July 21, 2012 (Saturday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Syrian uprising (2011–present):
- Heavy fighting continues in the Syrian capital Damascus and the largest city of Aleppo. (CBC)
- Three more Syrian generals defect to Turkey. (Now Lebanon)[permanent dead link]
- Rebels take control of a second border crossing with Iraq. (AFP via Google News)
- A suicide bomb attack kills at least nine people at the entrance to an anti-Taliban commander's compound in Kurram in northwestern Pakistan. (BBC)
- South Sudan accuses Sudan of bombing its territory along a disputed border. (Reuters)
- Two Russian soldiers and several militants are killed in clashes in Ingushetia in the North Caucasus; several militants are also killed in Dagestan. (Kuwait News Agency)
Arts and culture
- Rights campaigners criticise the authoritative Contemporary Chinese Dictionary for excluding the definition of colloquial Chinese characters for "gay." (BBC)
- Illegally excavated Buddhist relics are stolen from a police station in Karachi, Pakistan. (Bangkok Post)[permanent dead link]
Business and economy
- Russian President Vladimir Putin signs a federal law "On ratification of the Protocol on the Accession of the Russian Federation to the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization on April 15, 1994" that authorizes Russia's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) after almost 18 years of negotiations. (RIA Novosti) (The Washington Post) (Kremlin.ru)
- Rupert Murdoch resigns from a number of directorships, including that of News International. (BBC)
Disasters and accidents
- A helicopter carrying military personnel crashes killing 12 people in Brunei. (Reuters)
- One hundred and forty six people are presumed dead in the Tanzania ferry disaster. (USA Today) (AP)
- A subcontractor at Japan's crippled Fukushima nuclear plant reportedly told workers to lie about possible high radiation exposure in an apparent effort to keep its contract. (Asahi Shimbun) (Oman Daily Observer)[permanent dead link]
Law and crime
- Sixty-one schools in Chile's capital Santiago are to be investigated for possible child sex abuse. (Al Jazeera)
- Pope Benedict XVI's butler, Paolo Gabriele, is placed under house arrest while awaiting trial for allegedly leaking confidential papers revealing fraud and disputes within the Vatican. (AFP via Google News)
Politics
- President of Russia Vladimir Putin signs the bill branding non-governmental organizations, which receive funding from abroad, as "foreign agents" into law, criticized by opponents as part of a campaign to suppress dissent. (Reuters) (Gulf News)