1995

Today in History 11/21 (Dayton Agreement)

Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic, left, Bosnian President Alija Izetbegovic, and Croatian President Franjo Tudjman applaud after an agreement was reached in Dayton, Ohio (© Michael Heinz/AP)(1995) Three warring Balkan states make peace
With US President Bill Clinton brokering the peace plan, Bosnian, Serb, and Croat leaders accept the Dayton Accords, which ends four years of a fighting in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The war, the worst in Europe since WWII, has killed an estimated 200,000 people and included campaigns of ethnic cleansing.
The General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, also known as the Dayton Agreement, Dayton Accords, Paris Protocol or Dayton–Paris Agreement, is the peace agreement reached at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio, United States, on 1 November 1995, and formally signed in Paris, France, on 14 December 1995. These accords put an end to the 3 ¹⁄₂-year-long Bosnian War, one of the Yugoslav Wars.
President Slobodan Milosevic of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, President Alija Izetbegovic of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and President Franjo Tudjman of the Republic of Croatia initial the Dayton Peace Accords. The Balkan Proximity Peace Talks were conducted at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base Nov. 1-21, 1995. The talks ended the conflict arising from the breakup of the Republic of Yugoslavia. The Dayton Accords paved the way for the signing of the final “General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina” on Dec. 14 at the Elysee Palace in Paris
President Slobodan Milosevic of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, President Alija Izetbegovic of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and President Franjo Tudjman of the Republic of Croatia initial the Dayton Peace Accords. The Balkan Proximity Peace Talks were conducted at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base Nov. 1-21, 1995. The talks ended the conflict arising from the breakup of the Republic of Yugoslavia. The Dayton Accords paved the way for the signing of the final “General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina” on Dec. 14 at the Elysee Palace in Paris.
wiki/Dayton_Agreement
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(1995) Three warring Balkan states make peace.
Also on this day,

1934 | Singing sensation Ella Fitzgerald wins Apollo’s Amateur Night
A 17-year-old Ella Fitzgerald goes to New York’s Apollo Theater to dance on stage for Amateur Night, but opts to sing instead. She wins the competition with her renditions of Hoagy Carmichael’s ‘Judy’ and the Boswell Sisters’ ‘The Object of My Affection,’ and an American music legend is born.
1980 | Fire at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas kills 87 people
In the early morning, a fire breaks out in a ground floor deli at the luxury hotel-casino MGM Grand and quickly spreads as it hits flammable plastics in the casino. Eighty-seven people will die, mainly from smoke inhalation. The fire will rank among the deadliest in the US.
1985 | US authorities arrest Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard
Jonathan Pollard, a US government intelligence analyst, is arrested on charges of passing classified security information to Israel, a US ally. Pollard is taken into custody outside the Israeli Embassy after he tried to seek asylum, and will later be sentenced to life in prison.

Today in History 11/21/17

Jonathan Pollard speaks during a May 15, 1998, interview at the Federal Correction Institution in Butner, NC (Karl DeBlaker/AP)(1985) US authorities arrest Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard
Jonathan Pollard, a US government intelligence analyst, is arrested on charges of passing classified security information to Israel, a US ally. Pollard is taken into custody outside the Israeli Embassy after he tried to seek asylum, and will later be sentenced to life in prison.
Jonathan Jay Pollard is a former intelligence analyst for the United States government. In 1987, as part of a plea agreement, Pollard pleaded guilty to spying for and providing top-secret classified information to Israel. He was sentenced to life in prison for violations of the Espionage Act.
Born: Aug 07, 1954 (age 63) · Galveston, TX
Spouse: Anne Henderson Pollard (m. 1985) · Elaine Zeitz
Parents: Morris Pollard (Father) · Molly Pollard (Mother)
Education: Stanford University · Tufts University
Highlights
  • 1984: Within a few days, in June 1984 Pollard started passing classified information to Sella.

  • 1985: Jonathan Pollard married Anne Henderson Pollard on August 09, 1985.

  • 1986: In late May 1986, the government offered him a plea agreement, which he accepted.

  • 1987: In 1987, as part of a plea agreement, Pollard pleaded guilty to spying for and providing top-secret classified information to Israel.

  • 1989: In 1989 Pollard's attorneys filed a motion for withdrawal of his guilty plea and trial by jury due to the government's failure to abide by terms of the plea agreement.

  • 2010: The New York Times reported on September 21, 2010, that the Israeli government (again under Netanyahu) informally proposed that Pollard be released as a reward to Israel for extending by three months a halt to new settlements in occupied territories.


Jonathan Pollard
Jonathan Pollard, U.S. Navy I.D. picture. Scanned from Territory of Lies, Wolf Blitzer.

wiki/Jonathan_Pollard
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Today in History 11/20 (US Bill of Rights)

Copy of the Bill of Rights (© Aaron Haupt/Getty Images)(1789) New Jersey becomes first state to ratify the Bill of Rights
New Jersey ratifies the Bill of Rights, a collection of amendments written by James Madison to ease concerns that the US Constitution had invested the federal government with too much power. New Jersey does, however, reject one of the original 12 amendments: Article II, which regulated congressional pay raises.
The Bill of Rights is the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution. Proposed following the oftentimes bitter 1787–88 battle over ratification of the U.S. Constitution, and crafted to address the objections raised by Anti-Federalists, the Bill of Rights amendments add to the Constitution specific guarantees of personal freedoms and rights, clear limitations on the government’s power in judicial and other proceedings, and explicit declarations that all powers not specifically delegated to Congress by the Constitution are reserved for the states or the people. The concepts codified in these amendments are built upon those found in several earlier documents, including the Virginia Declaration of Rights and the English Bill of Rights 1689, along with earlier documents such as Magna Carta. In practice, the amendments had little impact on judgements by the courts for the first 150 years after ratification.
The Bill of Rights, twelve articles of amendment to the to the United States Constitution proposed in 1789, ten of which, Articles three through twelve, became part of the United States Constitution in 1791. Note that the First Amendment is actually
The Bill of Rights, twelve articles of amendment to the to the United States Constitution proposed in 1789, ten of which, Articles three through twelve, became part of the United States Constitution in 1791. Note that the First Amendment is actually “Article the third” on the document, Second Amendment is “Article the fourth”, and so on. “Article the second” is now the 27th Amendment. “Article the first” has not been ratified.
wiki/United_States_Bill_of_Rights
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(1789) New Jersey becomes first state to ratify the Bill of Rights.
Also on this day,

1820 | Sperm whale sinks whaling ship
An 80-ton sperm whale rams and sinks a whaleship, the Essex, from Massachusetts. Twenty crewmembers escape in open boats, but only five will survive the harrowing three months adrift; three others will be rescued off an island. Herman Melville will base his novel ‘Moby-Dick’ on this true-life tale.
1945 | Nazi leaders go on trial for World War II atrocities as Nuremburg Trials begin
Judges from the US, Great Britain, France, and the Soviet Union preside over the military tribunals in Nuremburg opening today to try Nazi officials for crimes against humanity, among other charges. Twelve Nazi leaders will be sentenced to death. Adolf Hitler won’t be among them, having already shot himself.
1995 | Princess Diana admits she had an affair
Britain’s Princess Diana speaks candidly about her troubled marriage with Prince Charles in a widely watched BBC interview. Diana admits to infidelity and talks about her struggles with depression and bulimia. She also predicts she will never be queen of England, but hopes to be “queen of people’s hearts.”

Today in History 11/20/17

Hans Frank, standing, makes his final plea to the court at the International Military Tribunals in Nuremberg, Germany in 1946 (© War Department/AP)(1945) Nazi leaders go on trial for World War II atrocities
Judges from the US, Great Britain, France, and the Soviet Union preside over the military tribunals in Nuremburg opening today to try Nazi officials for crimes against humanity, among other charges. Twelve Nazi leaders will be sentenced to death. Adolf Hitler won't be among them, having already shot himself.
The Nuremberg trials were a series of military tribunals held by the Allied forces under international law and the laws of war after World War II. The trials were most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of the political, military, judicial and economic leadership of Nazi Germany, who planned, carried out, or otherwise participated in the Holocaust and other war crimes. The trials were held in the city of Nuremberg, Germany, and their decisions marked a turning point between classical and contemporary international law.
Start date: Nov 20, 1945
End date: Oct 01, 1946

Jackson Nuremberg
Chief American prosecutor Robert H. Jackson addresses the Nuremberg court. 20 November 1945.

wiki/Nuremberg_trials
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