Portal:Current events/2012 February 26

• A mass suicide bomber kills at least two people outside a church in the Nigerian city of Jos. (BBC)
• France and Germany follow the United States and United Kingdom in withdrawing civilian staff from Afghan government facilities following the killing of two senior NATO officers. (BBC)
• Colombia's Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia or FARC announces that it has abandoned kidnapping and will soon release its last remaining captives. (AP via Newsday)

• 84th Academy Awards:
  • The 84th Academy Awards are held at the Hollywood and Highland Center Theatre (formerly Kodak Theatre) in Hollywood, California. (NineMSN)
  • The Artist wins five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, the first silent film to win such an award since Wings in 1927. (Los Angeles Times)
  • A Separation wins the Best Foreign Language Film Award. (Tabnak)

• Chandra Bahadur Dangi is verified by Guinness World Records to be the world's shortest person ever, beating the record long held by Gul Mohammed. (CNN)

• Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation launches the The Sun on Sunday to replace the News of the World, which closed due to a phone hacking controversy. (PA via Sydney Morning Herald)

• A bus plunges off a cliff in Shanxi, China, killing 15 tourists. (AFP)
• A train derails in Burlington, Ontario, Canada killing at least three people and injuring 45.(CBC)

• A trial begins in Cairo of 16 Americans and 27 others linked to an Egyptian government crackdown on non-government organizations which has created tension between the United States and Egypt. (AP via Google)
• Two members of the Italian Marines accused of killing two Indian fishermen will be prosecuted under Indian law. (PTI via DNA India)
• In Sanford, Florida, 17-year-old Trayvon Martin is shot and killed by George Zimmerman.

• Thousands of Chinese postings inundate U.S. president Barack Obama's Google+ page after restrictions are lifted in China. (BBC) (Russia Today)
• 2011–2012 Russian protests: Thousands of Russians form a human chain around the centre of Moscow in protest against Vladimir Putin. (Times of India)
• Voters in Senegal go to the polls for the Senegalese presidential election which has been marked by violence. (Voice of America)
• Voters in Syria go to the polls for a referendum on a new constitution. (Reuters)
• Three thousand Malaysians protest a rare-earth refinery being built by Australian miner Lynas. (AP via MSNBC)