July 20 in History

2021 5 years ago

American businessman Jeff Bezos flies to space aboard New Shepard NS-16 operated by his private spaceflight company…

Jeffrey Preston Bezos is an American businessman, and the founder, executive chairman, and former president and CEO of Amazon, the world's largest e-commerce and cloud computing c…

American businessman Jeff Bezos flies to space aboard New Shepard NS-16 operated by his private spaceflight company…

2019

Soyuz MS-13 is launched to the International Space Station on the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing.

Soyuz MS-13, also designated ISS flight 59S, was a crewed Soyuz mission launched on 20 July 2019 – the 50th anniversary of the first Moon landing – carrying three members of the E…

Soyuz MS-13 is launched to the International Space Station on the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing.

2017

O. J. Simpson is granted parole to be released from prison after serving nine years of a 33-year sentence after being…

Orenthal James Simpson, nicknamed "the Juice", was an American football player, actor, and media personality. He played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons—nine w…

O. J. Simpson is granted parole to be released from prison after serving nine years of a 33-year sentence after being…

2015

A huge explosion in the mostly Kurdish border town of Suruç, Turkey, targeting the Socialist Youth Associations…

The Suruç bombing was a suicide attack by the Turkish sect of Islamic State named Dokumacılar against Turkish leftists that took place in the Suruç district of Şanlıurfa Province …

A huge explosion in the mostly Kurdish border town of Suruç, Turkey, targeting the Socialist Youth Associations…

2015

The United States and Cuba resume full diplomatic relations after five decades.

The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic consisting of 50 s…

The United States and Cuba resume full diplomatic relations after five decades.

2013

Seventeen government soldiers are killed in an attack by FARC revolutionaries in the Colombian department of Arauca.

On 20 July 2013, two clashes occurred in Colombia between government forces and Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrillas. Nineteen soldiers were killed in the dead…

Seventeen government soldiers are killed in an attack by FARC revolutionaries in the Colombian department of Arauca.

2013

Syrian civil war: The Battle of Ras al-Ayn ends with the expulsion of Islamist forces from the city by the People's…

The Syrian civil war was an armed conflict that began with the Syrian revolution in March 2011, when popular discontent with the Ba'athist regime ruled by Bashar al-Assad triggere…

Syrian civil war: The Battle of Ras al-Ayn ends with the expulsion of Islamist forces from the city by the People's…

2012

James Holmes opened fire at a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, killing 12 and injuring 70 others.

James Eagan Holmes is an American convicted mass murderer who perpetrated the 2012 Aurora theater shooting in which he killed 12 people and injured 70 others at a Century 16 movie…

James Holmes opened fire at a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, killing 12 and injuring 70 others.

2012

Syrian civil war: The People's Protection Units (YPG) capture the cities of Amuda and Efrîn without resistance.

The Syrian civil war was an armed conflict that began with the Syrian revolution in March 2011, when popular discontent with the Ba'athist regime ruled by Bashar al-Assad triggere…

Syrian civil war: The People's Protection Units (YPG) capture the cities of Amuda and Efrîn without resistance.

2005

The Civil Marriage Act legalizes same-sex marriage in Canada.

The Civil Marriage Act is a federal statute legalizing same-sex marriage across Canada. At the time it became law, same-sex marriage had already been legalized by court decisions …

The Civil Marriage Act legalizes same-sex marriage in Canada.

1999

The Chinese Communist Party begins a persecution campaign against Falun Gong, arresting thousands nationwide.

The persecution of Falun Gong is the campaign initiated in 1999 by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to eliminate the new religious movement Falun Gong in China, maintaining a doc…

The Chinese Communist Party begins a persecution campaign against Falun Gong, arresting thousands nationwide.

1997

The fully restored USS Constitution (a.k.a. Old Ironsides) celebrates its 200th birthday by setting sail for the first…

USS Constitution, also known as Old Ironsides, is a three-masted wooden-hulled heavy frigate of the United States Navy. She is the world's oldest commissioned warship still afloat…

The fully restored USS Constitution (a.k.a. Old Ironsides) celebrates its 200th birthday by setting sail for the first…

1992

Václav Havel resigns as president of Czechoslovakia.

Václav Havel was a Czech statesman, author, poet, playwright, and dissident. Havel served as the last president of Czechoslovakia from 1989 until 1992, prior to the dissolution of…

Václav Havel resigns as president of Czechoslovakia.

1992

A Tupolev Tu-154 crashes during takeoff from Tbilisi International Airport, killing all 24 aboard and four more people…

The Tupolev Tu-154 is a three-engined, medium-range, narrow-body airliner designed in the mid-1960s and manufactured by Tupolev. A workhorse of Soviet and (subsequently) Russian a…

A Tupolev Tu-154 crashes during takeoff from Tbilisi International Airport, killing all 24 aboard and four more people…

1989

Burma's ruling junta puts opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi under house arrest.

Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar and also referred to as Burma, is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Sou…

Burma's ruling junta puts opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi under house arrest.

1985

The government of Aruba passes legislation to secede from the Netherlands Antilles.

Aruba, officially the Country of Aruba, is a constituent island country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, in the southern Caribbean Sea 29 kilometres (18 mi) north of the Ven…

The government of Aruba passes legislation to secede from the Netherlands Antilles.

1982

Hyde Park and Regent's Park bombings: The Provisional IRA detonates two bombs in Hyde Park and Regent's Park in…

The Hyde Park and Regent's Park bombings were carried out on 20 July 1982 in London, England. Members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) detonated two improvised explo…

Hyde Park and Regent's Park bombings: The Provisional IRA detonates two bombs in Hyde Park and Regent's Park in…

1981 45 years ago

Somali Airlines Flight 40 crashes in Balad, Somalia, killing 50 people.

On 20 July 1981, Somali Airlines Flight 40, a Fokker F27-600 Friendship operating a daily scheduled domestic passenger flight from Mogadishu International Airport to Hargeisa Airp…

Somali Airlines Flight 40 crashes in Balad, Somalia, killing 50 people.

1977

The Central Intelligence Agency releases documents under the Freedom of Information Act revealing it had engaged in…

The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States tasked with advancing national security through col…

The Central Intelligence Agency releases documents under the Freedom of Information Act revealing it had engaged in…

1977

The Johnstown flood of 1977 kills 84 people and causes millions of dollars in damages.

The Johnstown flood of 1977 was a major flood which began on the night of July 19, 1977, when heavy rainfall caused widespread flash flooding in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, Unit…

The Johnstown flood of 1977 kills 84 people and causes millions of dollars in damages.