Current events of 20 June 2007 (2007-06-20) (Wednesday) edit history watch

A fire in a Russian nursing home in Omsk kills at least ten people. (BBC) The Special Court for Sierra Leone issues the first-ever guilty verdicts by an international court related to the military use of children. (BBC) The government of Dubai announces that it has purchased the RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 from Cunard Line for US$100-million. It intends to turn her into a floating hotel at the Palm Jumeirah when she leaves service in late 2008. (AFP via Yahoo! News) Nursultan Nazarbayev, President of Kazakhstan, dissolves parliament, triggering a legislative election for August 18, 2007. (BBC) Ehud Barak, the new Minister for Defense, states that Israel will admit "humanitarian cases" of Palestinians fleeing the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip. (AP via CBC) The Prime Minister of Australia, John Howard, announces plans to buy three Spanish-designed warships and two large Spanish landing ships for the Royal Australian Navy at a cost of $A11-billion. (AAP via the West Australian) The Sri Lankan military claims to have killed 30 members of the Tamil Tigers in overnight clashes in the east of the country. (BBC) Industrial action in Nigeria over increases in fuel duty and a doubling of sales tax is stepped up to become a general strike. (BBC)