Summary of the Day ✨ 28 April (28/04)
Disturbing evidence of torture and abuse at Abu Ghraib prison was released by CBS News while President Bill Clinton testified for 4.5 hours in his defense during the Whitewater investigation, as a separate tragedy unfolded in Tasmania where Martin Bryant killed 35 people in the Port Arthur massacre. Former CIA officer Aldrich Ames pleaded guilty to espionage for selling US secrets to the Soviet Union and Russia, while the Space Shuttle Discovery launched on STS-39, marking the first unclassified Department of Defense shuttle mission.
Historical Events 📜
- 2004: CBS News releases evidence of the Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse. The photographs show rape and abuse from the American troops over Iraqi detainees.
- 1996: Whitewater controversy: President Bill Clinton gives a 41⁄2 hour videotaped testimony for the defense.
- 1996: Port Arthur massacre, Tasmania: A gunman, Martin Bryant, opens fire at the Broad Arrow Cafe in Port Arthur, Tasmania, killing 35 people and wounding 23 others.
- 1994: Former Central Intelligence Agency counterintelligence officer and analyst Aldrich Ames pleads guilty to giving US secrets to the Soviet Union and later Russia.
- 1991: Space Shuttle Discovery launches on STS-39, the first unclassified shuttle mission for the United States Department of Defense.
- 1988: Near Maui, Hawaii, flight attendant Clarabelle “C.B.” Lansing is blown out of Aloha Airlines Flight 243, a Boeing 737, and falls to her death when part of the plane’s fuselage rips open in mid-flight.
- 1986: High levels of radiation resulting from the Chernobyl disaster are detected at Forsmark Nuclear Power Plant in Sweden, leading Soviet authorities to publicly announce the accident.
- 1983: The West German news magazine Stern begins publishing excerpts from the purported diaries of Adolf Hitler, later revealed to be forgeries.
- 1978: The President of Afghanistan, Mohammad Daoud Khan, is overthrown and assassinated in a coup led by pro-communist rebels.
- 1977: The Red Army Faction trial ends, with Andreas Baader, Gudrun Ensslin and Jan-Carl Raspe found guilty of four counts of murder and more than 30 counts of attempted murder.
- 1975: General Cao Văn Viên, chief of the South Vietnamese military, departs for the US as the North Vietnamese Army closes in on victory.
- 1973: The Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd, recorded in Abbey Road Studios goes to number one on the US Billboard chart, beginning a record-breaking 741-week chart run.
- 1970: Vietnam War: US President Richard Nixon formally authorizes American combat troops to take part in the Cambodian campaign.
- 1969: Charles de Gaulle resigns as President of France.
- 1967: Vietnam War: Boxer Muhammad Ali refuses his induction into the United States Army and is subsequently stripped of his championship and license.
Famous Births 👶
- 2001: Anthony Volpe, American baseball player
- 2000: Victoria De Angelis, Italian musician
- 2000: Alek Thomas, American baseball player
- 1998: Song Yu-bin, South Korean singer and actor
- 1997: Shane McClanahan, American baseball player
- 1997: Denzel Ward, American football player
- 1995: Connor Clifton, American ice hockey player
- 1995: Melanie Martinez, American singer
- 1994: Jakob Butturff, American bowler
- 1994: Wonpil, South Korean musician
- 1993: Matt Chapman, American baseball player
- 1993: Eva Samková, Czech snowboarder
- 1992: Blake Bortles, American football player
- 1992: DeMarcus Lawrence, American football player
- 1989: Emil Salomonsson, Swedish footballer
Notable Deaths 🕊️
- 2024: Brian McCardie, Scottish actor and writer (born 1965)
- 2021: Michael Collins, American astronaut (born 1930)
- 2021: El Risitas, Spanish comedian (born 1956)
- 2019: Richard Lugar, American politician (born 1932)
- 2019: John Singleton, American film director (born 1968)
- 2018: James Hylton, American race car driver (born 1934)
- 2017: Mariano Gagnon, American Catholic priest and author (born 1929)
- 2016: Jenny Diski, English author and screenwriter (born 1947)
- 2015: Antônio Abujamra, Brazilian actor and director (born 1932)
- 2015: Marcia Brown, American author and illustrator (born 1918)
- 2015: Michael J. Ingelido, American general (born 1916)
- 2014: Barbara Fiske Calhoun, American cartoonist and painter (born 1919)
- 2014: William Honan, American journalist and author (born 1930)
- 2014: Dennis Kamakahi, American guitarist and composer (born 1953)
- 2014: Edgar Laprade, Canadian ice hockey player (born 1919)
Holidays & Observances 🎉
- Christian feast day:
Aphrodisius and companions - Christian feast day:
Gianna Beretta Molla - Christian feast day:
Kirill of Turov (Orthodox, added to Roman Martyrology in 1969) - Christian feast day:
Louis de Montfort - Christian feast day:
Pamphilus of Sulmona - Christian feast day:
Peter Chanel - Christian feast day:
Vitalis and Valeria of Milan - Christian feast day:
April 28 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics) - Mujahideen Victory Day (Afghanistan)
- National Heroes Day (Barbados)
- Restoration of Sovereignty Day (Japan)
- Sardinia Day (Sardinia)
- Workers’ Memorial Day and World Day for Safety and Health at Work (international)
National Day of Mourning (Canada)