Portal:Current events/2019 August 24

August 24, 2019 (Saturday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Papuan conflict
- Crowds gather in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, to show solidarity and to campaign for the freedom of West Papua, which is under Indonesian control. Meanwhile, churches push the government of Papua New Guinea to take a firm stand on the situation. (Radio New Zealand)
Iran–Israel conflict during the Syrian Civil War
- The Israel Defense Forces say their Air Force strikes multiple Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps targets in Aqraba near the Syrian capital Damascus. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claims an Iranian attack on Israel using armed drones to be imminent. Syria says it repels the attack and shoots down most of the attackers' rockets. (The Jerusalem Post) (SANA)

Disasters and accidents

2019 Brazil wildfires
- Brazil readies its military to fight wildfires in the Amazon rainforest, but does not deploy troops. (CNBC) (CBC)

Politics and elections

2019 Nauruan parliamentary election
- Voters in Nauru go to the polls to elect new members of parliament. President Baron Waqa loses his parliamentary seat so he is not able to be re-elected in the office he has been holding since 2013. (ABC News) (ABC News)