The Congo Crisis was a period of political upheaval and conflict following the independence of the Congo from Belgium. Within days of independence the army mutinied, Belgian troops intervened, and the mineral-rich province of Katanga under Moïse Tshombe declared its secession. Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba appealed to the United Nations and then to the Soviet Union, which made the crisis part of the Cold War. President Kasavubu dismissed Lumumba, who was arrested by forces loyal to Joseph-Désiré Mobutu and killed in January 1961 with the involvement of Katangan and Belgian officers. The UN Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld died in a plane crash in 1961 while traveling to negotiations. Katanga's secession ended in 1963, a rebellion followed, and Mobutu took power in a coup, ruling until 1997.
Before and after
- 9 May 1960The contraceptive pill is approved in the United States
- 16 May 1960Laser
- 21 May 19601960 Valdivia earthquake
- 30 May 1960Death of Boris Pasternak
- from June 1960 to November 1966Congo Crisis
- 30 June 1960The Congo becomes independent from Belgium
- 11 July 1960Publication of To Kill a Mockingbird
- 20 August 1960Construction of Roma Fiumicino Airport
- 14 September 1960Founding of Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries
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The era
This moment belongs to the Contemporary world (1945 CE to today), the world since 1945. You can also browse everything in the 20th century.