Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons 1958 Egypt and Syria joined to form the United Arab Republic under President Gamal Abdel Nasser.
Sources: Al Majalla ; Archontology.org
Politics
Ceiling of Debre Birhan Selassie church, Gondar, Ethiopia. Photo: Rod Waddington, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Licence · Source
On this day: February 22 in African history
Real events, births and milestones from Africa and the diaspora.
Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons 1958 
CC0, Wikimedia Commons 2002 Angolan rebel leader Jonas Savimbi, founder of UNITA, was killed in a military ambush, effectively ending the Angolan Civil War.
Sources: U.S. Department of State ; Conciliation Resources
Death
CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons 1881 Cleopatra's Needle, the ancient Egyptian obelisk, was formally presented to the City of New York at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, a month after workers raised it upright in Central Park on 22 January 1881.
Sources: Central Park Conservancy ; The Metropolitan Museum of Art / Harry N. Abrams (Internet Archive)
Corrected in September 2026 · see what changed
Culture
Wikimedia Commons (Attribution) 1921 Jean-Bédel Bokassa, who became the 2nd President and later self-declared Emperor of the Central African Republic, was born.
Sources: Encyclopaedia Britannica ; BlackPast.org
Birth
CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons 1985 Hamer Bouazza, Algerian-French international footballer, was born.
Sources: UNFP (Union Nationale des Footballeurs Professionnels) ; FotMob
Birth