31 January: China, Russia support sending Iran nuclear issue to UN Security Council; Iran says referral to SC would "end diplomacy"... Uzbek regime seals town where human rights activist who criticized Andizhan massacre is being tried; independent observers barred from proceedings... James Hansen, chief NASA scientist researching climate change, has denounced his bosses for trying to silence scientific findings; he has been warning since 1988 of the negative impact of the greenhouse effect; when he predicted (accurately) that 2005 would be the hottest year on record, he was reportedly told grave consequences would ensue if he did not desist in such warnings... Senator demands explanation from AG Gonzales about evasive answers to questions in confirmation hearings, in which he referred to warrantless wiretaps as "hypothetical", denied the practice, and asserted that if any such program were to be initiated, he would inform the Senate; Gonzales was White House Counsel at the start of the program and has "acknowledged his role in affirming the president's authority to launch the surveillance effort"... "Salamanca papers", taken from Catalunya during Franco regime, now back in Catalunya's archives in Sant Cugat del Vallès, after 12 day journey from Salamanca's Civil War Archive... Cuts in production, high prices bring Exxon record $36.13 billion profit for 2005... Coretta Scott King, widow of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., dies, is remembered by Angelou, mourned by nation... Iraq hostage, journalist Jill Carroll, appears in new video sobbing, reported to demand release of female prisoners in Iraq; military has released at least 9 women from custody, but says the releases are not related to kidnappers' demands...

30 January: HRW says Hamas must declare end to attacks on civilians; having maintained suicide moratorium for 1 yr, rocket attacks were not stopped, group has never officially abandoned attacks on civilians; says HRW: "Hamas's new role in Palestinian politics makes it essential as well as opportune for it to make a commitment that it will not attack civilians under any circumstance"... US TV journalist Bob Woodruff, cameraman Doug Vogt, reported "stabilized" after lengthy surgeries to treat serious head traumas incurred while embedded with military in Iraq... Cases of H5N1 avian flu reported in north Cyprus, as human cases appear to move closer to European Union territory... Washington Post reports US freed detainee labeled as top Al Qaeda operative, even as others, held for nearly four years without charge, may soon face military tribunals, writing US "has released a prisoner it called a key operative. At the same time, it retains under heavy guard men whose background and significance are never discussed"; Tabarak lawyers say he was driver or servant, but never official bodyguard to Bin Laden...

29 January: Observers worry potential US withdrawal of aid to Palestinian Authority could provoke Hamas-Iran alliance; exiled Hamas political leader says group will not disarm, will seek to form standing Palestinian army, but will govern with "pragmatic" view toward Israel... Hamas leader tells CNN "long-term hudna" or truce with Israel possible, if Israel withdraws to 1967 borders; Olmert says no negotiations unless Hamas recognizes Israel, renounces violence... Climate researchers suggest failure to cut carbon emissions by half over next 50 years would lead to "tipping point" after which extreme climate change irreversible: 3 watersheds being coral bleaching collapsing fisheries in 30 years' time, sea level rise to last several millennia, 200 years till climate-regulating deep ocean currents halt entirely or shift radically...Saddam Hussein walks out of court during first hour of resumed trial, after co-defendant complains of ill-treatment, is forcibly removed from courtroom; Kurdish chief judge says trial will continue in absentia of defendants if they choose not to return... Major heavy rains, landslides, killing at least 50 people in Bolivia, lead new pres. Evo Morales to declare a state of emergency to aid with rescue efforts, aid delivery...

28 January: Thousands of angry Fatah members & supporters demand resignation of top officials after election loss to Hamas, reports cite calls for Abbas to resign presidency... Abbas calls for Hamas to form cabinet, will meet with lead Hamas candidate, Ismail Haniyeh, to discuss "how to incorporate the party into a political system it has long opposed"... US threatens to withdraw $400M in aid if Hamas does not reject violence, accept Israel as state... Indonesia sees 7.7 earthquake, mass evacuations, authorities alert population no perceived risk of tsunami...

27 January: Hamas victory in Palestinian elections reshapes stalled peace process; Isreal, US say no negotiation with group unless it renounces violence, abandons its goal of Israel's destruction; Hamas seen by most Palestinians as resistance group, popular for providing social services, reportedly downplayed opposition to Israel right to exist in campaign, did not rule out peace talks through intermediary; many observers believe voters mainly showed opposition to Fatah, citing allegations of corruption... UN, EU, US, Russia ('Quartet') formally demand Hamas renounce violence, recognize state of Israel... Voice of America says Hamas win greeted by "joy, despair, shock & hope"... Support for Mass.-led filibuster widens, as skeptics say Alito has enough votes to pass regardless... CNN's new contributor Bill Bennet used debut to defend his Sept. 2005 comment that aborting black babies would reduce crime; he claimed the idea was already "under discussion in articles and newspapers"; MediaMatters has examined this claim before, found it false... Top UK cop Iain Blair raises furor saying UK media outlets racist in coverage of serious crimes; Blair forced to apologize for downplaying importance of brutal murder of two young girls in Soham which gained national media coverage... Military jury gives no jailtime to interrogator convicted of negligent homicide, imposing $6,000 fine, while peace activists in NY sentenced to up to 6 months in prison for demonstration spilling own blood at recruiting station... 2005 found to be hottest year on record, with no help from El Niño, as with 2nd place 1998... Salzburg, Austria, symphonies & music halls around world, celebrate 250th anniversary of birth of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart; televised event to feature 24 hours of live performances...

26 January: Radical Palistinian group Hamas claims victory in parliamentary elections, appears to have won majority of seats; PM, Cabinet resign, Qureia says Hamas should have right to form next gov't... Palestinian electoral system designed to highlight public's preferences, while protecting political minorities such as women, Christians... Pinochet daughter Lucia requests US asylum after being detained at Dulles Int'l airport near DC; Chilean foreign minister Walker says after communicating with US officials, he is "absolutely confident that it will be rejected"; Lucia Pinochet faces criminal tax evasion, passport fraud charges in Chile... Bush admin. blocked 2002 proposed legislation to lower legal standard for surveillance warrants in terror cases, on grounds it would be unconstitutional; critics say that opinion undermines current claims that warrantless wiretaps do not violate Constitution... Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) says he will seek to filibuster Alito nomination, to prevent vote on confirmation; all 8 Democrats on Judiciary Committee opposed Alito's nomination; Republicans need 5 votes on top of 55 Republicans, not all have declared positions, though most appear to support Alito, 3 Democrats say they will vote to confirm, Sen. Landrieu (D-LA) says she will oppose filibuster... Bush refuses release of photos taken with lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who has pled guilty to corruption charges; pres. says photos not relevant, that he does not know Abramoff... Acclaimed pianist, conductor, Daniel Barenboim wins Ernst von Siemens music prize (considered by some "Nobel Prize of music")...

25 January: Google announces it will censor its site in China, creating controversial Google.cn; Chinese users who previously had access to the global and uncensored Google.com will now be automatically redirected to Google.cn; press freedom group Reporters without Borders (RSF) has said "The launch of Google.cn is a black day for freedom of expression in China", and notes that 50 "cyber-dissidents" are currently imprisoned in China for reporting banned stories or criticizing the regime... Palestinian elections seen as vital to eventual independence of Palestinian state; peace process may depend on degree of Hamas representation, leadership have said negotiations through intermediary feasible... Acting Israel PM Olmert says Israel must return more territory in West Bank... China's propaganda ministry has ordered the closing of a weekly newspaper that had developed a reputation for exploring sensitive social and political issues... Earlier this year MSN agreed to ban the word "freedom" and other "politically sensitive" terms from its search and web services in China... Google is fighting effort by US gov't to gain access to users' search results... Davos economic talks open amid massive security effort... Portugal, Canada have elected right of center governments in possible major policy-direction shift... Georgia remains in major natural gas, fuel shortfall, in need of winter heat...

24 January: New Bolivian president Evo Morales, through newly formed cabinet representing miners, indigenous peoples, popular movements, takes first steps to nationalize natural gas, petroleum... NYT says Spain's opposition Partido Popular (PP) irresponsible in excusing rogue military officials threatening rule of law before defending democracy; editorial reminds current PP rhetoric echoes policies of ultra-right factions that sparked military coup, Spanish Civil War, due to hatred for policies of elected 1930s gov't... PP says it will demand a national referendum on Catalán Estatut; Zapatero says this contravenes Spain's constitution; CiU party leader accuses PP of being "prophets of destruction" bent on manipulating public opinion to undermine "historic" democratic processes of negotiation... Spain's defense minister testifies before Audiencia Nacional, says modern military is not represented by extremist individuals, respects rule of law, is comprised of liberal-minded troops who risk lives to perform charitable work in remote places... Council of Europe report says EU governments likely knew of CIA 'ghost flights', 'black sites'... Att. Gen. again says Afghan military effort enabled warrantless domestic spying; critics raise concerns legal theory argues wartime suspension of constitutional liberties...

23 January: Explosions in southern Russia cut supplies of gas, electricity to Georgia; nation seeking supplies from Iran, Azerbaijan, as tensions flare with Russian gov't... Subzero conditions in Russia leave at least 40 dead, increasing strain on region's natural gas supplies as Russia scrambles to heat cities... Stardust mission overwhelming success, collected over one million small particles of comet matter, some unexpected larger ones, returned them to Earth... After inaugural speech in which Morales declared plan to govern with "zero nepotism, zero corruption", the new Bolivian president met with dignitaries from around the world, including the Prince of Asturias, heir to the Spanish throne... States that voted Democratic in 2004, even with Republican governors, are leaning toward tackling climate change, reducing energy consumption or pursuing renewable resources, despite federal opposition, taking bold steps to institute ecologically sustainable policies... Italian court to hear arguments as to whether Christ existed, in suit filed against parish priest for "abusing the common belief" by asserting the historicity of Jesus...

22 January: Spanish gov't announces agreement with Catalán authorities for reform of regional Autonomy Statute; "nation" will not be part of legal articles, but will be included in the Preamble; Esquerra Republicana says the accord is premature... An Aymara native, Evo Morales takes office as Bolivia's first indigenous president... Violent clashes between Nepal gov't forces, Maoist rebels leaves dozens dead in Kathmandu; rebel groups calling for 3 days of national demonstrations against the gov't... NPR reports Iran plans to withdraw its national currency reserves from European banks in order to avoid accounts being frozen; US, EU officials say they want to avoid blanket sanctions that might hurt average Iranians, preferable to target leadership individually... Basque party Batasuna, banned for reputed links to ETA, has held large public rally, despite ban on such activities, to protest Spain's ban on Batasuna's party conference; rally saw no Batasuna symbols nor any pro-ETA references, in keeping with Spain's ban; Basque nat'l party PNV called for Batasuna to decisively reject all ties to violence or "extortion", credibly establish itself as a solely political organization...

21 January: Morales may wait to lift coca ban until study to find projected value of traditional-use coca market in Bolivia is completed... Whale stranded in London's River Thames died after suffering convulsions during barge transport to open water... Lead Shi'a party in Iraq says it may form governing coalition with Sunni factions, if they work to fight insurgency... Economist reports tight supplies, worsening Iran tensions mean new oil pricing crisis, "angry consumers across the globe"... Scientists who found that plants contribute up to one-third global methane emissions say such levels are natural, plants cannot be responsible for escalating greenhouse gas emissions, current climate change... Muslim leaders in Iraq demand release of 28-year-old US freelance journalist hostage Jill Carroll... HRW says Uzbek authorities must reveal whereabouts, fate of activist Saidjahon Zainabitdinov, leader of Andizhan human rights Appeal group, jailed, held in secret for criticizing massacre of civilians...

20 January: As some Russian cities see temperatures of -50ºC, state gas co. Gazprom announced it will cut supplies to Europe to keep northern cities heated... 500 boxes of documents taken from the Catalán regional government during the Spanish civil war have been transferred to the Spanish Ministry of Culture from the Salamanca archives, and will be transferred back to the Generalitat from Madrid; Salmantine authorities say it is "robbery", appeal to Spanish high court, request documents be ordered held in Madrid; Culture Min. Calvo says restitution to Catalunya should occur without delay... Morales inauguration this coming Sunday will include 12 heads of state, and representatives of indigenous groups from the United States and other regions; US ambassador to Bolivia says "we have turned the page and are in a new era"... Team of US experts visits Turkish village where first 3 human deaths from H5N1 avian flu occurred in west, to assess measures for prevention, treatment...

19 January: Spain arrests Melilla army captain for threatening to march on Defense HQ in protest against constitutional negotiations for Catalán Estatut... City of Salamanca blockades Civil War Archives to prevent legally required return of documents seized from Catalán regional gov't during fascist takeover in 1930s... HRW says Bush admin. has adopted as central interrogation policy physical abuse of terror detainees... Al Jazeera airs tape purporting to be Bin Laden, CBS headline says Bin Laden offers truce, CNN warns tape threatens new attacks; reports indicate recording mentions both possibilities... Media Matters cites Matthews, Imus for praising anti-gay epithets hurled by Savage, others... NASA "New Horizons" Pluto probe, "fastest vehicle" ever created, successfully launched, will travel 3 billion miles over 10 years to reach Pluto...

18 January: Tokyo stock exchange closed early to stop trading, amid massive volume, fears of ongoing panic sell-off... Guangdong province, China's wealthiest, may be indicator of Achilles' heel for Chinese Communist Party: as prosperity grows, so do demonstrations against totalitarian measures, violent clashes with police, frequency of news getting to outside world; reports emerging suggest that some 30 villagers were killed by police in one assault on a land-dispute demonstration last month; recent attack against protesters in Sanjiao adds pressure to gov't to negotiate... After overwhelming legislative votes of support, US state of New Jersey's governor signs into law temporary moratorium on use of death penalty... US Supreme Court upholds in 6-3 vote Oregon law permitting doctors to medically assist suicide for terminal patients... New study shows UK doctors assisted in 3,000 cases of euthanasia last year, while 170,000 patients had treatment withheld which may have hastened death... Finland's presidential election puts top two candidates, Tarja Halonen (SDP—46.3%) and Sauli Niinistö (NCP—24.1%), into runoff... HRW calls for "judicial rigor and independence" in Rwanda's high court ruling on conviction of 8 political figures for criminal conspiracy...

17 January: 2nd controversial execution for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, as 76-year old blind invalid Clarence Ray Allen is put to death for ordering triple murder 25 years ago... ACLU, Center for Constitutional Rights file separate lawsuits against Bush admin. on grounds NSA eavesdropping is illegal... AG denies Gore allegation admin. policy violates Constitution, rejects calls for independent prosecutor; White House says spying program will continue... Lucent Technologies permitted by gov't to "infringe" patent of inventor for fiber-optic coupling device under national secrecy laws; court ruled Lucent assertion they owed nothing, despite patent, contracts with inventors, was legal; Sept. ruling seen as major new expansion of gov't power over private citizens... Japan markets impacted by collapse of Livedoor ISP stock, due to apparent massive trading violation; after gov't raid of Livedoor offices, stock market saw largest losses in 9 months amid reflex sell-offs... Iran's gov't has announced its intentions to hold an international "seminar" to explore the "veracity" of the Holocaust, which a spokesman said, in agreement with Pres. Ahmedinejad, is "a myth"; gov'ts around the world have already condemned Ahmedinejad's rhetoric on the issue, demanded that Iran officially recognized what is a matter of settled world history...

16 January: TIME reports Speaker Hastert has requested Ney resign chair of Committee on House Administration, observers believe Ney will be indicted in relation to Abramoff case; candidates to replace DeLay, Blunt & Boehner attack each other, face own lobby-related issues... Chile's socialist party candidate, Michelle Bachelet becomes nation's first female president... Liberia's president-elect Ellen Johnson Sirleaf becomes Africa's first elected female president... Representatives of five permanent members of UN Security Council meet in London to discuss Iran nuclear program, possible sanctions... Islamist groups in Pakistan stage rallies to protest CIA airstrike that killed 18, including women, children; gov't ministers say such event will not be permitted to occur on Pakistan soil in future; CNN shows opposition leader Gazi Hussein calling for Musharraf resignation, his allies joining in condemnations of the airstrike, related tactics... Translator error reportedly led to CNN reporting Iranian president Ahmedinejad claiming Iran had right to nuclear weapons, whereas he had said right to nuclear energy; CNN has sought to clarify the misreported statement, apologized; Iran says no CNN reporters will be permitted into the country... Al Gore in public speech says Pres. Bush has been "breaking the law, repeatedly and insistently" in spying on Americans, adding that such sweeping use of executive powers threatens to undermine the nation's system of government...