Pearl Harbor attack

On this day in 1941, Japanese bombers launched a surprise aerial attack on the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, precipitating the entry of the United States into World War II. 1941.

American aviator Chuck Yeager, the first person to exceed the speed of sound in flight, died at age 97. 2020. 

Shortly after declaring its independence, East Timor was invaded and occupied by Indonesian forces. 1975. 

Adolf Hitler issued his Night and Fog Decree, a secret order for the arrest and execution of “persons endangering German security.” 1941. 

The United States declared war on the Austro-Hungarian Empire during World War I. 1917.