Tag: This Day in History
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This Day in History | 2001 – Sharon sweeps to power
The leader of the right-wing Likud party, Ariel Sharon, has won a landslide victory to become the new prime minister of Israel. He called for a ... -
This Day in History | 1974 – Newspaper heiress kidnapped
The daughter of the millionaire American publisher, Randolph Hearst, has been kidnapped. Patty Hearst, aged 19, was with her fiancé, Steven Weed, in her flat in ... -
This Day in History | 1968 – More Kenyan Asians flee to Britain
Another 96 Indians and Pakistanis from Kenya have arrived in Britain today, the latest in a growing exodus of Kenyan Asians fleeing from laws which prevent ... -
This Day in History | 1966 – Soviets land probe on Moon
The Russians have made the first controlled landing of a spacecraft on the Moon. Luna 9 made its “soft” landing at 2145 Moscow time (1845 GMT). ... -
This Day in History | 1987 – Aquino suppresses rebel uprising
President of the Philippines Corazon Aquino has forced a group of heavily armed rebels occupying a television station to surrender. Her troops fired tear gas into ... -
This Day in History | 1969 – LSE closes over student clashes
The London School of Economics has been closed following violent protests by students angry at the installation of steel security gates. Police were called in to ... -
This Day in History | 1973 Nixon announces Vietnam peace deal
The US president, Richard Nixon, has appeared on national television to announce “peace with honour” in Vietnam. Statements issued simultaneously in Washington and Hanoi confirmed the ... -
This Day in History | 2001 – MMR triple vaccine declared safe
The government is launching a £3m campaign to convince parents the controversial MMR triple vaccine is safe. Fears have been raised the vaccine against measles, mumps ... -
This Day in History | 1992 UN threatens Libya with sanctions
The United Nations has ordered Libya to surrender intelligence agents accused of the Lockerbie and French airliner bombings. The 15-nation Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution ... -
This Day in History | 1958 Explorers meet at South Pole
Members of the team attempting the first surface crossing of the Antarctic have joined up at the South Pole. New Zealander Sir Edmund Hillary – who ... -
This Day in History | 1994 Massive earthquake hits Los Angeles
A huge earthquake has rocked Los Angeles, killing more than 20 people. The earthquake, which measured 6.6 on the Richter scale and lasted for 40 seconds, ... -
This Day in History | 1979 – Shah of Iran flees into exile
The Shah of Iran has fled the country following months of increasingly violent protests against his regime. Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlevi and his wife, Empress Farah, ... -
This Day in History | 1997 – Princess Diana sparks landmines row
Princess Diana has angered government ministers after calling for an international ban on landmines. Her comments – made during a visit to Angola to see for ... -
This Day in History | 1994 – Duchess of Kent joins Catholic church
The Duchess of Kent has become the first member of the Royal Family to convert to Catholicism for more than 300 years. The duchess was received ... -
This Day in History | 1993: Allies bomb Iraq
American, British and French fighter jets have carried out a series of bombing raids over southern Iraq. The Iraqis have repeatedly breached the “no-fly zone” set ... -
This Day in History | 1991 Last ditch efforts to avoid Gulf War
The United Nations Secretary General will leave shortly for Baghdad in a final diplomatic effort to avoid war against Iraq. Javier Perez de Cuellar is expected ... -
This Day in History | 2005 Abbas triumphs in Palestinian elections
Early indications in the Palestinian presidential elections show former Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas is set to win by a comfortable margin. Polling closed at 1900 GMT, ... -
This Day in History | 1989 Dozens die as plane crashes on motorway
A Boeing 737 airplane has crashed onto the M1 motorway near East Midlands airport, killing 46 people. Eighty have survived, of whom ten are seriously injured. ... -
This Day in History | 1980 – Gandhi returned by landslide vote
The people of India have voted Indira Gandhi back into power – less than three years after rejecting her “emergency dictatorship”. When the last of the ... -
This Day in History | 1994 – Mystery assailant attacks top US skater
An unknown man brandishing a metal crowbar has attacked American figure-skater Nancy Kerrigan. The 24-year-old skater was forced to withdraw from the US national championships in ... -
This Day in History | 2000 – Art theft was ‘professional’ job
Police have said the Cezanne painting taken from the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford on New Year’s Eve was probably stolen to order. The painting – Auvers-sur-Oise ... -
This Day in History | 1999 – UK prepares to celebrate millennium
Britain is gearing up to join a global party in a spectacular array of revelries to welcome in the third millennium. The scale of the celebrations ... -
This Day in History | 1958 – Castro’s rebels edge closer to capital
A vicious house-to-house battle between rebel guerrillas, led by Fidel Castro, and the Cuban army is raging around the town of Santa Clara, the capital of ... -
This Day in History | 2004 Yushchenko wins Ukraine election re-run
Election officials in Ukraine have declared opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko the winner of the country’s presidential elections by a clear margin. With more than 98% of ... -
This Day in History | 1968 – First astronauts orbit Moon
The Apollo 8 spacecraft has taken its crew of three astronauts safely into orbit around the Moon, the first manned space mission to achieve the feat. ... -
This Day in History | 1995 – ‘Divorce’: Queen to Charles and Diana
The Queen has urged the Prince and Princess of Wales to seek “an early divorce”. Buckingham Palace said the Queen called for an end to the ... -
This Day in History | 1984 – Britain signs over Hong Kong to China
The British colony of Hong Kong is to be returned to China in 1997 after an historic agreement was signed in Peking today. Prime Minister Margaret ... -
This Day in History | 1997 – Dawn of Scottish parliament
A bill giving Scotland its own parliament for the first time in three centuries has been unveiled in Glasgow today. Scottish Secretary Donald Dewar revealed his ... -
This Day in History | 1968 – Mary Bell found guilty of double killing
An 11-year-old girl has been sentenced to life in detention after being found guilty at Newcastle Assizes of the manslaughter of two small boys. Mary Bell ... -
This Day in History | 1984 Gorbachev visit to Britain a ‘success’
Mikhail Gorbachev, the man widely tipped as the next leader of the Soviet Union, has spent five hours in “very friendly” talks with the British Prime ... -
This Day in History | 1981 – Military crackdown on Polish people
Poland’s military rulers have declared a state of emergency after imposing martial law and placing leaders of the Solidarity trade union under arrest. The country is ... -
This Day in History | 1975 – Balcombe Street siege ends
A six-day siege has ended peacefully in London after four IRA gunmen freed their two hostages and gave themselves up to police. They are in custody ... -
This Day in History | 1979 – Rhodesia reverts to British rule
The Zimbabwe-Rhodesian Parliament has voted itself out of office and handed power back to the British until democratic elections can take place. Both the House of ... -
This Day in History | 1981 – Mystery disease kills homosexuals
A mysterious epidemic, which has been discovered in homosexual men, is causing increasing concern in the United States. The unknown condition, which consists of two separate ... -
This Day in History | 1978 Spain set to vote for democracy
Spaniards have been turning out in force today to cast a vote for democracy and end almost 40 years of dictatorial rule. The majority of the ...
