April 3, 2012 (Tuesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Arab Spring:
- 2011–2012 Bahraini uprising: Fears are expressed for the life of Abdulhadi Khawaja, one of the several opposition leaders sentenced to life imprisonment. (CNN) (Los Angeles Times)
- Thousands of people attend demonstrations in Mauritania calling for the resignation of President Mohamed Ould Abdelaziz. (BBC)
- Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan accuses the United Nations Security Council of standing by with its "hands and arms tied" while the Syrian people are killed every day. (BBC)
Business and economy
- Spanish joblessness levels hit a record high yet again, with youth unemployment running at 50%. (BBC)
- Sanctions on Mali by the Economic Community of West African States imposed after the recent coup d'état result in shortages in the country. (Al Jazeera)
- James Murdoch resigns as Chairman of BSkyB in the wake of the News International phone hacking scandal. (BBC) (Al Jazeera)
Disasters
- Severe floods caused by recent storms associated with Tropical Depression 17F and Tropical Cyclone Daphne kill at least five people in Fiji and leave 8,000 people in evacuation centres. (CNN)
- A fire in a Moscow market kills 17 migrant workers. (RT) (RIA Novosti) (CNN)
- Tornadoes impact the Dallas, Texas area as part of the tornado outbreak of April 3, 2012. (Yahoo)
International relations
- Tajikistan accuses Uzbekistan of imposing an economic blockade. (BBC)
- Qatar rejects Iraq's demand to hand over fugitive Vice President Tariq Al-Hashemi. (Al Arabiya)
- The latest ASEAN summit begins in the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh. (Channel News Asia)
Law and crime
- A Chinese businessman with links to ousted Communist party official Bo Xilai is detained. (Bangkok Post)[permanent dead link]
- Following last year's defamation of Father Kevin Reynolds by RTÉ, the Irish state-controlled broadcaster's head of current affairs Ed Mulhall retires, Ken O'Shea resigns from Prime Time and a related programme, Prime Time Investigates is axed. (Irish Independent) (The Irish Times)
- A memorial service is held for the seven victims of the 2012 Oikos University shooting in the US city of Oakland, California. (CNN)
- The New York Police Department orders an investigation into the death of French academic Richard Descoings who was found nude in his hotel room. (AFP via The Australian)
Politics and elections
- United States Presidential election:
- Voters in the US states of Maryland and Wisconsin as well as Washington, D.C. go to the polls for Republican primaries with Mitt Romney projected as the winner in all three contests. (The Australian) (MCNBC)[permanent dead link] (CBS News)
- The President of the United States Barack Obama officially secures the nomination of the Democratic Party with wins in the Democratic Party primaries in Wisconsin, Maryland and Washington DC. (CNN)
Sports
- In basketball, the Baylor Lady Bears win the 2012 NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Tournament, defeating the Notre Dame Fighting Irish women's basketball team 80-61 and becoming the first NCAA basketball team to win 40 games in a season and with an undefeated record. (AP via NPR)