June 16, 2015 (Tuesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- al-Qaeda insurgency in Yemen
- al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula announces that its leader Nasser al-Wuhayshi was killed in a US drone strike last Friday. (BBC)
- Syrian Civil War
- Kurdish People's Protection Units have captured the border town of Tell Abyad from Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant forces. (Al-Jazeera)
- Libyan Crisis (2011–present)
- Three of the ten Tunisian consular staff kidnapped last week have been released and negotiation is ongoing about the others. (Reuters via Trust)
Arts and culture
- The British Broadcasting Corporation announces that Chris Evans will be the new presenter of the popular Top Gear television series. (BBC)
Business and economy
- Airbus announces plans to build 900 satellites on behalf of the OneWeb satellite constellation with the project starting in 2018. (The Guardian)
- Rupert Murdoch confirms stepping down as the CEO of 21st Century Fox to be succeeded by his son James on July 1, 2015. Rupert will continue as its executive chairman with his eldest son, Lachlan, as a future executive co-chairman. (USA Today)
Disasters and accidents
- 2015 Atlantic hurricane season
- Texas braces for the impact of Tropical Storm Bill bringing heavy rainfall and renewed flooding. (Accuweather)
- A train crashes with a truck in central Tunisia killing at least 12 people and injuring 70. (Al-Jazeera)
- Six people are killed and eight are injured, some with life-threatening injuries, after a balcony collapses in Berkeley, California, near the campus of the University of California, Berkeley; five of the casualties are students. (NBC News), (AP)
Health
- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issues a mandate that all artificial trans fatty acids (trans fats) must be eliminated within three years (2018) from all foods grown, imported to, or sold within the United States. It is the strictest and most final type of ruling, even more so than a black-box warning or a warning to list ingredients, that can be given from the federal agency, which has ultimate jurisdiction over the safety of all food and drug products, public or private, in the United States. The substances occur in processed meats and other foods, and have been repeatedly implicated in atherosclerotic coronary heart disease, diabetes, and some cancers. (MSN), (Washington Post),(CNN Money), (FDA's statement)
- 2015 Middle East respiratory syndrome outbreak in South Korea
- South Korea reports three more deaths from Middle East Respiratory Syndrome bringing the death toll to 19 with 154 people diagnosed with the disease. (Yonhap)
Law and crime
- Bangladesh's Supreme Court upholds the death sentence against senior Islamist leader Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed in an appeal hearing. (AFP via France 24)[permanent dead link]
- An Egyptian court sentences former President Mohamed Morsi to life in prison for conspiring with foreign groups and upholds an earlier preliminary death sentence issued for a prison break. Muslim Brotherhood leader Khairat el-Shater and two others are given death sentences. (Al-Jazeera), (AP via Breaking News)
Politics and elections
- 2016 United States presidential election
- Real estate mogul and reality television host Donald Trump announces that he will be a candidate for the Republican Party nomination. (Bloomberg)
Sport
- 2015 NBA Finals
- In basketball, the Golden State Warriors defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers 105-97 in Game 6 to secure their first title since 1975. Andre Iguodala is named the series MVP. (Fox Sports), (AL.com)