1799

Birth of Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin (died 1837), Russian poet, novelist and dramatist. He is considered to be the founder of modern Russian literature.

1887

Mai Xuan Thuong (1860-87), one of the leaders of Can Vuong, a Vietnamese royalist anti-French movement, is captured and subsequently executed by the French.

1931

British secret police illegally detain Nguyen Ai Quoc (Ho Chi Minh) in Hong Kong, intending to hand him to the French.

1941

Nguyen Ai Quoc (Ho Chi Minh) sends a letter from abroad to his compatriots, pointing to the double yoke of oppression by the French and the Japanese. The letter says the time has come to liberate Viet Nam and calls on the people to unite and join forces in order to overthrow both the Japanese and the French.

1947

President Ho Chi Minh decrees the creation of the Sao Vang (Gold Star), the Ho Chi Minh, and the Doc Lap (Independence) orders, to award people for great services to the country.

1955

The Government of the Democratic Republic of Viet Nam says it is willing to negotiate with the Sai Gon administration on the organisation of free general elections to restore peace and reunite the country, in June 1956, as stipulated in the 1954 Geneva Accords on Indochina.

1985

Israel withdraws the bulk of its troops from Lebanon after a three-year occupation, but retains a border strip.

1995

Japanese Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama and his ruling coalition agree to express "deep remorse" for Japan's acts of aggression in World War II.

1996

Turkish Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz resigns paving the way for the first Islamic-led government in history of modern Turkey. — AP