Armed conflicts and attacks
At least six people are killed and dozens injured in explosions at 15 locations in Liucheng County in China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. The explosives were reportedly concealed inside express delivery packages. Chinese officials have identified a suspect, but the motive is not yet known. (South China Morning Post), (UPI)
Syrian Civil War
Russian involvement in the Syrian Civil War
The upper chamber of the Russian parliament approves a law allowing the use of the Russian Armed Forces outside its borders, following a request by Russian President Vladimir Putin. (The News Hub)
Russia begins airstrikes against anti-government targets in Syria following a request from President Bashar al-Assad. A U.S. official said the air attack struck near the Syrian city of Homs, where the official said ISIS currently does not have a major presence. (NPR), (ABC News), (Washington Post)
The Western-backed Syrian rebel group, the Free Syrian Army, says one of its 'leading officers' has been killed in a Russian airstrike in the central Homs Governorate. (AP)
War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
The U.S.-led coalition dispatches American troops to Kunduz to help Afghan forces combat Taliban militants. (The Washington Post)
2006 Mumbai train bombings
An Indian court sentences five suspected Islamic militants to death and seven others to life imprisonment for bombing attacks nine years ago on seven Mumbai commuter trains that killed 188 people and wounded more than 800. (AP via ABC News)[permanent dead link], (Reuters), (BBC)
2015 Hajj stampede
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warns Saudi Arabia of "harsh" measures if the Kingdom fails to promptly repatriate the bodies of more than 200 Iranian pilgrims killed in last week's Hajj stampede. (AP via Denver Post), (Reuters)
Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
An Iranian fishing boat loaded with weapons, including rockets and anti-tank shells, is intercepted and seized in the Arabian Sea, 150 miles southeast of the Omani Port of Salalah, by Arab coalition forces. Saudi Arabia has previously accused Iran of supplying weapons to Houthi militants in Yemen. (BBC)
Arts and culture
The Dalai Lama, following his routine check-up at Minnesota's Mayo Clinic, cancels his U.S. speaking engagements in October after doctors advised him to rest. The 80-year-old Tibetan Buddhist leader is scheduled to return home to Dharamsala, India, Saturday. (The Times of India), (Radio Free Asia)