Portal:Current events/2012 April 18

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Current events of April 18, 2012 (2012-04-18) (Wednesday)

2011–2012 Bahraini uprising:
- Thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators march through Tubli calling for the downfall of the regime and chanting against the Formula 1 Grand Prix, due to be held in Bahrain on Sunday. (Al Jazeera)
- Police fire stun grenades at protesters in a separate rally outside a cultural exhibition in Manama amid calls for the release of imprisoned Abdulhadi al-Khawaja being kept alive by intravenous drip. (BBC)
War in Afghanistan: Senior U.S. officials condemn graphic photos depicting their troops posing with the mangled corpses of suspected Afghan suicide bombers on at least two separate occasions months apart. The Los Angeles Times defends its publication of the photos after being warned against the move by the U.S. military. (Al Jazeera)
Israeli army officer Shalom Eisner is filmed striking a young Danish activist in the face with the butt of his M16 rifle in the Jordan Valley near Jericho, is dismissed from his post of divisional deputy commander "on moral grounds." However, he is not dismissed from the army. (BBC) (Xinhua) (The Globe and Mail)

The Casoria Contemporary Art Museum in Naples begins burning its artworks due to government budget cuts affecting cultural institutions. (BBC)
American television personality and producer Dick Clark dies of a heart attack at the age of 82. (ABC)

In the U.S., the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission finalize joint rules that will limit which firms must register with either or both of those agencies as "swap dealers." (Reuters)

Cuba, blocked amid intense pressure from left-wing countries by the U.S. from attending the 7th Summit of the Americas, hails a Latin American and Caribbean "rebellion" against U.S. dominance at last weekend's 6th Summit of the Americas in Colombia, with U.S. President Barack Obama forced to use his "imperial veto" to stop the summit calling for an end to the U.S. embargo against it. (BBC)
North Korea rejects criticism from countries on the United Nations Security Council regarding its failed rocket launch, and breaks off an agreement that would see it halt testing of nuclear weapons in exchange for food aid. (AFP)

China pledges an investigation into the death of British businessman Neil Haywood, and the alleged role of former politician Bo Xilai and his wife. (BBC)
In a rare move for courts in the United Kingdom, television cameras are allowed into the High Court in Edinburgh to film the sentencing of David Gilroy for the murder of Suzanne Pilley. (BBC)