 companies, despite UN sanctions on Iran, the Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten reported, citing US diplomatic cables released by WikiLeaks. (Reuters) (The Jerusalem Post)
- The approval rating of Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan improves to 34% following a cabinet reshuffle. (AFP) (Daily Yomiuri)
- Leadership challenge to Taoiseach Brian Cowen:
- Taoiseach Brian Cowen announces his intention to lead the ruling Fianna Fáil party into the upcoming general election after spending the past two days consulting his party. He offers his colleagues a secret motion of confidence ballot in his leadership, scheduled for Tuesday. (BBC)
- Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin resigns and vows to challenge Cowen's leadership in the vote on Tuesday. (The Irish Times) (RTÉ) (BBC)
- Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi reaches 41 years in power; there are less than 24 months left until he is scheduled to become Africa's longest serving ruler, overtaking former Gabonese President Omar Bongo who died in 2009. (ZimEye)
- France's National Front confirms 42-year-old Marine Le Pen as party leader, succeeding her father Jean-Marie Le Pen. (BBC)
- Saad Hariri becomes caretaker Prime Minister of Lebanon following the collapse of his government due to resignation of 11 opposition ministers. (Daily Star)
- Former Haitian President Jean-Claude Duvalier returns to the country. (Reuters)
- An arrest warrant is sought in South Africa for Israeli Opposition leader, Tzipi Livni, of the Kadima Party, for alleged war crimes committed when she was Foreign Affairs Minister during the 2008-2009 Gaza War. (Haaretz) (The Jerusalem Post)
Sports
- 2011 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar:
- 2010–11 NFL playoffs
- New York Jets defeat the New England Patriots