March 11th Major News Events

1944 Germany

1944 : This was a very significant day in World War II history. Reports had indicated that the Germans were about to pull out Uman, which was an action intended to weaken German defensive forces dramatically. Word was that German forces would soon be withdrawing from the Dneiper Bent as well.

1955 England Sir Alexander Fleming

1955 : Sir Alexander Fleming remembered for his discovery of the drug penicillin dies in London of A Heart Attack.

1956 China Defenders of the Faith

1956 : According to a report printed on this day, communists in China had worked to force their way through the Middle East and Africa. The method they used was to present themselves as “defenders of the faith” to the Muslim community in various Eastern countries.

1967 U.S.A. Gov. George Romney

1967 : Concern rose among Americans when Gov. George Romney decided to run for president under the Republican ticket. One of the major concerns about Romney running for office included the fact that the Mormon Church to which he belonged advocated segregation. Moreover, Romney’s church considered African-Americans an inferior race. Nevertheless, George Romney assured the public that he believed that all Americans should be allowed the same opportunities in life. He encouraged people to judge him (Romney) on his actions and not how his church believes. His desire was similar to that expressed by President John F. Kennedy-to act according to national interest, and not according to religion.

1971 Russia Rabbits

1971 : Rabbits had just recently migrated into Russia in large numbers. The reason rabbits are invading this area is because they were in search of food, as heavy snow and frost had occurred just recently in the north.

1977 U.S.A. Hostages Washington DC

1977 : 130 hostages held in Washington, D.C., by Hanafi Muslims are freed when ambassadors from three Islamic nations joined negotiations.

1985 Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev

1985 : Mikhail Gorbachev was called upon to replace Konstantin Chernenko who had died the day before. During his first six years in office, he was instrumental in advocating foreign and domestic policy changes.

1990 Lithuania Independence

1990 : Lithuania began its battle for independence on this day, which had resulted in a Soviet oil embargo and Baltic Republic economic sanction. Lithuania was the first republic to try to break away from the U.S.S.R.

1993 North Korea Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty

1993 : North Korea withdraws from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty

1997 U.S.A. Paul McCartney

1997 : Paul McCartney from the Beatles is knighted by Queen Elizabeth II.

1999 Brazil Major Power Outage

1999 : Large portions of Southern Brazil are left without power affecting up to 90 million people.

2001 England Foot and Mouth Epidemic

2001 : Twenty-five new cases of foot-and-mouth have been identified from 11 different areas, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 163. The Foot and Mouth epidemic continued to worsen through the summer but was bought under control by the Autumn after nearly 100,000 livestock are destroyed in an attempt to control the disease.

2003 U.S.A. Freedom Fries

2003 : Following the strong words used by the French President Jacques Chirac opposing US policy in Iraq American restaurants are renaming "French Fries" to "Freedom Fries", the protests even include the House of Representatives restaurants and bars which have renamed "French Fries" to "Freedom Fries" and "French Toast" to "Freedom Toast".

2004 Spain Terrorist Train Bombs

2004 : Four trains in the Madrid area are attacked by terrorists using 10 bombs exploded via mobile telephone, 191 are killed during the attacks which are believed to be made by members of Al Qaeda in retaliation for Spain's involvement in the war in Iraq.

2006 Netherlands Slobodan Milosevic

2006 : Former Serb leader Slobodan Milosevic is found dead of a heart attack in his prison cell in the Netherlands ending his U.N. war crimes trial.

2007 Jacques Chirac has said that he will not seek a third term in office

2007 : Jacques Chirac has confirmed that he will not be seeking a third term in office in April's election. Chirac has been president since 1995, and has had a political career spanning four decades. 'The moment has come for me to serve you in a different way,' he said on television. Recent polls have shown that the Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy has a narrow lead over his Socialist rival, Segolene Royal.

2008 United States Eliot Spitzer Apologizes

2008 : A New York State Governor, Eliot Spitzer, who had gained national prominence by pursuing Wall Street wrongdoings, has apologized for his involvement in a prostitution ring. The married father-of-three has said he had acted in a way that violated his obligations to his family. He has previously campaigned for ethical leadership in the Democratic Party. Governor Eliot Spitzer is now under pressure to resign.

2008 US State Department's Report on Human Rights

2008 : The State Department has released its annual report on human rights, and details abuses in China, Russia, Syria and Zimbabwe. Unlike previous years, China is not listed as one of the world's most systematic human rights violators, although it is described as an authoritarian regime that denies its people basic human rights and freedoms, tortures prisoners and restricts the media.

2009 France Reintegrates with NATO

2009 : Nicolas Sarkozy has said that his country is returning to NATO's military command. Sarkozy was speaking at the École Militaire staff college in Paris. Charles de Gaulle had pulled France out of NATO's military command in 1966, saying that it undermined France's sovereignty, but its reintegration has come from France having no say in the organisation's military strategies. Despite government assurances, many commentators fear that France will be abandoning its independence from the United States.

2010 Israel Announces New Settlements in East Jerusalem

2010 : Following the breakdown of talks between Palestinian and Israeli negotiators, Israeli authorities announce building thousands more homes in settlements in East Jerusalem, this breaks an agreement that has been in place to end Israeli expansion of settlements in the area.

2011 Massive Earthquake Hits Japan

2011 : An earthquake with a magnitude of 8.9 hit the coast of Japan causing massive amounts of damage and dangerous tsunamis, making it the most powerful earthquake in Japan in recorded history. The earthquake and tsunami caused damage to reactors in the Fukushima nuclear plant creating a radiation leak and forcing locals to evacuate, as well as worldwide anxiety over possible meltdown. Thousands of people were killed as a result of the earthquake and the homes of hundreds of thousands of people were destroyed. The amount of damage that Japan sustained from the earthquake and tsunamis would likely take years to recover from.

2012 US Soldier Kills Afghan Civilians

2012 : A US soldier is accused of going on a killing spree in the Kandahar region of Afghanistan, adding to the anti-American sentiments felt in the war-torn country. At least sixteen civilians, including women and children, were killed by the man, and at least another five people were injured. The suspected soldier is said to have given himself over to US military authorities after carrying out the attacks and is rumored to have suffered a mental breakdown prior to the incident.

2013 Leaders Inaugurate Iran-Pakistan Gas Pipeline

2013 : The presidents of Pakistan (Asif Ali Zardari) and Iran (Mahmoud Ahmadinejad) inaugurated a gas pipeline between the two countries that was hoped to alleviate some of Pakistan's energy shortages. Work on the pipeline was almost completed in Iran while the Pakistan side of the pipeline had not begun work yet. The US discourage this partnership and stated that the two countries could incur sanctions.

2014 General Motors to be Investigated

2014 : A United States congressional committee has announced that it will investigate the recall of over one million General Motors vehicles. The recall was over a faulty ignition that was linked to thirteen deaths. Controversy surrounded the recall as GM admitted some employees knew about the issues as early as 2004.