Current events of 19 March 2007 (2007-03-19) (Monday) edit history watch

The Marshall Islands declares a state of emergency after thousands of people lack drinking water due to a long drought. The Government despatches boats to outlying islands. (AFP via News Limited) In a 2007 Cricket World Cup tie-up, India beats Bermuda by 257 runs; the highest margin of victory in the history of One Day Internationals. (BBC Sports) (Reuters) The Prime Minister of Canada Stephen Harper releases a budget forecasting a surplus of C$3.3 billion, and offers tax cuts for families and seniors and increased spending in Ontario and Quebec with the possibility of an election later this year. (Bloomberg) People's Bank of China Governor Zhou Xiaochuan starts talks with leadership of the Inter-American Development Bank to include the People's Republic of China as its newest member. This may signal erosion of Taiwan's status in the Latin American and Caribbean region. (AP via Houston Chronicle) The government of Iraq seeks custody of former Vice President Taha Yassin Ramadan so he can be hanged at dawn tomorrow after having been recently sentenced to death for his role in killing 148 Shiites in 1982. (Washington Post) Waleed bin Attash, a suspected al Qaeda operative, confesses plotting the USS Cole bombing as well as the bombing of two United States embassies in Africa. (AP via Houston Chronicle) The Supreme Court of the United States hears Morse v. Frederick, in which an Alaskan high school student argues free speech rights in connection with his displaying a banner reading "Bong Hits 4 Jesus" in front of a Juneau high school. (MSNBC) Daniele Mastrogiacomo, an Italian journalist working for La Repubblica, is set free by the Taliban. He had been kidnapped in the Afghan province of Helmand on March 6. (BBC) The Israeli Ministerial Committee for Symbols and Ceremonies declares the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict a war. (Ynetnews) At least 75 miners are dead after a methane gas explosion in the Ulyanovskaya coal mine in the city of Novokuznetsk in the Kemerovo region of Siberia. (Reuters) The Airbus 380 makes a publicity flight with Lufthansa to New York and then Chicago. (BBC) A suicide bomber attacks a Western convoy in Kabul causing casualties. (Reuters via ABC News Online) Six-party talks resume to discuss progress in implementing last month's agreement, with North Korea and the United States having resolved an issue about North Korean funds frozen in a Macau bank. (Bloomberg)