February 3, 2016 (Wednesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Israeli–Palestinian conflict (2015–present)
- Three Palestinian assailants launch a shooting and stabbing attack near the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem, killing one policewoman and seriously injuring another, and lightly injuring a civilian, before being shot and killed by other security forces at the scene. Pipe bombs were discovered on their bodies. (The Times of Israel)
- Two Hamas militants die after a tunnel they were digging from the Gaza Strip into Israel collapses. (AP)
- Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War
- Sergey Lavrov, the Foreign Minister of Russia, says that Russia's bombing campaign will continue until terrorist organisations like ISIL and Jabhat al-Nusra are defeated; the Syrian opposition's High Negotiations Committee has voiced outrage at an ongoing government offensive backed by Russian air power and called for a halt to air strikes against civilians, among other demands. (AFP via Yahoo! News)
- Syrian Civil War
- Siege of Nubl and Al-Zahraa
- At least 15 people are killed and 58 injured after rockets reportedly fired by rebels hit pro-government neighborhoods in the southern city of Daraa. (RT)
Business and economy
- China's state owned ChemChina offers to buy Swiss pesticide and seed manufacturer Syngenta for $43 billion. (AP)
Disasters and accidents
- Daallo Airlines Flight 159
- A Daallo Airlines operated commercial plane, bound for Djibouti, makes an emergency landing at Aden Adde International Airport in Mogadishu, following an unexplained explosion that left a gaping hole in its fuselage. (BBC)
International relations
- North Korea and weapons of mass destruction
- Japan puts its military on alert to shoot down any North Korean rocket that threatens it following an announcement by North Korea of a planned "Earth observation launch". (Reuters)
- South Korea warns North Korea of "searing consequences" if it doesn't abandon plans to launch a long-range rocket that violates United Nations Security Council resolutions that prohibits the country from engaging in any ballistic activities. (Fox News)
Law and crime
- John Bingham, 7th Earl of Lucan, wanted for murder since 1974, is officially declared dead so that his son can inherit the title. (BBC)
Politics and elections
- 2016 United States presidential election
- Kentucky Senator Rand Paul suspends his campaign for the Republican Party nomination for President of the United States. (Vox) (Politico)
- Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum withdraws from the race. (Washington Post)
- 2016 Irish general election
- Voters in Ireland will go to the polls on February 26 after the President dissolves the current Dail or parliament. (AAP via News Limited) (BBC)