Current events of 5 October 2006 (2006-10-05) (Thursday) edit history watch

The Dow Jones industrial average closes at a record high for the third day in a row. (ABC News Australia Online) German authorities uncover 51 skeletons from a mass grave at the village of Menden-Barge in the Sauerland region of the country, thought to be remains of victims of Nazi atrocities during World War II. (BBC) Mark Foley scandal The House Ethics Committee issued four dozen subpoenas to members of Congress and aides to discover who was aware of explicit exchanges between former representative Mark Foley and underage Congressional pages. (MSNBC) Reports indicate that Abu Ayyub al-Masri, also known as Abu Hamza al-Muhajir, the leader of Al-Qaeda in Iraq who succeeded Abu Musab al-Zarqawi after his death, may have been killed in Haditha. A body initially tentatively identified as his is undergoing DNA analysis but most government sources are skeptical. (BBC) The European Central Bank raises its interest rate from 3% to 3.25% representing the fifth rise in eleven months. The Bank of England decides to leave interest rates in the United Kingdom unchanged. (Marketwatch) Edmund Daukoru, a Nigerian oil minister and president of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) flags that the organization will hold an emergency meeting to cut output. The Financial Times reports that OPEC has informally agreed to cut output 4% to defend the oil price. (USA Today) Post-Soviet Georgia holds the municipal elections seen as a crucial test for the country’s current government amid the ongoing tensions with Russia. (International Herald Tribune) NTV television in Turkey reports that 260 Turkish soldiers will join the peacekeeping force in Lebanon. (The Boston Globe) NATO expands its security mission to the whole of Afghanistan, taking command of more than 13,000 U.S. troops in the east of the country. (CNN) Thai authorities take steps to hold peace talks with two Muslim insurgencies, the Patani United Liberation Organisation (PULO) and Bersatu, who are fighting the Government in the Muslim-majority southern provinces of Thailand. (News Limited) The Court of Appeal of England and Wales determines that a merchant ship, SS Storaa, is eligible for consideration for protection as a war grave under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986. (BBC)