Photo model Thai Le Minh Hieu

Events in 2002 and 27-6

Events in the world in the birth year of Thai Le Minh Hieu

• Former Yugoslav leader Slobodan Milosevic’s trial on charges of crimes against humanity opens at The Hague (Feb. 12).
• Tamil Tigers and Sri Lankan government sign a cease-fire agreement, ending 19 years of civil war (Feb. 22). Background: World in Review
• India's worst Hindu-Muslim violence in a decade rocked the state of Gujarat after a Muslim mob fire-bombed a train, killing Hindu activists. Hindus retaliated, and more than 1,000 died in the bloodshed (Feb. 27 et seq.). Background: World in Review
• U.S. and Afghan troops launch Operation Anaconda against remaining al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters in Afghanistan (March 2). Background: Taliban Timeline and Afghanistan
• Israeli tanks and warplanes attack West Bank towns of Nablus, Jenin, Bethlehem, and others in response to string of Palestinian suicide attacks (March 29–April 21). In the first three months of 2002, 14 suicide bombers kill dozens of Israeli civilians, and wounded hundreds. Background: World in Review
• International Criminal Court wins UN ratification; U.S. refuses to ratify (April 11).
• Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez ousted in coup, then reinstated (April 12, 14).
• U.S. and Russia reach landmark arms agreement to cut both countries' nuclear arsenals by up to two-thirds over the next 10 years (May 13).
• East Timor becomes a new nation (May 20).
• Terrorist bomb in Bali kills hundreds (Oct. 12).
• Government suspended in Northern Ireland in protest of suspected IRA spy ring (Oct. 14).
• North Korea admits to developing nuclear arms in defiance of treaty (Oct. 16).
• Chechen rebels take 763 hostages in Moscow theater (Oct. 23). Russian authorities release a gas into theater, killing 116 hostages and freeing remainder (Oct. 26). Background: Chechnya Timeline
• China's Jiang Zemin officially retires as general secretary; Hu Jintao named as his successor (Nov. 14).
• UN Security Council passes unanimous resolution calling on Iraq to disarm or else face "serious consequences." (Nov. 8).
• UN arms inspectors return to Iraq (Nov. 18).

Birthday Thai Le Minh Hieu (27-6) in history

• Day 27-6 year 1844: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints founder Joseph Smith was murdered by a mob in Carthage, Ill.
• Day 27-6 year 1898: Joshua Slocum became the first person to successfully circumnavigate the earth alone when he landed his sloop Spray in Newport, R.I., a 46,000-mile trip.
• Day 27-6 year 1922: The Newbery Medal for children’s literature was first awarded.
• Day 27-6 year 1950: President Harry S. Truman ordered the Air Force and Navy into the Korean War.
• Day 27-6 year 1954: The world's first atomic power station opened at Obninsk, near Moscow.
• Day 27-6 year 1969: Police and gays clashed at the Stonewall Inn in New York City, fostering the gay rights movement.
• Day 27-6 year 1985: The legendary Route 66, running from Chicago to Santa Monica, Calif., was decertified, the victim of the Interstate Highway System.
• Day 27-6 year 2003: The national do-not-call registry, formed to combat unwanted telemarketing calls and administered by the Federal Trade Commission, enrolled almost three-quarters of a million phone numbers on its first day.