October 31st Major News Events

31 Oct, 1942 England Canterbury Bombing

1942 : The Nazi Luftwaffe today launched the heaviest single daylight bombing attack since the Battle of Britain on the Cathedral City of Canterbury.

31 Oct, 1950 Puerto Rico Rebels

1950 : Fighting is continuing in the streets of San Juan between rebels seeking Puerto Rico secession from the United States and 4000 National Guardsman who have been sent in to bring calm to the city. Aircraft are now being used in bombing raids against the rebel hideouts entrenched in and around the mountain towns of Jayuya and Utuado.

31 Oct, 1955 UK Princess Margaret

1955 : Princess Margaret has announced she will not marry divorced Group Captain Peter Townsend. She had been forced to choose between her love for Group Captain Peter Townsend and giving up her title, her Civil List allowance, and her place in the line of succession because he was divorced. During her announcement she stated that her decision had been made out of loyalty to the Crown and out of consciousness of the Church's teaching on the "indissolubility of Christian marriage" (Divorce).

31 Oct, 1956 Egypt Suez Canal Crisis

1956 : Following Egypt's decision to nationalize the Suez Canal Britain and France begin bombing Egypt to force the reopening of the Suez Canal.

31 Oct, 1959 Lee Harvey Oswald

1959 : Years before the Kennedy assassination Lee Harvey Oswald is featured in local papers when he applies for Soviet citizenship.

Full Size Original Here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:CE2892.jpg

31 Oct, 1961 Soviet Union Joseph Stalin

1961 : Joseph Stalin's body is removed from Lenin's Tomb as part of the process of de-Stalinization in The Soviet Union.

Full Size Original Here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:JStalin_Secretary_general_CCCP_1942.jpg

31 Oct, 1963 Indiana State Fair Coliseum Explosion

1963 : An explosion caused by a faulty propane tank during an ice skating show at the Indiana State Fair Coliseum (now Pepsi Coliseum) kills 74 and injures an additional 400.

31 Oct, 1964 Germany Berlin Wall

1964 : The Berlin wall was opened up for the second time yesterday for West Germans to visit relatives in East Germany and by nightfall 20,000 had passed through the communist controls. The visits are only allowed one way from west to east due to concerns of the East German Government that it's subjects would not return.

Full Size Original Here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Berlin_Wall_1961-11-20.jpg

31 Oct, 1966 Korea President Lyndon Johnson

October 31st, 1966 : An estimated two million people welcomed US President Lyndon Johnson to Seoul, South Korea. America had spent many years and lost many marines 16 years earlier helping to fight communists from the North.

Full Size Original Here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:37_Lyndon_Johnson_3x4.jpg

31 Oct, 1968 Vietnam President Lyndon Johnson

1968 : After 5 months of negotiations making no progress President Lyndon Johnson orders an end to rolling thunder. The U.S. bombing of North Vietnam in the hopes this would bring an end to the fighting and provide a negotiated settlement.

31 Oct, 1971 IRA Bomb Post Office Tower

October 31st, 1971 : A bomb explodes in the Post Office tower in England causing extensive damage but no injuries.

31 Oct, 1983 England Greenham Common

1983 : Women protesting the soon to arrive U.S. Nuclear Missiles at Greenham Common air base cut through the perimeter fence and daubed emulsion paint on the runway prior to being arrested. They were part of the Greenham Common Women's Peace Camp.

31 Oct, 1997 British Au Pair Found Guilty

October 31st, 1997 : Boston jury has found Louise Woodward a British Au Pair 19, guilty of second degree murder for killing the baby in her care.

31 Oct, 1999 U.S.A. Plane Crash

1999 : EgyptAir Flight 990 (Boeing 767) crashes shortly after taking off from John F. Kennedy International Airport, traveling from New York City to Cairo crashes off the coast of Nantucket, Massachusetts, killing all 217 on-board.

31 Oct, 2002 U.S.A. Enron

October 31st, 2002 : Andrew Fastow former chief financial officer for Enron Corp is indicted on 78 counts of wire fraud, money laundering, conspiracy and obstruction of justice related to the collapse of Enron Corp.

31 Oct, 2003 Malaysia Mahathir bin Mohamad

2003 : After 22 years from 1981 to 2003 Mahathir bin Mohamad retires from office and the Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi becomes the countries Prime Minister.

31 Oct, 2008 U.S.A. Consumer Confidence

October 31st, 2008 : Fears of a recession and higher unemployment pushes consumer spending in the US to fall in September by the biggest amount in four years.

31 Oct, 2008 China Melamine In Food

2008 : State Media in China has reported the toxic chemical melamine is probably being routinely added to Chinese animal feed, melamine has now been found in contaminated milk and eggs. Melamine is used to reduce production costs while maintaining the protein count for quality inspections.

31 Oct, 2012 Afghanistan Roadside Bomb Attack in Helmand

October 31st, 2012 : A roadside bomb attack in the Helmand province of Afghanistan killed ten civilians, mainly women and children.

31 Oct, 2013 Indonesia Nationwide Strike for Wages

2013 : Workers across Indonesia banded together to strike for higher wages. The workers were upset that the government was trying to put wage caps in place while the price of living and inflation were constantly increasing. Minimum wages were raised in the country but not enough to keep up with the rapid inflation that the growing economy was experiencing.