Portal:Current events/2024 December 4

December 4, 2024 (Wednesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Gaza war
- Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip
  - 4 December 2024 al-Mawasi attack
    - Two Israeli Air Force strikes on an evacuation zone in Al-Mawasi in the southern Gaza Strip kill at least 20 refugees due to explosions and a subsequent fire that destroyed several refugee shelters. (Al Jazeera)
- Israeli incursions in the West Bank (2023–present)
  - Israeli settler violence, Legality of Israeli settlements
    - Israeli settlers attack Huwara and Beit Furik in Nablus Governorate, West Bank, and sets fire to several buildings and vehicles. The attacks are in retaliation to Palestinians destroying illegal farming outposts. (Al Jazeera)
Syrian civil war
- 2024 Syrian opposition offensives
  - 2024 Hama offensive
    - Rebels capture the town of Al-Saan and the villages of Shaykh Hilal and Suruj in Hama Governorate, Syria. (SOHR)
    - Heavy fighting is reported in and around Hama as rebel forces enter the city and capture three neighbourhoods. (France24) (Al Jazeera Mubasher)
Russo-Ukrainian War
- Russia–NATO relations
  - A Russian Navy warship fires warning shots at a German helicopter conducting a routine patrol over the Baltic Sea, forcing the helicopter pilots to make evasive maneuvers. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock condemns the incident as part of Russia's hybrid warfare against NATO. (Anadolu Agency)
Insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
- The Pakistan Army kills five jihadist insurgents and captures two others in a raid in Lakki Marwat District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. (AP)

Disasters and accidents

2024 Cuba blackouts
- Another round of blackouts in Cuba leave millions of households without power. The energy ministry says that it is prioritizing restoring electricity to hospitals and water pumping facilities. (Reuters)
An Iranian Air Force training jet crashes in Fars province, Iran, killing both pilots. (IRNA)

International relations

Kyrgyzstan–Tajikistan relations
- Krygyzstan National Security official Kamchybek Tashiev and Tajikistan National Security official Saimumin Yatimov announces that both countries have signed an agreement that would end 33-years of conflict at the border. (The Diplomat)

Law and crime

Human trafficking in Germany
- German police, French security services, and Interpol conduct coordinated mass raids on an Iraqi-Kurdish human trafficking network in North Rhine-Westphalia and Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany. (DW)
Killing of Brian Thompson
- The CEO of American health insurance company UnitedHealthcare Brian Thompson is assassinated by a masked gunman while attending a business conference in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States. (Reuters)
Feather River School shooting
- Two kindergarten students are critically injured in a suspected religious hate crime school shooting at a private Protestant school in Palermo, California, United States, before the gunman commits suicide. (The New York Times)
Twelve neo-Nazis are arrested in police raids across Italy. (Ansa)

Politics and elections

2024 South Korean martial law crisis
- The National Assembly begins impeachment proceedings against Yoon Suk Yeol in response to Yoon's attempt to impose martial law in South Korea. (BBC News)
- The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions and other professional unions in South Korea announce a labor strike on December 5 and 6 in response to President Yoon Suk Yeol's surprise declaration of martial law yesterday, calling for Yoon's resignation. (Maeil Business Newspaper) (Bloomberg)
- The South Korean won drops to a two-year low following Yoon Suk Yeol's declaration of martial law yesterday. Several ETFs on the Korea Exchange also drop to a one-year low. (Invezz)
- Foreign embassies in Seoul warn their citizens to stay away from mass demonstrations, citing the possibility of violence and death. (The Korea Herald)
2024 French political crisis
- Collapse of the Barnier government
  - In France, the Barnier government collapses after 331 of 577 deputies vote in favor of a no-confidence motion, the first time since 1962 that the government has collapsed following a no-confidence motion. The left subsequently calls on President Emmanuel Macron to resign and hold early presidential elections. (Reuters)
2024 Georgian post-election protests
- Ahali party leader Nika Gvaramia is arrested in a police raid on his office in Tbilisi, Georgia. The arrest comes as the government continues to crack down on the opposition in response to protests against delaying negotiations to join the European Union. More than 100 demonstrators are also injured during clashes with riot police in Tbilisi. (AP)
2024 Namibian general election
- The Electoral Commission of Namibia certifies the results of the general election, announcing Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah of the ruling SWAPO party as the new President, the first female president in the country's history. (The South African) (DW)
Activists file a second impeachment complaint against Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte over alleged misuse of government funds. (AP)