Sunday, July 20, 1997
Today's events
Former U.S. ambassador to South Korea James Laney and former senator Sam Nunn visit North Korea.
Elections are scheduled for Vietnam's National Assembly.
Mali holds the first round of a rerun of April's parliamentary election, annulled because of organizational chaos.
The International Diabetes Federation Conference welcomes 8,000 delegates from 129 countries to a meeting in Helsinki, Finland.
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On the horizon
On Monday, July 21, the 34th World Father Christmas Congress is scheduled to open in Copenhagen.
On Tuesday, July 22, the annual UNICEF report is scheduled to be issued in London.
On Wednesday, July 23, Laos and Burma are admitted to ASEAN during a special ceremony held by the Asian trade group in Kuala Lumpur.
On Thursday, July 24, the ASEAN foreign ministers annual ministerial meeting takes place in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
On Friday, July 25, the Gilroy Garlic Festival opens in Gilroy, California, the "Garlic Capital of the World.
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On this day
In 1402, Tamerlane, leading a massive force of Tartars,
defeated and captured the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire at the
Battle of Angora (now Ankara).
In 1654, Portugal was placed under English control following
the signing of the Anglo-Portuguese treaty.
In 1866, Austrians partially destroyed the Italian fleet at Lissa Island in the Seven Weeks' War, killing over 1,100.
In 1913, Turkey re-entered the Balkan conflict and captured Adrianople from Bulgaria.
In 1917, the Pact of Corfu was agreed under which Serbs, Croats and Slovenes agreed to form a union called Yugoslavia.
In 1927, Ferdinand I of Romania died and was succeeded by his grandson, Prince Michael.
In 1944, Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg made an unsuccessful attempt to assassinate Adolf Hitler by planting a bomb under his table in the "Wolf's Lair" headquarters.
In 1951, King Abdullah of Jordan was assassinated when
entering a mosque in Jerusalem; he had been king from 1946.
In 1954, an armistice for Indo-China was signed, under which
Vietnam was separated into North and South.
In 1958, King Hussein of Jordan broke off diplomatic relations with the United Arab Republic after complaining of its threats and aggression.
In 1969, U.S. astronaut Neil Armstrong stepped from the lunar
module Eagle to become the first man to walk on the moon. He
said "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."
In 1973, a Japan Air Lines Boeing 747 was hijacked over the
Netherlands. Four days later via a stop at Dubai it was blown up at Benghazi.
In 1974, Turkish armed forces invaded the northern part of Cyprus, shelling Kyrenia and moving inland toward Nicosia.
In 1976, Viking 1, the unmanned U.S. spacecraft, ended its
11-month journey with a touchdown on Mars.
In 1982, 10 soldiers were killed in IRA bomb
explosions in London's Hyde Park and Regents Park.
In 1988, South Africa, Cuba and Angola reached agreement in
principle on a plan to end the war in Angola and grant independence to Namibia.
In 1989, Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi was placed under house arrest for her outspoken attacks on the country's military rulers.
In 1992, Vaclav Havel stepped down as President of
Czechoslovakia as the country moved further toward a permanent split.
In 1994, Foreign Minister Shimon Peres became the highest-ranking Israeli official to set foot in Jordan.
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Newslink
Vietnam's National Assembly is up for election today. But, as one might suspect, an election in communist Vietnam is not quite the same as it is in the U.S. Visit the aptly named Vietnam Information page to get a first-hand account of the country and its government.
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Holidays and more
Colombia celebrates Independence Day.
Japan celebrates Marine Day.
Singer Kim Carnes is 51.
Artist Judy Chicago is 58.
Basketball coach Chuck Daly is 67.
Actress Donna Dixon is 40
Baseball executive Nelson Doubleday is 64.
Actress Sally Ann Howes is 63.
Actress Diana Rigg is 59.
Musician Carlos Santana is 50.
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Sources: Associated Press,
Chase's Calendar of Events 1997, J.P. Morgan
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