Today's Highlight in History:
On December 29th, 1851, the first American Young Men's Christian¹ Association was organized, in Boston.

On this date:
In 1170, Archbishop Thomas Becket was murdered in Canterbury坎特伯雷 Cathedral in England.

In 1808, the 17th president of the United States, Andrew Johnson, was born in Raleigh, North Carolina.

In 1813, the British burned Buffalo², New York, during the War of 1812.

In 1845, Texas was admitted as the 28th state.

In 1890, the Wounded Knee massacre³大屠杀，惨败 took place in South Dakota as some 300 Sioux Indians were killed by US troops sent to disarm⁴解除武装 them.

In 1934, Japan renounced宣布放弃 the Washington Naval⁶ Treaty of 1922 and the London Naval Treaty of 1930.

In 1940, during World War Two, Germany began dropping incendiary bombs燃烧弹 on London.

In 1957, singers Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme were married in Las Vegas, Nevada.

In 1975, a bomb exploded in the main terminal of New York's LaGuardia Airport, killing⁷ eleven people.

In 1996, war-weary guerrilla游击队 and government leaders in Guatemala signed an accord协议 ending 36 years of civil conflict.

Ten years ago: Playwright⁸剧作家 Vaclav Havel was elected president of Czechoslovakia捷克斯洛伐克 by the country's Federal Assembly, becoming the first non-Communist to attain⁹ the post in more than four decades.

Five years ago: US officials confirmed the release of US Army helicopter pilot Bobby Hall from North Korean custody¹⁰拘留，监护 (due to the time difference, it was December 30th in Korea when Hall crossed the demilitarized zone非武装地带 to freedom).

One year ago: Two top Khmer Rouge红色高棉 leaders apologized for the deaths of as many as two million people during their regime in the 1970s, and asked Cambodians to forget the past.