On this day in 1945, American Gen. Douglas MacArthur announced the liberation of the Philippines after having lost it to the Japanese in 1942.
On this day in 1946, the bikini went on sale after debuting at an outdoor fashion show at the Molitor Pool in Paris, France.
On this day in 1989, Col. Oliver North, former White House aide, is fined US$150,000 and given a three-year suspended prison sentence for the role he played in the Iran-Contra affair that rocked the Reagan administration. His convictions were later overturned.
On this day in 1994: After 27 years in exile, Palestinian Liberation Organization leader Yasser Arafat travels to the West Bank with the determination to turn the self-ruled areas of Gaza and Jericho into a Palestinian state with its capital in East Jerusalem.
And on this day in 2012, “the Shard” in London was inaugurated as the tallest building in Europe, with a height of 310 meters.