Portal:Current events/2018 September 15

• Nine civilians are killed in twin attacks carried out by Islamist militants in eastern Burkina Faso. (The Sydney Morning Herald)

• The government of the United Kingdom announces that a review will be introduced Thursday of the rail franchise system amid criticism of its efficacy. (BBC)

• 2018 Pacific typhoon season, Typhoon Mangkhut
  • Super Typhoon Mangkhut (Ompong), one of the strongest in the history of the Philippines, kills at least 59 people. The typhoon struck also Hong Kong, injuring more than 200 people while four persons died in China. A woman died in Taiwan after being swept out to sea. (BBC) (Taiwan News)
• 2018 Atlantic hurricane season, Hurricane Florence
  • 17 people are confirmed dead after Hurricane Florence-related incidents. Florence is expected to dump an additional 10 to 15 inches of rain in parts of the Carolinas. (BBC)
  • A record 30.5 inches (77 cm) of rain falls at Swansboro, North Carolina, breaking the state record of 24 inches (61 cm). (The Washington Post)
• At least five Afghan National Army soldiers are killed in a helicopter crash in Farah Province, Afghanistan. (Tolo News)
• A shark kills a man in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, the state's first such fatality since 1936. (AP)

• A U.S. Border Patrol agent has been arrested in the state of Texas on suspicion of killing four women. (BBC)
• The Russian FSB says that Belgium has extradited Ali Gekhaev, a suspect wanted for financing ISIL militants in Syria. (Xinhua) (TASS)
• Victoire Ingabire, Kizito Mihigo, and 2,138 other prisoners are released in an unexpected move by the Rwandan government. (Deutsche Welle)
• Five people are killed and another eight are injured in a shooting at Plaza Garibaldi in Mexico City. The gunmen were dressed as mariachi musicians. (National Post)

• The United Launch Alliance successfully launches NASA's ICESat-2 satellite from Vandenberg Air Force Base. The satellite will provide more precise information on Earth's polar ice caps. It is the final mission for the Delta II rocket. (BBC)
• Researchers with Stanford University report the discovery of the oldest known evidence of beer. Dating to approximately 11,000 BCE, the primitive brewery was located near modern Haifa, Israel. (BBC)