Author: Vanyan Gary

Asbarez: TYT Takes Belated Baby Step

Vanyan Gary
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9 hours ago

Garen Yegparian

BY GAREN YEGPARIAN

This is one of those good/bad news situations.

The online talk show (formerly a radio program) named “The Young Turks” (henceforth TYT to save ink and pixels) hosted by Cenk Uygur and Ana Kasparian has belatedly come clean regarding the Armenian Genocide. You can hear it yourself on this May 13th YouTube posting. The program is ideologically left wing

The main host, Uygur, had been on the record as a denialist since at least his college days when he published his views. As recently as February 2012, he was still on the same track when avoided straightforwardly recognize the Genocide when he spoke at the California Democratic Party convention.

Based on the comments made by Kasparian on the YouTube video clip, this was not the first time that TYT had recognized the Genocide. If this is so, I’m disappointed not to have learned of it sooner. But then, I was certainly not going to watch, and thus support, a show hosted by a Turk who was a denialist and an Armenian who willingly worked beside and with that Turkish denialist.

So far, so good, right? It’s great that a somewhat popular media personality, and a Turk at that, stopped his denial of the Genocide. But it’s not that straightforward. First, he introduced the topic of properly recognizing the Armenian Genocide. But it was only a teaser. He wanted to debunk rumors spreading online about TYT that he described as “wildly inaccurate” – and I have to say they are! Supposedly, TYT is controlled by Qatar (stemming form an advertising deal they had a few years ago); that TYT is owned by George Soros (stemming from TYT belonging to a grouping of media outlets, some others of which had gotten Soros funding), and that Uygur was secretly a Republican (because he had gotten a loan, since repaid, from Buddy Roemer, a Louisiana governor who switched parties from Democratic to Republican). Remember, TYT is a left-wing program!

Why is all this relevant? Notice what Uygur did, he pushed a hot issue on which he has been excoriably wrong, to the back burner. Sure, his acceptance of the reality of the Genocide was emphatic, citing seven (if I didn’t miscount) examples of ridiculous lines of Turkish denial and other aspects of utterly false Turkish “history” he had been taught.. His explanation of why he had been a denier (basically, his Turkish upbringing and childhood schooling) even makes a lot of sense. But it wasn’t front-and-center.

After Uygur is done, Kasparian chimes in with a sob-story of how right wingers have used her ascribed denial of the Genocide for political gain. Then she complains that this has led to serious threats against her and her family, given that she lives in Los Angeles. While that’s not a pleasant position to be put in, her assertion that it is ridiculous to be labeled a denier when she is an Armenian rings hollow. The old saying – “Lie down with dogs, wake up with fleas” comes to mind.

For years she worked with an unrepentant Genocide denier. Isn’t it reasonable for people to associate the same vileness with her?

All of which brings us to the most important point. Great, a denialist Turk has come around. Maybe the up-to-now-Quisling Armenian even helped make that happen. Also nice. But what about the name of the program? The Young Turks. If Uygur and Kasparian expect ot be taken seriously, if they expect us to really believe that this isn’t a sham, that the pressure from progressive circles finally became too much, then THE NAME OF THE PROGRAM HAS TO CHANGE!

It is utterly unacceptable to continue to sanitize a group of Genocide perpetrators, the Young Turks of the 19-20th centuries. The excuse is, you might recall, that initially, since the Young Turks were trying to reform the Ottoman Empire, their name became a synonym for people trying to make positive changes. Well, we saw how that turned out. History has spoken and the use of “Young Turk” in a positive sense can only mean one thing, a whitewash.

So let’s flood Uygur and Kasparian with e-mail, tweets, Facebook messages, old-time letters, and any other means you can think of calling upon them to dump that disgusting name into the incinerator (not just the dustbin) of history!

Չինաստանի ԱԳ նախարարը Երեւանում է. նրան ընդունել է Զոհրաբ Մնցականյանը

Vanyan Gary
  • 26.05.2019

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ԱԳ նախարար Զոհրաբ Մնացականյանն այսօր՝ մայիսի 26-ին, ընդունել է ՉԺՀ ԱԳ նախարար Վան Իին: Այս մասին տեղեկություն է հրապարակվել ԱԳՆ ֆեյսբուքյան էջում։


«Մենք վերահաստատում ենք մեր վճռականությունը երկու երկրների միջև փոխադարձ հարգանքի հիման վրա զարգացնելու մեր հարաբերությունները: Որպես երկու հին քաղաքակրթություններ մենք միմյանց լավ ենք ճանաչում»,- ասել է ԱԳ նախարար Մնացականյանը։


Ավելի վաղ հաղորդվել էր, որ Վան Իի Երեւան կատարած այցի շրջանակներում կստորագրվի երկու միջազգային եւ մեկ ոչ միջազգային համաձայնագիր:



 

Sports: Azerbaijanis insist: Armenian player would have been safe

Vanyan Gary
Eurasianet.org
Joshua Kucera

Arsenal midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan, whose decision not to go to Baku for a key soccer match has created a wave of bad PR for Azerbaijan. (photo: Arsenal)

Following the decision by an Armenian soccer player to skip a championship match in Baku over concerns for his security, many Azerbaijanis complain that the safety issues have been overblown and that the episode is unfairly tarring the country.

The brouhaha over Arsenal midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s decision to skip the May 29 Europa League final has brought a wave of bad publicity to Azerbaijan, and has occasioned a wave of defensive – and occasionally counteroffensive – reactions. Given that Azerbaijan guaranteed Mkhitaryan’s safety while in Baku and he declined to come regardless, many Azerbaijanis have asked: why are we the ones being blamed?

An Azerbaijan tourism promotion account, Come to Azerbaijan, tweeted video from the 2015 European Games in Baku, when an Armenian boxer was personally awarded a medal by President Ilham Aliyev. When the boxer’s name was announced, there were boos and whistles from the crowd, but Aliyev quieted them, and smiled broadly and gave a thumbs up as the crowd began to cheer instead. “Anyone still believes in Armenian footballer's claims about ethnically motivated attacks on him in Baku? Show them this,” the account tweeted.

(It should be noted that Mkhitaryan never made a claim about “ethnically motivated attacks.” His statement announcing his withdrawal from the match offered no specific justification. But many sources had reported that security was his primary concern. As for the “exemplary multicultural and tolerant country,” see below.)

Others took offense at the often overblown British media coverage of the case; one Orientalizing trope that has become common in the British press is that Baku is “further east than Baghdad,” implying a sort of Eastern barbarism at the root of the matter. Erkin Gadirli, a leading member of the opposition party ReAl, said the coverage was “very dishonest” and “full of stereotypes.”

Other Azerbaijanis pointed out the utter improbability of the government allowing an attack on a player at the sort of high-profile event that means so much to Baku. “At least government is not that dumb to let a world famous footballer to get killed in a stadium,” turning the glitzy spectacle “to a catastrophic hate murder scene,” tweeted social media personality Cavid Aga.

Many blamed Mkhitaryan himself for ginning up the controversy. After Arsenal qualified for the final, forcing him to make a decision about whether to come, Mkhitaryan had delayed his official announcement for several days after the Azerbaijani government had guaranteed his security if he were to come, contributing to a sense among many that he never intended to come and instead sought to milk the controversy to gain points against Azerbaijan, the country with which his country has been at war for more than a quarter century.

“Mkhitarian’s refusal to come has nothing to do with danger,” wrote investigative journalist and activist Khadija Ismayilova on her Facebook page. “He was not in danger at all. He used opportunity to start discussion about ‘savage Azerbaijanis.’ This was a political move and he used football for dirty political purpose. A racist purpose. We are not animals and we don’t bite.”

The news website Haqqin, connected to Azerbaijan’s security services, wove an elaborate tale of a conspiracy at European soccer’s governing body, UEFA, noting that Mkhitaryan’s sister works there. “Therefore, behind the Armenian footballer stand some powerful people, who can certainly ‘suggest’ to Arsenal how to act in this situation so as to inflict the maximum damage to Azerbaijan,” Haqqin wrote.

Most of these defenses elided a separate but related (and indefensible) issue: the fact that soccer fans of Armenian origin were denied visas (according to an Arsenal fan group) because of Baku’s long-standing policy of refusing entry to anyone with an Armenian name, no matter what passport they hold. (They make exceptions for special cases, which would have included Mkhitaryan, and in those cases they provide constant security escorts for the Armenian visitors.)

Azerbaijan’s ambassador to the UK also didn’t help matters when he said that, while Mkhitaryan’s safety would have been guaranteed in Baku, there may have been caveats. "My message to Mkhitaryan would be: you're a footballer, you want to play football? Go to Baku you are safe there, if you want to play the issue then that's a different story,” the ambassador, Tahir Taghizadeh, told Sky News.

So regardless of what Mkhitaryan’s motives might have been, an Armenian can hardly be blamed for being reluctant to visit Azerbaijan in this environment. What has yet to be determined is whether Baku will, in light of the PR disaster they are facing as a result of all this, start to create the conditions in which Armenians have no reason not to come to Azerbaijan.

Dassault Systèmes interested in revealing Armenia’s education system: President Sarkissian hosts company representatives

Vanyan Gary

Dassault Systèmes interested in revealing Armenia’s education system: President Sarkissian hosts company representatives

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13:21,

YEREVAN, MAY 10, ARMENPRESS. President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian hosted the delegation of the leading French company Dassault Systèmes, led by first Vice President Christian Nardin and Senior Director, Global Academia Programs, Xavier Fouge, who arrived in Armenia at the President’s invitation, the Presidential Office told Armenpress.

The President said during the previous meetings with the company executives they have discussed the cooperation opportunities and possible directions. “We should reveal what we can do together”, Armen Sarkissian said, adding: “First of all, to reveal the country’s education sector because we need to have a right educational system in order to operate in the field of high technologies. I am convinced that we have talented people surrounding us. We have inherited a very good education system from the Soviet Union, in particular, in the sphere of natural sciences”.

Mr. Sarkissian said Armenia is a small country, but a global nation,  Armenians are everywhere, and this as well is an important mission.

Christian Nardin thanked the President for the invitation and stated: “It’s a great honor to be here. During the visit we would like to understand the areas where we can work. People are the key of the future, everything starts from the people, therefore, we are so interested in discovering Armenia’s education system and see how we can contribute to the education of the new generation, which is, eventually, a great investment aimed at having better future. Future is an opportunity, not a threat. Technologies can be wonderful tools in the future if they are used correctly”.

President Sarkissian expressed confidence that the time to be spent in Armenia will enable the company representatives to reveal the country’s opportunities, educational and scientific potential. “All this will give you an overall vision and opportunity to plan what you can do here”, the Armenian President said.

Dassault Systèmes is a subsidiary of the Dassault Group created in 1981. It develops and markets PLM software and services that support industrial processes by providing a 3D vision of the entire lifecycle of products from conception to maintenance.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan




Delivering message to 700,000 Armenians in France won’t save you, Erdogan tells Macron

Vanyan Gary
Panorama, Armenia

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has once again lashed out at French President Emmanuel Macron over France’s decision to commemorate the Armenian Genocide on every April 24.

“Sending a message to 700,000 Armenians in France, Mr. Macron, will not save you. First, you should learn to be honest in politics. It’s not possible for you to win in politics unless you turn to be an honest politician,” Hurriyet Daily News quoted Erdogan as saying at his party’s assessment camp over the weekend.

Macron is new to politics and does not know “these businesses," Erdogan said, adding he has discussed the issue with the French president a number of times.

He doubled down on Turkey’s stance that the relocation of Armenians "was neither a genocide nor a great disaster; it was a tragic event that took place under troublesome conditions a century ago."

France held its first national day of commemoration of the Armenian Genocide on 24 April, fulfilling a pledge by Macron.

The French leader announced the commemoration at a meeting with representatives of the country’s large Armenian community in February, honoring a promise made during his 2017 presidential campaign.

Macron said “we commemorate the Armenian Genocide to make sure that history does not repeat its mistakes.”

My Grandmother Escaped The Armenian Genocide, But She Never Forgot

Vanyan Gary
WBUR
 
 
My Grandmother Escaped The Armenian Genocide, But She Never Forgot
 
John Christie
The author and his grandmother, Hovsepian "Rose" Banaian, circa 1950. (Courtesy)
 
On April 24, Armenians all over the world will gather for the annual Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day, recognizing the onset of the Ottoman Empire’s campaign of ethnic cleansing. It began in 1915, ultimately killing 1.5 million Armenians, including my Nana’s mother, my great-grandmother. She died as many Armenians did — on a forced march to a concentration camp.
 
My great-grandfather was murdered in another Turkish murder spree, a rehearsal to the genocide, the 1909 Adana massacre.
 
For me, my family and Armenian-Americans from Watertown to Fresno, our hearts are hardened doubly on the day of remembrance. Once, for the cruel deaths of our parents, grandparents or great-grandparents. And once again for the insulting fact that the perpetrators continue to this day to deny, with impunity, what happened.
 
Scholars worldwide recognize the Armenian genocide and many western countries, including France and Germany, have formally declared the event a genocide. But Turkey maintains that whatever happened in 1915 was a civil dispute between Armenians and Turks — with deaths on both sides.
 
People outside the Turkish Consulate protest the deaths of an estimated 1.5 million Armenians under the Ottoman Empire, Monday, April 24, 2017, in Los Angeles. (Jae C. Hong/AP)
 
Turkey’s denial of the truth has for years admonished Armenians to never set foot in Turkey. I had always taken the warning to heart.
 
But something changed as I grew older. Like many Baby Boomers, I’ve been reflecting on my past and discovering a deep well of gratitude for the immigrants who sacrificed to give us a good life.
 
I wanted to honor them, especially my Nana, who died in 1995. I wanted to do what she would not: return to the village she’d fled as a child, to declare — by my very presence — that she survived and even thrived.
 
In the spring of 1909, Gulenia Hovsepian — who would become my Nana — was a 9-year-old girl tending her family’s livestock in Bitias, a mountainous village in the Musa Dagh valley overlooking the Mediterranean. She recalled in a tape recording that a Turkish boy ran up to her, declaring “They’re killing the kafirs!” Kafirs were Christians like her family.
 
The Musa Dagh valley, Turkey, once the home of six Armenian villages, including the author's grandmother's, Bitias. (Courtesy)
 
She ran home through a grove of mulberry trees, the leaves tickling her cheeks.
 
When she arrived, her father was arming himself to join other Armenian villagers to fend off the Turks. But he was among hundreds of villagers killed, most likely stabbed to death.
 
My Nana was rescued by missionaries and spent her teenage years in a Lutheran orphanage in Beirut, safe from the genocide. But when she was 19, she made her way to America for an arranged marriage with an Armenian man living in New Hampshire. They had six children, including my mother.
 
She lived in a tenement on a dead-end street in our New England mill town, Dover, New Hampshire. My mother, father, brother and I lived in the same tenement, one door away. Nana raised me as much as my parents did, feeding me when they were at their factory jobs, reading Golden Books to me, singing me a lullaby she learned in the orphanage.
 
Despite her tragic life story, I never heard hateful words from her until I heard her on the recording talking about the Turkish government.
 
“Damn them,” she said. “They don't want to admit it.”
 
On a warm day in June 2018, I boarded a flight to Istanbul with my 38-year-old son, Nick. He asked to come along to honor his great-grandmother and help his 70-year-old dad negotiate any obstacles.
 
Our driver took us up the lush Musa Dagh valley to Bitias, through steep switchbacks, swerving around pedestrians, women pushing baby carriages, couples on scooters and wayward chickens.
 
I wanted to do what she would not: return to the village she’d fled as a child, to declare — by my very presence — that she survived and even thrived.
 
Nick and I walked the narrow streets of my Nana’s hometown, absorbing what surely had not changed since she roamed here: the intense sunlight, the heat, the Mediterranean breezes, the smell of wood fires and cow manure. Standing in a field we believed once belonged to our family, I thought: An awful thing happened here. But instead of anger, I felt something unexpected: pride and defiance.
 
There was one more thing we could do. We went looking for mulberry trees. We walked up and down the hilly village; olive and orange trees everywhere. Nary a mulberry, until we spotted one in the corner of a yard, its branches overhanging at eye level. I snatched a dozen leaves and carried them home in the pages of a notebook. I couldn’t bring my grandmother to her home, but I could bring a piece of home back to her.
 
A few weeks after returning to the U.S., I drove to Pine Hill Cemetery in Dover where she was buried in the shadow of a tall spruce. I slipped one of the leaves out of my notebook, set it on her gravestone, securing it with a rock. I stepped back and took in the scene: Nana’s name engraved on the stone, the mulberry leaf and the ground below me where her body lay.
 
My breath quickened and tears came unbidden. All I could think, all I could say was, “Nana, here’s that leaf that tickled your cheeks when you were a little girl about to lose everything. Nana, I’m here, and I’m sorry.”
 
On Remembrance Day, like other descendants of Armenian genocide victims, I don't know whether to bow my head in grief or shake my fist in anger.
 

Stepanakert Welcomes Foreign Ministers’ Meeting on Karabakh

Vanyan Gary
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9 hours ago

Artsakh Presidential spokesperson David Babayan

Official Stepanakert on Tuesday welcomed a meeting between foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan, Zohrab Mnatsakanyan and Elmar Mammadyarov, in Moscow, where the two put forth a set of proposals that are aimed to reduce tensions along the Artsakh-Azerbaijan border.

Artskakh presidential spokesperson David Babayan told Armenpress that while Stepanakert welcomed and is positively assesses the meeting, some of the proposals that were discussed by Mnatsakanyan and Mammadyarov were presented by Artsakh officials as efforts to stabilize the region, but were rejected, or never acted upon by Azerbaijan.

“The agreements of this meeting were very interesting. Some of the ideas have been raised by official Stepanakert,” said Babayan. “Nearly 11 years ago official Stepanakert presented a package to the Co-chairs of key steps for the preservation of stability. They were highly assessed by the Co-chairs, but Azerbaijan took no steps. And it’s very interesting and very good that now, these specific ideas have been included in the proposals of the Co-chairs.”

The presidential spokesperson was referring to a proposed set of steps that include withdrawing snipers, avoiding ceasefire violations on holidays, as well as some humanitarian efforts, specifically a proposal to refrain from ceasefire violations during harvest season. He explained that in the past Azerbaijani forces not only opened fire on farmers, but also set fields on fire, destroying crops and threatening the civilian population. He added torching the field also damaged crops on the Azerbaijani side of the border, because winds would carry the blaze to nearby farms.

Babayan also expressed Stepanakert’s willingness to allow relatives of detained persons from both sides to visit them. The spokesperson said that Artsakh will adhere to the proposal, as long as it is reciprocated by Azerbaijan.

“There are only two Azerbaijanis detained on the territory of Artsakh. Both are terrorists and criminals. They are the members of the criminal group that penetrated into the territory of Artsakh years ago and killed people. But those people have the opportunity to have contact with their relatives periodically via Skype or other means. If it’s reciprocal, Artsakh is ready. We have nothing to be afraid of or hiding,” said Babayan.

“We have always welcomed these meetings underscoring their importance in terms of ensuring peace and stability in the region and the continuation of the negotiation process,” said Babayan who added that Stepanakert was encouraged but skeptical given Azerbaijan’s past record of not adhering to proposed agreements.

David Babayan: Artsakh is a free country

Vanyan Gary
News.am, Armenia
David Babayan: Artsakh is a free country David Babayan: Artsakh is a free country

00:38, 14.04.2019
                  

STEPANAKERT.- Different European organizations seem to reconsider their approaches in terms of relations with Artsakh, press secretary of the President of the Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh Republic/NKR), said during Facebook live.

He recalled that Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated in his speech at the PACE that he had to intensify relations with Artsakh. "There are also some critical ideas about PACE that the position of this organization has also contributed to Azerbaijan's aggressive behavior.

Right after that Council of Europe Secretary General Thorbjorn Jagland announced that he should give a new impetus to relations with Artsakh and similar states and noted that Human Rights Commissioner Dunja Mijatović should pay attention to that issue, "said David Babayan, adding that Mijatović wanted to have more interest in "gray spaces."

He underlined that they immediately responded that the phrase "gray spaces" is unacceptable because Artsakh is a free, accessible country, everyone can come and get acquainted.

"If there is a wish to come, we will just welcome that approach. When people come and see the barbaric country of Azerbaijan and Artsakh, which has chosen the path of democracy, they make conclusions, "said David Babayan.

Chess: Armenian chess players won two prizes in Reykjavik

Vanyan Gary
Arminfo, Armenia
Asya Balayan

ArmInfo. The Iranian chess player was recognized as the  best at the competitions in the International Open Tournament < Reykjavik Gamma>, organized by the Icelandic Chess Federation,  Armenian chess players also successfully played, taking second and  third places.

A chess player from Iran, Alireza Firouzja, took first place, beating  the Polish opponent with a score of 3.5. Two chess players from  Armenia, Sergey Movsisyan and Robert Hovhannisyan took second and  third places.  249 chess players from April 9 took part in  competitions in Iceland. 

Today in History: March 22

Vanyan Gary
Manning Live
 
 
Today in History: March 22
 
 
by STAFF REPORTS | 12:00 AM
 
Last Updated: March 20, 2018 at 10:45 PM
 
238 – Gordian I and his son Gordian II are proclaimed Roman emperors.
871 – Æthelred of Wessex is defeated by a Danish invasion army at the Battle of Marton.
1508 – Ferdinand II of Aragon commissions Amerigo Vespucci chief navigator of the Spanish Empire.
1621 – The Pilgrims of Plymouth Colony sign a peace treaty with Massasoit of the Wampanoags.
1622 – Jamestown massacre: Algonquians kill 347 English settlers around Jamestown, Virginia, a third of the colony’s population, during the Second Anglo-Powhatan War.
1630 – The Massachusetts Bay Colony outlaws the possession of cards, dice, and gaming tables.
1638 – Anne Hutchinson is expelled from Massachusetts Bay Colony for religious dissent.
1713 – The Tuscarora War comes to an end with the fall of Fort Neoheroka, effectively opening up the interior of North Carolina to European colonization.
1739 – Nader Shah occupies Delhi in India and sacks the city, stealing the jewels of the Peacock Throne.
1765 – The British Parliament passes the Stamp Act that introduces a tax to be levied directly on its American colonies.
1784 – The Emerald Buddha is moved with great ceremony to its current location in Wat Phra Kaew, Thailand.
1829 – In the London Protocol, the three protecting powers (United Kingdom, France and Russia) establish the borders of Greece.
1849 – The Austrians defeat the Piedmontese at the Battle of Novara.
1871 – In North Carolina, William Woods Holden becomes the first governor of a U.S. state to be removed from office by impeachment.
1872 – Illinois becomes the first state to require gender equality in employment.
1873 – The Spanish National Assembly abolishes slavery in Puerto Rico.
1894 – The first playoff game for the Stanley Cup starts.
1906 – The first England vs France rugby union match is played at Parc des Princes in Paris
1916 – The last Emperor of China, Yuan Shikai, abdicates the throne and the Republic of China is restored.
1920 – Azeri and Turkish army soldiers with participation of Kurdish gangs attacked the Armenian inhabitants of Shushi (Nagorno Karabakh).
1933 – Cullen–Harrison Act: President Franklin Roosevelt signs an amendment to the Volstead Act, legalizing the manufacture and sale of “3.2 beer” (3.2% alcohol by weight, approximately 4% alcohol by volume) and light wines.
1939 – World War II: Germany takes Memel from Lithuania.
1942 – World War II: In the Mediterranean Sea, the Royal Navy confronts Italy’s Regia Marina in the Second Battle of Sirte.
1943 – World War II: the entire village of Khatyn (in what is the present-day Republic of Belarus) is burnt alive by Schutzmannschaft Battalion 118.
1945 – The Arab League is founded when a charter is adopted in Cairo, Egypt.
1960 – Arthur Leonard Schawlow and Charles Hard Townes receive the first patent for a laser
1972 – The United States Congress sends the Equal Rights Amendment to the states for ratification.
1972 – In Eisenstadt v. Baird, the United States Supreme Court decides that unmarried persons have the right to possess contraceptives.
1975 – A fire at the Browns Ferry Nuclear Power Plant in Decatur, Alabama causes a dangerous reduction in cooling water levels.
1978 – Karl Wallenda of The Flying Wallendas dies after falling off a tight-rope between two hotels in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
1982 – NASA’s Space Shuttle Columbia is launched from the Kennedy Space Center on its third mission, STS-3.
1992 – USAir Flight 405 crashes shortly after takeoff from New York City’s LaGuardia Airport, leading to a number of studies into the effect that ice has on aircraft.
1992 – Fall of communism in Albania: The Democratic Party of Albania wins a decisive majority in the parliamentary election.
1993 – The Intel Corporation ships the first Pentium chips (80586), featuring a 60 MHz clock speed, 100+ MIPS, and a 64 bit data path.
1995 – Cosmonaut Valeri Polyakov returns to earth after setting a record of 438 days in space.
1997 – Tara Lipinski, aged 14 years and 9 months, becomes the youngest women’s World Figure Skating Champion.
2004 – Ahmed Yassin, co-founder and leader of the Palestinian Sunni Islamist group Hamas, two bodyguards, and nine civilian bystanders are killed in the Gaza Strip when hit by Israeli Air Force Hellfire missiles.
2006 – Three Christian Peacemaker Team (CPT) hostages are freed by British forces in Baghdad after 118 days of captivity and the murder of their colleague from the U.S., Tom Fox.
2013 – At least 37 people are killed and 200 are injured after a fire destroys a camp containing Burmese refugees near Ban Mae, Thailand.
2016 – Three suicide bombers kill 32 people and injure 316 in the 2016 Brussels bombings at the airport and at the Maelbeek/Maalbeek metro station.
2017 – A terrorist attack in London near the Houses of Parliament leaves four people dead and at least 20 injured.