October 11, 2003

• Israeli-Palestinian conflict: Israeli troops pull back in Gaza. Israel will continue to demolish tunnels. The Israeli army states it discovers three tunnels in the camp, but no weapons have been found. A Palestinian teenager is shot dead and up to 10 homes were demolished and water and electricity facilities were hit. Palestinian militants were seeking to smuggle from Egypt shoulder-fired missiles that could be used against tanks, helicopters, and fighter jets. [1]
• Endangered species: President George W. Bush proposes a change in United States Fish and Wildlife Service regulations which would allow American citizens to travel abroad to capture, kill, and import endangered species. The regulation would not allow Americans to do the same to endangered species inside the United States.[2]
• Middle East: German magazine Der Spiegel reports that Israel is preparing an attack on Iranian atomic plants. [3]
• Middle East: Syria says that it will retaliate if attacked by Israel again. A week after Israel's attack the two countries continue to exchange insults; the UN Security Council is unable to agree on a resolution condemning Israel's attack. [4]
• Occupation of Iraq: The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), a grouping of Muslim nations meeting in Malaysia, calls on the US to quit Iraq as soon as possible and to hand over to the UN; the OIC also pledges support to Syria. [5]
• Japanese Politics: The House of Representatives of the Diet of Japan is dissolved by the Prime Minister Koizumi Junichiro and the election will take place on November 9, 2003. See Japan general election, 2003 for more. [6]
• The Spanish rail company Renfe opens its second AVE high-speed line, serving Madrid, Guadalajara, Calatayud, Zaragoza, and Lleida. It is expected to reach Barcelona by 2005. (Another line is being built from Madrid to Valladolid, and others to Valencia and Lisbon are planned.)[7]
• During the ALCS, after a series of tense moments, Pedro Martinez of the Boston Red Sox moved toward New York Yankees pitcher Roger Clemens resulting in a bench clearing brawl that included 74 year old Don Zimmer of the Yankees charging and being thrown to the ground by Martinez.