HISTORY AT A GLANCE

TODAY is Thursday, February 23, the 54th day of 2017. There are 311 days left in the year. Highlights in history on this date: 1945 – World War II: The capital of the Philippines, Manila, is

liberated by combined Filipino and American forces. 1947 – The International Organization for Standardization

(ISO) is founded. 1954 – The first mass inoculation of children against polio with

the Salk vaccine begins in Pittsburgh. 1955 – First meeting of the Southeast Asia Treaty

Organization (SEATO). 1958 – Cuban rebels kidnap 5-time world F1 champion Juan

Manuel Fangio. 1980 – Iran hostage crisis: Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini states that Iran’s parliament will decide the fate of the American embassy hostages. 1981 – In Spain, Antonio Tejero attempts a coup d’état by

capturing the Spanish Congress of Deputies. 1987 – Supernova 1987a is seen in the Large Magellanic

Cloud. 1991 – Gulf War: Ground troops cross the Saudi Arabian border and enter Iraq, thus beginning the ground phase of the war. 1991 – In Thailand, General Sunthorn Kongsompong leads a bloodless coup d’état, deposing Prime Minister Chatichai Choonhavan. 1998 – In the United States, tornadoes in central Florida

destroy or damage 2,600 structures and kill 42. 1999 – Kurdish rebel leader Abdullah Öcalan is charged with

treason in Ankara, Turkey. 1999 – An avalanche destroys the Austrian village of Galtür,

killing 31. 2005 – The controversial French law on colonialism is passed, requiring teachers to teach the “positive values of colonialism”. After public outcry, it is repealed at the beginning of 2006. 2007 – A train derails on an evening express service near Grayrigg, Cumbria, England, killing one person and injuring 22. This results in hundreds of points being checked over the UK after a few similar accidents. 2008 – A US Air Force B-2 Spirit bomber crashes on Guam. It

is the first operational loss of a B-2. 2010 – Unknown criminals pour more than 2.5 million litres of diesel oil and other hydrocarbons into the river Lambro, in northern Italy, sparking an environmental disaster. 2012 – A series of attacks across Iraq leave at least 83 killed

and more than 250 injured.