Stage actor Dante Melucci

Events in 2002 and 27-5

Events in the world in the birth year of Dante Melucci

• 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 Dante Melucci (27-5) in history

• Day 27-5 year 1647: Alice Young was hanged for witchcraft in the thirteen American colonies. It was the first recorded witch execution in the United States.
• Day 27-5 year 1703: Tsar Peter, the Great of Russia, founded the city of Petersburg.
• Day 27-5 year 1936: The Queen Mary left England on its maiden voyage, arriving in France four hours later.
• Day 27-5 year 1937: Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco opened.
• Day 27-5 year 1941: British ships sank the German battleship Bismarck off the coast of France, resulting in the loss of 2,300 lives.
• Day 27-5 year 1994: Nobel-prize winning dissident, Alexandr Solzhenitsyn returned to Russia after 20 years in exile.
• Day 27-5 year 1996: After a year and a half of bloodshed, Russian President Boris Yeltsin met with the leader of the Chechen rebels and negotiated a cease-fire.
• Day 27-5 year 1999: Slobodan Milosevic was indicted by the International War Crimes Tribunal at the Hague for crimes against humanity.