Portal:Current events/2005 September 17

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[edit] 17 September 2005 (Saturday)

• Addressing the U.N. General Assembly, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad rejects an offer from the European Union to halt its nuclear program: "The most far reaching step outside the requirements of the NPT … in keeping with Iran's inalienable right to have access to a nuclear fuel cycle."
• At least 30 people die following an explosion at a market in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad. (BBC)
• Tayseer Allouni, a reporter with Al Jazeera, is arrested by Spanish police for the second time. (BBC)
• Ariel Sharon, the Prime Minister of Israel, threatens to "make every effort not to help" the upcoming Palestinian elections if Hamas takes part. (Reuters)
• In the New Zealand general election, the Labour Party, led by Prime Minister Helen Clark, seems best placed to form a new government. Although the opposition National Party of Dr. Don Brash makes the greatest gains, these are mainly at the expense of minor parties. All the existing minor parties lose seats, with only the new Māori Party making gains. (Elections New Zealand)