Portal:Current events/2015 December 26

December 26, 2015 (Saturday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

At least one person is injured and another is arrested after a machete attack at Intu Bromley shopping centre in the United Kingdom during the busy annual Boxing Day sales. A motive or possible link to terrorism has not yet been established. (The Guardian)

Disasters and accidents

2015–16 Australian bushfire season
- A bushfire in Victoria state has destroyed 116 homes. The 2200-hectare Jamieson Track blaze razed 98 homes in Wye River and 18 at Separation Creek. The fire stopped just 500 meters short of Kennett River. A dousing of rain on Saturday was unlikely to do much in the long term as this blaze could continue into January or February, says emergency management commissioner Craig Lapsley. No injuries are reported. (Sky News) (BBC) (The Guardian)
2015–16 UK and Ireland windstorm season
- Storm Eva
  - Heavy rain from the fifth officially named storm of the season leads to serious flooding across Lancashire and Yorkshire in northern England. (BBC)
Tornadoes of 2015
- The death toll in the spring-like, tornado-laden storms that began Wednesday in the American South has risen to 18 with additional tornadoes hitting north-central Alabama Friday and one outside of Dallas, Texas, today. (NBC News) (USA Today)
December 2015 Hindu Kush earthquake
- Officials report at least four people died and more than 100 were injured, most in Pakistan, after Friday night's 6.3 magnitude earthquake in northeast Afghanistan. Casualty numbers may change since rescue teams have not reached all affected areas. (Latin American Herald Tribune)

International relations

China's Foreign Ministry announces French journalist Ursula Gauthier of news magazine L'Obs would not be issued press credentials for 2016, effectively expelling her at the end of month. Gauthier allegedly made speculative reports on the deadly attack at a coal mine in Xinjiang. (The Washington Post) (ABC Australia)

Law and crime

In the Louisville community of St. Matthews, Kentucky, US, disruptive behavior by a crowd of up to 2,000 teenagers and young adults, including numerous fights and unconfirmed reports of gunshots fired, causes Mall St. Matthews, one of the largest shopping malls in the state, to close early. Despite the unrest, no arrests were made and only minor injuries were reported. (NBC News)