Portal:Current events/2007 February 1

Current events of February 1, 2007 (2007-02-01) (Thursday)

Harry Potter author J. K. Rowling announces the release date for her book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the final installment in the Potter series to be 21 July 2007. (J.K.Rowling Official Site) The Government of France has banned the smoking of cigarettes in every second hand smoke area. (ABC News) (wikinews) British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, questioned for a second time in Scotland Yard's 'Cash for peerages' probe. Calls for an early departure for Blair increase. 36 people are killed in clashes between Bundu dia Kongo, an opposition secessionist religious group and the police in a dispute over the election of provincial governors. (BBC) Shia insurgency in Yemen: Ten Yemeni soldiers have been killed and 20 wounded in a fresh attack on an army roadblock, a security source says. (Aljazeera) Palestinian factional violence: Hamas gunmen ambush a convoy carrying weapons to Mahmoud Abbas's presidential guard unit. Six Fatah members are killed, more than 70 people are wounded and 12 others are kidnapped in ensuing battles. (Ynet) A trial for the murder of Janelle Patton on Norfolk Island starts with the defendant pleading not guilty. The murder was the first on the island for 150 years. (BBC) The Enhanced Fujita Scale begins operational use. This scale measures the intensity of tornadoes based on the damage they cause in the United States.