October 26: 24 years since 129 hostages died in Moscow theater siege

Russian special forces used a knockout gas to end a hostage siege in Moscow in 2002, an event that resulted in the deaths of 129 people. The incident occurred 24 years ago this week and remains the most recent major anniversary associated with the date. Chechen rebels held more than 800 captives in a theater before the military storming. Most of the 129 fatalities were caused by the gas. Forty-one rebels were also killed during the operation.

The date has marked several major shifts in American infrastructure and politics. In 1774, the First Continental Congress adjourned in Philadelphia. Two decades later, in 1825, the Erie Canal opened in upstate New York. The project linked Lake Erie with the Hudson River and transformed trade routes in the country.

Transportation changes continued in 1861 when the Pony Express officially stopped operating. The transcontinental telegraph replaced the mail service, although the final run was not completed until the following month. In 1881, Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday participated in a gunfight in Tombstone, Arizona. Three of five outlaws were killed in the event known as the Shootout at the O.K. Corral.

Military and political conflicts defined other anniversaries on this day. In 1942, Japanese bombers damaged the aircraft carrier USS Hornet near the Solomon Islands. The ship had launched the Doolittle Raid on Tokyo earlier that year. The crew abandoned the vessel, and Japanese torpedoes sank it the next day. In 1979, Kim Jae-kyu, the head of the Korean Central Intelligence Agency, shot and killed South Korean President Park Chung-hee.

Medical and legislative milestones also occurred on this day. In 1984, a newborn with a severe heart defect named Baby Fae received a baboon heart in an experimental transplant in Loma Linda, California. She lived 21 days with the animal organ. In 2001, President George W. Bush signed the USA Patriot Act. The legislation expanded the ability of authorities to search, seize, detain, and eavesdrop in counterterrorism efforts.

Recent political and international events are tied to the date as well. In 2020, the Senate confirmed Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court days before the general election. President Donald Trump had nominated her to the bench. In 2024, Israel launched predawn airstrikes on military targets in Iran. This was the first time the Israeli military openly attacked Iran, a move that retaliated for ballistic missiles Iran fired at Israel on October 1 of that year.

Several public figures were born on this date, including musician Milton Nascimento, who turns 84, and actor Jaclyn Smith, 81. TV host Pat Sajak is 80, and Hillary Rodham Clinton is 79. Actor-singer Rita Wilson turns 70, and writer-producer Seth MacFarlane is 53.