February 16

Historic Events

2021

Five thousand people gathered in the town of Kherrata, Bejaia Province to mark the second anniversary of the Hirak protest movement. Demonstrations had been suspended because of the COVID-19 pandemic in Algeria. ›

2013

A bomb blast at a market in Hazara Town, Quetta, Pakistan kills more than 80 people and injures 190 others. ›

2006

The last Mobile army surgical hospital (MASH) is decommissioned by the United States Army. ›

2005

The Kyoto Protocol comes into force, following its ratification by Russia. ›

2005

The National Hockey League cancels the entire 2004–05 regular season and playoffs. ›

2000

Emery Worldwide Airlines Flight 17 crashes near Sacramento Mather Airport in Rancho Cordova, California, killing all three aboard. ›

1998

China Airlines Flight 676 crashes into a road and residential area near Chiang Kai-shek International Airport in Taiwan, killing all 196 aboard and six more on the ground. ›

1996

A Chicago-bound Amtrak train, the Capitol Limited, collides with a MARC commuter train bound for Washington, D.C., killing 11 people. ›

1991

Nicaraguan Contras leader Enrique Bermúdez is assassinated in Managua. ›

1986

The Soviet liner MS Mikhail Lermontov runs aground in the Marlborough Sounds, New Zealand. ›

1986

China Airlines Flight 2265 crashes into the Pacific Ocean near Penghu Airport in Taiwan, killing all 13 aboard. ›

1985

Hezbollah is founded. ›

1984

Iran launches Operation Dawn 5, a major offensive during the Iran–Iraq War targeting the Basra–Baghdad highway, resulting in heavy casualties on both sides. ›

1983

The Ash Wednesday bushfires in Victoria and South Australia kill 75. ›

1978

The first computer bulletin board system is created (CBBS in Chicago). ›

1968

In Haleyville, Alabama, the first 9-1-1 emergency telephone system goes into service. ›

1968

Civil Air Transport Flight 010 crashes near Shongshan Airport in Taiwan, killing 21 of the 63 people on board and one more on the ground. ›

1962

The Great Sheffield Gale impacts the United Kingdom, killing nine people; the city of Sheffield is devastated, with 150,000 homes damaged. ›

1962

Flooding in the coastal areas of West Germany kills 315 and destroys the homes of about 60,000 people. ›

1961

Explorer program: Explorer 9 (S-56a) is launched. ›

1960

The U.S. Navy submarine USS Triton begins Operation Sandblast, setting sail from New London, Connecticut, to begin the first submerged circumnavigation of the globe. ›

1959

Fidel Castro becomes Premier of Cuba after dictator Fulgencio Batista was overthrown on January 1. ›

1945

World War II: American forces land on Corregidor Island in the Philippines. ›

1945

The Alaska Equal Rights Act of 1945, the first anti-discrimination law in the United States, was signed into law. ›

1943

World War II: In the early phases of the Third Battle of Kharkov, Red Army troops re-enter the city. ›

1942

World War II: In Athens, the Greek People's Liberation Army is established ›

1942

World War II: Attack on Aruba, first World War II German shots fired on a land based object in the Americas. ›

1940

World War II: Altmark incident: The German tanker Altmark is boarded by sailors from the British destroyer HMS Cossack. A total of 299 British prisoners are freed. ›

1937

Wallace H. Carothers receives a United States patent for nylon. ›

1936

The Popular Front wins the 1936 Spanish general election. ›

1934

The Austrian Civil War ends with the defeat of the Social Democrats and the Republikanischer Schutzbund. ›

1934

The Commission of Government is officially sworn in; ending 79 years of responsible government in Newfoundland. ›

1930

The Romanian Football Federation joins FIFA. ›

1923

Howard Carter unseals the burial chamber of Pharaoh Tutankhamun. ›

1918

The Council of Lithuania unanimously adopts the Act of Independence, declaring Lithuania an independent state. ›

1900

The Southern Cross expedition led by Carsten Borchgrevink achieves a new Farthest South of 78° 50'S, making the first landing at the Great Ice Barrier. ›

1899

Iceland's first football club, Knattspyrnufélag Reykjavíkur, is founded. ›

1881

The Canadian Pacific Railway is incorporated by Act of Parliament at Ottawa (44th Vic., c.1). ›

1866

Spencer Compton Cavendish, Marquess of Hartington becomes British Secretary of State for War. ›

1804

First Barbary War: Stephen Decatur leads a raid to burn the pirate-held frigate USS Philadelphia. ›

1796

Colombo in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) falls to the British, completing their invasion of Ceylon. ›

1742

Spencer Compton, Earl of Wilmington, becomes British Prime Minister. ›

1699

First Leopoldine Diploma is issued by the Holy Roman Emperor, recognizing the Greek Catholic clergy enjoyed the same privileges as Roman Catholic priests in the Principality of Transylvania. ›

1646

Battle of Torrington, Devon: The last major battle of the First English Civil War. ›

1630

Dutch forces led by Hendrick Lonck capture Olinda in what was to become part of Dutch Brazil. ›

1270

The Grand Duchy of Lithuania defeats the Livonian Order in the Battle of Karuse. ›

1249

Andrew of Longjumeau is dispatched by Louis IX of France as his ambassador to meet with the Khagan of the Mongol Empire. ›