Today in News History

On July 8, several notable moments in the history of News stand out. In 1909, Ike Petersen, American football player (died 1995) was born. In 1937, Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Afghanistan sign the Treaty of Saadabad. In 1947, Reports are broadcast that a UFO crash-landed in Roswell, New Mexico in what became known as the Roswell UFO incident. In 1948, The United States Air Force accepts its first female recruits into a program called the Women's Air Force (WAF). In 1972, Israeli Mossad assassinate Palestinian writer Ghassan Kanafani. In 1980, Aeroflot Flight 4225 crashes near Almaty International Airport in the then Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic (present day Kazakhstan) killing all 166 people on board. In 1994, Space Shuttle Columbia is launched on an international science mission. In 1994, Kim Jong Il begins to assume supreme leadership of North Korea upon the death of his father, Kim Il Sung. In 2011, Space Shuttle Atlantis is launched in the final mission of the U.S. Space Shuttle program. In 2014, Israel launches an offensive on Gaza amid rising tensions following the kidnapping and murder of three Israeli teenagers. Together, these milestones provide historical context for today's news news and ongoing narratives.