11 February 1557

Saratov Airlines Flight 703 crashed shortly after take-off in Russia due to icing conditions, killing all 71 people on board.

Turkish student Özgecan Aslan was murdered during a rape attempt, sparking mass demonstrations across the country after her body was discovered two days later.

Rebel East Timorese soldiers invaded the homes of President José Ramos-Horta and Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão, seriously wounding the former.

The computer worm Anna Kournikova, which would affect millions of users worldwide, was released by a 20-year-old Dutch student.

Anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela, having been a political prisoner for 27 years, was released from Victor Verster Prison near Paarl, South Africa.

The Frente de Liberación Homosexual made their final public appearance, shortly before the group's dissolution due to political repression after the Argentine coup d'état.

Friedrich Ebert was elected the provisional president of Germany by the Weimar National Assembly.

As part of celebrations marking the separation of Victoria from New South Wales, the inaugural first-class cricket match in Australia began at the Launceston Racecourse in Tasmania.

La fille du régiment (audio featured), an opéra comique by Gaetano Donizetti, premiered in Paris to highly negative reviews but later became a success.

Around 110 boys were killed in a human crush at the Convent of the Minori Osservanti (corridor pictured) in Valletta on the last day of the Maltese Carnival.

Spanish explorer Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa founded the town of Nombre de Jesús, the first of two short-lived colonies at the Strait of Magellan.

2024 Finnish presidential election: Alexander Stubb is elected as the 13th president of Finland.

COVID-19 pandemic: The World Health Organization officially names the coronavirus outbreak as COVID-19, with the virus being designated SARS-CoV-2.

Saratov Airlines Flight 703 crashes near Moscow, Russia with 71 deaths and no survivors.

North Korea test fires a ballistic missile across the Sea of Japan.

A man shoots seven people dead at an education center in Jizan Province, Saudi Arabia.

A university student is murdered as she resists an attempted rape in Turkey, sparking nationwide protests and public outcry against harassment and violence against women.

The European Space Agency's Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle is launched on a Vega rocket.

A military transport plane crashes in a mountainous area of Oum El Bouaghi Province in eastern Algeria, killing 77 people.

The Vatican confirms that Pope Benedict XVI will resign the papacy as a result of his advanced age.

Militants claiming to be from the Sultanate of Sulu invade Lahad Datu District, Sabah, Malaysia, beginning the Lahad Datu standoff.

Arab Spring: The first wave of the Egyptian revolution culminates in the resignation of Hosni Mubarak and the transfer of power to the Supreme Military Council after 17 days of protests.

Rebel East Timorese soldiers seriously wound President José Ramos-Horta. Rebel leader Alfredo Reinado is killed in the attack.

Space Shuttle Endeavour is launched on STS-99 to conduct the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission.