History of 8 April
- 1990 – In Nepal, King Birendra lifted the 30-year ban on political parties.
- 1992 – In Britain, the last issue of “Punch Magazine” was published.
- 1994 – Smoking was banned in the Pentagon and all U.S. military bases.
- 1998 – The widow of Martin Luther King Jr. presented new evidence in an appeal for a new federal investigation of the assassination of her husband.
- 2000 – 19 U.S. troops were killed when a Marine V22 Osprey crashed during a training mission in Arizona.
- 2001 – Microsoft Corp. released Internet Explorer 6.0.
- 2002 – Ed McMahon filed a $20 million lawsuit against his insurance company, two insurance adjusters, and several environmental cleanup contractors. The suit alleged breach of contract, negligence and intentional infliction of emotional distress concerning a toxic mold that had spread through McMahon’s Beverly Hills home.
- 2002 – Suzan-Lori Parks became the first African-American woman to win a Pulitzer Prize for drama for her play “Topdog/Underdog.”
- 2004 – War in Darfur: The Humanitarian Ceasefire Agreement is signed by the Sudanese government and two rebel groups.
- 2006 – Shedden massacre: The bodies of eight men, all shot to death, are found in a field in Shedden, Elgin County, Ontario. The murders are soon linked to the Bandidos Motorcycle Club.
- 2008 – The construction of the world’s first skyscraper to integrate wind turbines is completed in Bahrain.
- 2013 – The Islamic State of Iraq enters the Syrian Civil War and begins by declaring a merger with the Al-Nusra Front under the name Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham.
Celebrating Birthday today
- 1981 – Frédérick Bousquet, French swimmer
- 1981 – Ofer Shechter, Israeli model, actor, and screenwriter
- 1982 – Gennady Golovkin, Kazakhstani boxer
- 1982 – Brett White, Australian rugby league player
- 1983 – Tatyana Petrova Arkhipova, Russian runner
- 1984 – Michelle Donelan, British politician
- 1984 – Ezra Koenig, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1984 – Pablo Portillo, Mexican singer and actor
- 1984 – Taran Noah Smith, American actor
- 1985 – Patrick Schliwa, German rugby player
- 1985 – Yemane Tsegay, Ethiopian runner
- 1986 – Igor Akinfeev, Russian footballer
- 1986 – Félix Hernández, Venezuelan-American baseball player
- 1987 – Royston Drenthe, Dutch footballer
- 1987 – Jeremy Hellickson, American baseball player
- 1987 – Sam Rapira, New Zealand rugby league player
- 1988 – Jenni Asserholt, Swedish ice hockey player
- 1988 – Kim Myung-sung, South Korean baseball player
- 1990 – Kim Jong-hyun, South Korean singer (d. 2017)
- 1993 – Viktor Arvidsson, Swedish ice hockey player
- 1993 – Zac Santo, Australian rugby league player
- 1994 – Josh Chudleigh, Australian rugby league player
- 1995 – Cedi Osman, Turkish professional basketball player
- 1997 – Saygrace, Australian singer and songwriter
- 1993 – Arno Verschueren, Belgian professional football player