Important Events From Today in History – 21 September

Today in History

• 2013 The Westgate Mall is attacked in Nairobi, Kenya

  Militants took over the Mall from the extremist al-Shabaab in a daring siege. 63 shoppers were killed during the brief attack, and four terrorists were also killed before Kenyan security forces rescued the hostages. Al-Shabaab stated that the attack was carried out in retaliation for the presence of Kenyan armed forces in Somalia.

• 1964 Malta gains its independence from the UK

  The British took control of the southern European island country in 1814 as part of the Treaty of Paris. The country initially retained the Queen of England as its head of state, but on December 13, 1974, it declared itself a republic.

• 1961 Boeing CH-47 Chinook takes flight for the first time

  The US military has used American-made helicopters in various conflict-related operations, including the recent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. It is also frequently used during natural disasters worldwide for medical evacuation and search and rescue operations.

• 1942 Boeing B-29 Superfortress flies for the first time

  The United States widely used the bomber during World War II and the Korean War. The two planes that dropped atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Enola Gay and Bockscar, were from the silverplate series of Boeing B-29s.

• 1937 JRR Tolkien’s The Hobbit is published for the first time

  The Hobbit, or There and Back Again, is a young adult fantasy novel about the adventures of the hobbit Bilbo Baggins as he travels through Middle Earth in search of treasure guarded by the dragon Smaug.