October 18, 2011 (Tuesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- 2011 Syrian uprising: At least 25 people are killed in the Syrian city of Homs after tanks and security troops open fire on anti-regime protesters. (Reuters)
- Kenyan Army soldiers, supported by aerial forces, continue their advance into Somalia, approaching an al-Shabab-controlled town 120 kilometres (75 mi) from the Kenyan border. (BBC)
Business and economy
- Moody's downgrades Spain's credit rating to A1 after Standard & Poor's and Fitch downgraded Spain's rating two weeks ago. (Wall Street Journal)
- Year-over-year GDP growth in the People's Republic of China slows to 9.1% for the third quarter of 2011, following government efforts to curb inflation. (News Limited)
- Motorola introduces the Droid RAZR, the world's thinnest smartphone. (MSNBC)
- Taiwanese smartphone manufacturer HTC loses a patent infringement case in the United States, with the United States International Trade Commission ruling that Apple Inc.'s iPhone technology does not violate HTC's patents. (BBC)
- A bill to takeover the capital city of Harrisburg, rather than have it file for Chapter 9, clears the Pennsylvania State Legislature. The Governor of Pennsylvania, Tom Corbett, is expected to sign it. (Reuters)
- Spaceport America officially opens in New Mexico as the world's first purpose-built commercial spaceport. (Sydney Morning Herald) (BBC)
Disasters
- The Governor of Bangkok, Sukhumbhand Paribatra, appeals for 1.2 million sandbags to protect the Thai capital from encroaching floods, which have killed over 300 people nationwide since July. (Business Week)
International relations
- Israel and the Palestinian militant organization Hamas begin a major prisoner swap, in which the captured Israeli Army soldier Gilad Shalit is released by Hamas in exchange for 1,027 Palestinian and Israeli-Arab prisoners held in Israel. Among the prisoners released are 280 prisoners serving life sentences for planning and perpetrating terror attacks. (CNN) (The Guardian) (The Jerusalem Post)
- United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton makes an unannounced visit to the Libyan capital Tripoli, aiming to strengthen ties between the United States and the National Transitional Council, which has established itself as Libya's ruling body following the ousting of Muammar Gaddafi. (BBC)
Politics
- About 400,000 illegal immigrants were deported from the United States in the 2011 fiscal year, the most deportations ever in United States history, according to a report released by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. (CNN)
Science
- The World Health Organisation reports that global malaria deaths have fallen by over 20% since 2001, claiming that over 30 countries are on course to eradicate the mosquito-borne disease by 2020. (BBC)