Current Affairs 14 May 2014

• Major General Kristin Lund of Norway becomes the first woman ever to command a UN peacekeeping force.  
  • She was appointed by the UN chief as the Force Commander of the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP).
  • She will replace Chao Liu (China) on Aug 13 as commander of about 1000 UN forces stationed there.
  • The UNFICYP, was established in 1964 to maintain the ceasefire between Greek and Turkish Cypriot.
  • The country has been divided since 1974 when Turkish troops occupied its northern third in response to an Athens-engineered Greek Cypriot coup seeking union with Greece.
• Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has been sentenced to six-year imprisonment for bribery.  
  • Its the first ever criminal conviction of a former head of government in Israel.
  • He had taken bribes over property deal when he was serving as the mayor of Jerusalem.
  • Its notable that he was forced to step down as PM in 2008 in the backdrop of many corruption allegations.
• Indian-American Indira Talwani becomes the first Asian Pacific American federal judge in the US state of Massachusetts.  
  • Her name was cleared by the Senate by 94-0 votes.
• TR Zeliang is to replace Neiphiu Rio as the next Chief Minister of Nagaland.  
  • He is currently the planning and co-ordination minister in the Naga People's Front (NPF) government.
• BHEL commissions first of the two unit of 600 MW capacity for Jindal Thermal Power Project at Angul in Odisha.  
  • The 2nd unit of 600 MW capacity is also expected to be commissioned during the current year. 
• China-Vietnam at loggerheads over oil exploration in South China Sea.