What’s Happening Today?

Global Handwashing Day. It is an international handwashing promotion campaign to motivate and mobilize people around the world to improve their handwashing habits. Washing hands at critical points during the day and washing with soap are both important. With the COVID-19 pandemic continuing to rage on, governments all over the world have continually called for washing hands as regularly as possible, as one of the means of preventing the spread of the virus, though some people continue to ignore these appeals. Today should be a reminder about the importance of handwashing to our everyday health.

International Day of Rural Women. On the International Day of Rural Women, UN Women calls for action to support rural women and girls and grow their capacities to respond to climate change through agricultural production, food security, and natural resources management.

World Students Day. World Students' Day is celebrated every year on October 15 on former president APJ Abdul Kalam's birthday. The day is commemorated on his birth anniversary because Dr Kalam was a dedicated teacher and identified himself foremost in that role before anything else.

What Happened Today?

1. In 1793, Queen Marie Antoinette of France was tried and convicted of treason following the French Revolution of 1789. She was later guillotined (had her head severed).

2. In 1987, Thomas Sankara, the then President of Burkina Faso, was killed during a coup led by Blaise Compaoré. Sankara, viewed as one of the greatest statesmen in African history was overthrown in a bloody coup, in which 12 other officials of his government were massacred. Compaore went on to rule for 27 years before being toppled by mass protests in 2014.

3. In 1990, Mikhail Gorbachev, the then President of Russia was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his role in lessening tensions during the Cold War, which had been raging on between the Soviet Union and the United States for decades.

Birthdays

1. 1988 – Mesut Ozil, German footballer who plays for Arsenal F.C.

2. 1989 – Anthony Joshua, British heavyweight boxer, also two-time heavyweight champion.

Sources: Wikipedia, checkiday, unwomen.org & news18.com

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