1988 was a crucial year in the early history of the
Internet—it was the year of the first well-known
computer virus, the
1988 Internet worm. The first permanent intercontinental Internet link was made between the United States (
NSFNET) and Europe (Nordunet) as well as the first Internet-based chat protocol,
Internet Relay Chat.[1] The concept of the
World Wide Web was first discussed at
CERN in 1988.[2]
January – The cargo ship Khian Sea deposits 4,000 tons of toxic waste in
Haiti after wandering around the Atlantic for sixteen months.[4]
January 1 – The Soviet Union begins its program of economic restructuring (
perestroika) with legislation initiated by Premier
Mikhail Gorbachev (though Gorbachev had begun minor restructuring in 1985).[5]
U.S. Lieutenant Colonel
William R. Higgins, serving with a
United Nations group monitoring a truce in southern
Lebanon, is kidnapped (and later killed by his captors).
April 5 –
Kuwait Airways Flight 422 is hijacked while en route from
Bangkok,
Thailand, to
Kuwait. The hijackers demand the release of 17
Shiite Muslim prisoners held by Kuwait. Kuwait refuses to release the prisoners, leading to a 16-day siege across 3 continents. Two passengers are killed before the siege ends.[26]
April 20 – The world's longest skyjacking comes to an end when the remaining passengers of
Kuwait Airways Flight 422 are released by their captors.[26]
June 23 – NASA scientist
James Hansen testifies to the U.S. Senate that human-made global warming has begun, becoming one of the first environmentalists to warn of the problem.[36]
The
Gare de Lyon rail accident occurs in Paris, France as a commuter train headed inbound to the terminal crashes into a stationary outbound train, killing 56 and injuring 57.[37]
July 1 – The Soviet Union votes to end the
CPSU's monopoly on economic and other non-political power and to further economic changes towards a less rigidly
Marxist-Leninist economy.[42]
July 6 – The
Piper Alpha production platform in the
North Sea is destroyed by explosions and fires, killing 165 oil workers and 2 rescue mariners. 61 workers survive.[43]
August 28 – Seventy people are killed and 346 injured in one of the worst
air show disasters in history at Germany's
Ramstein Air Base, when three
jets from the Italian air demonstration team, Frecce Tricolori, collide, sending one of the aircraft crashing into the crowd of spectators.[49]
October 27 –
Ronald Reagan decides to tear down the new U.S. Embassy in Moscow because of Soviet listening devices in the building structure.
October 28 –
Abortion: 48 hours after announcing it was abandoning
RU-486, French manufacturer
Roussel Uclaf states that it will resume distribution of the drug.
In the
Soviet Union, the uncrewed Shuttle Buran is launched by an
Energia rocket on its maiden
orbital spaceflight (the first and last space flight for the shuttle).
Singing Revolution: The Supreme Soviet of the Estonian SSR adopts the
Estonian Sovereignty Declaration in which the laws of the Estonian SSR are declared supreme over those of the Soviet Union. The USSR declares it unconstitutional on November 26. It is the first declaration of sovereignty from Moscow of any Soviet or Eastern Bloc entity.[61]
In the first open election in more than a decade, voters in
Pakistan choose populist candidate
Benazir Bhutto to be
Prime Minister. Elections are held as planned despite
head of state Zia-ul-Haq's death earlier in August.[62]
November 23 – Former Korean president
Chun Doo-hwan makes a formal apology for corruption during his presidency, announcing he will go into exile.[63]
^Infantry. U.S. Army Infantry School. 1990. p. 15.
Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved June 23, 2021.
^Tsang, Steve (1993). In the shadow of China : political developments in Taiwan since 1949. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. p. 127.
ISBN9780824815837.
^"The History of McDonald's in China". Chinese Language Blog | Language and Culture of the Chinese-Speaking World. December 4, 2017. Retrieved February 2, 2024.
^Uco, César; Bill Vann (October 14, 2003).
"Bolivian troops massacre strikers". World Socialist Web Site. International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI).
Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved February 5, 2010.
^"Bolivia: Cocaleros Sign Truce". Weekly News Update on the Americas. No. 266. Nicaragua Solidarity Network of Greater New York. October 6, 2002. Archived from
the original on July 1, 2016. Retrieved February 5, 2010.
^Informal Logic. P.F. Wilkinson. 2002. p. 304.
Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
^Library of Congress. Library of Congress Office, Jakarta (1990).
Accessions List, Southeast Asia. Library of Congress Office, Jakarta. p. 464.
Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
^Asthana, N. C. (2009). Urban terrorism : myths and realities. Jaipur: Pointer Publishers Distributed by Aavishkar Publishers, Distributors. p. 108.
ISBN9788171325986.
^U.S. Industrial Outlook. U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industrial Economics. 1989. p. 1.
Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved July 2, 2021.
^"Irene Montero". publico.es. February 18, 2017.
Archived from the original on February 1, 2023. Retrieved February 1, 2023.
^"Di Maria". FIFA. Archived from
the original on September 6, 2015. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
^"1. Rui Patricio". soccerbase.com.
Archived from the original on January 2, 2023. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
^"Diego Capel". bdfutbol.com.
Archived from the original on January 26, 2023. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
^"Jike Zhang". IOC.
Archived from the original on March 2, 2021. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
^Natascha Kampusch; Heike Gronemeier; Corinna Milborn (September 16, 2010).
3,096 Days. Penguin Books Limited. p. 1.
ISBN978-0-670-91999-4.
Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
^"Gal Mekel". NBA.
Archived from the original on July 9, 2021. Retrieved July 1, 2021.
^"sherdog.com". Valentina Shevchenko.
Archived from the original on September 24, 2021. Retrieved January 31, 2023.
^"Agnes English biography". agnescarlsson.se. Agnes Carlsson and Roxy Recordings.
Archived from the original on August 22, 2023. Retrieved January 17, 2010.
^"Marina Erakovic". .wtatennis.com. Women's Tennis Association.
Archived from the original on January 24, 2023. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
^"Seung-Hoon Lee". Vancouver2010.com. Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. Archived from
the original on February 13, 2010. Retrieved February 13, 2010.
^"Laura Unsworth". olympedia.org.
Archived from the original on November 21, 2022. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
^LastName, FirstName (2021). Chase's calendar of events 2022 : the ultimate go-to guide for special days, weeks and months. Lanham: Bernan Press. p. 306.
ISBN9781641435048.
^"PEREZ, Marie Gluesenkamp". bioguide.congress.gov. Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
Archived from the original on February 2, 2023. Retrieved February 1, 2023.
^Bhagyashri Pawar (September 12, 2013).
"Prachi Desai, happy birthday!". Bollywood Life.
Archived from the original on November 4, 2020. Retrieved September 25, 2020.
^"Eva-Maria BREM". fis-ski.com.
Archived from the original on February 7, 2023. Retrieved February 7, 2023.
^"Martin Fourcade". Olympic.org.
Archived from the original on November 13, 2020. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
^"มาริโอ้ เมาเร่อ (โอ้)" [Mario Maurer (oh)]. nangdee.com (in Thai). MMM Digital Asset Co., Ltd. 2006.
Archived from the original on October 16, 2021. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
^"Justin Meram". soccerway.com. Soccer way.
Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
1988 was a crucial year in the early history of the
Internet—it was the year of the first well-known
computer virus, the
1988 Internet worm. The first permanent intercontinental Internet link was made between the United States (
NSFNET) and Europe (Nordunet) as well as the first Internet-based chat protocol,
Internet Relay Chat.[1] The concept of the
World Wide Web was first discussed at
CERN in 1988.[2]
January – The cargo ship Khian Sea deposits 4,000 tons of toxic waste in
Haiti after wandering around the Atlantic for sixteen months.[4]
January 1 – The Soviet Union begins its program of economic restructuring (
perestroika) with legislation initiated by Premier
Mikhail Gorbachev (though Gorbachev had begun minor restructuring in 1985).[5]
U.S. Lieutenant Colonel
William R. Higgins, serving with a
United Nations group monitoring a truce in southern
Lebanon, is kidnapped (and later killed by his captors).
April 5 –
Kuwait Airways Flight 422 is hijacked while en route from
Bangkok,
Thailand, to
Kuwait. The hijackers demand the release of 17
Shiite Muslim prisoners held by Kuwait. Kuwait refuses to release the prisoners, leading to a 16-day siege across 3 continents. Two passengers are killed before the siege ends.[26]
April 20 – The world's longest skyjacking comes to an end when the remaining passengers of
Kuwait Airways Flight 422 are released by their captors.[26]
June 23 – NASA scientist
James Hansen testifies to the U.S. Senate that human-made global warming has begun, becoming one of the first environmentalists to warn of the problem.[36]
The
Gare de Lyon rail accident occurs in Paris, France as a commuter train headed inbound to the terminal crashes into a stationary outbound train, killing 56 and injuring 57.[37]
July 1 – The Soviet Union votes to end the
CPSU's monopoly on economic and other non-political power and to further economic changes towards a less rigidly
Marxist-Leninist economy.[42]
July 6 – The
Piper Alpha production platform in the
North Sea is destroyed by explosions and fires, killing 165 oil workers and 2 rescue mariners. 61 workers survive.[43]
August 28 – Seventy people are killed and 346 injured in one of the worst
air show disasters in history at Germany's
Ramstein Air Base, when three
jets from the Italian air demonstration team, Frecce Tricolori, collide, sending one of the aircraft crashing into the crowd of spectators.[49]
October 27 –
Ronald Reagan decides to tear down the new U.S. Embassy in Moscow because of Soviet listening devices in the building structure.
October 28 –
Abortion: 48 hours after announcing it was abandoning
RU-486, French manufacturer
Roussel Uclaf states that it will resume distribution of the drug.
In the
Soviet Union, the uncrewed Shuttle Buran is launched by an
Energia rocket on its maiden
orbital spaceflight (the first and last space flight for the shuttle).
Singing Revolution: The Supreme Soviet of the Estonian SSR adopts the
Estonian Sovereignty Declaration in which the laws of the Estonian SSR are declared supreme over those of the Soviet Union. The USSR declares it unconstitutional on November 26. It is the first declaration of sovereignty from Moscow of any Soviet or Eastern Bloc entity.[61]
In the first open election in more than a decade, voters in
Pakistan choose populist candidate
Benazir Bhutto to be
Prime Minister. Elections are held as planned despite
head of state Zia-ul-Haq's death earlier in August.[62]
November 23 – Former Korean president
Chun Doo-hwan makes a formal apology for corruption during his presidency, announcing he will go into exile.[63]
^Infantry. U.S. Army Infantry School. 1990. p. 15.
Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved June 23, 2021.
^Tsang, Steve (1993). In the shadow of China : political developments in Taiwan since 1949. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. p. 127.
ISBN9780824815837.
^"The History of McDonald's in China". Chinese Language Blog | Language and Culture of the Chinese-Speaking World. December 4, 2017. Retrieved February 2, 2024.
^Uco, César; Bill Vann (October 14, 2003).
"Bolivian troops massacre strikers". World Socialist Web Site. International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI).
Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved February 5, 2010.
^"Bolivia: Cocaleros Sign Truce". Weekly News Update on the Americas. No. 266. Nicaragua Solidarity Network of Greater New York. October 6, 2002. Archived from
the original on July 1, 2016. Retrieved February 5, 2010.
^Informal Logic. P.F. Wilkinson. 2002. p. 304.
Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
^Library of Congress. Library of Congress Office, Jakarta (1990).
Accessions List, Southeast Asia. Library of Congress Office, Jakarta. p. 464.
Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
^Asthana, N. C. (2009). Urban terrorism : myths and realities. Jaipur: Pointer Publishers Distributed by Aavishkar Publishers, Distributors. p. 108.
ISBN9788171325986.
^U.S. Industrial Outlook. U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industrial Economics. 1989. p. 1.
Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved July 2, 2021.
^"Irene Montero". publico.es. February 18, 2017.
Archived from the original on February 1, 2023. Retrieved February 1, 2023.
^"Di Maria". FIFA. Archived from
the original on September 6, 2015. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
^"1. Rui Patricio". soccerbase.com.
Archived from the original on January 2, 2023. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
^"Diego Capel". bdfutbol.com.
Archived from the original on January 26, 2023. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
^"Jike Zhang". IOC.
Archived from the original on March 2, 2021. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
^Natascha Kampusch; Heike Gronemeier; Corinna Milborn (September 16, 2010).
3,096 Days. Penguin Books Limited. p. 1.
ISBN978-0-670-91999-4.
Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
^"Gal Mekel". NBA.
Archived from the original on July 9, 2021. Retrieved July 1, 2021.
^"sherdog.com". Valentina Shevchenko.
Archived from the original on September 24, 2021. Retrieved January 31, 2023.
^"Agnes English biography". agnescarlsson.se. Agnes Carlsson and Roxy Recordings.
Archived from the original on August 22, 2023. Retrieved January 17, 2010.
^"Marina Erakovic". .wtatennis.com. Women's Tennis Association.
Archived from the original on January 24, 2023. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
^"Seung-Hoon Lee". Vancouver2010.com. Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. Archived from
the original on February 13, 2010. Retrieved February 13, 2010.
^"Laura Unsworth". olympedia.org.
Archived from the original on November 21, 2022. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
^LastName, FirstName (2021). Chase's calendar of events 2022 : the ultimate go-to guide for special days, weeks and months. Lanham: Bernan Press. p. 306.
ISBN9781641435048.
^"PEREZ, Marie Gluesenkamp". bioguide.congress.gov. Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
Archived from the original on February 2, 2023. Retrieved February 1, 2023.
^Bhagyashri Pawar (September 12, 2013).
"Prachi Desai, happy birthday!". Bollywood Life.
Archived from the original on November 4, 2020. Retrieved September 25, 2020.
^"Eva-Maria BREM". fis-ski.com.
Archived from the original on February 7, 2023. Retrieved February 7, 2023.
^"Martin Fourcade". Olympic.org.
Archived from the original on November 13, 2020. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
^"มาริโอ้ เมาเร่อ (โอ้)" [Mario Maurer (oh)]. nangdee.com (in Thai). MMM Digital Asset Co., Ltd. 2006.
Archived from the original on October 16, 2021. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
^"Justin Meram". soccerway.com. Soccer way.
Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.