HISTORY AT A GLANCE
TODAY is Thursday, July 6, the 187th day of 2017. There are 178 days left in the year. Highlights in history on this date:
1944 – Jackie Robinson refuses to move to the back of a bus,
leading to a court-martial. 1947 – The AK-47 goes into production in the Soviet Union. 1957 – Althea Gibson wins the Wimbledon championships,
becoming the first black athlete to do so. 1964 – Malawi declares its independence from the United
Kingdom. 1967 – Nigerian Civil War: Nigerian forces invade Biafra,
beginning the war. 1975 – The Comoros declares independence from France. 1988 – The Piper Alpha drilling platform in the North Sea is destroyed by explosions and fires. One hundred sixty-seven oil workers are killed, making it the world’s worst offshore oil disaster in terms of direct loss of life. 1989 – The Tel Aviv–Jerusalem bus 405 suicide attack: Fourteen bus passengers are killed when an Arab assaulted the bus driver as the bus was driving by the edge of a cliff. 1990 – The Electronic Frontier Foundation is founded. 1995 – In the Bosnian War, under the command of General Ratko Mladic, Serbia begins its attack on the Bosnian town of Srebrenica. 1997 – The Troubles: In response to the Drumcree dispute, five days of mass protests, riots and gun battles begin in Irish nationalist districts of Northern Ireland. 1998 – Hong Kong International Airport opens in Chek Lap Kok, Hong Kong, replacing Kai Tak Airport as the city’s international airport. 2006 – The Nathu La pass between India and China, sealed during the Sino-Indian War, re-opens for trade after 44 years. 2013 – At least 42 people are killed in a shooting at a school
in Yobe State, Nigeria. 2013 – A Boeing 777 operating as Asiana Airlines Flight 214 crashes at San Francisco International Airport, killing three and injuring 181 of the 307 people on board. 2013 – A 73-car oil train derails in the town of Lac-Mégantic, Quebec and explodes into flames, killing at least 47 people and destroying more than 30 buildings in the town’s central area. 2016 – The Iraq Inquiry is published after seven years by Sir John Chilcot; it publicises the critique of Tony Blair and his decision to go ahead with the 2003 Invasion of Iraq.