May 17 Historical Events

The following events took place on May 17. The list is arranged in chronological order.

Found 53 events. Showing 31 - 53.

• 1969
  Venera program: Soviet Venera 6 begins its descent into the atmosphere of Venus, sending back atmospheric data before being crushed by pressure.
• 1970
  Thor Heyerdahl sets sail from Morocco on the papyrus boat Ra II to sail the Atlantic Ocean.
• 1973
  Watergate scandal: Televised hearings begin in the United States Senate.
• 1974
  The Troubles: Thirty-three civilians are killed and 300 injured when the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) detonates four car bombs in Dublin and Monaghan, Republic of Ireland. It is the deadliest attack of the Troubles and the deadliest terrorist attack in the Republic’s history. There are allegations that British state forces were involved.
• 1974
  Police in Los Angeles raid the Symbionese Liberation Army’s headquarters, killing six members, including Camilla Hall.
• 1980
  General Chun Doo-hwan of South Korea seizes control of the government and declares martial law in order to suppress student demonstrations.
• 1980
  On the eve of presidential elections, Maoist guerrilla group Shining Path attacks a polling location in the town of Chuschi, Ayacucho, starting the Internal conflict in Peru.
• 1983
  The U.S. Department of Energy declassifies documents showing world’s largest mercury pollution event in Oak Ridge, Tennessee (ultimately found to be 4.2 million pounds), in response to the Appalachian Observer’s Freedom of Information Act request.
• 1983
  Lebanon, Israel, and the United States sign an agreement on Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon.
• 1984
  Prince Charles calls a proposed addition to the National Gallery, London, a “monstrous carbuncle on the face of a much-loved and elegant friend”, sparking controversies on the proper role of the Royal Family and the course of modern architecture.
• 1987
  An Iraqi Dassault Mirage F1 fighter jet fires two missiles into the U.S. Navy warship USS Stark, killing 37 and injuring 21 of her crew.

• 1990
  The General Assembly of the World Health Organization (WHO) eliminates homosexuality from the list of psychiatric diseases.
• 1992
  Three days of popular protests against the government of Prime Minister of Thailand Suchinda Kraprayoon begin in Bangkok, leading to a military crackdown that results in 52 officially confirmed deaths, many disappearances, hundreds of injuries, and over 3,500 arrests.
• 1994
  Malawi holds its first multi-party elections.
• 1995
  Shawn Nelson steals a tank from a military installation and goes on a rampage in San Diego resulting in a 25-minute police chase. Nelson is killed by an officer after the tank got stuck on a concrete barrier and tried to break free.
• 1997
  Troops of Laurent Kabila march into Kinshasa. Zaire is officially renamed Democratic Republic of the Congo.
• 2000
  Arsenal and Galatasaray fans clash in the 2000 UEFA Cup Final riots in Copenhagen
• 2004
  The first legal same-sex marriages in the U.S. are performed in the state of Massachusetts.
• 2006
  The aircraft carrier USS Oriskany is sunk in the Gulf of Mexico as an artificial reef.
• 2007
  Trains from North and South Korea cross the 38th Parallel in a test-run agreed by both governments. This is the first time that trains have crossed the Demilitarized Zone since 1953.
• 2013
  Two Metro-North commuter trains collide near Bridgeport, Connecticut injuring at least 72 people.
• 2014
  A plane crash in northern Laos kills 17 people.
• 2015
  At least 9 people are killed and 18 injured, some by law enforcement and others in gunfire exchanges, in a shootout between rival biker gangs in Waco, Texas.