December 9, 2003

A suicide bombing in central Moscow at 11 a.m. local time (0800 UTC) kills six people and wounds 13 others. The police reports that one of the dead bombers has been identified as a woman.
Doctors at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control are worried that the 2003-2004 influenza season will be the worst in years. Early signs indicate that a particularly virulent strain of the flu virus that is not well-covered by this year's vaccine is hitting hard in some states. Young children and the elderly have been urged to receive the vaccine, doses of which are running low.
Former U.S. Senator Bob Kerrey is appointed to the 9/11 Commission to replace Max Cleland, who is stepping down to become president of the U.S. Export-Import Bank.
Al Gore endorses Howard Dean's candidacy for the Democratic presidential nomination for the 2004 U.S. presidential election.
The M6 Toll road, the United Kingdom's first toll motorway, partially opens in the West Midlands. It is due to open fully on December 13.
Occupation of Iraq:

Some 60 U.S. soldiers and a handful of Iraqis are injured in Tal Afar, west of Mosul, when a pre-dawn car bomb explodes at an entrance to an army base.
A U.S. Kiowa helicopter makes a controlled landing after being struck by an RPG near Fallujah; the two-man crew is uninjured.
An early-morning car bomb kills three people at a Sunni mosque in a predominantly Shi'ite district of Baghdad.
Japan cabinet approves troops to Iraq.

Political status of Taiwan: Standing next to visiting Premier Wen Jiabao, George W. Bush reiterates U.S. support for the one China policy and states that he opposes holding a referendum on Taiwan.
Democrat Gavin Newsom defeats Green Party challenger Matt Gonzalez in run-off election for San Francisco mayor, succeeding term-limit blocked Willie Brown.
United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Mel Martinez resigns, effective Friday at noon.
Shanghai announces plans to ban bicycles from main roads in the city centre