April 6th Major News Events

1950 Brazil Rail Accident

1950 : A train traveling from Rio de Janeiro to Victoria, Espirito Santo drops off a bridge into a fast running river in Tangua, Brazil, killing 110.

1962 Cuba Arrested For Spying

1962 : 7 Men have been arrested by Cuban Authorities and investigated for possible spying activities , the men were all frogmen diving off the coast of Cuba, American Authorities have confirmed 7 men have been reported missing who were diving for treasure.

1968 Riots Continue Following Assassination of Martin Luther King

1968 : Race Riots continue in cities throughout the US following the assassination of black civil rights leader Martin Luther King on 4 April. Curfews have put in place around the country and National Guard Soldiers have been mobilized to keep control. The death toll from arson attacks is 19 and the looting and shooting continue. The cities worst affected include Chicago, Washington DC, Pittsburgh, Detroit and at another 75 cities around the country.

1975 Vietnam Operation Babylift

1975 : Inspired by the American efforts to bring Vietnamese Children in need to the US code-named 'Operation Babylift' , A Boeing 747 chartered by the British Daily Mail carrying 99 Vietnamese orphans has landed at Heathrow airport.

1987 U.S.A. Al Campanis

1987 : Los Angeles Dodgers executive Al Campanis said on ABC's "Nightline" that blacks "may not have some of the necessities" to hold managerial jobs in major-league baseball (Campanis resigned two days later).

1989 UK Dockers Jobs For Life

1989 : The British government under Mrs Thatcher has announced it is to abolish legislation which, in effect, guarantees jobs for life for more than 9,000 dockers. This is a continuation of lessening the power of trade unions in England and follows the governments battle with the miners and printers unions which the government won earlier.

1990 U.S.A. Reunified Germany

1990 : Following the reunification of Germany the US and the Soviet Union met to discuss the future concerning the role to be played by the newly reunified Germany in Europe.

1993 Russia Explosion

1993 : An explosion rocked a Russian nuclear weapons complex in the Siberian town of Tomsk-7.

1997 Space Shuttle Columbia

1997 : NASA aborts the latest space shuttle Columbia mission after problems with defective fuel cells are found. The mission was scheduled to last over 2 weeks but has been aborted after just 4 days and has returned to Earth today.

1998 Dow Jones Closes Above 9,000

1998 : The Dow Jones industrial average closed above 9,000 points for the first time.

1998 Pakistan Medium Range Missile Test

1998 : Pakistan successfully tested a medium-range missile capable of striking neighboring India. Pakistan has the seventh largest armed forces in the world and is in constant conflict over the region of Kashmir with it's neighbor India. Both countries have developed nuclear weapons and Medium Range Missiles would allow them to destroy the other country. First Kashmir War, Indo-Pakistani War of 1947 Second Kashmir War,Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 Bangladesh Independence War, Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 Kargil War (Kashmir ), Indo-Pakistani War of 1999.

2001 Pacific Gas and Electric File Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

2001 : Pacific Gas and Electric ( PG&E ) file Chapter 11 Bankruptcy when they are unable to sell electricity to consumers for more than they buy it on the open market. The State of California under leadership of California Governor Gray Davis bailed out the utility.

2004 Jordan Muslim Militants

2004 : Jordan's military court convicted eight Muslim militants and sentenced them to death for the 2002 killing of U.S. aid official Laurence Foley in a terror conspiracy linked to al-Qaeda.

2005 Monaco Prince Rainier III Dies

2005 : Prince Rainier III of Monaco dies, leaving the throne to Prince Albert II the eldest son of Rainier III of Monaco and Grace, Princess of Monaco, ( American actress Grace Kelly ).

2006 Switzerland Judas’s testimony

2006 : The National Geographic Society has revealed the gospel of Judas Iscariot, even though the story's authentication, conservation, and translation cannot confirmed. The papyrus codex, which is believed to have been translated from the original Greek to the Coptic script was found in a cave near El Minya, Egypt. It has been moved from Egypt to Europe to the United States in search of a verification. Kept in a safe deposit box on Long Island, New York for many years, it was bought in 2000 by a Zurich-based antiquities dealer. Now in the Maecenas Foundation for Ancient Art in Switzerland, the document will be donated to the government of Egypt, and be housed in the Coptic museum in Cairo.

2008 England Olympic Torch Relay Protests

2008 : Olympic Torch Relay arrives in London, England sparking huge protests by pro-Tibetan independence and pro-Human Rights supporters causing the route to be changed.

2009 Italy Earthquake strikes near L'Aquila

2009 : The 5.8 on the Richter scale L'Aquila earthquake ( central Italy ) leaves 307 dead and approximately 1,500 people injured. The Quake caused up to 10,000 buildings in L'Aquila damage. Many of the medieval churches and other buildings that are an important part of the history of the area were badly effected including the Basilica of Saint Bernardino of Siena. The earthquake left over 40,000 homeless which many believe was due to Poor building standards or construction materials.

2009 Obama says that the United States is not at war with the Muslim world

2009 : Having arrived in Turkey from Prague, President Barack Obama has said that the United States "is not at war with Islam." This is his first visit, as President, to a mainly Muslim country. In speaking to the Turkish parliament, he called for a greater partnership with the Muslim world, and said the U.S. would be launching outreach programs. "America's relationship with the Muslim world cannot, and will not, be based on opposition to al-Qaeda," he said. He had told his audience that Washington supported Turkey's efforts to join the E.U.

2010 Chinese cyberspying is revealed

2010 : A 'complex cyber-espionage' network has penetrated various organizations, including those of the Office of the Dalai Lama. The so-called Shadow Network had been targeting government, business, and academic computers at the United Nations and the Embassy of Pakistan in the United States as well. Researchers say that it has been used to steal at least 1,500 emails from the Office of the Dalai Lama. The attacks are thought to have originated from the city of Chengdu in China. The researchers, who are from the Information Warfare Monitor and the Shadowserver Foundation, have said they had evidence of 'links between the Shadow Network and two individuals living in Chengdu.' These individuals have been identified by e-mail addresses, and are thought to be part of China's 'underground hacking community.'

2010 First U.S. Citizen on C.I.A.'s Kill List

2010 : The Muslim cleric that is tied to the attempted bombing of a Detroit-bound airliner has become the first U.S. citizen to be added to the list of suspected terrorists that the C.I.A. is authorized to kill. Anwar al-Aulaqi, who currently lives in Yemen, was previously placed on the target list that is maintained by the U.S. military's Joint Special Operations Command. He has survived at least one strike carried out by Yemeni forces with U.S. assistance, and said that it is god's will that he survives.

2011 Swedish Queen Injured in New York

2011 : Sweden's Queen Silvia was injured when she tried to evade a photographer while visiting New York. The sixty-seven year old queen twisted her foot and was fitted with a foot brace and cane after the incident occurred. While she was shopping with her daughter Princess Madeleine, a Swedish photographer confronted them, and in the midst of trying to get away she injured herself.

2012 US Naval Plane Crashes in Virginia

2012 : A US Navy F-18 crashed in a residential area in the US state of Virginia shortly after taking off. The two crew members (a student and instructor) were ejected safely and luckily nobody was seriously injured and there were no known fatalities. The cause of the crash was unknown.

2013 Mandela Released From Hospital

2013 : Nelson Mandela was released from the hospital after dealing with a recurring lung infection at the age of ninety-four. Mandela was South Africa's first black president and led the struggle against apartheid in the country.

2014 Actor Mickey Rooney Dies

2014 : Legendary Hollywood actor Mickey Rooney died at the age of ninety-three. Rooney had started his career as a child actor and began performing before he was two years old. He continued to work in film and as an actor up until his death. Rooney had suffered many ups and downs in his career, at one point being one of the highest paid stars in Hollywood to becoming bankrupt, as well as having varying degrees of success in his eight marriages.