Here’s a look at things that have happened on this date in history.
In 1863, the three-day Civil War Battle of Gettysburg in Pennsylvania ended in a major victory for the North as Confederate troops failed to breach Union positions during an assault known as Pickett’s Charge.
In this photo from the Library of Congress provided by Abrams Books, an unidentified Confederate and Union soldier in a photo titled “The Blue and the Grey at Gettysburg, Assembly Tent” on the 50th anniversary reunion at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, in 1913. The image is one of nearly 500 photographs, lithographs, paintings, drawings and cartoons from the Library of Congress’s collection published in a new volume, “The American Civil War – 365 Days.”
(AP Photo/Library of Congress)
AP Photo/Library of Congress
On July 3, 1976, Israel launched its daring mission to rescue 106 passengers and Air France crew members being held at Entebbe Airport in Uganda by pro-Palestinian hijackers; the commandos succeeded in rescuing all but four of the hostages.
Some of the hundreds of relatives and well-wishers who came to Ben-Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv, July 4, 1976 for return of hijacked Air France passengers rescued in night raid Uganda, where they were held for a week raise Israeli flag and bottles of drink in toast.
(AP Photo/Shmuel Rachmani)
AP Photo/Shmuel Rachmani
In 1971, singer Jim Morrison of The Doors died in Paris at age 27.
The late Jim Morrison of the rock group “The Doors” is shown in this undated photo.
(AP Photo/file)
AP Photo/file
In 1987, British millionaire Richard Branson and Per Lindstrand became the first hot-air balloon travelers to cross the Atlantic, parachuting into the sea as their craft went down off the Scottish coast.
Richard Branson, right, and Per Lindstrand peer out of the capsule of their Virgin Atlantic Flyer hot air balloon at Carrabassett Valley, Maine, in June 1987.
(AP Photo/Pat Wellenbach)
AP Photo/Pat Wellenbach
In 1988, the USS Vincennes shot down an Iran Air jetliner over the Persian Gulf, killing all 290 people aboard.
In this July 3, 1988 file photo, the crew of the USS Vincennes stands at attention to salute the USS Samuel B. Roberts which leaves the Persian Gulf. In 1988, the USS Samuel B. Roberts struck a mine and nearly sank. That sparked a daylong naval battle between Iran and the U.S. in which American forces attacked two Iranian oil rigs and sank or damaged six Iranian vessels. A few months later, the USS Vincennes in the Strait of Hormuz mistook an Iran Air flight heading to Dubai for an attacking fighter jet, shooting down the plane and killing all 290 people onboard.
(AP Photo/Greg English, File)
AP Photo/Greg English, File
In 2003, the U.S. put a $25 million bounty on Saddam Hussein, and $15 million apiece for his two sons. (The $30 million reward for Odai and Qusai Hussein went to a tipster whose information led U.S. troops to their hideout, where the brothers were killed in a gunbattle.)
An Iraqi boy looks at the house where Odai and Qusai Hussein were killed in a firefight with U.S. troops in Mosul, 400 kilometers (240 miles) north of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, Monday, July 28, 2003. The house was demolished, officials said, in part to prevent people from squatting in the building.
(AP Photo/Sergei Grits )
AP Photo/Sergei Grits
In 2013, Egypt’s first democratically elected president, Mohammed Morsi, was overthrown by the military after just one year by the same kind of Arab Spring uprising that had brought the Islamist leader to power.
Former Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi, wearing a red jumpsuit that designates he has been sentenced to death, raises his hands inside a defendants cage in a makeshift courtroom at the national police academy, in an eastern suburb of Cairo, Egypt, Saturday, June 18, 2016.
(AP Photo/Amr Nabil)
Today is Wednesday, July 3, the 184th day of 2019. There are 181 days left in the year.
Today’s Highlight in History:
On July 3, 1976, Israel launched its daring mission to rescue 106 passengers and Air France crew members being held at Entebbe Airport in Uganda by pro-Palestinian hijackers; the commandos succeeded in rescuing all but four of the hostages.
On this date:
In 1775, Gen. George Washington took command of the Continental Army at Cambridge, Massachusetts.
In 1863, the three-day Civil War Battle of Gettysburg in Pennsylvania ended in a major victory for the North as Confederate troops failed to breach Union positions during an assault known as Pickett’s Charge.
In 1890, Idaho became the 43rd state of the Union.
In 1944, during World War II, Soviet forces recaptured Minsk from the Germans.
In 1950, the first carrier strikes of the Korean War took place as the USS Valley Forge and the HMS Triumph sent fighter planes against North Korean targets.
In 1971, singer Jim Morrison of The Doors died in Paris at age 27.
In 1979, Dan White, convicted of voluntary manslaughter in the shooting deaths of San Francisco Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk, was sentenced to seven years and eight months in prison. (He ended up serving five years.)
In 1987, British millionaire Richard Branson and Per Lindstrand became the first hot-air balloon travelers to cross the Atlantic, parachuting into the sea as their craft went down off the Scottish coast.
In 1988, the USS Vincennes shot down an Iran Air jetliner over the Persian Gulf, killing all 290 people aboard.
In 1996, Russians went to the polls to re-elect Boris Yeltsin president over his Communist challenger, Gennady Zyuganov in a runoff.
In 2003, the U.S. put a $25 million bounty on Saddam Hussein, and $15 million apiece for his two sons. (The $30 million reward for Odai and Qusai Hussein went to a tipster whose information led U.S. troops to their hideout, where the brothers were killed in a gunbattle.)
In 2013, Egypt’s first democratically elected president, Mohammed Morsi, was overthrown by the military after just one year by the same kind of Arab Spring uprising that had brought the Islamist leader to power.
Ten years ago: In a surprise announcement, Sarah Palin said she would resign as Alaska governor, effective July 26, 2009. Vice President Joe Biden visited Baghdad, where he pressed Iraqi leaders to do more to foster national reconciliation and offered U.S. assistance in achieving that goal.
Five years ago: Hurricane Arthur struck North Carolina as a Category 2 storm with winds of 100 mph in the late evening, taking about five hours to move across the far eastern part of the state, but causing far less damage than feared.
One year ago: The Trump administration said it would not encourage schools to use race as a factor in the admissions process, rescinding guidance from the Obama era that was meant to promote diversity.
