2018 Iowa Hawkeyes football team, Game summaries, vs. Mississippi State (Outback Bowl)
In a back-and-forth game, Iowa held on to defeat SEC opponent Mississippi State. Senior Jake Gervase made a critical interception in the end zone, and batted down a fourth down pass to end the Bulldogs' hopes. The victory was Ferentz's fifth January bowl win and eighth overall bowl victory.


2018 Iowa House of Representatives election
The 2018 Iowa House of Representative elections took place on November 6, 2018 to elect Representatives from all 100 Districts. The winners of this will serve in 88th General Assembly, with apportioned among the states based on 2010 United States Census. The Republican Party retained control of the House, while losing a net gain of 5 seats to Democratic Party


2018 Iowa House of Representatives election
The Elections for Iowa's 4 Congressional Districts, Governor and Lieutenant Governor, Statewide Office Holders and the Iowa Senate were also held on this date


2018 Iowa House of Representatives election, General election, District 9
Incumbent Democrat Helen Miller announced her retirement and did not run for reelection Republicans Ann Meyer, a Registered Nurse and Gary Waechter are running are running. Democrat Megan Srinivas, a Physician announced her candidacy


2018 Iowa House of Representatives election, General election, District 10
Republican Incumbent Mike Sexton is seeking reelection for a third term. he faced former 2012 and 2016 Presidential Candidate Tom Hoefling in the republican primary. on the Democratic Side, Jake Thompson is running for the democratic nomination.


2018 Iowa House of Representatives election, General election, District 12
Republican Brian Best is running for a third term, He faced democrat Peter Leo in the general election


2018 Iowa House of Representatives election, General election, District 13
Incumbent Democrat Chris Hall is Running for fifth term and ran unopposed


2018 Iowa House of Representatives election, General election, District 14
Incumbent Democrat Timothy Kacena is fending off a rematch against Republican Robert Henderson, who Kacena narrowly defeated back in 2016.


2018 Iowa House of Representatives election, General election, District 15
Incumbent Democrat Charlie McConkey is running for reelection he faces Republican LeAnn Hughes in the General Election


2018 Iowa House of Representatives election, General election, District 16
Democrat Steve Gorman nearly pulled off a stunning upset against Republican Incumbent  Mary Ann Hanusa. Libertarian Party Candidate Steve Sechrest is also running


2018 Iowa House of Representatives election, General election, District 17
Republican Incumbent Matt Windschitl and Democratic Jan Creasman are having a rematch


2018 Iowa House of Representatives election, General election, District 19
House Majority leader Chris Hagenow who previously represented District 43 planned to move with his family to run in the 19th District  Democrat Gregg Gustafson and Independent Candidate Richard Dedor are also running.


2018 Iowa House of Representatives election, General election, District 28
Jon Thorup and Jon Van Wyk are both vying for this seat.


2018 Iowa House of Representatives election, General election, District 42
Kristin Sunde is Challenging Republican Incumbent Peter Cownie in a key West Des Moines suburban seat.


2018 Iowa Senate election
The 2018 Iowa State Senate elections took place as part of the biennial 2018 United States elections. Iowa voters elected state senators in half of the state senate's districts--the 25 odd-numbered state senate districts. State senators serve four-year terms in the Iowa State Senate, with half of the seats up for election each cycle.


2018 Iowa Senate election
The primary election on June 5, 2018 determined which candidates appeared on the November 6, 2018 general election ballot. Primary election results can be obtained here.


2018 Iowa Senate election
Following the previous 2016 Iowa Senate election, Republicans flipped control of the Iowa state Senate, taking control away from the Democrats.


2018 Iowa Senate election
To reclaim control of the chamber from Republicans, the Democrats needed to net 6 Senate seats.


2018 Iowa Senate election
Republicans expanded their control of the Iowa State Senate following the 2018 general election, increasing their majority from 29 to 32 seats. Democrats saw their numbers dwindle from 20 to 18 seats. The lone Independent member of the IA state Senate was replaced by a Republican as well.


2018 Iowa State Cyclones football team
The 2018 Iowa State Cyclones football team represented Iowa State University in the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Competing as a member of the Big 12 Conference (Big 12), the team played its home games at Jack Trice Stadium in Ames, Iowa. They were led by third-year head coach Matt Campbell. They finished the season 8-5, 6-3 in the Big 12, the most conference wins in a season. They finished third in the Big 12, behind #4 Oklahoma and #14 Texas. They were invited to the Alamo Bowl where they lost to #13 Washington State.


2018 Iowa State Cyclones football team, Previous season and offseason
The 2017 Iowa State Cyclones football team finished 7–5 in the regular season and 5–4 in Big 12 play giving them a fourth-place finish in conference standings. They had wins over non conference opponents UNI and Akron and conference opponents #3 Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas Tech, #4 TCU, and Baylor. Allen Lazard, Kamari Cotton-Moya, and David Montgomery received first team All-Big 12 honors and Jake Campos, Chase Allen, Joel Lanning, Brian Peavy, and JD Waggoner received second team All-Big 12 honors. Matt Campbell was also named Big 12 Coach of the Year. Additionally, Joel Lanning was named a first team All-American.


2018 Iowa State Cyclones football team, Previous season and offseason, Big 12 media poll
The Big 12 media poll was released on July 12, 2018 with the Cyclones predicted to finish in seventh place.


2018 Iowa State Cyclones football team, Schedule
Iowa State announced their 2018 football schedule on October 26, 2017. The 2018 schedule consisted of seven home games and five away games in the regular season. The Cyclones hosted Big 12 foes Oklahoma, West Virginia, Texas Tech, Baylor, and Kansas State and travel to TCU, Oklahoma State, Kansas, and Texas. For their non-conference schedule the Cyclones hosted Drake and Akron as well as traveling to in–state rival Iowa.


2018 Iowa State Cyclones football team, Schedule
Originally, Iowa State planned to play South Dakota State on September 1 to open the season, however, the game was canceled shortly after kickoff due to bad weather. Iowa State was to host Incarnate Word on December 1, however, Incarnate Word was not able to play after qualifying for the FCS playoffs. They replaced Incarnate Word with Drake.


2018 Iowa State Cyclones football team, Game summaries, Game 5: at Oklahoma State Cowboys
Iowa State's Freshman Brock Purdy replaced Zeb Noland at quarterback and passed 18-for-23 for 318 yards and produced four touchdowns. He then ran for another 84 yards and another score. The final score was a loss for the Cowboys at 48-42.


2018 Iowa State Cyclones football team, Game summaries, Game 9: Baylor Bears
At the beginning of the second half, Baylor's Chris Miller got a flag for a late hit against Iowa State running back David Montgomery, pushing him into a Gatorade cooler, escalating tensions. Later, Baylor linebacker Greg Roberts threw a punch at Montgomery and he responded with another punch. Both were ejected from the second half of the game and Montgomery was ejected from the first half of the Texas game the following week.


2018 Iowa State Cyclones football team, Game summaries, Game 11: Kansas State Wildcats
After a slow start, Kansas State held a solid lead for most of the game. Kansas State had racked up a 17 point lead with only 12 minutes remaining in the game. From there, Iowa State's Mike Rose grabbed a loose ball for a touchdown and the Cyclones controlled the game to rally with 21 unanswered points. The final score was an Iowa State victory, 41-38. The Cyclones broke the 9 year losing streak against the Wildcats. This game was also the last game Kansas State coach Bill Snyder coached before retiring.


2018 Iowa attorney general election
The 2018 Iowa Attorney General election took place on November 6, 2018, to elect the Attorney General of Iowa.


2018 Iowa attorney general election
Incumbent Democratic Attorney General Tom Miller won re-election with 76.5% of the vote. The Republican Party did not nominate anyone, but the Libertarian Party nominated Marco Battaglia.


2018 Iowa elections
The Iowa elections, 2018 were held in the U.S. state of Iowa on November 6, 2018. A closed primary election was held on June 5, 2018. All of Iowa's executive officers were up for election as well as all four of Iowa's seats in the United States House of Representatives, 25 (half) of the seats in the Iowa Senate, and all 100 seats in the Iowa House of Representatives.


2018 Iowa elections, Governorship
Incumbent Republican Governor Terry Branstad, who has served for two consecutive and six total terms as Iowa Governor, resigned to be the United States Ambassador to China in 2017. Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds assumed the governorship and was seeking a full term.


2018 Iowa elections, Attorney General
Incumbent Democratic Attorney General Tom Miller has served in the position since 1995, and previously from 1979 to 1991. The Republican Party did not nominate anyone, but the Libertarian Party nominated Marco Battaglia.


2018 Iowa elections, Treasurer
Incumbent Democratic State Treasurer Michael L. Fitzgerald, who has served in the position since 1983, ran for reelection to a tenth term in office. Fitzgerald was unopposed in the primary and does not have a Republican challenger, however does have a challenger from the Libertarian party.


2018 Iowa elections, Auditor
Incumbent Auditor Mary Mosiman, who has served since 2013 was eligible for re-election and was unopposed in the Republican primary. Attorney Rob Sand won the Democratic Primary.


2018 Iowa elections, Secretary of Agriculture
Republican Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey had served in the position since 2007. Northey was considering running for Iowa Governor, but after Governor Terry Branstad was nominated to be Ambassador to China he announced he would not run. Northey had not ruled out running for reelection in 2018, but he said he would be willing to serve as Lieutenant Governor instead if asked. In 2018, he was nominated by President Donald Trump to be Under Secretary of Agriculture for Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services and has since ruled out reelection. The office is currently held by Mike Naig, serving in an acting capacity.


2018 Iowa elections, United States House of Representatives
All of Iowa's four seats in the United States House of Representatives were up for election in 2018.


2018 Iowa elections, Iowa General Assembly
The 25 odd-numbered Iowa Senate seats were up for election in 2018, as were all 100 Iowa House seats.


2018 Iowa gubernatorial election
The 2018 Iowa gubernatorial election took place on November 6, 2018. Incumbent Republican Governor Kim Reynolds ran for election to a full term, facing Democratic businessman Fred Hubbell, Libertarian Jake Porter, and independent candidate Gary Siegwarth.


2018 Iowa gubernatorial election
On Election Day, Reynolds won 50.3% of the vote, a 2.8% margin of victory, and carried 88 of Iowa's 99 counties. She became the first female governor of Iowa elected in her own right. This was the first Iowa gubernatorial election since 1998 in which the winner was of the same party as the incumbent president.


2018 Iowa gubernatorial election, Background
After the 2016 presidential election, President Donald Trump nominated then-Governor Terry Branstad to be the United States Ambassador to China. When Branstad was confirmed by the United States Senate, he resigned as Iowa Governor to assume the ambassadorship on May 24, 2017. Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds then became Governor of Iowa.


2018 Iowa gubernatorial election, Libertarian primary
Libertarian Party presidential nominee Gary Johnson received 3.8 percent of the votes in Iowa in 2016, surpassing the 2 percent threshold to attain full political party status. As a result, the Libertarian Party was allowed to hold a primary to select a nominee.


2018 Iowa gubernatorial election, General election, Results
While pre-election polls showed Reynolds trailing Hubbell, Reynolds won 50.3% of the vote on Election Day, primarily by sweeping every county west of Des Moines and dominating the 4th Congressional District (she lost the other three). Ultimately, she carried 88 of Iowa's 99 counties. She became the first female governor of Iowa elected in her own right.


2018 Ipswich Borough Council election
Elections to Ipswich Borough Council took place on 3 May 2018. This was on the same day as other local elections.


2018 Ipswich SuperSprint
The 2018 Ipswich SuperSprint (formally known as 2018 Coates Hire Ipswich SuperSprint) was a motor racing event for the Supercars Championship, held on the weekend of 20–22 July 2018. The event was held at Queensland Raceway near Ipswich, Queensland and consisted of two races, 120 and 200 kilometres in length. It was the ninth event of sixteen in the 2018 Supercars Championship and hosted Races 19 and 20 of the season.


2018 Iran Bombardier Challenger crash
On 11 March 2018, a Bombardier Challenger 604 private jet, owned by Turkish group Başaran Holding, crashed in the Zagros Mountains near Shahr-e Kord, Iran, while returning to Turkey from the United Arab Emirates. All three crew members and eight passengers on board were killed.


2018 Iran Bombardier Challenger crash, History
The aircraft, registered TC-TRB, departed from Sharjah International Airport, United Arab Emirates, at around 17:11 local time (13:11 UTC), bound for Istanbul Atatürk Airport. The flight crew consisted of two pilots and a cabin attendant. The Captain had flown for Turkish Airlines in the past, while the First Officer had a military aviation background, and had been one of the first female pilots in the Turkish armed forces.


2018 Iran Bombardier Challenger crash, History
The aircraft reached a cruising altitude of just over 35,000 ft (11,000 m). At around 18:01 IRST local time (14:31 UTC), shortly before contact was lost, the crew reported technical problems and requested clearance from air traffic control to descend to a lower altitude. The jet began to climb before abruptly losing altitude, and at 18:09, hit the Zagros Mountains near Shahre Kord, some 370 km (230 mi) south of Tehran, Iran. All eleven occupants were killed. One witness reportedly saw the aircraft on fire before the crash.


2018 Iran Bombardier Challenger crash, Victims
The jet was carrying a group of eight friends returning from a bachelorette party in Dubai. Among them was Mina Başaran, daughter of the head of Başaran Holding, Hüseyin Başaran, and member of the company's board of directors.


2018 Iran Bombardier Challenger crash, Recovery operations
Local villagers saw a plume of smoke rising from the wreckage, and were the first to arrive at the scene. Iranian search-and-rescue teams arrived afterwards and found the burned bodies of ten victims. Bad weather conditions at the crash site made the operation difficult. One victim has yet to be found. The recovered bodies were transported to Tehran by helicopter. Turkey then sent emergency personnel via a military jet for assistance. Identification of the bodies required DNA testing.


2018 Iran Bombardier Challenger crash, Recovery operations
After identification by the Iranian authorities, the bodies of ten victims were flown to Istanbul by the Turkish military and then handed over to the victims' families. Iranian Legal Medicine Organization stated that the remains of the captain were not among the recovered bodies in the eleven body bags from the wreckage.


2018 Iran Bombardier Challenger crash, Investigation
The aircraft's two flight recorders (the flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder) were recovered for analysis.


2018 Iran Bombardier Challenger crash, Investigation
In September 2018, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Board of the Iranian civil aviation authority published a preliminary report indicating that, shortly before reaching cruise altitude, a discrepancy between the airspeed indications shown to the two pilots became apparent, with one indicating an overspeed condition. Engine power was reduced, and shortly after the stick-shaker activated. The aircraft subsequently stalled and entered a steep descent during which both engines flamed out. Control was not regained and the aircraft eventually struck a mountainside. In March 2020, the AAIB issued its final report, concluding that the accident was caused by insufficient training for airspeed indication failure and poor crew resource management.


2018 Iran Fajr International Challenge
The 2018 Iran Fajr International Challenge, officially The 27th Iran Fajr International Challenge 2018 was a badminton tournament which took place at Enghelab Sport Complex in Iran from 5 to 8 February 2018 and had a total purse of $25,000.


2018 Iran Fajr International Challenge, Tournament
The 2018 Iran Fajr International Challenge was the first tournament of the 2018 BWF International Challenge and also part of the Iran Fajr International Challenge championships which has been held since 1991. This tournament was organized by the Iran Badminton Federation.


2018 Iran Fajr International Challenge, Tournament, Venue
This international tournament was held at Enghelab Sport Complex in Zanjan, Iran.


2018 Iran Fajr International Challenge, Tournament, Point distribution
Below is the tables with the point distribution for each phase of the tournament based on the BWF points system for the BWF International Challenge event.


2018 Iran Fajr International Challenge, Tournament, Prize money
The total prize money for this year tournament is US$25,000. Distribution of prize money is in accordance with BWF regulations.


2018 Iran Futsal's 2nd Division
The 2018 Iranian Futsal 2nd Division (football is called futsal in Iran), was divided into three phases. The league was composed of 34 teams divided into four divisions 6 teams and two divisions 5 teams; whose teams were divided geographically. Teams only played teams in their own division, once at home and once away for a total of 10 or 8 matches each.


2018 Iranian Super Cup
The 2018 Iranian Super Cup was scheduled to be played on July 20, 2018, between the 2017–18 Persian Gulf Pro League champions Persepolis and the 2017–18 Hazfi Cup champions Esteghlal. The result of match awarded 3-0 in favor of  Persepolis, because of Esteghlal match withdrawal.


2018 Iranian protest movement
The 2018 Iranian protests (Persian: جنبش اعتراضی ایرانی 2018) was a series of protests and massive nonviolent demonstrations across Iran throughout late-2018 against worsening tensions and deteriorating conditions as part of the 2018-2019 Iranian general strikes and protests.


2018 Iranian protest movement, Background
Protests occurred in the 2017-2018 Iranian protests and massive protests and opposition strikes, rallies and demonstrations occurred as well, starting in Mashhad and spread nationwide due to the price of eggs, Inflation, soaring prices for food and water and gas and many more issues. The civilians again had had enough of the conditions.


2018 Iranian protest movement, Background
Protests and nationwide trucker demonstrations and public driver strikes was the initial protests and revolt against state-led propaganda and lying to drivers over paid wages. Anger over unchanged transportation fees and increased costs, protests erupted and truckers relaunched nationwide and countrywide demonstrations calling for the government to note their main and focal opposition demands. Hundreds of mill workers reportedly took to the streets while Rail workers were on strike in August as well.


2018 Iranian protest movement, Protests
On 11 September 2018, shopkeepers in Iranian Kurdistan initiated a one-day strike in response to the missile attack by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps on the headquarters of the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran, and the execution of Ramin Panahi and two other Kurd activists. In response to the strikes, the security forces arrested five Kurdish activists.


2018 Iranian protest movement, Protests
On 22 September 2018, truckers across several Iranian cities restarted their strikes against the rising expenses of their jobs. On 26 September, the strikes continued and were seen in Ahvaz, Qazvin, Shahreza, Borujerd, and Urmia. 40 to 70 truckers in Fars, Tehran, and Qazvin province were arrested on 27 September, as strikes continued into their fifth day. The Free Truckers Union announced that the strike had spread to 31 provinces across the country. The judiciary stated that those arrested could face the death penalty. On 29 September, on the eight day of the strikes, the number of truckers arrested reached 89.


2018 Iranian protest movement, Protests
On 1 October, the truckers strikes reached their 10th straight day and were seen in Bukan, Khosrowshah, Arak, Fooladshahr, Nishapur, Tiran, Takestan, Kermanshah, Sanandaj, Qazvin, Karaj, Bandar Abbas, Ardabil, Dezful, Yazd, and Najafabad. The number of arrested also reached 156. By the 13th straight day of the strike over 230 truckers were arrested. The strikes continued into 8 October, and reached their 17th consecutive day. Security forces responded by arresting a number of truckers, which increased the number of people arrested to 256.


2018 Iranian protest movement, Protests
On the same day, Bazaaris in multiple cities across Iran closed their shops and went on strike in protest to the economic situation. Strikes were seen in Sanandaj, Bukan, Saqqez, Marivan, Baneh, Miandoab, Tehran, Isfahan, Mashhad, Tabriz, and Chabahar. The strikes continued into 9 October, although they were reduced in size from the previous day, and were seen in Tabriz, Shahriar, Shahreza, and Sanandaj.


2018 Iranian protest movement, Protests
On 13 October 2018, teachers across Iran started a two-day nationwide strike in protest to high expenses and inflation. Teachers in Tehran, Mashhad, Tabriz, Isfahan, Shiraz, Kermanshah, Ilam, Yasuj, Sanandaj, Simorgh, Hamedan, Amol, Zarrin Shahr, Gonabad, Eslamabad, Torbat-e Heydarieh, Marivan, Sarvabad, and Garmeh, went on strike. At least two teachers were arrested on the first day of the strike.


2018 Iranian protest movement, Protests
Teachers went on strike for a second day on 14 October.


2018 Iranian protest movement, Protests
On 1 November 2018, truckers in Tehran, Zanjan, Isfahan, Asaluyeh, Nahavand, and Shahrud went on strike for the fourth time this year in protest to the arrest of hundreds of truckers in October. Workers from several factories in Iran have been on constant strikes due to unpaid wages and inflation. On 2 November 2018, workers at the Haft Tappeh Cane Sugar Company's factory in Shush start their own strikes.


2018 Iranian protest movement, Protests
On 13 and 14 November, Iranian teachers in most provinces went on strike for the second time in 2018. Thirteen teachers were arrested during this strike.


2018 Iranian protest movement, Protests
On 15 November, the workers strikes escalated and protests spilled onto the streets of Shush. Some workers in Shush called for the factory to be operated by a workers council. The following day, the workers disrupted the Friday Prayer service of the city. They chanted "Hossein, Hossein is their cry, theft is their pride", "Death to oppressors, long live workers", and "Workers are willing to die, but will not accept oppression". Protests continued in the streets of Shush on 17 November, despite the presence of the security forces and riot police.


2018 Iranian protest movement, Protests
On the same day, hundreds of workers of the Foolad Company in Ahvaz protested in front of the Governor's office. Protestors in Ahvaz chanted "Let go of Kashoggi, think of us", and "Inflation, increasing prices, be responsible Rouhani". On 18 November, nineteen protestors were arrested in Shush. By 21 November , thirteen of the protesters in Shush were released from prison, the arrested protestors faced charges of "acting against the regime". On 24 November, workers joined by ordinary citizens, protested in Ahvaz and clashed with the security forces.


2018 Iranian protest movement, Protests
On the same day, workers of the vegetable oil factory of Zanjan protested in front of the governor's office in Zanjan due to unpaid wages. On 28 November, workers protested for the 24th consecutive day in Shush, despite the city's police commander stating that any gatherings were against the law. Protests occurred in Ahvaz on the same day, as thousands of workers took to the streets.


2018 Iranian protest movement, Protests
On 18 November 2018 Workers Syndicate at the Haft Tappeh sugar mill in Iran’s Khuzestan province announced that the security forces had arrested two of their representatives, Esmail Bakhshi and Mohsen Armand. The syndicate also announced that on 29 November 2018 government forces arrested its senior member Ali Nejati in his house.


2018 Iranian protest movement, Protests
On 4 December, workers in Ahvaz protested for the 25th straight day, and chanted "Palestine and Syria are the root of our problems". On 17 December, the security forces cracked-down and arrested 31 workers in Ahvaz whom they i/refdentified as the leaders of the protests. The day before workers had gathered in Ahvaz and declared that they would take their protest to the capital Tehran, if their demands were not met. On 13 December, Ali Nejati, was transferred to hospital, after long and distressing interrogations.


2018 Iranian protest movement, Protests
On 18 December, a lone protester on the island of Kish, stood in front of the main square of the city and graffitied anti-regime and pro-worker slogans, which included: "Imprisoned workers must be freed", and "long live the Shah". On 18 and 19 December 2018 the security forces stormed the houses of Foolad workers in Khuzestan province and arrested up to 41 workers.


2018 Iranian protest movement, Protests
15 workers at Ilam Petrochemical Plant in central western Iran were convicted to six months’ imprisonment and 74 lashes by a state court after they gathered in protest outside the factory for their fellow experienced workers being laid off. The court charged them with “disrupting public order and peace”.


2018 Iranian protest movement, Protests
On 21 December, truck drivers across the country started their fifth round of nationwide strikes in protest to inflation and rising expenses.


2018 Iranian protest movement, Protests
On 27 December 2018 Security forces attacked with tear gas a teachers gathering outside the education office in Isfahan, central Iran. Teachers were protesting their low salary and the arrest of their colleagues who were now in jail.


2018 Iranian university protests
The 2018 Iranian university protests were a series of protests by Iranian university students in support of labour, and teacher strikes, as well as protesting against the current situation of the country. The protests started on 4 December 2018, ahead of university day on 7 December, which is usually marked by protests.


2018 Iranian university protests, Protests, 4 December
On 4 December 2018, students at the Amirkabir University of Technology in Tehran, gathered in support of the ongoing labour and teacher strikes. Students clashed with Basiji counter protesters. Students chanted "Cannons, tanks, and weapons have no affect anymore", "Workers and students unite", "Jailed teachers, workers, and students must be freed", and "Death to this deceptive government". Elsewhere in Tehran, students Allameh Tabataba'i University protested against the presence of members of the Ministry of Intelligence on the campus.


2018 Iranian university protests, Protests, 4 December
On the same day students at the Babol Noshirvani University of Technology protested and chanted "The university is alive", "Stop crackdown on university students", and "University students will die, but will not accept oppression".


2018 Iranian university protests, Protests, 4 December
Students at the Sahand University of Technology also protested and held a hunger strike. Students at the Razi University of Kermanshah also held a protest in support of workers in Khuzestan, and chanted "Bread, freedom, workers council".


2018 Iranian university protests, Protests, 29 December
On 29 December, students at the Islamic Azad University, Science and Research Branch, Tehran gathered on campus to mourn and protest after ten people were killed in a bus accident on the campus on 25 December. Students demanded the resignation of the chairman of the Islamic Azad University Ali Akbar Velayati. The protesters, who numbered in the hundreds, also chanted against the incompetent officials whom they felt were responsible for the incident.


2018 Iranian university protests, Protests, 30 December
Students at the Islamic Azad University, Science and Research Branch, Tehran gathered for a second consecutive day of protests on 30 December. The students chanted "Velayati you are responsible for these killings" and "incompetent officials must be prosecuted". Video from the protests showed a car running over and injuring two students.


2018 Iranian university protests, Protests, 31 December
On 31 December 2018, students and other citizens gathered in front of the University of Tehran in solidarity with the students at the Islamic Azad University, Science and Research Branch, Tehran. Protestors were met by the security forces and anti-riot police who attempted to control the demonstration. Demonstrators clashed with the security forces and chanted "Death to the dictator", "Our fronts to the nation, our backs to the enemy", "Don't be scared, we are all together", and "incompetent officials must resign".


2018 Iranian university protests, Protests, 31 December
Earlier  on Christmas day a bus taking about 30 students on a mountain road hit a concrete road which resulted to the death of 10 passenger and injury of 25 others. Students were from Islamic Azad University in north east of Iran. Iran’s officials are blamed for not using safety precautions, This bus was considered out of service six years ago.


2018 Iranian water protests
The 2018 Iranian water protests were a series of protests by the Iranians living in the cities of Khorramshahr and Abadan, who are protesting the shortage of clean drinking water. The protests started on 20 June in Abadan, before escalating on 30 June in Khorramshahr and turning violent.


2018 Iranian water protests, Timeline, 20 June
On 20 June, people in Abadan gathered in front of the water and sewage system offices and protested undrinkable water. A day before the protests, the water and sewage department in Abadan had declared that water would be rationed in Abadan.


2018 Iranian water protests, Timeline, 23 June
Hundreds of people in Abadan again protested the lack of clean water in front of the Governor's office. The protesters chanted against the Governor and authorities responsible for the city's supply of water.


2018 Iranian water protests, Timeline, 30 June
Hundreds of people, who were protesting the lack of clean drinking water, clashed with police on 30 June in Khorramshahr. IRNA news agency reported that the protesters were chanting slogans against the authorities. Police fired tear gas into the crowd which led to the protesters throwing rocks and garbage. Security forces eventually opened fire on the crowd, which left up to four people dead, which the authorities deny.


2018 Iranian water protests, Timeline, 30 June
The protests, which were solely directed at the lack of clean water in the beginning, turned political, with people chanting "In the name of religion, they plundered us", and "Get lost, governor".


2018 Iranian water protests, Timeline, 1 July
In response to the violent crackdown in Khorramshahr the previous day, thousands of people across Khuzestan province took to the streets in support of the protests in Khorramshahr. Videos on social media showed protests in Ahvaz, Mahshahr, and Bandar-e Emam Khomeyni.


2018 Iraqi Kurdistan missile strike
On 8 September  2018, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) launched seven Fateh-110 missiles at the headquarters of two Iranian Kurdish opposition parties in the town of Koya, in Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish region 300 km north of Iraq's capital, Baghdad. Initial reports from Iranian news agencies listed 11 killed people. Later reports indicated 18 people were killed.


2018 Iraqi Kurdistan missile strike, Background
In the months preceding the attack, some attacks were carried out by Iraqi Kurdish rebels on the borders of the Islamic Republic of Iran in order to carry out acts of sabotage in the provinces such as West Azerbaijan Province, Kermanshah and Kurdistan. Therefore, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps fought against them at the Kamyaran border the previous week.


2018 Iraqi Kurdistan missile strike, Background
According to the IRGC, the target of the missile strike was described as intending to bring to an end to "terrorist and aggressive actions against Iran". The attack took place after ignoring serious warnings by officials of the Kurdistan Regional Government about Iran’s determination to dismantle their bases.


2018 Iraqi Kurdistan missile strike, Casualties
According to initial reports the missile strike led to the death of 12 people and 50 others injured, party officials stated. Later reporting indicated the death toll had risen to 18, six of whom were members of the central committee of KDP-Iran. Rahman Piroti was among them. Also, leaders of DPIK, Mustafa Mouloudi and Khalid Azizi were wounded.


2018 Iraqi Kurdistan missile strike, Reaction
On 15 September 2018, the rebel group tried to  attack Iran embassy in France. They burned Iran's flag in front of the embassy and broke the windows with stones. The Rebel group was identified as Kurdish activists, according to Reuters.


2018 Iraqi Kurdistan missile strike, Reaction
On 17 September 2018, 10 members of the anarchist group Rouvikonas riding motorbikes hurled bottles of paint at the outer walls of the Iranian Embassy in Athens.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election
Parliamentary elections were held in Iraq on 12 May 2018. The elections decided the 329 members of the Council of Representatives, the country's unicameral legislature, who in turn will elect the Iraqi President and Prime Minister. The Iraqi parliament ordered a manual recount of the results on 6 June 2018. On 10 June 2018, a storage site in Baghdad housing roughly half of the ballots from the May parliamentary election caught fire.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election
In October 2018, Adil Abdul-Mahdi was selected as Prime Minister five months after the elections.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election
This election would be the last held under the Webster/Sainte-Laguë method of proportional representation, as electoral reforms passed in 2019 amid the 2019–2021 Iraqi protests created a district-based system, and sought to have representatives represent more local voices (as opposed to the entire governorate they were previously elected from), reduce deadlocks resulting from inconclusive coalition talks, as well as stop infighting amongst list members and a myriad of small lists from siphoning off votes and failing to meet the electoral threshold. It would also prevent parties from running on unified lists, which had previously led some to easily sweep all the seats in a particular governorate.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Background
The elections took place six months after a non-binding independence referendum in Iraqi Kurdistan, in which 93% voted in favour of independence. In retaliation, the Iraqi government led by Haider al-Abadi closed Erbil International Airport, seized control of all border crossings between Kurdistan and neighbouring countries and, with the help of the Hashd al-Shaabi militias, militarily seized control of disputed territories, including the oil-rich city of Kirkuk. Nonetheless, Iraqi politicians called for dialogue with the Iraqi Kurdistan government and force them to formally annul the results.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Background
The elections were originally scheduled for September 2017, but were delayed by six months due to the civil war with the Islamic State which ended in December 2017 with the recapture of their remaining territories. The largest Sunni Arab majority coalition, the Muttahidoon (Uniters for Reform), called for a further six month's delay to allow displaced voters to return to their homes. A Sunni Arab MP described holding the elections at this time as a "military coup against the political process". However, the Supreme Court ruled that delaying the elections would be unconstitutional.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Electoral system
Members of the Council of Representatives are elected through the open list form of party-list proportional representation, using the 18 governorates of Iraq as the constituencies. The counting system uses the modified Sainte-Laguë method with a divisor of 1.7 which is considered as a disadvantage to smaller parties. Eight seats remain reserved for minority groups at the national level: five for Assyrians and one each for Mandaeans, Yazidis, and Shabaks. However, the Council of Representatives voted on 11 February 2018, to add an extra seat for minorities, in the Wasit Governorate for Feyli Kurds, making the total number of parliamentarians equal to 329.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Electoral system
In January, the Supreme Court ruled that the representation for Yazidis should be increased, although it is unclear whether this change will be implemented in time for these elections.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, International voting
The Independent High Electoral Commission announced that Iraqis living outside of Iraq can vote in any of the 130 voting stations that were set up in 21 countries. 18 of the stations were in the United States, 15 in Sweden, 15 in Turkey, 14 in Iran, 13 in Jordan, 8 in the United Kingdom, 8 in Australia, 7 in Germany, 7 in Canada, 5 in Egypt, 4 in Denmark, 2 in Lebanon, and one each in France, Syria, Finland, Belgium, Austria, Norway, and New Zealand.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Election day
A curfew was declared by prime minister Al-Abadi from midnight Friday to 7 pm Saturday in all governorates except Baghdad, where the curfew started at noon Friday. A 24-hour closure of all airports and other border crossing was also implemented. The Iraqi airspace was open later on the day as well as the lifting of the curfew. Election day in Iraq was extremely successful from a security aspect, as no attacks were registered anywhere in the country.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Campaign
A total of 6,904 candidates participated in the elections, representing parties:


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Campaign, Alliances
As of 26 December 2017, a total of 204 parties had registered to contest the elections. The deadline for registering coalitions was 11 January 2018. A total of 27 coalitions were registered by the deadline, grouping 143 political parties, with registered parties not part of a coalition also free to contest separately.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Campaign, Alliances
The ruling State of Law Coalition, which won the last election in 2014 with 92 seats, contested the election with two separate coalitions. Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi entered the election as head of a coalition called "Victory" (a reference to the victory over Daesh); his predecessor, Vice President Nouri al-Maliki, headed the State of Law list. Members of the Dawa Party, which they both come from, were free to support either list.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Campaign, Alliances
Leading members of the Hashd al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilization Forces), mainly Shiite Arab militias who fought alongside the Iraqi army to defeat Daesh from 2014 to 2017, formed an alliance to contest the election. The Fatah Alliance included the Badr Organisation, Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq, Kata'ib Hezbollah and Kata'ib al-Imam Ali—all key components of the Hashd. The Badr Organisation, headed by Hadi Al-Amiri, which had 22 seats, was previously part of the ruling State of Law Coalition from which it announced its withdrawal in December 2017. The Fatah Alliance agreed to run jointly with al-Abadi's Nasr al-Iraq (Victory of Iraq) list, but the agreement fell apart after only 24 hours, reportedly over Abadi's conditions.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Campaign, Alliances
Ammar al-Hakim, the leader of the Citizen Alliance, the third largest bloc in parliament, announced in July 2017 that he was leaving the veteran Shiite Islamist party, the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq -– which he had led since the death of his father, Abdul Aziz al-Hakim –- and forming a new "non-Islamic national movement" called the National Wisdom Movement (al-Hikma). All but five of the 29 MPs from the Citizens Alliance joined Al-Hikma. The remaining members of the Citizen Alliance joined the Fatah Alliance.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Campaign, Alliances
Muqtada al-Sadr announced a joint list with the Iraqi Communist Party, called the Alliance towards Reforms. This built on previous collaboration with the Communists since 2016, when they held joint protests in Baghdad against corruption and sectarianism in government.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Campaign, Kurdistan Region
Within the Kurdish parties, there had been significant changes since the previous election with the death of both Jalal Talabani, the long-time leader of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, the second largest party, and the opposition leader Nawshirwan Mustafa. In September 2017, Barham Salih, a former Prime Minister of Iraqi Kurdistan and deputy leader of the PUK, announced that he was leaving the party and forming a new opposition party—the Coalition for Democracy and Justice. The party was seen to have the potential to change the Kurdish political landscape.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Campaign, Kurdistan Region
He said he hoped to gather all the other opposition parties, including Gorran and Komal, to challenge the governing KDP–PUK alliance. The three parties formed a coalition called Nishtiman (Homeland) to run in the elections. The ruling KDP–PUK alliance have agreed to run again as a single list and all the Kurdish parties in Kirkuk have discussed running as a single list. However, the KDP announced they would boycott elections in Kirkuk and other areas they described as "under military occupation".


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Campaign, Sunni-majority areas
Within the Sunni Arab parties, the main Uniters for Reform Coalition (Muttahidoon), led by Osama al-Nujaifi, which won 23 seats in 2014, is running again, although the Iraqi Islamic Party, led by Speaker of Parliament Salim Jabouri, has left this coalition to join up with former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi's Al-Wataniya and Salah al-Mutlak's Al-Arabiya. The combined list was called Al-Wataniya. Other parties as well have left the Muttahidoon coalition including the al-Hal Party and formed various alliances in the name of the provinces they ran in, such as Salahuddin Our Identity in Saladin Governorate, and Anbar Our Identity in Al Anbar Governorate and Baghdad Alliance in Baghdad.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Campaign, Civil parties
Within the nonsectarian parties who aim to establish a civil state, the main alliance formed is the Civilized Alliance, led by Faiq Al Sheikh Ali, which currently has 4 seats. The alliance consists of four liberal, non-sectarian, national parties, the People's Party for Reform, the Al-Etifak National Party, the National Civil Movement and Iraq's National Movement, and includes a number of independent figures. The Civil Democratic Alliance are also running in the elections as another major civil party.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Campaign, Christian parties
Of the 329 seats in parliament, five are reserved for the country's Christian minority. One reserved seat is allotted for each of five governorates: Baghdad, Duhok, Erbil, Kirkuk and Nineveh. At the time of voting, only about 200,000 Christians remained in the country.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Attacks
In early May 2018, ISIL claimed to have assassinated Faruq Zarzur al-Juburi, a candidate in the Iraqi elections. The attack reportedly took place in Mosul, outside al-Juburi's house. This was later on proven to be false; due to a family dispute, the candidate was killed by his son.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Attacks
On election day, a roadside bomb in Kirkuk killed six members of Tribal Mobilization (ar) (a pro-government Sunni tribal force) and injured three police officers.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Attacks
One Iraqi border guard was killed by a bomb in the outskirts of Khanaqin in Diyala on 13 May.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Attacks
Two offices linked to Muqtada al-Sadr in Maysan were bombed on 15 May but there were no casualties since both offices were empty at the time. It is still unclear whether the attacks were a response to the parliamentary gains in the election made by Sadr's coalition.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Attacks
On 16 May, a polling station in Kirkuk was reportedly under siege by gunmen pressuring them to change the results after the PUK was indicated to have won the province.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Results
After the High Electoral Commission announced the results, there were claims of widespread fraud linked to the electronic counting of votes. The Council of Representatives held an emergency session and passed an amendment to the electoral law that cancelled the votes of internally-displaced and overseas voters and mandated a full manual recount for all other votes.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Results
The Commission appealed to the Supreme Court. In a ruling on 21 June, the court upheld the full manual recount but struck down the cancellation of internally-displaced and overseas voters. The final results were released on 9 August, with only minor changes affecting five candidates and two parties.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Government formation
On 8 June, a formal agreement was signed by the leaders of the Alliance towards Reforms (Saairun) and the National Coalition (Wataniya) to become the largest bloc in the Council of Representatives. The bloc is calling for economic reform, consolidation of democracy, and political decentralization.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Government formation
A spokesman for Wataniya said that the agreement would be a prelude to other forces joining the alliance, and that serious talks were underway with the National Wisdom Movement (Hikma), the Kurdistan Democratic Party, the Fatah Alliance, and the Decision Alliance (Muttahidoon) as an alliance of these six electoral coalitions would constitute a majority that could form a government.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Government formation
Al-Sadr announced on 12 June that he had formed an alliance with Fatah, while maintaining an alliance with Al-Wataniya. Prime Minister Abadi later met with Al Sadr on 23 June. Al Sadr afterwards announced he had formed "a cross-sectarian, cross-ethnic alliance" with Abadi and that it would speed up the formation of a new government. Abadi also announced that the new alliance between his Victory Alliance's and Al Sadr's Alliance towards Reforms "is not in contrast to any other alliances either of the two lists have previously entered into with other blocs, rather, it flows in the same direction and same principles."


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Government formation
The final results of the election were announced on 9 August, starting the process to form the government. Parliament convened on 3 September, but were unable to elect a speaker due to rivalries between two blocs who both claimed to be the largest coalition, entitled to nominate the Prime Minister. Al-Abadi presented an alliance with Saairun, Wataniya, Hikma and other smaller lists who between then held a majority of seats. However, Fatah also claimed to have a majority, based on an alliance with State of Law and with members of Abadi's coalition who had defected.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Government formation
Two weeks later parliament reconvened and elected a speaker in a secret ballot, with candidates from each of the rival blocs. Muhammad al-Halbusi, a Sunni Arab (as per the Iraqi tradition of muḥāṣaṣah) but backed by Fatah was elected.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Government formation
At the same time, violent protests occurred in Basra and other cities in the south over polluted water—which had hospitalised tens of thousands of people—and the lack of reliable electricity. Religious leaders called for a new Prime Minister who hadn't been in government before. Abadi announced on 13 September 2018 that he would respect this call and not run for a second term as prime minister.


2018 Iraqi parliamentary election, Government formation
The vote for the President took place on 2 October. Previously, the president had always been a member of the second-largest Kurdish party, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, under an agreement with the Kurdistan Democratic Party whereby the KDP would be president of Iraqi Kurdistan. However, the KDP fielded a separate candidate, Fuad Hussein, insisting that they had the right to the Presidency as the largest party. Both candidates went to a vote in the parliament, with the PUK's Barham Salih winning. He immediately nominated independent Shi'ite Adil Abdul-Mahdi, a former oil minister seen as acceptable to all parties and to both Iran and the United States, as Prime Minister-designate.


2018 Ireland rugby union tour of Australia
In June 2018, Ireland played a three-test series against Australia as part of the 2018 June rugby union tests. It was the first time Ireland had played a test series against Australia in Australia since 2010. The series was part of the sixth year of the global rugby calendar established by World Rugby, which runs through to 2019.


2018 Ireland rugby union tour of Australia, Squads
Note: Ages, caps and clubs are as per 9 June, the first test match of the tour.


2018 Ireland rugby union tour of Australia, Squads, Ireland
On 23 May 2018, Joe Schmidt named a 32-man squad for the 2018 June rugby union tests.


2018 Ireland rugby union tour of Australia, Squads, Ireland
On 31 May, tour captain Rory Best was ruled out of the test series with a hamstring injury. Munster's Niall Scannell was called-up to replace him, with Peter O'Mahony and Jonathan Sexton sharing the captaincy duties for the tour.


2018 Ireland rugby union tour of Australia, Squads, Ireland
Dave Kilcoyne trained with the squad as injury cover for Cian Healy ahead of the third test, whilst Will Addison also trained with the team, though neither player was officially added to the touring squad.


2018 Ireland rugby union tour of Australia, Squads, Australia
On 30 May 2018, Michael Cheika named a 32-man squad for the three-test series against Ireland.


2018 Ireland rugby union tour of Australia, Squads, Australia
On 3 June, Pete Samu was added to the squad after New Zealand Rugby agreed to release the flanker, who plays for Crusaders in New Zealand, for the test series. On the same day however, hooker Jordan Uelese was ruled out of the series with a knee injury sustained playing for Melbourne Rebels. Tolu Latu was called-up to the squad to replace Uelese.


2018 Ireland rugby union tour of Australia, Squads, Australia
On 18 June, Jake Gordon was called-up to replace the injured Will Genia.


2018 Ireland rugby union tour of Australia, Matches, First Test
Touch judges:Pascal Gaüzère (France)Paul Williams (New Zealand)Television match official:Ben Skeen (New Zealand)


2018 Ireland rugby union tour of Australia, Matches, Second Test
Touch judges:Pascal Gaüzère (France)Marius van der Westhuizen (South Africa)Television match official:Ben Skeen (New Zealand)


2018 Ireland rugby union tour of Australia, Matches, Third Test
Touch judges:Paul Williams (New Zealand)Cam Stone (New Zealand)Television match official:Ben Skeen (New Zealand)


2018 Irish Greyhound Derby
The 2018 Boylesports Irish Greyhound Derby took place during August and September, with the final being held on 22 September at Shelbourne Park. The winner Ballyanne Sim was trained by James Robinson and owned by Eamon Cleary.


2018 Irish Greyhound Derby
The competition was sponsored by Boylesports and the prize money was €300,000, of which €140,000 went to the winner. The winning breeder was Kathleen Pomfret.


2018 Irish Greyhound Derby, Final result, Distances
1½, 2, shd, hd, hd (lengths) 0.07 sec = one length


2018 Irish Greyhound Derby, Competition report
The 12-1 ante-post favourite was from the UK and was the 2018 English Greyhound Derby runner-up Droopys Verve, trained by Angela Harrison. The bookmakers then quoted Borna Gin at 14-1, Puppy Derby champion Magical Bale 16-1, Shelbourne track specialist Lenson Blinder 20-1 and Kirby Memorial Stakes champion Droopys Davy 20-1.


2018 Irish Greyhound Derby, Competition report
The first ten heats took place on 17 August which resulted in an impressive 10 length win for Droopys Verve in 29.49, a time matched by heat 3 winner Slippy Cian. English Derby finalist Whoops Jack also went well after winning in 29.56. The remaining thirteen heats were completed the following evening and the campaigner Clonbrien Hero won his heat as did the Produce champion Cash Is King, in a fast 29.54. Magical Bale was another winner but it was Lenson Blinder who went fastest in 29.40.


2018 Irish Greyhound Derby, Competition report
The second round consisted of 16 heats and the first 8 provided many shocks, with the elimination of the two leading contenders Droopys Verve and Borna Gin and the defeat of Lenson Blinder, although the latter did qualify for the next round. The fastest winner was Totos Park in 29.34, with Clona Blaze, Slippy Cian and Jaytee Taylor all recording their second competition wins. The second night of heats provided further wins for Clonbrien Hero, Whoops Jack, Magical Bale and Stonepark Noel but Droopys Davy and Droopys Expert both went out.


2018 Irish Greyhound Derby, Competition report
The third round provided better luck for the favourites, with Lenson Blinder and Jaytee Taylor justifying short odds and both winning in the equal fastest times of the round (29.39), the former defeated a field including Magical Bale. Totos Park beat Slippy Cian to remain unbeaten, a feat matched by Clona Blaze who won again, pushing Clobnrein Hero into second place.


2018 Irish Greyhound Derby, Competition report
The fast starting Cabra Hurricane won the first quarter final, inflicting a first defeat on Jaytee Taylor. Kilgraney Master took the third spot but Whoops Jack was eliminated. The second heat was the strongest and saw all three favourites qualify for the semi finals, Slippy Cian gained revenge on Totos Park in the fastest time of the Derby so far, with Magical Bale taking third but unable to challenge the front two.


2018 Irish Greyhound Derby, Competition report
Newhall Missile claimed heat three from the popular campaigner Clonbrien Hero and Drive on Tipp but the favourite, Lenson Blinder went out because he could not overcome his terrible trap draw from 5. The final heat went to Clona Blaze from Crossfield Will and Ballyanne Sim, leaving Clona Blaze as the only undefeated runner left in the competition.


2018 Irish Greyhound Derby, Competition report
The two semi-finals were both very strong in terms of line-ups and both were competitive as expected; Magical Bale won the first after winning from Jaytee Taylor and Conna Blaze in a race that saw the first five finish within 10 spots (0.10 sec) of each other. The second heat ended with Slippy Cian catching Ballyanne Sim on the line and Clonbrien Hero ran on well to take the remaining final place.


2018 Irish Greyhound Derby, Competition report
In the final both Ballyanne Sim and Clona Blaze were both very fast out of the traps, Magical Bale also broke well but Jaytee Taylor missed the break. Ballyanne Sim forged out a lead but Magical Bale looked set to challenge at the third bend but could not find a way past the leader who held on in the fastest time of the competition and the fastest 550 Derby final to date (29.28). All of the other greyhounds recorded good times and made up ground but could not challenge the deserved winner.


2018 Irish budget
The 2018 Irish budget was the Irish Government budget for the 2018 fiscal year, which was presented to Dáil Éireann on 10 October 2017 by Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe, his first as Minister for Finance.


2018 Irish budget
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said the budget is a "Budget with many authors and it was important we had something for everyone".


2018 Irish presidential election
The 2018 Irish presidential election took place on Friday, 26 October, between 7.00 a.m. and 10.00 p.m. President Michael D. Higgins, who was elected in 2011, was seeking re-election. This was the first time since the 1966 election that an incumbent president faced a contest for a second term. Higgins was re-elected on the first count with nearly 56% of the vote, becoming the first president since Éamon de Valera to win a second term in a contested election (Patrick Hillery (1983) and Mary McAleese (2004) had been re-elected unopposed). He was inaugurated for his second term on 11 November.


2018 Irish presidential election
The election was held on the same date as a referendum on blasphemy.


2018 Irish presidential election, Procedure
If a member of the Oireachtas or a County or City council nominate more than one candidate, only the first nomination paper received from them will be deemed valid. Presidential elections are conducted in line with Article 12 of the Constitution and under the Presidential Elections Act 1993, as amended. The President of Ireland is elected through proportional representation - single transferable vote. All Irish citizens entered on the current electoral register are eligible to vote. Under the Electoral (Amendment) Act 2011, there is a spending limit by each candidate of €750,000. Candidates who are elected or who reach 12.5% of the vote on their elimination are entitled to a reimbursement of expenses up to €200,000.


2018 Irish presidential election, Nomination process
On 28 August the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government, Eoghan Murphy, signed the order for the presidential election, specifying the nomination period as between 10 a.m. on 30 August and 12 noon on 26 September 2018.


2018 Irish presidential election, Nomination process
On 10 July 2018, incumbent president Michael D. Higgins declared that he would exercise his right to nominate himself as a candidate for the presidential election. Higgins had said in 2011 that he intended to serve one term only, but changed his mind over the course of his term. Higgins's website and social media accounts became active on 17 September, having been dormant since his inauguration in November 2011. He formally nominated himself on 24 September.


2018 Irish presidential election, Nomination process
Sinn Féin was the only party to select a candidate. With 28 Oireachtas members (22 TDs and six Senators), the party could nominate a candidate without the need for additional nominations from independents to reach the requirement of 20 Oireachtas members, as they had required in 2011. Nearly all other parties in the Oireachtas supported the re-election of Michael D. Higgins. People Before Profit declined to support any candidate in the election. Independent TD Michael Fitzmaurice had tried to gather the support of other Independent TDs and Senators to support a candidate, but was unsuccessful. Nineteen were willing to be involved in his effort to find a candidate, one short of the twenty required to be nominated. Eleven Oireachtas members signed a nomination form for Gemma O'Doherty, nine short of the required number.


2018 Irish presidential election, Nomination process
18 local authorities passed resolutions supporting a particular candidate, while the remaining 13 either passed no resolution or passed a resolution declining to nominate any candidate. Candidates needed the support of at least four local authorities to be a candidate in the election.


2018 Irish presidential election, Nomination process
Others who had sought a nomination from local authorities were: Norma Burke, William Delaney, Patrick Feeney, John Groarke, Patrick Melly, Marie Goretti Moylan, Sarah Louise Mulligan, Kevin Sharkey, James Smyth, David Doucette, and John O'Hare. Sharkey withdrew his name from consideration during the nomination period, calling for the nomination of Gemma O'Doherty. Senator Gerard Craughwell had said that he would seek the nomination if Higgins were otherwise to be unopposed. However, in July he announced that he would not contest the presidential election, in light of Sinn Féin's decision to run a candidate.


2018 Irish presidential election, Nomination process
He also cited the financial costs of running for the presidency as a factor in his decision not to contest the election. Despite Fianna Fáil support for the incumbent Michael D. Higgins, a few of the party's Councillors urged the leadership to nominate Galway West TD Éamon Ó Cuív, but he declined to allow his name to proceed as he would risk his party membership.


2018 Irish presidential election, Candidates
Six candidates contested the presidential election, having been selected by their parties or having received sufficient council nominations.


2018 Irish presidential election, Analysis
The Irish Times's analysis of its exit poll data said that Michael D. Higgins seemed on course to be comfortably re-elected on the first count, after leading in the opinion polls throughout the campaign, despite "considerable criticism over his use of the Government jet, expensive hotel accommodation on overseas visits and the lack of transparency over how an annual €300,000 allowance for his office was spent". It attributed the expected low turnout to "a lack of public enthusiasm for the contest that was evident throughout the campaign".


2018 Irish presidential election, Analysis
It ascribed Peter Casey's second place to a late surge of support following his criticisms of Travellers and his claim that Ireland had "a growing culture of welfare dependency", and it added that at some polling stations pollsters reported that "he was attracting as many voters as Mr Higgins".


2018 Irish presidential election, Analysis
It said that Seán Gallagher appeared to be down 22% on his 2011 figure of 29%, but that the biggest disappointment would probably be for Sinn Féin, whose candidate Liadh Ní Riada's expected 8% was well down on its general election result, and only a third of the party's support in the latest Irish Times/Ipsos MRBI Opinion poll. It described Senator Joan Freeman's expected performance as "just 6 per cent of the vote", and Gavin Duffy's expected result as him having "flopped completely, ending a miserable campaign with just 2 per cent of the vote".


2018 Irish presidential election, Analysis
When analysing the Red C/RTÉ exit poll, RTÉ Political Correspondent Martina Fitzgerald said that the data showed that President Higgins was very popular among voters regardless of age and gender but was particularly popular among women and younger votes despite the debate about his age, which most voters saw as irrelevant. The most important factor cited by voters was the candidates' track record and expertise, while the finances and salary of the president were the least important factor.


2018 Irish presidential election, Analysis
Fitzgerald added that "the real political story" was that the result was "a disastrous election" for Sinn Féin, and "a serious blow" for which party leader Mary Lou McDonald would have to take "full responsibility". Fitzgerald also noted that the combined total of the three former Dragons Den judges (Casey, Gallagher, and Duffy) was very similar to Gallagher's vote in 2011, suggesting that vote had held up, but that Casey had taken most of it this time.


2018 Ironman World Championship
The 2018 Ironman World Championship was a long distance triathlon competition held on October 13, 2018 in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii that was won by Patrick Lange of Germany and Daniela Ryf of Switzerland. It was the 42nd edition of the Ironman World Championship, which has been held annually in Hawaii since 1978. The championship was organized by the World Triathlon Corporation (WTC). For Ryf it was her fourth consecutive Ironman World Championship win. For Lange it was his second consecutive. They set a new overall course record previously set by them in 2016 and 2017 respectively.


2018 Irving Tennis Classic
The 2018 Irving Tennis Classic was a professional tennis tournament played on hard courts. It was the seventh edition of the tournament which was part of the 2018 ATP Challenger Tour. It took place in Irving, United States between 13 and 18 March 2018.


2018 Irving Tennis Classic, Singles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2018 Irving Tennis Classic, Singles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following players received entry into the singles main draw as alternates:


2018 Irving Tennis Classic – Doubles
Marcus Daniell and Marcelo Demoliner were the defending champions but chose not to defend their title.


2018 Irving Tennis Classic – Doubles
Philipp Petzschner and Alexander Peya won the title after defeating Radu Albot and Matthew Ebden 6–2, 6–4 in the final.


2018 Irving Tennis Classic – Singles
Aljaž Bedene was the defending champion but chose not to defend his title.


2018 Irving Tennis Classic – Singles
Mikhail Kukushkin won the title after defeating Matteo Berrettini 6–2, 3–6, 6–1 in the final.


2018 IsarOpen
The 2018 IsarOpen is a professional tennis tournament played on clay courts. It is the 1st edition of the tournament which is part of the 2018 ATP Challenger Tour. It takes place in Pullach, Germany between 6 August and 12 August 2018.


2018 IsarOpen, Singles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2018 IsarOpen, Singles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following players received entry into the singles main draw as special exempts:


2018 IsarOpen – Doubles
Sander Gillé and Joran Vliegen won the title after defeating Simone Bolelli and Daniele Bracciali 6–2, 6–2 in the final.


2018 IsarOpen – Singles
Pedro Sousa won the title after defeating Jan-Lennard Struff 6–1, 6–3 in the final.


2018 Ishikawa gubernatorial election
A gubernatorial election was held on 11 March 2018 to elect the next Governor of Ishikawa (石川県, Ishikawa-ken), a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region on Honshu island.


2018 Islington London Borough Council election
The 2018 Islington London Borough Council election took place on 3 May 2018 to elect members of Islington London Borough Council in England. This was on the same day as other local elections. The council had previously had elections in 2014. The Labour Party retained control of the council, winning 47 of the 48 seats. The sole non-Labour councillor elected was Caroline Russell of the Green Party.


2018 Israel State Cup Final
The 2018 Israel State Cup Final decided the winner of the 2017–18 Israel State Cup, the 82nd season of Israel's main football cup. It will be played on  9 May 2018 at the Teddy Stadium in Jerusalem, between Beitar Jerusalem and Hapoel Haifa.


2018 Israel State Cup Final, Background
Beitar Jerusalem had previously played 10 Israel cup Finals, had won the competition a record 7 times. Their most recent appearance in the final was tin 2009, in which they won 2–1 against  Maccabi Haifa.


2018 Israel State Cup Final, Background
Hapoel Haifa had previously played in 8 finals, winning 3. Their most recent appearance in the final was in 2004, in which they lost 4–1 to Bnei Sakhnin, and their most recent victory in the tournament was in 1974, beating Hapoel Petah Tikva 1–0.


2018 Israel State Cup Final, Background
The two teams played each other three times during the 2017–18 Israeli Premier League season until the final. In the first instance, on 16 September 2017 at Teddy Stadium the game end draw 3–3, in the two other times beitar win 2–0 and 1–0 on summy ofer.


2018 Israel Super Cup
The 2018 Israel Super Cup is the 23rd Israel Super Cup (28th, including unofficial matches, as the competition wasn't played within the Israel Football Association in its first 5 editions, until 1969), an annual Israel football match played between the winners of the previous season's Top Division and Israel State Cup. This is the Third time since 1990 that the match was staged, after a planned resumption of the cup was cancelled in 2014.


2018 Israel Super Cup
The game was played between Hapoel Be'er Sheva, champions of the 2017–18 Israeli Premier League and Hapoel Haifa, winners of the 2017–18 Israeli State Cup. Hapoel Haifa won 5–4 on penalties following a 1–1 draw after 90 minutes.


2018 Israeli Basketball League Cup
The 2018 Israeli Basketball League Cup, for sponsorships reasons the Winner League Cup, is the 13th edition of the pre-season tournament of the Israeli Basketball Premier League.


2018 Israeli Basketball League Cup
On October 4, 2018, Maccabi Rishon LeZion won the title for the first time after a 78–66 win over Hapoel Be'er Sheva in the Final. Cameron Long was named tournament MVP.


2018 Israeli Basketball Premier League Final Four
The 2018 Israeli Basketball Premier League Final Four, for sponsorship reasons the Winner League Final Four, the concluding tournament of the 2017–18 Israeli Basketball Premier League. It was the eight Israeli Final Four. The event was held in the Menora Mivtachim Arena, Tel Aviv from June 10 until June 14, 2018.


2018 Israeli Basketball Premier League Final Four
Maccabi Tel Aviv won the title for the 52nd time after beating Hapoel Holon 95–75 in the Final. Alex Tyus was named the Final Four MVP.


2018 Israeli Beach Soccer League
The 2018 Israeli Beach Soccer League was a national beach soccer league event that took place between 8 June and 27 July 2018, in Netanya, Israel.


2018 Israeli Beach Soccer League
Schedule of matches was published on the official Facebook page of Israeli Beach Soccer League.


2018 Israeli Beach Soccer League, Group stage
All kickoff times are of local time in Netanya, Israel (UTC+02:00).


2018 Israeli LGBT's strike
On July 22, 2018 Israeli members of the LGBT community went on strike for the day to protest against the discrimination of the LGBT community on the Israeli Surrogacy Law, and the continuing violence towards the Israeli trans community. During the strike, that was held on the same day as the fast of Tisha B'Av, many organizations and companies allowed their employees to be absent to participate in the many protest events that were held throughout the day across the country, including Tel Aviv-Yafo, Jerusalem, Haifa, Beersheba, Ra'anana and other cities.


2018 Israeli LGBT's strike, Background
Following a Supreme Court case regarding the Israeli Surrogacy Law that was legislated in 1997, appealing to include gay couples in the law, the State's response to the court was that the law will be amended. To make the appropriate changes, the government formed several professional health committees, such as the Mor-Yosef committee, that passed along its recommendations to Minister of Health, Yael German. After the 34th government was formed, headed by Benjamin Netanyahu, this issue was discussed in the Knesset's Labour, Welfare, and Health Committee headed by Eli Alaluf. In the proceedings to bring the bill to a second and third reading, the committee voted to add single women to the bill, while still excluding single men and gay couples from using surrogacy.


2018 Israeli LGBT's strike, Background
The bill was brought to its second and third reading on July 18, 2018, with reservations, including one by Amir Ohana of the Likud Party, adding single men to the bill. Because of the stance declared by the ultra-orthodox factions in the coalition, headed by the United Torah Judaism, the coalition decided to oppose the reservation while supporting the original amendment.


2018 Israeli LGBT's strike, Background
Prior to the vote, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu published a video to his Facebook page, explaining that he will support a future amendment to the bill that will be brought by MK Ohana during the Knesset's Winter Session, to allow single men to use surrogacy in Israel, but despite his support, he voted against Ohana's reservation. The Knesset than passed the amended bill in its original form with 59 for and 52 against.


2018 Israeli LGBT's strike, Background
Other pressing issues during that time were several lesbian couples who are fighting for the state's recognition of their joint parenthood, and in at least one case that went public, 2 women found out that they were unilaterally removed as the second parents from their children's birth certificates.


2018 Israeli LGBT's strike, Background
Even before the vote, on July 14 and July 17, demonstrations against it were held in Tel Aviv and in Jerusalem. On July 19, protesters walked to the government office building in Tel Aviv.


2018 Israeli LGBT's strike, Background
Around the same time, on July 17, a sex worker trans woman was stabbed in her apartment in south Tel Aviv.


2018 Israeli LGBT's strike, Planning
As a result of the vote on the bill and the reservation, The Aguda called members of the LGBT community to strike on Sunday, July 22 (Sunday being the first workday in Israel).


2018 Israeli LGBT's strike, Planning
The roots for this strike were planted a year prior to that, in a cooperation of LGBT organizations in the country. The idea started rolling after a protest in July 2017, which brought around 15,000 protesters against the Ministry of Welfare's stance in a Supreme Court hearing regarding adoption by same-sex couple. In a position paper presented to court, the ministry claimed that same-sex parents are "anomalous" and therefore cannot become adoptive families. After receiving a lot of public pressure, welfare minister Haim Katz announced that he plans on changing the ministry's stance on this issue. In order to plan the strike, many PR and advertising agencies and journalists were contacted to pressure companies in Israel to prepare for a future strike.


2018 Israeli LGBT's strike, Planning
When the new surrogacy law passed in the Knesset, to include only single women but not single men or gay couples, in a way perceived as discriminatory, the LGBT organizations, headed by the Aguda, decided to implement the strike plan immediately. The organizers contacted CEO's and prominent public figures and asked them to join the strike and have their companies and organizations publish their support. Most of them agreed, though some in some cases they gave their support after being told by the organizers that their lack of support will be made public on media and on social media. An Israeli economic publication, The Marker, posted a list of companies that refused to support the strike.


2018 Israeli LGBT's strike, Planning, Corporate sector's support
Many Israeli companies and workers unions announced that they will allow their employees to strike in order to attend the protests, without risking their jobs or deducting their pay. In the few days before the strike, more than 250 publicly and privately own businesses announced their support for LGBT equality, and allowed their employees to stay home in order to strike and attend the protests. Some of the companies allowed their employees to use a personal day or an elective day, while some gave the employees a paid one-day leave.


2018 Israeli LGBT's strike, Planning, Corporate sector's support
One of the first companies to join the strike was Microsoft Israel, that later announced that it will give its employees a grant if they choose and need to use surrogacy outside the country. The companies that supported were from various sectors: law firms, restaurants, architecture firms, communication providers, travel agencies and hi-tech companies, along with big public and government sector organizations, including Ben Gurion Airport, Haifa and Ashdod ports, El-Al and Israir, Teva, Tnuva, cellphone, landline, cable and satellite providers, municipalities, hospitals and emergency services, food chains and supermarkets, banks, credit card companies and more. This was the biggest ever support by businesses for a social cause in Israel, and the first LGBT strike in the world.


2018 Israeli LGBT's strike, Planning, Corporate sector's support
Israel's Workers' Union, the Histadrut, issued a statement that is supports both the protest and the strike, and called employers in the public and private sector to allow employees to strike without harming their rights.


2018 Israeli LGBT's strike, Protest events
During the day of the strike, some 1000 strikers in Tel Aviv demonstrated and marched from the government office building on HaShalom Intersection, through Ayalon Highway to Rothschild Boulevard, where a field studio was built, broadcasting live interviews throughout the day. In Jerusalem's France (Paris) Square, outside the Prime Minister's official residence, 250 protesters demonstrated and blocked roads. The police detained 3 demonstrators only to release them later that day. More demonstrations were held around the country – in Haifa's main road, the entrance to Karmiel and other major junctions across the country.


2018 Israeli LGBT's strike, Protest events
Roads were blocked by protesters in several cities, some of them were main city roads. Around 1000 protesters blocked HaShalom intersection and marched down to the highway, chanting about equality for all, social justice and government-backed discrimination. Protesters also blocked roads in other cities; In a demonstration on Ragher avenue, the main road in Beersheba, a driver tried running over a protester. The end of the protest day was marked with a march in Florentin in south Tel Aviv, supporting the transgender community, following an attempted murder of a trans woman sex worker a few days prior. This attack was the peak of many transphobic acts of violence in Israel. The march ended in the Tel Aviv Central Bus Station, a location known as a center of prostitution, and was attended by around 6000 people, making it the largest transgender demonstration in Israel, to date.


2018 Israeli LGBT's strike, Protest events, Rabin Square rally
The strike day, along with its demonstrations and protests against anti-LGBT discrimination and violence, culminated in a rally in Rabin Square in central Tel Aviv. According to police estimate, between 80,000 and 100,000 people attended that rally. The rally was hosted by TV presenters Lucy Aharish and Nadav Borenstein, and among the speakers were former parliament member and longtime human rights activist Yael Dayan, actress Orna Banai, and Orly and Ravit Weiselberg-Tzur, who were to appear in front of the Supreme Court the next day in their case pleading to register both of them as their son's parents.


2018 Israeli LGBT's strike, Protest events, Rabin Square rally
Many artists also performed at the rally, like Rita, Dana International, Ilay Botner, Ran Danker, Korin Alal, Rona Kenan and others. All main Israeli broadcast networks dedicated a major part of their programs to the strike, and broadcast live from different demonstrations across Israel, from the strike headquarters in Rothschild Avenue and from the rally in Rabin Square.


2018 Israeli municipal elections
Municipal elections were held in Israel on October 30, 2018. A run-off was held on November 13 in localities where a candidate for mayor received at least 40% of the vote.


2018 Israeli municipal elections
For the first time, the four local councils in Druze localities in the Golan Heights were up for election. Elections were held in all 54 regional councils, 122 out of 124 local councils, and 75 out of 77 cities. The cities of Baqa al-Gharbiyye and Tayibe, as well as the local council of Jatt, did not hold elections, as elections were held there in 2015. In Tel Mond, a local council, a split commission is currently serving. Further, in RC Rekhasim, LC Ghajar, and 3 more places only had one list be submitted for the council elections and was automatically elected by a walkover without any ballots cast. In all except Kfar Shmaryahu, where three candidates had been nominated, the mayoral election was also decided by walkover.


2018 Israeli municipal elections, Voter turnout
The elections of 2018 were the first municipal elections in Israel where a paid day off work was enacted for the first round of voting, in hopes of increasing voter turnout. Total turnout in the first round of voting was 59.5%. By comparison, the turnout in 2013 stood at 51.8%.


2018 Israeli municipal elections, By city, Jerusalem
The results of the first round of voting in Jerusalem, with 254,326 voters participating of 638,065 eligible (a 39.86% turnout), are as follows. Of the 254,326 votes, 248,585 were valid.


2018 Israeli municipal elections, By city, Jerusalem
The results of the second round of voting in Jerusalem are as follows. The voter turnout was 35%.


2018 Israeli municipal elections, By city, Jerusalem
The following parties gained seats in the city council. The parties that failed to gain seats are: I'm Jerusalem (Avi Salman), Elders and Pensioners of Jerusalem, Jerusalem on the Road to the Summit (Nehemia Assaf), Jerusalem Our Home (Ilya Liptzker), Jerusalem My City (Ramadan Dabash), Our Jerusalem (Moshe Lion), For the Neighborhoods (Avi Shalom), Me'orav Yerushalmi (Evyatar Elbaz), Pisgat Ze'ev on the Map (Ya'el Antebi), and Youth of Jerusalem (Yakir Jarasi).


2018 Israeli municipal elections, By city, Tel Aviv
The results in Tel Aviv, with 203,018 voters participating of 440,205 eligible (a 46.12% turnout), are as follows. Of the 203,018 votes, 194,451 were valid.


2018 Israeli municipal elections, By city, Tel Aviv
The following parties gained seats on the city council. The parties that failed to get seats are: Unifying Tel Aviv, South of the City (Suzy Cohen Tzemah), Halo – Women of the City, The Tel Aviv List, Yair Tzabari, Local in Tel Aviv – Youth in the City (Yotam Shamir), Changing Direction (Nir Levi), Making Aliyah Together, Green City, City for All, and Vegan Tel Aviv (Omer Shalev).


2018 Israeli municipal elections, By city, Haifa
The results in Haifa, with 125,333 voters participating of 256,559 eligible (a 48.85% turnout), are as follows. Of the 125,333 votes, 118,271 were valid.


2018 Israeli municipal elections, By city, Haifa
The following lists failed to gain any seats on the city council: Lovers of Haifa (Israel Ya'akov Savyon), Perspective for Haifa (Meir Levi), Balad, Haifans for Haifa, Haifa Awakens (Mendi Salzmann), Haifana, Kulanu (Elad Attias), Heart of the Neighborhoods (Tali Meshulam–Itach), Lechaim (Alex Abramov), Local in the Neighborhood (Boaz Gur), Disabled and Winning (Gil Goldreich), Strength, Voice of the People, and Rami Levi Biki Morad.


2018 Israeli municipal elections, By city, Haifa
For the lists that entered the city council, the results are as follows:


2018 Israeli municipal elections, By city, Rishon LeZion
The results in Rishon LeZion, with 108,068 voters participating of 209,511 eligible (a 51.58% turnout), are as follows. Of the 108,068 votes, 104,095 were valid. A second round was held in the mayoral election.


2018 Israeli municipal elections, By city, Rishon LeZion
The results of the second round of voting in Rishon LeZion are as follows. The voter turnout was 34.2%.


2018 Israeli municipal elections, By city, Rishon LeZion
The following lists failed to gain any seats on the city council: Unity, Achievements (Meir Akiva), Our Rights and Social Justice (Vlad Kapustin), Trabelsi Hai Shimon, The Crocheted and Social (Ohad Uzan), Social Action (Kobi Dahan), Social Justice (Adamso Alali), and Rishon LeZion Together (Roei Yagna). For lists that gained seats, the results are as follows.


2018 Israeli municipal elections, By city, Petah Tikva
The results in Petah Tikva, with 108,563 voters participating of 193,736 eligible (a 56.04% turnout), are as follows. Of the 108,563 votes, 104,671 were valid.


2018 Israeli municipal elections, By city, Petah Tikva
The following lists did not gain enough seats to enter the city council: One of Ours, With Us (Haim Bashari), Us, Together, The Present, Petah Tikva Our Home, and Young Leadership for Real. Of the lists that entered the city council, the results are as follows.


2018 Israeli municipal elections, By city, Ashdod
The results in Ashdod, with 121,245 voters participating of 182,983 eligible (a 66.26% turnout), are as follows. Of the 121,245 votes, 118,363 were valid.


2018 Israeli municipal elections, By city, Ashdod
The following lists did not gain enough seats to enter the city council: A New Voice, Ashdod United, Ashdod Awakens (Naor Biton), There is an Alternative, Ashdod Community, Voice of the Heart, and Integration. Of the lists that entered the city council, the results are as follows.


2018 Israeli municipal elections, By city, Netanya
The results in Netanya, with 89,371 voters participating of 186,792 eligible (a 47.85% turnout), are as follows. Of the 89,371 votes, 83,258 were valid.


2018 Israeli municipal elections, By city, Netanya
The following lists did not gain enough seats to enter the city council: The Way (Wagif Eliav), The New Ones (Amir Sinai), Local in Netanya (Daniel Maharat), Our Netanya (Yoni Giorno), Netanyans and Youth (Tzvika Lieber), and Hope (Amos Dirsau). Of the lists that entered the city council, the results are as follows.


2018 Israeli municipal elections, By city, Beersheba
The results in Beersheba, with 83,436 voters participating of 166,800 eligible (a 50.02% turnout), are as follows. Of the 83,436 votes, 78,161 were valid.


2018 Israeli municipal elections, By city, Beersheba
The following lists did not gain enough seats to enter the city council: Be'er Sheva We Deserve More, Pleasant Ways, Strength in Unity, Light (Moshe Yanai), and Voice of Be'er Sheva (Yitzhak Dahan). Of the lists that entered the city council, the results are as follows.


2018 Istanbul Open
The 2018 Istanbul Open (also known as the TEB BNP Paribas Istanbul Open for sponsorship purposes) was a men's tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts. It was the fourth edition of the Istanbul Open, and an ATP World Tour 250 event. It took place at the Koza World of Sports Arena in Istanbul, Turkey, from 30 April–6 May 2018.


2018 Istanbul Open, Doubles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following pairs received wildcards into the doubles main draw:


2018 Istanbul Open – Doubles
Roman Jebavý and Jiří Veselý were the defending champions, but Veselý chose not to participate this year. Jebavý played alongside Florin Mergea, but lost in the first round to Dominic Inglot and Robert Lindstedt.


2018 Istanbul Open – Doubles
Inglot and Lindstedt went on to win the title, defeating Ben McLachlan and Nicholas Monroe in the final, 3–6, 6–3, [10–8].


2018 Istanbul Open – Singles
Marin Čilić was the defending champion, but lost in the second round to Malek Jaziri.


2018 Istanbul Open – Singles
Taro Daniel won his first ATP World Tour title, defeating Jaziri in the final, 7–6(7–4), 6–4.


2018 Istanbul Open – Singles, Seeds
The top four seeds receive a bye into the second round.


2018 Istrian Spring Trophy
The 2018 Istrian Spring Trophy was the 58th edition of the Istrian Spring Trophy road cycling stage race. It was part of UCI Europe Tour in category 2.2.


2018 Istrian Spring Trophy, Teams
Twenty-nine teams were invited to take part in the race. These included twenty-eight UCI Continental teams and one national team.


2018 Istrian Spring Trophy, Classification leadership table
In the 2018 Istrian Spring Trophy, three different jerseys were awarded for the main classifications. For the general classification, calculated by adding each cyclist's finishing times on each stage, the leader received a yellow jersey. This classification was considered the most important of the 2018 Istrian Spring Trophy, and the winner of the classification was considered the winner of the race.


2018 Istrian Spring Trophy, Classification leadership table
Additionally, there was a points classification, which awarded a blue jersey. In the points classification, cyclists received points for finishing in the top 3 in each intermediate sprint. For winning an intermediate sprint, a rider earned 5 points, with 3 for second and 1 for third. There was also a mountains classification, the leadership of which was marked by a green jersey. In the mountains classification, points were won by reaching the top of a climb before other cyclists, with more points available for the higher-categorised climbs.


2018 Isulan bombings
About a month after a bombing in Lamitan, Basilan, another explosion occurred in the municipality of Isulan, Sultan Kudarat, killing 3 and injuring over 36 in a town festival. Another bombing incident occurred a week later, killing 2 and injuring 12 around an internet café in the same city.


2018 Isulan bombings, August 28 bombing
The bombing occurred on August 28, 2018 at around 8:34 pm (UTC+8) in Barangay Kalawag 3 in front of J and H Marketing, a retail area for ukay ukay merchandise, along the National Highway around the area of the Isulan town proper. The explosion was caused by an improvised explosive device planted on a parked motorcycle. The incident happened amidst the Hamungaya Festival, a harvest festival celebrated in the Isulan annually.


2018 Isulan bombings, August 28 bombing, Casualties
The blasts had three casualties; a 51-year-old, a 7-year-old child, and a 18-year-old college student. The 51-year-old died at the bombing site while the two died while confined in a hospital due to serious injuries from shrapnel wounds. 36 people were injured which includes two soldiers and a militia personnel.


2018 Isulan bombings, August 28 bombing, Investigation, Suspects
The police and military suspects that the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters are behind the bombing. The group is known for attacking civilian targets in retaliation to the group's losses in clashes against the Philippine Army's 6th Infantry Division. The Police Regional Office-12 (PRO-12) of the Philippine National Police (PNP) is determining the identity of two couriers who are said to have planted the bomb.


2018 Isulan bombings, August 28 bombing, Investigation, Suspects
The PNP PRO-12 later released an official sketch of an individual tagged as a suspect to the bombing. The image was released to various media firms on September 1, 2018. The suspect was described as a 20 to 25 years old male who is 5 feet 6 inches (168 centimetres) tall, weighs about 60 kilograms (130 pounds), with a medium built and a white complexion. The police believes that the suspect is working with accomplices since the bombing was made in a manner that it can't be done by a single person. A day after a bombing, an unofficial computer-generated cartographic sketch of the suspect began circulating in social media. The police views this as a possible attempt to muddle the investigation.


2018 Isulan bombings, August 28 bombing, Investigation, Suspects
Authorities filed charges against 7 suspects, 2 of which are still at large. Four had been identified as Normia Antao Camsa, Norshiya Joven Camsa, Abedin Camsa alias “Beds,” and the Swedish national, Hassan Akgun.


2018 Isulan bombings, August 28 bombing, Investigation, Methods
According to the police, the suspect detonated an improvised explosive device (IED) using a mobile phone. He is said to have been accosted by a militiaman when he placed the bomb under a parked motorbike. The IED's composition is determined to consists of black powder filled inside a barrel of water pump laced with cut nails and metal shards. A nine-volt battery was placed as a triggering device.


2018 Isulan bombings, August 28 bombing, Reaction
Executive Salvador Medialdea hinted on August 29 that the Martial law in Mindanao which is due to terminate by the end of 2018 could be extended following the bombing. Local officials of Sultan Kudarat as well as Maguindanao expressed openness to the possible extension of martial law which they assess could help maintain peace and order in the island. Further activities in relation to the 104th foundation day of Isulan and the Hamungaya Festival were cancelled.


2018 Isulan bombings, September 2 twin bombings
A second explosion occurred on September 2, outside an Internet café, where 2 died and 12 are injured.


2018 Italian Athletics Championships
The 2018 Italian Athletics Championships was the 108th edition of the Italian Athletics Championships and took place in Pescara from 7 to 9 September.


2018 Italian Athletics Indoor Championships
2018 Italian Athletics Indoor Championships was the 49th edition of the Italian Athletics Indoor Championships and were held in Ancona.


2018 Italian Basketball Cup
The 2018 Italian Basketball Cup, known as the 2018 PosteMobile Final Eight for sponsorship reasons, was the 50th edition of Italy's national cup tournament. The competition is managed by the Lega Basket for LBA clubs. The tournament was played from 15 to 18 February 2018 in Florence, at the end of the first half of the 2017–18 LBA season.


2018 Italian Basketball Cup
Fiat Torino went to win its first Cup ever by beating Germani Basket Brescia 69–67 in the Finals. Vander Blue was named Finals MVP of the competition.


2018 Italian Basketball Cup, Qualification
Qualified for the tournament were selected based on their position on the league table at the end of the first half of the 2017–18 LBA regular season.


2018 Italian Basketball Cup, Final
In the final game Sasha Vujačić’s layup in the dying seconds lifted Fiat Torino to a 69-67 victory over Germani Basket Brescia for the club’s first Italian Cup. After a series of threes in the closing seconds left the game tied, Brescia had the ball for what appeared to be the final possession, however Marcus Landry and Luca Vitali each missed from downtown, Deron Washington picked up the loose ball and started a fast break that Vujacic finished with the winning layup. Diante Garrett paced Fiat with 16 points, Nobel Boungou Colo and Vander Blue added 11 points apiece and Washington scored 10 for the winners. Landry paced Brescia with 22 points and 9 rebounds and Michele Vitali added 14 points in defeat.


2018 Italian Basketball Supercup
The 2018 Italian Basketball Supercup (Italian: Supercoppa di pallacanestro 2018), also known as Zurich Connect Supercoppa 2018 for sponsorship reasons, was the 24th edition of the super cup tournament, organized by the Lega Basket Serie A (LBA).


2018 Italian Basketball Supercup
AX Armani Exchange Milano went to win his 3rd Supercup by beating Fiat Torino 82–71 in the Finals. Vladimir Micov was named MVP of the competition.


2018 Italian Basketball Supercup
It was played in the PalaLeonessa in Brescia on 29 and 30 September 2018.


2018 Italian Basketball Supercup, Participant teams
As of 3 June 2018, qualified for the tournament were Fiat Torino and Germani Brescia, as Italian Cup finalists, AX Armani Exchange Milano and Dolomiti Energia Trento as LBA Playoffs finalist.


2018 Italian F4 Championship
The 2018 Italian F4 Championship Powered by Abarth was the fifth season of the Italian F4 Championship. It began on 29 April in Imola and finished on 21 October in Monza after seven triple header rounds.


2018 Italian F4 Championship
The title was clinched by Enzo Fittipaldi, who won the season finale.


2018 Italian F4 Championship, Race calendar and results
The calendar was published on 22 October 2017. For the first time in the history of the championship, it included a circuit outside of Italy with a round being held at Circuit Paul Ricard in Southern France.


2018 Italian F4 Championship, Championship standings
Points were awarded to the top 10 classified finishers in each race. No points were awarded for pole position or fastest lap. Only the best sixteen results were counted towards the championship.


2018 Italian GT Championship
The 2018 Italian GT Championship was the 27th season of the Italian GT Championship, the grand tourer-style sports car racing founded by the Italian auotomobile club (ACI). The Champsionship consisted of seven Sprint race events. At each event there were held two races. The Season started on 27 April in Imola and ended on 28 October in Mugello.


2018 Italian Grand Prix
The 2018 Italian Grand Prix (formally the Formula 1 Gran Premio Heineken d'Italia 2018) was a Formula One motor race held on 2 September 2018 at the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza in Monza, Italy. The race was the fourteenth round of the 2018 Formula One World Championship and marked the 88th running of the Italian Grand Prix and the 83rd time the race was held at Monza.


2018 Italian Grand Prix
Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton entered the round with a 17-point lead over Sebastian Vettel in the Drivers' Championship. In the World Constructors' Championship, Mercedes led Ferrari by 15 points.


2018 Italian Grand Prix, Race report
The race was won by Lewis Hamilton after a battle with Kimi Räikkönen, Hamilton caught and passed Räikkönen with 9 laps remaining. On the opening lap Hamilton and Vettel collided causing Vettel to spin off. Despite Vettel's complaints, the stewards deemed it just a racing incident. Vettel would later fight back to 4th place, behind Valtteri Bottas in third. Max Verstappen was penalised 5 seconds after forcing Bottas off the track after a pit stop and was classified 5th. Sergey Sirotkin took his first, and to date, only Formula 1 championship point, driving for Williams.


2018 Italian Open (pool)
The 2018 Dynamic Billiard Treviso Open, was the first Euro Tour 9-Ball pool event in 2018. The event was won by Albania's Eklent Kaçi who defeated Austria's Albin Ouschan 9–5 in the final. This was Kaci's first Euro Tour victory.


2018 Italian Open (pool)
2017's Treviso Open champion Wiktor Zieliński lost in the last 32 of the event against Sergei Luzker. Top Euro Tour players, such as 2017 Overall winner Ralf Souquet did not compete at the event, as the event was held at the same time as the 2018 World Pool Masters. The event is not to be confused with the 2018 Treviso Open; another event held in the Euro Tour in November.


2018 Italian Open (pool), Tournament format
The event saw a total of 153 players compete, in a double-elimination knockout tournament, until the last 32 stage; where the tournament was contested as single elimination.