WHAT ALL HAPPENED OCTOBER TO DECEMBER 1989
Find out what all happened October to December 1989

Riots break-out after Hong Kong decides to forcibly repatriate Vietnamese refugees. (29. December 1989)

An official news agency in the Soviet Union reports the landing of a UFO in Voronezh. (9. October 1989)

Deutsche Bank board member Alfred Herrhausen is killed by a Red Army Faction terrorist bomb. (30. November 1989)

The convictions of the Guildford Four are quashed by the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, after they had spent 15 years in prison. (19. October 1989)

In West Beirut, a bomb explodes near the motorcade of Lebanese President René Moawad, killing him. (22. November 1989)

Fernando Collor de Mello defeats Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in the second round of the Brazilian presidential election, becoming the first democratically elected President in almost 30 years. (17. December 1989)

The Troubles: Attack on Derryard checkpoint – The Provisional Irish Republican Army launches an attack on a British Army temporary vehicle checkpoint near Rosslea, Northern Ireland. Two British soldiers are killed and one badly wounded. (13. December 1989)

Wayne Gretzky becomes the all-time leading points scorer in the NHL. (15. October 1989)

Cold War: In a meeting off the coast of Malta, U.S. President George H. W. Bush and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev release statements indicating that the cold war between NATO and the Soviet Union may be coming to an end. (3. December 1989)

Romanian Revolution: Protests continue in Timișoara, Romania, with rioters breaking into the Romanian Communist Party's District Committee building and attempting to set it on fire. (17. December 1989)

A magnitude 5.6 earthquake hits Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia, killing 13 people. (28. December 1989)

U.S. Appeals Court Judge Robert Smith Vance is assassinated by a mail bomb sent by Walter Leroy Moody, Jr. (16. December 1989)

Cold War: Velvet Revolution begins: In Czechoslovakia, a student demonstration in Prague is quelled by riot police. This sparks an uprising aimed at overthrowing the communist government (it succeeds on December 29). (17. November 1989)

Avianca Flight 203, a Boeing 727, explodes in mid-air over Colombia, killing all 107 people on board and three people on the ground. The Medellín Cartel will claim responsibility for the attack. (27. November 1989)

The Hungarian Republic is officially declared by president Mátyás Szűrös, replacing the communist Hungarian People's Republic. (23. October 1989)

Communist President of Romania Nicolae Ceaușescu is overthrown by Ion Iliescu after days of bloody confrontations. The deposed dictator and his wife flee Bucharest with a helicopter as protesters erupt in cheers. (22. December 1989)

Bankruptcy of Wärtsilä Marine; the biggest bankruptcy in the nordic countries until then. (23. October 1989)

Berlin's Brandenburg Gate re-opens after nearly 30 years, effectively ending the division of East and West Germany. (22. December 1989)

Cold War: East Germany's parliament abolishes the constitutional provision granting the Communist Party the leading role in the state. (1. December 1989)

United States invasion of Panama: The United States sends troops into Panama to overthrow government of Manuel Noriega. This is also the first combat use of purpose-designed stealth aircraft. (20. December 1989)