Summary of the Day ✨ 17 October (17/10)
Tragedy struck worldwide as hundreds died in a Gaza hospital explosion while a mass shooting at a Crimean college claimed additional lives. In other developments, Canada legalized recreational cannabis, Lebanon began its 17 October Revolution, and Mexican drug dealers successfully forced government authorities to retreat from an arrest operation.
Historical Events 📜
- 2023: An explosion at Al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza kills hundreds of Palestinians during the Gaza war.
- 2019: Drug dealers in Culiacan, Sinaloa, Mexico force the government to back down on an arrest.
- 2019: The 17 October Revolution starts in Lebanon.
- 2018: The recreational use of cannabis is legalized in Canada.
- 2018: A mass shooting and bombing at Kerch Polytechnic College in Crimea kills 21 people including the attacker and injures 70 others.
- 2017: Syrian civil war: The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) capture the last foothold of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in Raqqa, marking the end of the Battle of Raqqa.
- 2004: A fire that lasted over 15 hours destroyed almost one third of the East Tower of the Parque Central Urban Complex in Caracas, Venezuela.
- 2001: Israeli tourism minister Rehavam Ze’evi is assassinated by Hamdi Quran, a member of the PFLP, thus becoming the highest-ranking Israeli to be killed by a Palestinian.
- 2000: The Hatfield rail crash leads to the collapse of Railtrack.
- 1994: Russian journalist Dmitry Kholodov is assassinated while investigating corruption in the armed forces.
- 1992: Having gone to the wrong house, Japanese student Yoshihiro Hattori is killed by the homeowner in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
- 1991: Rudrapur bombings by Sikh separatists, who explode two bombs, during a Ramlila Hindu celebration in Rudrapur, Uttarakhand, killing 41 people.
- 1989: The 6.9 Mw Loma Prieta earthquake shakes the San Francisco Bay Area and the Central Coast, killing 63.
- 1989: The East German Politburo votes to remove Erich Honecker from his role as General Secretary.
- 1988: Uganda Airlines Flight 775 crashes at Rome–Fiumicino International Airport, in Rome, Italy, killing 33 people.
Famous Births 👶
- 2002: Matthew Knies, American professional ice hockey player
- 2001: Thomas Strudwick, British motorcycle road racer
- 1997: Robert Williams III, American basketball player
- 1996: Jake DeBrusk, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1995: Jamal Adams, American football player
- 1995: Ha-seong Kim, South Korean baseball player
- 1993: Kenneth Omeruo, Nigerian footballer
- 1993: Vincent Poirier, French basketball player
- 1992: Jacob Artist, American actor, singer, and dancer
- 1992: Sam Concepcion, Filipino musician and dancer
- 1992: Anthony Gill, American basketball player
- 1992: Keerthy Suresh, Indian actress
- 1991: Brenda Asnicar, Argentine actress
- 1990: Paolo Campinoti, Italian footballer
- 1990: Maica García Godoy, Spanish water polo player
Notable Deaths 🕊️
- 2024: Mitzi Gaynor, American actress, singer, and dancer (born 1931)
- 2024: Toshiyuki Nishida, Japanese actor (born 1947)
- 2024: Andrew Schally, Polish-American endocrinologist (born 1926)
- 2019: Elijah Cummings, American politician and civil rights advocate (born 1951)
- 2017: Gord Downie, Canadian musician (born 1964)
- 2015: Danièle Delorme, French actress and producer (born 1926)
- 2015: Howard Kendall, English footballer and manager (born 1946)
- 2015: Anne-Marie Lizin, Belgian lawyer and politician (born 1949)
- 2015: Tom Smith, American businessman and politician (born 1947)
- 2014: Edwards Barham, American farmer and politician (born 1937)
- 2014: Masaru Emoto, Japanese author and activist (born 1943)
- 2014: Tom Shaw, American bishop (born 1945)
- 2014: Berndt von Staden, German diplomat, German Ambassador to the United States (born 1919)
- 2013: Mother Antonia, American-Mexican nun and activist (born 1926)
- 2013: Terry Fogerty, English rugby player and coach (born 1944)
Holidays & Observances 🎉
- Christian feast day:
Andrew of Crete - Christian feast day:
Anstrudis - Christian feast day:
Catervus - Christian feast day:
Ethelred and Ethelberht - Christian feast day:
Florentius of Orange - Christian feast day:
François-Isidore Gagelin (one of Vietnamese Martyrs) - Christian feast day:
Hosea - Christian feast day:
Ignatius of Antioch - Christian feast day:
John the Short (John Colobus) - Christian feast day:
Marguerite Marie Alacoque (pre-1969 calendar, Visitadines) - Christian feast day:
Nothhelm - Christian feast day:
Rule of Andrew - Christian feast day:
Richard Gwyn - Christian feast day:
Victor of Capua - Christian feast day:
October 17 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)