Hyacinth Bean Vine – Lablab purpureus

February 2009 was the second month of that common year. The month, which began on a Sunday, ended on a Saturday after 28 days.

Portal:Current events

Presidency of Barack Obama:
- Tom Daschle withdraws his nomination to serve as United States Secretary of Health and Human Services and Nancy Killefer withdraws her nomination to serve as Chief Performance Officer. (MSNBC.com)
- President Obama nominates Republican Senator Judd Gregg for the position of Secretary of Commerce. (New York Times)
- New Hampshire Governor John H. Lynch nominates Republican J. Bonnie Newman to replace Gregg in the Senate. (Bloomberg)
2008–2009 Israel–Gaza conflict:
- Israel announces restrictions on Al Jazeera broadcasts within its borders. (BBC)
- The Palestinian National Authority demands an investigation into alleged war crimes committed in the Gaza Strip. (Washington Post)
California's government goes broke and issues IOUs on all expenditures not required by law. (ABC7)
Afghanistan's National Directorate of Security eliminates a Pakistani terrorist cell responsible for at least six suicide bombings in Kabul. (AFP via Google News)
Sri Lankan Civil War:
- The Armed Forces claim to have captured an underground bunker used by the Tamil Tigers. (AFP via The Australian)^{[permanent dead link]}
- The United States, European Union, Japan, and Norway urge the Tigers to cease fighting and negotiate with the government. (BBC)
- At least 52 Tamil civilians are killed in recent combat. (The Guardian)
Australia:
- The government announces a $42-billion stimulus package to revive the economy. (Sydney Morning Herald)
- The Reserve Bank reduces interest rates by 100 basis points to 3.25%. (NineMSN Money)^{[permanent dead link]}
Iran announces the launch of its first domestically constructed satellite, Omid. (Reuters)
Suspected Taliban militants suspend NATO supply lines by destroying a bridge on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. (CNN)
The United Kingdom struggles to cope with its heaviest snowfalls since 1991. (BBC)

2008-2009 Israel-Gaza conflict:
- An Israel Defense Force investigation concludes that the attack on Izzeldin Abuelaish was reasonable. (Jerusalem Post)
- The United Nations backtracks on a claim that a deadly Israeli Defense Force strike hit a Gaza school. (Haaretz)
- Hamas police storm a United Nations warehouse in Gaza and seize blankets and food intended for Palestinian civilians. (Haaretz)
Late 2000s recession
- The United States Treasury moves to broaden its debt ranging options to raise the trillions of dollars needed to cope with the current recession. (Reuters)
- German legendary model train manufacturer Märklin goes bankrupt after the failure of long-running restructuring efforts. (Der Spiegel) (Financial Times)
- Panasonic Corp. announces plans to shut down 27 plants throughout the world and slash 15,000 jobs due to a slump in demand for its electronic products resulting from the worldwide recession. (AP via Google News)
- Icelandic retail group Baugur has applied to a district court in Reykjavík to enter into a moratorium process. (Sky News)
- Unemployment in Ireland sees the highest monthly increase in 40 years, with the equivalent of 1,500 people being laid off daily. (RTÉ)
Russian financial crisis of 2008-2009:
- Fitch Ratings downgrades Russia's long-term foreign and local currency ratings to BBB and places its outlook on negative. (Dow Jones via Easy Bourse)
Samira Ahmed Jassim, who allegedly recruited more than 80 suicide bombers, is arrested in Iraq. (Times Online)
The High Court of Justice alleges British resident Benyam Mohammed was tortured and that the US threatened to withdraw intelligence help from the United Kingdom if details were released. (BBC)
A senior British Army officer is arrested in Afghanistan on suspicion of breaking the Official Secrets Act by leaking information on civilian casualties to a human rights campaigner. (Press Association via The Guardian)
Sri Lankan artillery attacks in the last 24 hours in the Vanni result in the deaths of at least 52 Tamils. (The Guardian)
Latvia's Minister of Agriculture resigns in the wake of growing protests by farmers. (BBC)
The director of Somalia's independent HornAfrik radio station, Said Tahlil Ahmed, is killed in Mogadishu. (BBC)
An estimated 15,000 students in Dublin, Ireland, protest the threatened reintroduction of university fees. (RTÉ)
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon announces a commission to investigate the assassination of former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto. (AFP via Google News)
Fossils from Colombia reveal Titanoboa cerrejonensis, the largest snake ever discovered. (Nature)
German public television station ZDF reports that Nazi fugitive Aribert Heim died in 1992. (AFP via Google News)
Eight trucks are attacked en route to Afghanistan by suspected Taliban militants. (BBC News)

USA Swimming suspends Michael Phelps from competition for three months following the publication of a photograph of him inhaling from a marijuana pipe. (AP via Sports Illustrated)
Muttiah Muralitharan of Sri Lanka's national cricket team becomes the highest wicket-taker in One Day Internationals with 503. (Sports 24)
Russia, Belarus, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan agree to form a rapid reaction force based in the Federation. (AFP via The Australian)
China declares a national emergency due to severe droughts throughout the country. (BBC)
Somali pirates release Ukraine's MV Faina following a US$3.2-million ransom payment. (BBC)
Late 2000s recession:
- The Bank of England reduces the base rate of interest to a new historic low of 1%. (Sky News)
- The number of Americans applying for first-time unemployment benefits reaches its highest level since October 1982. (CNN Money)
At least 10 people are killed in a Brazilian Federal Police raid in Rio de Janeiro. (BBC)
Heavy snowfall closes Ireland's Dublin Airport and disrupts flights for several hours. (RTÉ)
Businessman Kazutsugi Nami is arrested by Japanese police over a US$1.4-billion investment scam. (BBC)
Three members of the State Legislative Assembly in Perak state, Malaysia from the People's Alliance declare themselves independent and pledge support for the National Front, sparking a constitutional crisis. (New Straits Times)
Zimbabwe's House of Assembly allows power-sharing between the African National Union – Patriotic Front and the Movement for Democratic Change. (Reuters)
A suicide bomber kills 24 people and injures at least 40 in Dera Ghazi Khan, Pakistan. (MSNBC)
Undefeated Welsh boxer Joe Calzaghe announces his retirement. (BBC)

Collision of Iridium Satellite LLC's Iridium 33 and Russia's Kosmos-2251 in low-Earth orbit. (Reuters) (New York Times)
South Africa announces that a general election will be held on April 22, 2009. (CNN)
Automotive industry crisis of 2008-2009:
- United States automaker General Motors announces it will cut 10,000 jobs in its salaried workforce and the pay of remaining employees. (AP via Google News)
- English automaker Bentley cuts 220 jobs and all salaries by 10 percent. (Press Association via Google News)
Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg is named Germany's Federal Minister of Economics and Technology. (IHT)
Russian financial crisis of 2008–2009:
- Russia will request postponement of repayment of US$400 billion in private-sector debt to foreign banks. (Reuters)
- The Russia Tower will be reduced in size, due to funding issues and the construction of the Moscow International Business Centre. (Moscow Times)
Swiss financial services company UBS AG lost 19.7 billion francs for fiscal year 2008 and will cut 15,000 jobs throughout 2009. (The Street)
Israel's legislative election takes place. (Reuters)
Zimbabwe's dollar depreciates and its cholera epidemic has killed more than 3,000 people. (Sky News)
The United States Senate approves the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. (CNN) (New York Times)
The United Kingdom imposes new visa requirements on nationals from Bolivia, Lesotho, South Africa, Swaziland, and Venezuela. (BBC)
Mexico will nationally register all its mobile phone users and catalog their fingerprints. (Reuters)
An EF4 tornado kills at least eight people and injures 50 in Lone Grove, Oklahoma, United States. (The Oklahoman)
Fifty thousand people protest living costs in Guadeloupe and Martinique. (MSNBC)

The Taliban and Pakistan agree to a permanent ceasefire in the war in North-West Frontier Province. (CNN)
The International Security Assistance Force kills 13 people in Guzara, Herat, Afghanistan. (CNN)
Italy's Democratic Party elects Deputy Secretary Dario Franceschini as its new Secretary. (France 24)
Approximately 120,000 people march in Dublin, Ireland, to protest the government's handling of the country's economic and banking crises. (Irish Times)
At least 10 people are killed and 20 injured in a collision between a train and a coach in Slovakia. (RTÉ)

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Hyacinth Bean Vine – Lablab purpureus

Portal:Current events

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