WHAT ALL HAPPENED MAY TO AUGUST 1987
Find out what all happened May to August 1987

New Zealand's Labour government establishes a national nuclear-free zone under the New Zealand Nuclear Free Zone, Disarmament, and Arms Control Act 1987. (8. June 1987)

With the death of the last individual of the species, the Dusky Seaside Sparrow becomes extinct. (17. June 1987)

Iran-Contra affair: start of Congressional televised hearings in the United States of America (5. May 1987)

For the first time in military history, a civilian population is targeted for chemical attack when Iraqi warplanes bombed the Iranian town of Sardasht. (28. June 1987)

First ever Rugby World Cup kicks off with New Zealand playing Italy at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand. (22. May 1987)

Cold War: At the Brandenburg Gate U.S. President Ronald Reagan publicly challenges Mikhail Gorbachev to tear down the Berlin Wall. (12. June 1987)

A rare, class F4 tornado rips through Edmonton, Alberta, killing 27 people and causing $330 million in damage. (31. July 1987)

Hashimpura massacre in Meerut, India. (22. May 1987)

The Royal Canadian Mint introduces the $1 coin, known as the Loonie. (30. June 1987)

The Soviet Union launches the Polyus prototype orbital weapons platform. It fails to reach orbit. (15. May 1987)

Basque separatist group ETA commits one of its most violent attacks, in which a bomb is set off in a supermarket, Hipercor, killing 21 and injuring 45. (19. June 1987)

The Central African Republic's former Emperor Jean-Bédel Bokassa is sentenced to death for crimes he had committed during his 13-year rule. (12. June 1987)

In France, former Gestapo chief Klaus Barbie (aka the "Butcher of Lyon") is convicted of crimes against humanity and sentenced to life imprisonment. (4. July 1987)

An Iraqi Dassault Mirage F1 fighter jet fires two missiles into the U.S. Navy warship USS Stark, killing 37 and injuring 21 of her crew. (17. May 1987)

All the children held at Kia Lama, a rural property on Lake Eildon, Australia, run by the Santiniketan Park Association, are released after a police raid. (14. August 1987)

The American radio station WFAN in New York, New York is launched as the world's first all-sports radio station. (1. July 1987)

Prime Minister of India Rajiv Gandhi and President of Sri Lanka J.R. Jayawardene sign the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord on ethnic issues. (29. July 1987)

The Loughgall Ambush: The SAS kills eight Provisional Irish Republican Army volunteers and a civilian during an ambush in Loughgall, Northern Ireland. (8. May 1987)

Thai Airways Flight 365 crashes into the ocean near Ko Phuket, Thailand, killing all 83 aboard. (31. August 1987)

RMS Titanic Inc. begins the first expedited salvage of wreckage of the RMS Titanic. (27. July 1987)