1 January 2010 (Friday)

A study suggests that teenagers who go to bed late are more likely to develop depression and to have suicidal thoughts.
Spain takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union from Sweden.
2 January 2010 (Saturday)
19-year-old Norwegian chess grandmaster Magnus Carlsen is confirmed as the youngest-ever world number one in the
official January 2010 FIDE rating list.
Atheist Ireland purposefully publishes the words of Jesus Christ, Muhammad, Salman Rushdie, Mark Twain and Pope
Benedict XVI on its website despite a new law banning them on grounds of blasphemy.
Police in Denmark shoot a 28-year-old male Somali after he breaks into the Viby J home of Kurt Westergaard, the
cartoonist at the centre of the Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy in 2005, and threatens his family with
an axe.
3 January 2010 (Sunday)
The United States and United Kingdom close their embassies in Yemen, citing threats from Al-Qaeda.
Several British Muslim writers speak out about Prime Suspect writer Lynda La Plante's complaint against the BBC
regarding how much more difficult it is to have her scripts commissioned than it would be for a "little Muslim boy".
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown announces that full body scanners will be introduced at UK airports following
the failed attack on Northwest Airlines Flight 253 on Christmas Day.
4 January 2010 (Monday)
The Burj Khalifa, the tallest structure ever built, opens to the public in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
South African President Jacob Zuma marries his fifth and currently third wife.
A representation of Barack Obama is found hanging by a noose with the epitaph "Plains, Georgia. Home of Jimmy
Carter, our 39th President".
5 January 2010 (Tuesday)
As many as 1,000 people in the Solomon Islands are reportedly homeless following the two major earthquakes and
tsunami which struck the country earlier this week.
Facebook blocks a social network suicide website.
The United States reopens its embassy in Yemen after strikes on al-Qaeda.
The United Kingdom is once again deluged by heavy snowfall as the country endures its worst cold snap for at least 20
years.
6 January 2010 (Wednesday)
Algerian US ambassador Abdellah Baali and Nigerian Information Minister Dora Akunyili are upset at the decision of
the United States to subject Algerians and Nigerians to tougher than usual security tests at airports, saying it is
"discrimination" and "risks ties". Both have officially complained.
Extreme weather across Europe leads to dozens of deaths, including at least 122 in Poland and at least 7 as a result of an
avalanche in Switzerland.
The U.S. government lowers the threshold for information deemed important enough to put suspicious individuals on a
watch list or no-fly list, or have their visa revoked.
China becomes the largest exporting country, pushing Germany from first place.
Ex-Cabinet Ministers Geoff Hoon and Patricia Hewitt call for a secret ballot to settle the debate over the leadership of
the Labour Party of British Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
China's tourism revenue hits USD 185 billion in 2009.
7 January 2010 (Thursday)
Extreme weather in Europe kills nine people in Germany, traps a Eurostar train in the Channel Tunnel, disrupts flights at
international airports in Amsterdam, Dublin, Knock and Paris, shuts hundreds of schools in Ireland and disrupts
Norway's bus service in Oslo.
The BBC's Spotlight programme reveals that Iris Robinson, former UK MP and wife of the First Minister of Northern
Ireland, helped a 19 year old male who she was having a relationship with receive funding for a business project.
The governments of Australia and New Zealand announce an investigation into an incident where a boat belonging to
the anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd Conservation Society was damaged in a confrontation with a Japanese ship in the
Southern Ocean.
The United States approves arms sales to Taiwan, amid opposition from China.
8 January 2010 (Friday)
The Portuguese parliament approves a bill to legalise same-sex marriage.
The Ugandan death penalty for homosexuality may be declared "not necessary".
China becomes the number one automobile market in the world.
Riots break out amongst immigrants and local inhabitants in the town of Rosarno in southern Italy in a protest against
an attack on African workers by white youths.
One person is killed and several are injured after gunmen open fire on a bus carrying the Togo national football team to
the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations in Angola.
9 January 2010 (Saturday)
British MP and MLA Iris Robinson is expelled by the Democratic Unionist Party after further details emerge of her
involvement in a political and sex scandal.
The Togo national football team withdraw from the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations as a third member of the team is
confirmed dead following the attack on their team bus.
10 January 2010 (Sunday)
Winter of 2009–2010 in Europe: More than 160 people are trapped in vehicles overnight in Germany, dozens of flights
are cancelled, Berlin and Leipzig are buried under 30cm of snow, parts of Schleswig-Holstein remain unreachable. The
electricity of 80,000 people is cut off by snow in Poland. Eurostar services are affected in Belgium, Britain and France.
Ivo Josipović wins in the second round of the presidential election, and is elected third President of Croatia.
11 January 2010 (Monday)
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon outlines seven priorities for 2010 and urges a renewed focus on sustainable
development, ending poverty, disease and hunger.
Wolfgang Wodarg, the Council of Europe's head of health affairs, claims that the 2009 flu pandemic was a "false
pandemic" orchestrated by the pharmaceutical industry to sell vaccines.
Northern Ireland's First Minister Peter Robinson temporarily hands over his position to Arlene Foster in the wake of the
ongoing political scandal surrounding his wife and fellow politician Iris Robinson.
The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences reports that more than 24 million Chinese men of marrying age will be
without spouses by the end of the decade, citing an uneven birth rate.
Tombs discovered near Egypt's great pyramids reinforce the theory they were built by free workers rather than slaves.
12 January 2010 (Tuesday)
The European Court of Human Rights rules that powers contained in the UK Terrorism Act 2000 violate the European
Convention on Human Rights.
The United Kingdom bans the Islamist organisation Al-Muhajiroun and an offshoot group, Islam4UK.
A severe 7.0 magnitude earthquake strikes Haiti. Tsunami watches issued across the Caribbean.
Google says it may end its operations in China as it is no longer willing to continue censoring its search results.
Chile becomes the first South American country to be admitted to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development.
China's top search engine Baidu is allegedly attacked by Iranian hackers, sparking a retaliatory attack by Chinese
hackers on Iranian sites.
13 January 2010 (Wednesday)
Mercedes-Benz's 2009 sales rise 77% in the People's Republic of China.
The United States trade deficit rose 9.7% to 36.4 billion US dollars in November.
The North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) is held in Detroit, Michigan, US. Green vehicles are seen as a
response to the late 2000s recession.
The Government of the People's Republic of China responds to Google's refusal to continue censorship of search
results.
Pope Benedict XVI meets and forgives the woman who attacked him at Christmas Eve Mass in 2009.
The Kiev Court of Appeal accuses Josef Stalin and other leaders of the former Soviet Union and Soviet Ukraine of
organizing mass famine in Ukraine in 1932-1933.
14 January 2010 (Thursday)
Taoiseach Brian Cowen meets PM Gordon Brown in London for talks on the devolution process in Northern Ireland.
15 January 2010 (Friday)
Russia ratifies key European Court of Human Rights reform. Russia was the last of the 47 Council of Europe member-
states to ratify Protocol 14.
16 January 2010 (Saturday)
Previously unknown Florence Green, at 108, is believed to be Britain's oldest surviving UK-resident First World War
veteran, and the last known female First World War veteran, having served with the Women's RAF (WRAF) in 1918
A 4.5 magnitude aftershock strikes Haiti within days of the recent devastating earthquake.
The United Nations says the earthquake is the worst disaster it has ever had to deal with in its history.
The German government asks its citizens to stop using Microsoft's web browser Internet Explorer to protect their own
security.
China announces an increase of 28% in the number of internet users in the country, now at 384 million.
17 January 2010 (Sunday)
Haiti earthquake: Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade offers "voluntary repatriation" to each of his Haitian "sons and
daughters of Africa".
Former Iraqi minister Ali Hassan al-Majid, also known as Chemical Ali, is sentenced to death for the Halabja poison
gas attack.
Pope Benedict XVI makes a controversial visit to the Great Synagogue of Rome.
Former Northern Irish First Minister Peter Robinson, leader of the Democratic Unionist Party, tells The Sunday Times
that the conduct of his wife, politician Iris Robinson, with her young lover has led him to shake hands with deputy First
Minister Martin McGuinness (Sinn Féin) for the first time.
18 January 2010 (Monday)
China commences surveillance of text messages, with customers from the country's two largest operators being blocked
for lewd messages.
19 January 2010 (Tuesday)
The United Nations Security Council increases the size of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti by 3,500.
Scores of United States Navy troops land near the Haitian presidential palace, bringing food, water, and equipment.
British confectionery maker Cadbury is to be purchased by American company Kraft Foods for £11.5 billion. Cadbury
chairman Roger Carr says layoffs will be an "inevitability" following the acquisition.
Massachusetts voters elect Republican Scott Brown to fill the vacant United States Senate seat previously held by Ted
Kennedy.
The Number Resource Organisation warns the Internet is running out of IP addresses, with less than 10% of current-
generation IPv4 addresses still available.
20 January 2010 (Wednesday)
Microsoft issues a patch for a serious security hole in Internet Explorer 6 after France and Germany advised their
citizens to change browsers.
21 January 2010 (Thursday)
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton calls on China to investigate the cyber attacks on Google.
U.S. investment bank Goldman Sachs reports a sharp increase in profits for 2009, beating analysts' expectations.
The United States sends an additional 2,000 troops to Haiti to help with earthquake relief efforts.
Chinese economy grows 8.7% in 2009.
22 January 2010 (Friday)
China rejects criticism by the United States of its internet controls, saying it could harm relations between the two
countries. A White House spokesman says U.S. President Barack Obama is "troubled" by the cyber attacks and wants
"some answers".
U.K. Home Secretary Alan Johnson announces the Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre has raised the terrorist threat level
from "substantial" to "severe".
A U.S. Justice Department task force recommends 47 Guantanamo Bay detainees should be held indefinitely without
charge.
European banking stocks drop sharply following U.S. President Barack Obama's plans to restrict activities of the
biggest American banks.
23 January 2010 (Saturday)
Aftermath of the 2010 Haiti earthquake: The Haitian government declares earthquake rescue operations over.
The government announces a first precise death toll of 111,481. To date, it is the second-deadliest earthquake of the 21st
century (after the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake).
U.S. Vice President 's visit to Iraq: Joe Biden holds talks with Iraqi political leaders ahead of the March parliamentary
election.
The American Civil Liberties Union condemns a U.S. Justice Department report that suggested 47 Guantánamo Bay
detainees should be held indefinitely without trial.
A new assessment by the U.S. Geological Survey says Venezuela may hold double the oil reserves of Saudi Arabia.
24 January 2010 (Sunday)
Haiti is rocked by another earthquake. The Haitian government announces the death toll from the recent earthquake has
reached 150,000 in the capital Port-au-Prince alone.
Osama Bin Laden claims responsibility for the failed Christmas day bombing attempt in Detroit, USA, last year.
A spokesman for President Barack Obama expresses the administration's support for a second term for the incumbent
Chairman of the Federal Reserve, Ben Bernanke, and says lawmakers would send a bad message by "playing politics in
any way" with Bernanke's confirmation.
25 January 2010 (Monday)
Ali Hassan al-Majid, known as "Chemical Ali", is executed.
The United States will reportedly "reconsider" Algeria's placement on its terror watch list, which requires Algerian
citizens to undergo extra security screening.
Ethiopian Airlines Flight 409, with 85 passengers on board, crashes into the Mediterranean Sea after taking off from
Beirut Airport, Lebanon.
Taoiseach Brian Cowen and Prime Minister Gordon Brown meet at Downing Street to discuss the devolution deadlock
in Northern Ireland.
26 January 2010 (Tuesday)
A French parliamentary report backs a partial ban on the wearing of burkhas by Muslim women.
James Cameron's Avatar becomes the highest-grossing film of all time (not accounting inflation), surpassing his 1997
Titanic.
27 January 2010 (Wednesday)
The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom overturns two Orders in Council that froze the assets of unconvicted
suspects in terrorism cases.
Steve Jobs unveils the Apple iPad, a tablet PC at a press conference in San Francisco.
28 January 2010 (Thursday)
The U.S. Senate votes to give Ben Bernanke a second term as chair of the Federal Reserve.
J. D. Salinger, author of the novel The Catcher in the Rye, dies at the age of 91.
The International Monetary Fund loans US$114 million to Haiti following the recent earthquake devastation, with the
full amount due to be transferred by the end of the week.
Iran executes two opposition supporters for their role in the election protests in the country.
 29 January 2010 (Friday)
Tony Blair appears at the Iraq Inquiry and is questioned in public for the first time about his decision to take the United
Kingdom to war against Iraq.
30 January 2010 (Saturday)
The United States suspends medical evacuations in the aftermath of the 2010 Haiti earthquake due to a dispute as to
who should pay for treatment.
China suspends military exchanges and review cooperation on issues with the United States after the latter agreed an
arms sales package to Taiwan.
Google begins to phase out its support for Internet Explorer 6 after it was identified as a weak link in cyber attacks on
the search engine.
Several Americans have been charged with child smuggling for attempting to take Haitian children to the Dominican
Republic.
31 January 2010 (Sunday)
Roger Federer beats Andy Murray to win the men's singles title at the 2010 Australian Open.
Egypt become African Cup of Nations champions for a record third consecutive title after beating Ghana 1-0 in Luanda,
Angola, in the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations final.