May 17, 2023 (Wednesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Southern Ukraine campaign
- Russian forces shell Ukrainian-held areas of Kherson Oblast, killing at least five civilians, including a child, while 17 others are reportedly injured. (BBC News)
- Southern Ukraine campaign
Disasters and accidents
- 2023 Emilia-Romagna floods
- Eight people are killed in Forlì–Cesena, Ravenna and Bologna, and 20,000 are evacuated during heavy floods in the region of Emilia-Romagna, Italy. Twenty-three rivers have overflowed their banks across the region. (AP)
- The 2023 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, which was scheduled to be held at the Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari in Imola from May 19–21, is cancelled because of the floods. (BBC News)
- Lu Peng Yuan Yu sinking
- The Chinese government reports that the fishing vessel Lu Peng Yuan Yu 028 capsized in the central Indian Ocean on Tuesday. China and other countries are conducting search operations for 39 sailors, including Chinese, Indonesian, and Filipino nationals. (AP via NBC News) (DW)
Health and environment
- According to the World Meteorological Organization, the global temperature will temporarily pass the threshold of 1.5 °C above preindustrial levels, with a likelihood of 66%, by the year 2027, due to a combination of climate change and El Niño. (BBC News)
International relations
- France–Ukraine relations
- The French Senate votes to recognize the 1932 Holodomor famine as a "genocide" of Ukrainians. (Interfax) (Al Jazeera)
- Iran–Russia relations
- Russian president Vladimir Putin signs an investment program deal that will make an investment of 1.6 billion euros in Iranian railroad projects, which are expected to begin operation within 48 months. (Tasnim)
Law and crime
- Censorship of TikTok, Restrictions on TikTok in the United States
- Montana Assembly Bill 419
- Montana Governor Greg Gianforte signs a bill banning TikTok, making Montana the first U.S. state to ban the Chinese-owned social media app. (Reuters)
- Montana Assembly Bill 419
- Capital punishment in Thailand
- A court in Thailand sentences the former mayor of Wang Wiset district to death for the murder of an activist in May 2021. The hitman received a sentence of life imprisonment. (The Thaiger)
- Siege of Nueva Concepción
- Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele deploys 5,000 soldiers and 500 police officers to the northwestern town of Nueva Concepción in order to arrest suspects in connection with the killing of a policeman on Tuesday. (Reuters)
Politics and elections
- 2023 Ecuadorian political crisis
- Amid ongoing impeachment proceedings, Ecuadorian president Guillermo Lasso uses the muerte cruzada provision of the Constitution to dissolve the National Assembly. Fresh presidential and legislative elections will be held within 97 days, during which time Lasso will be able to rule by decree. (BBC News)