Today in News History

On June 17, several notable moments in the history of News stand out. In 1242, Following the Disputation of Paris, twenty-four carriage loads of Jewish religious manuscripts were burnt in Paris. In 1797, Mohammad Khan Qajar, Persian tribal chief (born 1742) passed away. In 1948, Dave Concepción, Venezuelan baseball player and manager was born. In 1957, Philip Chevron, Irish singer-songwriter and guitarist (died 2013) was born. In 1960, The Nez Perce tribe is awarded $4 million for 7 million acres (28,000 km2) of land undervalued at four cents/acre in the 1863 treaty. In 1966, Mohammed Ghazy Al-Akhras, Iraqi journalist and author was born. In 1971, U.S. President Richard Nixon in a televised press conference called drug abuse "America's public enemy number one", starting the War on drugs. In 1986, Apoula Edel, Armenian footballer was born. In 1992, A "joint understanding" agreement on arms reduction is signed by U.S. President George Bush and Russian President Boris Yeltsin (this would be later codified in START II). In 2017, A series of wildfires in central Portugal kill at least 64 people and injure 204 others. Together, these milestones provide historical context for today's news news and ongoing narratives.