January 4, 2012 (Wednesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Two bombs explode in the northern Nigerian city of Maiduguri with the Boko Haram movement believed to be responsible. (Reuters)
Disasters
- Storms kill seven, with local states of emergency declared in Southeast Region, Brazil. (New Straits Times) (Latin American Herald Tribune) (Monsters and Critics) (Xinhua via People's Daily)(Daily Star)
- At least 16 people die after a bus runs off a bridge in China's Guizhou province. (AP via IBN Live)
International relations
- The China Air Transport Association advises that Chinese airlines will not pay the carbon costs under the European Union's Emissions Trading Scheme. (Climate Spectator)(New York Times)(Reuters)(Bloomberg.com)(ABC Online)
Law and crime
- The military-backed civilian government of Burma (Myanmar) marks the anniversary of the country's independence by commuting prison sentences and releasing more than thirty prisoners. (CNN)
- Gary Dobson and David Norris are jailed for life for the 1993 murder of Stephen Lawrence. Dobson is given a minimum of 15 years and two months, and Norris 14 years and three months. (BBC)
- Mexican drug cartel kingpin Benjamín Arellano Félix pleads guilty to racketeering and conspiracy to launder money in the United States. (Washington Post)
Politics and elections
- The President of Argentina Cristina Fernández de Kirchner temporarily hands over power to her Vice-President Amado Boudou ahead of surgery for thyroid cancer. (CNN)
- Republican Party presidential primaries, 2012:
- Republican primary candidate and former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney wins the 2012 Iowa Caucus, with candidate and former U.S. Senator Rick Santorum behind by eight votes; Congressman Ron Paul had a strong showing in third place. (CBS News)
- After her poor showing during the Iowa caucus, presidential candidate Michele Bachmann ends her campaign. (MSNBC)
- Former Prime Minister of Greece George Papandreou announces that he will resign as head of the Panhellenic Socialist Movement. (Reuters)
Environment