Real events, births and milestones from Africa and the diaspora.
We are adding a source to every entry in this archive. 1 of 5 on this page carry one so far. The rest were written before per-entry citations were recorded, so if you intend to rely on one, check it independently until its source appears here. See our sourcing methodology.
Israel Government Press Office — Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons 1993 Félix Houphouët-Boigny died in office at Yamoussoukro, the town where he was born and which he had made the capital. He had led Ivory Coast since independence in 1960, and at his death was the longest-serving head of state in Africa and the third longest in the world, after Fidel Castro and Kim Il Sung.
Sources: Encyclopaedia Africana ; Qiraat Africa
DeathAn attempted coup in Benin was thwarted by loyalist forces and order was restored within hours.
Politics
Rob Hodgkins — CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons (aircraft of the same type involved) 1995 A Beechcraft 1900 operated by Air Saint-Martin crashed near the Haitian commune of Belle-Anse, killing 20 people.
TragedyTatamkhulu Afrika, South African poet and author whose work reflected on apartheid and exile, was born.
Birth
The White House — Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons 1957 Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, the Nigerian diplomat who later served as President of the UN General Assembly, was born.
Birth