August 13, 2004

Aides to rebel Iraqi Shia cleric Moqtada al Sadr report that he has been wounded in fighting in the holy city of Najaf; the government denies the reports. The Najaf offensive triggers pro-Sadr protests in cities all over Iraq. (BBC)(protest pictures - BBC)
In Basra, Iraq, masked militants kidnap and threaten to kill James Brandon, 23, a freelance British journalist, working for the Sunday Telegraph, unless US troops withdraw from Najaf within 24 hours. He is released after intervention by al-Sadr. (BBC)
Hurricane Charley makes landfall just north of Fort Myers near Punta Gorda, Florida, USA, around 16:00 EDT (2000 UTC). At landfall, Charley has a windspeed of 145 mi/h (230 km/h), category 4 storm on the Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale. The storm made its way through Florida straight through the center of Haines City, Florida. There are multiple fatalities.(CNN)
A spectacular opening ceremony marks the start of the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece. (Athens 2004) (BBC)
A group of women kill an alleged rapist during his trial in Nagpur, India. (BBC)
California state Supreme Court voids 3,955 same-sex marriages performed in San Francisco.[1]