This Day in World History – January 29

Jan 29, 2023 News

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Almost 200 people die in three train collision in Japan

Kaieteur News – Three trains on the Nishinari Line in Osaka, Japan, collide and explode while approaching Ajikawaguchi Station.

On January 29, 1940, the three trains collided carrying gasoline and factory workers, causing a fire that killed 181 people, and injured 92 on the Nishinari Line, presently Sakurajima Line.

The Battle of Khafji is the first major ground engagement of the Gulf war

The Battle of Khafji was the first major ground engagement of the Persian Gulf War. It took place in and around the Saudi Arabian city of Khafji, from January 29 to February 1, 1991, and marked the culmination of the UN’s 35-country Coalition’s air campaign over Kuwait and Iraq, which had begun on January 17, 1991. Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, who had already tried and failed to draw Coalition troops into costly ground engagements by shelling Saudi Arabian positions and oil storage tanks and firing Scud surface-to-surface missiles at Israel, ordered the invasion of Saudi Arabia from southern Kuwait.

The 1st and 5th Mechanized Divisions and 3rd Armored Division were ordered to conduct a multi-pronged invasion toward Khafji, engaging Saudi Arabian, Kuwaiti, and U.S. forces, along the coastline, with a supporting Iraqi commando force ordered to infiltrate further south by sea and harass the Coalition’s rear. [4]

These three divisions, which had been heavily damaged by Coalition aircraft in the preceding days, attacked on January 29. Most of their attacks were repulsed by U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Army forces, but one of the Iraqi columns occupied Khafji on the night of January 29 – 30. Between January 30 and February 1, two Saudi Arabian National Guard battalions and two Qatari tank companies attempted to retake control of the city, aided by Coalition aircraft and U.S. artillery. By February 1, the city had been recaptured at the cost of 43 Coalition servicemen dead and 52 wounded. Iraqi Army fatalities numbered between 60 and 300, while an estimated 400 were captured as prisoners of war. Although the invasion of Khafji was initially a propaganda victory for the Ba’athist Iraqi regime, it was swiftly recaptured by Coalition forces. The battle demonstrated the ability of air power to support ground forces.

Massive earthquake puts Caribbean under tsunami threat

On January 29, 2020, a powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Jamaica, Cuba and the Cayman Islands, startling people as far away as Miami and prompting official tsunami alerts for a large area of the Caribbean.

The quake, initially reported as 7.3 magnitude before being upgraded, was centered 86 miles northwest of Montego Bay, Jamaica, and 87 miles west-southwest of Niquero, Cuba, at a depth of just 6 miles, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. It struck at 2:10 p.m. ET. There were no immediate reports of major damage or injuries, but social media was flooded with photos and videos from people documenting the event. In the Cayman Islands, video showed damaged streets and sinkholes opened up by the violent shaking. A tsunami alert was issued for a wide swath of the Caribbean. However, it was later canceled. (nrp.org.)

Thousands of students protest for the removal of “corrupt” Indonesia president

In scenes reminiscent of protests that helped topple the Suharto dictatorship, thousands of students broke down parliament’s gates on January 29, 2001 and demanded that President Abdurrahman Wahid quit over his alleged involvement in two scandals. Police subdued about 10,000 protesters with warning shots and tear gas. Although the confrontation was not as violent as past clashes, officers beat some protesters during running battles on the lawn of the legislature. The defense minister had warned that the military could seize power in order to prevent anarchy. At the state palace, a relaxed head of state maintained that he had done nothing wrong and told reporters he would not resign.

As the protest raged, lawmakers met in closed session inside the heavily guarded legislature to hear the results of an investigation into the two affairs that have bogged down Wahid’s administration.

Abdurrahman Wahid, known as Gus Dur, was impeached and dismissed from presidential office on 23 July 2001, after he issued a decree to dissolve the Indonesian legislature and suspend the Golkar party. Wahid, who came to power in late 1999, had promised democratic reforms and an end to corruption after three decades under Suharto, who was ousted in 1998. The former leader died from health complications on December 30, 2009. (Exacts from Los Angeles Times)

US Governor removed from office following corruption charges, solicits personal favours for Obama vacant senate chair

Sweeping aside six years of scandal and crippling political infighting with a historic impeachment vote, the state Senate on January 29, 2009 ousted one governor for abusing his power and anointed another who built his political career around having no power at all. Senators voted 59-0 to remove Rod Blagojevich, who walked out of the silent chamber after delivering an impassioned plea for mercy. Within hours, they applauded his former running mate and lieutenant governor, Patrick Quinn, who was sworn in as the state’s 41st governor vowing a new course for Illinois. “The ordeal is over,” said Quinn, long viewed as an unwelcomed outsider by the state’s political establishment. He replaced a defiant Blagojevich, 52, the first Democratic governor in a quarter century and the first governor in Illinois history to be impeached. After racing back to his Chicago home before the vote could deprive him of a ride home on the state plane, Blagojevich once again said he was the victim of a rush to judgment.

“And the fight goes on,” he told a phalanx of reporters outside his house. “Just because I’m not the governor anymore doesn’t mean I’m going to stop fighting.” The transition of Quinn into the state’s highest office was instantaneously reflected in a variety of ways. A picture of Blagojevich was replaced with one of the new governor in a sign board greeting visitors to the State Capitol. Locks and key codes were changed on the doors granting entry into the Statehouse suite of the governor’s offices. The Senate’s unanimous, back-to-back votes to convict Blagojevich on a sweeping article of impeachment and disqualify him from future public office in Illinois represented a swift repudiation following his December 9 arrest at his North Side home on federal corruption charges that included plotting to sell the U.S. Senate seat vacated by President Barack Obama. Blagojevich immediately proclaimed his innocence. But that was enough for lawmakers, who had long pondered impeaching a governor they assailed as arrogant and untrustworthy. All the while, federal agents were investigating his administration for acts of wrongdoing involving hiring, contracting, board appointments and fundraising. (Chicago Tribunal)

 

 

 

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• Geological Survey, Gulf war, Massive earthquake, The Battle of Khafji is the first major ground engagement of the Gulf war, US Governor

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