The September 30 News Quiz: Six Questions, Six Headlines

Six real headlines from Wednesday, September 30, and six questions to see how closely you were paying attention. Every fact in this September 30 news quiz comes from newsroom reporting, and the answer to each question sits right inside the paragraph, so read straight through and keep your own score.

The questions

Six questions, one per headline. This September 30 news quiz hands you the story first, then the question, then the answer. If yesterday's September 29 news quiz or the September 28 quiz got you warmed up, this one is today's edition.

1. A flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv made for a genuinely alarming morning at the airport on Wednesday. According to Reuters, the co-pilot of flydubai flight FZ1073 allegedly stabbed the captain mid-flight, and flight-tracking data showed the Boeing 737 Max shedding nearly 14,000 feet of altitude in under 30 seconds before two off-duty relief pilots helped bring it down for an emergency landing. Israeli officials are treating the incident as an attempted terror attack, while the airline said it is cooperating with the authorities. Question 1 of this September 30 news quiz: in which country did the plane make its emergency landing? Answer: Saudi Arabia, in the northwestern city of Tabuk.

2. The United States began enforcing a ban on nearly $1 billion worth of Canadian imports at 12:01 a.m. Eastern on Tuesday, the Associated Press reported. The ban targets alcoholic beverages, dairy products like whey, and large-engine motorcycles, and it follows a summer of tariff escalation in which Washington imposed 50% tariffs on about $20 billion of Canadian goods, accusing Canada of discriminating against American dairy, auto and alcohol producers. Ottawa answered with retaliatory tariffs of 15% to 50% on American goods. Trade attorney Patrick Childress told the AP the economic impact will probably be minimal, since the existing tariff was already acting as a de facto ban on these products. Question: which three product groups does the new import ban target? Answer: alcoholic beverages, dairy products, and motorcycles.

3. Morocco got its first woman prime minister this week. King Mohammed VI appointed Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri on Tuesday, four days after her Authenticity and Modernity Party finished first in the September 23 parliamentary election with 97 of the 395 seats, reported Reuters. El Mansouri, a 50-year-old lawyer, previously served as Morocco's housing minister and as mayor of Marrakech. Her party fell short of the 198 seats needed for a majority, so her first job is negotiating a coalition government. Question: what is Morocco's first woman prime minister's name? Answer: Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri.

4. French students took to the streets this week over teacher shortages and overcrowded classrooms, with demonstrations spreading from the Paris region to Lyon, Marseille, Lille, Bordeaux, Rennes and Nantes. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said 440 people, most of them minors, were detained nationwide, and officials said 48 law enforcement officers were injured as police responded with batons and tear gas. The education ministry said roughly 400 of France's 3,700 lycees were affected, and the unrest coincided with a public sector strike over the government's budget plans. Question: how many people did the interior minister say were detained? Answer: just over four hundred, most of them minors.

5. The United States withdrew its final troops from Iraq this week, closing out a military presence that spanned roughly two decades, NPR noted in its morning news brief. The pullout leaves open questions about how the security vacuum will be filled. Question: which country's roughly two-decade US military presence just ended? Answer: Iraq.

6. The White House has been airing three television ads glorifying President Trump that have cost nearly $1.5 million in taxpayer money, according to AdImpact estimates cited by the Associated Press. The administration calls the spots public service announcements. The spending has drawn pushback from both parties: Senate Majority Leader John Thune said it "shouldn't be paid for with taxpayer dollars," and legal experts told the AP the ads appear to run afoul of federal law barring appropriated funds from being used for publicity or propaganda. The final question of this September 30 news quiz: what does the White House call the ads? Answer: public service announcements.

Score yourself

Five or six right on this September 30 news quiz and you are tracking the news cycle like a producer. Three or four means you caught the big stories but missed a detail or two. Fewer than three is your excuse to scroll the headlines one more time before tomorrow's quiz.

Sources for this September 30 news quiz include Reuters, Reuters, the Associated Press, and the Associated Press.