1987 CE

The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty is signed by the United States and Soviet Union; the First Intifada begins; the Singing Revolution grows across the Baltic states; the June Democratic Struggle brings democratic reforms to South Korea; the USS Stark incident kills 37 U.S. sailors; Ronald Reagan delivers the Tear down this wall! speech; Black Monday triggers a major stock market crash; the King's Cross fire kills 31 people; and the Great Storm of 1987 devastates southern England.

In the 1980s, the 20th century.

1987 at a glance

World population: about 5.05 billion Our World in Data
United States: Ronald Reagan (President) Wikipedia rev. 1371751893
United Kingdom: Elizabeth II (Queen); Margaret Thatcher (Prime minister) Wikipedia rev. 1371751893
Soviet Union: Mikhail Gorbachev (General Secretary); Andrei Gromyko (Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet); Nikolai Ryzhkov (Chairman of the Council of Ministers) Wikipedia rev. 1371751893
People's Republic of China: Deng Xiaoping (Paramount Leader); Hu Yaobang, then Zhao Ziyang (General Secretary); Li Xiannian (President) Wikipedia rev. 1371751893
France: François Mitterrand (President); Jacques Chirac (Prime minister) Wikipedia rev. 1371751893
East Germany: Erich Honecker (Chairmen of the State Council); Willi Stoph (Chairman) Wikipedia rev. 1371751893
West Germany: Richard von Weizsäcker (President of West Germany); Helmut Kohl (Chancellor of West Germany) Wikipedia rev. 1371751893
$1 in 1987: $2.97 in September 2026 dollars BLS CPI-U
Gallon of gas (U.S. average): $0.95 ($4.48 in September 2026) BLS
Most weeks at No. 1 in 1987: “Livin' on a Prayer” by Bon Jovi, 4 weeks Wikipedia rev. 1362859689

Who led every country in 1987 →Born in 1987? What it cost, who led, what was No. 1 →

Geopolitics & Diplomacy

January 15 – Hu Yaobang, General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, is forced into retirement by political conservatives.source
22 January: Birzeit University student elections are held. The leftist-nationalist bloc wins 41.5% of the vote, the Islamist bloc 34%, and the Marxist bloc 24.5%.Palestine source
February 11 – The new Constitution of the Philippines goes into effect. This new constitution adds Spanish and Arabic as optional languages of the Philippines.source
February 25 – The U.S. Supreme Court rules in United States v. Paradise that affirmative action is lawful if the organization in question has a history of pervasive racial discrimination in hiring practices; in this case, police departments in the state of Alabama. Justice William J. Brennan, Jr. rules that the government is "justified by a compelling governmental interest in eradicating the Department's pervasive, systematic, and obstinate discriminatory exclusion of blacks."source
March 4 – U.S. President Ronald Reagan addresses the American people on the Iran–Contra affair, acknowledging that his overtures to Iran had "deteriorated" into an arms-for-hostages deal.source
April 13 – The governments of the Portuguese Republic and the People's Republic of China sign an agreement in which Macau will be returned to China in 1999.source
April 27 – The United States Department of Justice declares incumbent Austrian president Kurt Waldheim an "undesirable alien".source
April 30 – Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and the Provincial Premiers agree in principle to the Meech Lake Accord which would bring Quebec into the constitution.source
25-27 May – Mikhail Gorbachev visits Romania.Romania source
June 11 – The Conservative Party of the United Kingdom, led by Margaret Thatcher, is re-elected for a third term at the 1987 general election.source
June 27: Egbert Streuer and Bernard Schnieders are victorious in the sidecar class of the Dutch TT.Netherlands source
July 1 – The Single European Act is passed by the European Community.source
July 11 – 1987 Australian federal election: Bob Hawke's Labor government is re-elected with an increased majority, defeating the Liberal Party led by John Howard and the National Party led by Ian Sinclair.source
11 July – The Colombia national football team plays Argentina in the third place play off leading up to the 1987 Copa América. Colombia wins 2–1.Colombia source
July 15 – Martial law in Taiwan ends after 38 years.source
29 July – The Indo-Sri Lanka Peace Accord is signed in Colombo between Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and Sri Lankan President J. R. Jayewardene, thus bringing an end to the first phase of the Sri Lankan Civil War.Sri Lanka source
14 August – Pakistan celebrates 40 years of independence.Pakistan source
August 22 – The Parliament of Zimbabwe votes to eliminate the 20 seats reserved for the white minority.source
August 23 – The Hirvepark meeting is organized as the first unsanctioned political meeting in Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic, in commemoration of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact.source
September 23 – The United States and Poland agree to exchange ambassadors after a four-year break in relations.source
October 7 – Sikh nationalists declare the independence of Khalistan from India.source
October 7 - Algeria and Libya announce a tentative agreement to form a political union. Algeria backed out of the planned union in November, well before it was implemented.Libya source
October 8 – Gaddafi announces that Algeria and Libya have "agreed in principle" to a proposed union of the two states, which Gaddafi suggests should be named "Algibya."source
October 23 – On a vote of 58–42, the United States Senate rejects President Ronald Reagan's nomination of Robert Bork to the Supreme Court.source
November 7 – Zine El Abidine Ben Ali assumes the Presidency of Tunisia.source
November 16 – The Parlatino Treaty of Institutionalization is signed.source
7 December – Hussain Muhammad Ershad dissolves parliament under the pressure of opposition.Bangladesh source
December 8 – The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty is signed in Washington, D.C. by U.S. President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. It expired in 2019.source
December 9 – General Rahimuddin Khan retires from the Pakistan Army, along with the cabinet of the country's military dictatorship.source
December 17 – Gustáv Husák resigns as General Secretary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia.source
December 21 – Turgut Özal of ANAP forms the new government of Turkey (46th government).source
December 22 – In Zimbabwe, the political parties ZANU and ZAPU reach an agreement that ends the violence in the Matabeleland region known as the Gukurahundi.source

Conflict & Security

January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade.source
January 3 – Afghan leader Mohammad Najibullah says that Afghanistan's 1978 Communist revolution is "not reversible," and that any opposition parties will have to align with Communist goals.source
January 24 – 1987 Forsyth County protests: About 20,000 protestors marched in a civil rights demonstration in Forsyth County, Georgia, United States.source
February 25 – Beginning of the Phosphorite War protest movement in the Estonian SSR.source
28 February – Santa Clara massacre: Armed men break into a house in Santa Clara, Fundación, Magdalena and kidnap a family of 4 and execute them in Puerto Piedra. The perpetrators are never determined.Colombia source
March 7 – 1987 Lieyu massacre: The Republic of China Army execute 19 unarmed Vietnamese refugees on Donggang beach, Lieyu, Kinmen off Mainland China.source
April 15 – An insurrection in Sri Lanka by the Marxist–Leninist group, JVP, begins.source
15 April: The Temple Mount Faithful organise a march on the Temple Mount and the Al-Aqsa mosque compound, leading to a standoff between the group and Palestinians protestors. The same day, a settler in Kiryat Arba shoots and injures a Palesetinian student from Hebron University after an argument broke out between the two and the settler mistook a Quran the student was holding for a grenade.Palestine source
May 8 – Loughgall ambush: A 24-man unit of the British Army Special Air Service (SAS) ambushed eight members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) as they mounted an attack on a Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) barracks. All IRA members were killed as well as one civilian.source
May 13: Ajax wins the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in Athens by beating Lokomotiv Leipzig in the final with 1–0. Marco van Basten scores the only goal of the match after 21 minutes.Netherlands source
May 17 – Iran–Iraq War: USS Stark is hit by two Iraqi-owned Exocet AM39 air-to-surface missiles killing 37 sailors.source
May 22 – The Hashimpura massacre occurs in Meerut, India.source
June 12 – During a visit to Berlin, Germany, U.S. President Ronald Reagan challenges Soviet general secretary Mikhail Gorbachev to tear down the Berlin Wall.source
12 June – "Tear down this wall!" speech by Ronald Reagan in BerlinGermany source
June 19 – Hipercor bombing: the Basque terrorist group ETA perpetrate a car-bomb attack at an Hipercor market in Barcelona, killing 21 and wounding 45.source
August 7 – The Colombian frigate Caldas enters Venezuelan waters near the Los Monjes Archipelago, sparking the Caldas frigate crisis between both nations.source
August 9 – Hoddle Street massacre in Australia: Julian Knight, 19, goes on a shooting rampage in the Melbourne suburb of Clifton Hill, Victoria, killing 7 people and injuring 19 before surrendering to police.source
August 14 – Angolan Civil War: The Battle of Cuito Cuanavale begins in Angola and further intensifies the South African Border War.source
August 19 – Hungerford massacre: Sixteen people die in an apparently motiveless mass shooting in the United Kingdom, carried out by Michael Ryan.source
August 24 – Mozert v. Hawkins decision: The U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals rules that the class readings assigned by public schools in Hawkins County, Tennessee do not violate Christian students' First Amendment rights.source
September 2 – In Moscow, USSR, the trial begins for 19-year-old pilot Mathias Rust, who flew his Cessna airplane into Red Square in May.source
September 3 – In a coup d'état in Burundi, President Jean-Baptiste Bagaza is deposed by Major Pierre Buyoya.source
September 11 – Chadian–Libyan War: Chad and Libya sign a ceasefire under supervision of the Organisation of African Unity, officially ending the 14-year territorial conflict. Sporadic fighting will continue.source
September 11 - Chad and Libya agree to a ceasefire that ends the Chadian–Libyan War.Libya source
29 September–8 October – 1987 anti-Sinhalese riots: Tamil mobs and the LTTE perpetuate a series of riots and massacres against Sinhalese civilians in the Eastern Province, resulting in the deaths of over 200 Sinhalese civilians and displacing thousands more.Sri Lanka source
October 15 – In Burkina Faso, a military coup is orchestrated by Blaise Compaoré against incumbent President Thomas Sankara.source
October 19 – Operation Earnest Will: US warships destroy two Iranian oil platforms in the Persian Gulf.source
November 12 – The first Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant in Mainland China opens in Beijing, near Tiananmen Square.source
November 15 – In Brașov, Romania, workers rebel against the communist regime led by Nicolae Ceaușescu.source
December 8 – Israeli–Palestinian conflict: The First Intifada begins in the Gaza Strip and West Bank.source
December - The Thai–Laotian Border War begins.Laos source
Mohammedan SC won the 1987 Dhaka First Division League title while Abahani KC became runner-up.Bangladesh source
Singing demonstrations against Soviet occupation was begun.Estonia source

Exploration & Expansion

June 19 – Teddy Seymour is officially designated the first black man to sail around the world, when he completes his solo sailing circumnavigation in Frederiksted, St. Croix, of the United States Virgin Islands.source
June 23 – The Tanduay Rhum Makers win the 1987 PBA Open Conference finals against the Great Taste Coffee Makers, 134-120Philippines source
10-22 June – The 37th Vuelta a Colombia is held, Pablo Wilches wins.Colombia source
June - Minister of External Affairs N. D. Tiwari visits North Korea as part of ministerial conference of Non-Aligned Movement.India source
August 7 – American Lynne Cox becomes the first person to swim the Bering Strait, crossing from Little Diomede Island to Big Diomede in 2 hours and 5 minutes.source
1 October – The closed-toll system came into force along the Kuala Lumpur–Ayer Keroh and Ipoh–Changkat Jering expressways.Malaysia source
3 November – McDonald's opens its first restaurants in the South Island at Linwood and Merivale, Christchurch.New Zealand source
7 November – The initial section of the MRT, between Yio Chu Kang and Toa Payoh, was opened.Singapore source
22 December: Israeli Minister of Defence Yitzhak Rabin tours the Gaza Strip after his return from a ten-day trip to the United States, which he had refused to cut short to respond to the growing unrest in the occupied territories.Palestine source
The founding of the community settlement Avtalion.Israel source

Religion & Belief

20 April: The Palestine National Council begins a week-long meeting in Algiers to try and reconcile the schisms between the different PLO factions.Palestine source
17 May – 1986–87 Serie A ends: SSC Napoli, under the leadership of captain Diego Maradona, wins 1st title. (→ 1986–87 SSC Napoli season)Italy source
1 August – The establishment of Council of Labor Affairs.Taiwan source
August 26 – Smith v. Board of School Commissioners of Mobile County decision: The U.S. Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals overturns the earlier ruling of a lower court which found that certain public school textbooks promoted the "religion" of secular humanism; in this final ruling, the court finds that the plaintiffs have not proven that the state is presenting secular humanism as a religious ideology.source
September 17 – Religious leaders, including Desmond Tutu, hold talks with the African National Congress in Zambia.South Africa source
October 18 – Canonization of San Lorenzo Ruiz, the first Filipino saint.Philippines source
December 30 – Pope John Paul II issues the encyclical Sollicitudo rei socialis (On Social Concern).source
Mohammedan SC also won the Bangladesh Federation Cup title.Bangladesh source
Anim ancient synagogue discovered in the Yatir Forest.Israel source
Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan: Tuanku JaafarMalaysia source

Economy & Finance

January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency.source
14 January – Vehbi Koç named Businessman of the Year by the International Chamber of Commerce.Turkey source
February 11 – British Airways is privatised and listed on the London Stock Exchange.source
25 February: The Central Bank of Brazil decides to intervene in banks in the states of Maranhão, Ceará, Mato Grosso, Rio de Janeiro and Santa Catarina.Brazil source
1 March – A new Have Three or More (if you can afford it) policy is announced to encourage people to have three or more children. This comes after significant decreases in population through the previous 'Stop at Two' policy of 1972.Singapore source
March 24 – Michael Eisner, CEO of The Walt Disney Company, and French Prime Minister and future President of France, Jacques Chirac, sign an agreement to construct the 4,800 acres Euro Disney Resort (now called Disneyland Paris) and to develop the Val d'Europe area of the new town Marne-la-Vallée in Paris, France.source
June 3 – The Vanuatu Labour Party is founded.source
July 17 – The Dow Jones Industrial Average closes above the 2,500 mark for the first time, at 2,510.04.source
September 9 and 11 – The entire 25-member Cabinet and three officials of the Presidential Commission on Good Government resign during an emergency meeting following the previous month's failed coup attempt. Two days later, nine officials also tender resignations, including Central Bank governor Jose Fernandez and commissioners of the internal revenue, customs and immigration bureaus. Only few are later replaced by President Aquino, including Vice President Laurel who resigns as foreign secretary.Philippines source
September 22: Shipyard P. Smit Jr. in Rotterdam is declared bankrupt.Netherlands source
October 3 – The Canada–United States Free Trade Agreement is reached but still requires ratification. This agreement would be a precursor to NAFTA.source
15 October – Malaysian Airline System (MAS) changed its corporate identity and became known as Malaysia Airlines.Malaysia source
October 19 – Black Monday: Stock market levels fall sharply on Wall Street and around the world.source
December 15 – Production I.G is founded by Mitsuhisa Ishikawa and Takayuki Goto.source
At midnight on 5 June, a powerful tropical depression, previously formed in the Bay of Bengal, crossed Hatiya, Sandwip, Patuakhali, and Bhola region as a cyclonic storm accompanied by a tidal surge up to 6 ft above normal, inundating low-lying islands.Bangladesh source
Huawei was founded in Shenzhen.China source

Technology & Infrastructure

January 4 – Televangelist Oral Roberts announces to his viewers that unless they donate $8 million to his ministry by March 31, God will "call [him] home."source
March 2 – TV Patrol was launched as its first flagship evening newscast replacing the former flagship national news program Balita Ngayon.Philippines source
7 March - Sunil Gavaskar becomes the first man to score 10,000 runs in Test cricket.India source
March 17 – Three explosions damage the railway line between Newcastle and Johannesburg.South Africa source
March 31 – Margaret Thatcher, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, conducts a 45-minute interview on Soviet television.source
April 19 – The Simpsons cartoon first appears as a series of shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show.source
May 27 – In one of the densest concentrations of humanity in history, a crowd of 800,000+ packed shoulder-to-shoulder onto the Golden Gate Bridge and its approaches for its 50th Anniversary celebration.source
June 1: Asahi TV starts broadcasting the popular short factual television programme See the World by Train (世界の車窓から)Japan source
June 13 – At the Paris Air Show, Boeing announces the sale of their 1,842nd Boeing 737, making the 737 the best-selling airliner of all time.source
July 25 – The East Lancashire Railway, a heritage railway in the North West of England, is opened between Bury and Ramsbottom.source
July 31 – Docklands Light Railway in London, the first driverless railway in Great Britain, is formally opened by Queen Elizabeth II.source
July - Air travel and telephone links are re-established between Tunisia and Libya after being paused since 1985.Libya source
July – Opening of the Petronas petroleum and gas refinery in Kerteh, Terengganu.Malaysia source
August 4 – The Federal Communications Commission rescinds the Fairness Doctrine, which had required radio and television stations to present alternative views on controversial issues.source
August 11 – Apple introduces Hypercard, a precursor to the World Wide Web.source
August 15 – Great Basin National Park is dedicated; it is the 49th national park in the United States and the first in the state of Nevada.source
September 1 – Honda announces plans to build a second U.S. assembly plant, the East Liberty Auto Plant.source
November 1 – The InterCity 125 breaks the world speed record for a diesel-powered train, reaching 238 km/h (147.88 mph).source
November 7 – Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system in Singapore opens for passenger service.source
November 22 – Max Headroom broadcast signal intrusion – unknown perpetrators hijack the signal of WGN-TV for about 20 seconds, and WTTW for about 90 seconds, and displays a video of a man in a Max Headroom mask.source
December 1 – NASA announces the names of 4 companies awarded contracts to help build Space Station Freedom: Boeing Aerospace, General Electric's Astro-Space Division, McDonnell Douglas, and the Rocketdyne Division of Rockwell.source
5 December - Downpatrick & Ardglass Railway begins public operation, the first Irish gauge heritage railway in Ireland.Northern Ireland source
12 December – The second section of the MRT was opened, stretching from Novena to Outram Park.Singapore source

Science & Discovery

January 1: Reflectors on each side of your tires become mandatory when you’re cycling.Netherlands source
February 23 – SN 1987A, the first "naked-eye" supernova since 1604, is observed.source
March 1 – The first Starbucks outside of the US is opened in Vancouver, Canada.source
March 18 – Woodstock of physics: A marathon session of the American Physical Society's meeting features 51 presentations concerning the science of high-temperature superconductors.source
March 29 – A hybrid solar eclipse is the second hybrid solar eclipse in less than one year, the first being on October 3, 1986. It is annular visible in southern Argentina, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Sudan (part of the path of annularity crossed today's South Sudan), Ethiopia, Djibouti and northern Somalia and totally visible in Atlantic Ocean, lasting just 7.57 seconds.source
May 28 – Eighteen-year-old West German pilot Mathias Rust evades Soviet air defenses and lands a private plane on Red Square in Moscow. He is immediately detained (released on August 3, 1988).source
June 8 – The New Zealand Nuclear Free Zone, Disarmament, and Arms Control Act is passed, the first of its kind in the world.source
June 19 – Edwards v. Aguillard: The Supreme Court of the United States rules that a Louisiana law requiring that creation science be taught in public schools whenever evolution is taught is unconstitutional.source
June 30 – Canada introduces a one-dollar coin, nicknamed the "Loonie".source
3 July - Richard Branson and Per Lindstrand become the first people to complete a transatlantic flight in a hot air balloon aboard the balloon Virgin Atlantic Flyer, first touching down in Northern Ireland.Northern Ireland source
August 16 – The followers of the Harmonic Convergence claim it is observed around the world.source
22 August – The renaming of Environmental Protection Bureau to become the Environmental Protection Administration.Taiwan source
30 August – Israel's government cancels the IAI Lavi programme.Israel source
20 September – 1987 Portuguese Grand Prix (Formula One race)Portugal source
October 12: Susumu Tonegawa wins the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine.Japan source
10 December – The Omniplanetarium (present-day Omni-Theatre) is officially opened.Singapore source
Richard William Timm was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award for his work in Bangladesh.Bangladesh source

Health & Medicine

February 28 – A Rüppell's vulture chick is hatched at the Milwaukee County Zoo, the first time the animal has been successfully bred in North America.source
March 20 – AZT is approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration for use in the treatment of HIV/AIDS.source
3 April – The Housing and Development Board (HDB) introduces a new scheme for families with third children to upgrade to bigger flats. This comes after the new 'Have Three or More (if you can afford it)' policy is announced a month ago.Singapore source
April 21 – In Colombo, Sri Lanka, the Central Bus Station Bombing kills 113 civilians.source
June 4 – State President of South Africa Pieter Willem Botha visits Sharpeville.South Africa source
12 June: President José Sarney announces the launch of the Bresser Plan, which freezes rents and wages.Brazil source
July 11 – World population is estimated to have reached five billion people, according to the United Nations.source
July 23 – The United States Census Bureau reports the biggest population gains in metropolitan U.S. areas of over 1 million people since 1980: Phoenix (population increase of 26%); Dallas-Fort Worth (+25%); Atlanta (+20%); San Antonio (+19%) Tampa-Saint Petersburg (+19%); San Diego (+18%); Sacramento (+17%); and Houston (+17%). The largest population losses were in Rust Belt cities: Detroit, Pittsburgh, and Cleveland.source
1 September – Royal order prohibiting smoking in roofed public spaces comes into force.Belgium source
September 13 – Goiânia accident: Metal scrappers open an old radiation source abandoned in a hospital in Goiânia, Brazil, causing the worst radiation accident ever in an urban area.source
October 7 – The U.S. Department of Education announces new guidelines for teaching about AIDS in public schools, emphasizing the importance of abstinence and "appropriate moral and social conduct."source
October: Pediatrician Guus de Jonge publishes groundbreaking article about Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. He advises to put infants in the supine position.Netherlands source
28 November – Hussain Muhammad Ershad declares a state of emergency and bans strikes. All educational institutes are declared closed until 4 December.Bangladesh source
10 December: Hamas is founded by Palestinian Islamic scholar Ahmed Yassin after the outbreak of the First Intifada.Palestine source
December 23 – Nikki Sixx, Mötley Crüe's bassist overdoses on heroin and is declared clinically dead for two minutes before a paramedic revives him with two syringes full of adrenaline.source
29 December – 19-year-old Neighbours star Kylie Minogue enters the charts with her first single "I Should Be So Lucky".Australia source

Crime & Justice

January 16 – León Febres Cordero, president of Ecuador, is kidnapped for 11 hours by followers of imprisoned general Frank Vargas, who successfully demand the latter's release.source
January 20 – Terry Waite, the special envoy of the Archbishop of Canterbury in Lebanon, is kidnapped in Beirut (released November 1991).source
March 21: Soccer player Ruud Gullit is transferred by PSV to AC Milan for a record fee of 17 million Dutch Guilder.Netherlands source
11 April: A Palestinian terrorist firebombs an Israeli family's car in the West Bank, murdering Ofra Moses and her five-year-old son Tal. In response, settlers riot through the Palestinian town of Qalqilya.Palestine source
12 April – The murder of Ang May Hong happened in Jalan Ipoh, Kuala Lumpur, MalaysiaMalaysia source
May 11 – Klaus Barbie goes on trial in Lyon for war crimes committed during World War II.source
21 May – 21 people are arrested in Operation Spectrum for the Marxist conspiracy.Singapore source
July 3 – Greater Manchester Police in England recover the body of 16-year-old Pauline Reade from Saddleworth Moor, after her killers Ian Brady and Myra Hindley help them in their search, almost exactly 24 years since Pauline was last seen alive.source
July 4 – A court in Lyon sentences former Gestapo boss Klaus Barbie to life imprisonment for crimes against humanity.source
August 14 – All the children held at Kai Lama, a rural property on Lake Eildon, Australia, run by the Santiniketan Park Association, are released after a police raid.source
August 17 – Rudolf Hess is found dead in his cell in Spandau Prison. Hess, 93, is believed to have committed suicide by hanging himself with an electrical flex. He was the last remaining prisoner at the complex, which is soon to be demolished.source
August 19 – ABC News' chief Middle East correspondent Charles Glass escapes his Hezbollah kidnappers in Beirut, Lebanon, after 62 days in captivity.source
September 4 – In a village in Rajasthan, an 18-year-old widow, Roop Kanwar is burned alive on her husband's funeral pyre, in a banned practice known as Sati. Though the woman's father-in-law is arrested by authorities, thousands of Hindu pilgrims travel to the cremation site in support of the act.source
3 October – Tudor Postelnicu is replaced by Iulian Vlad as head of the Securitate.Romania source
October 23 – British champion jockey Lester Piggott is jailed for three years after being convicted of tax evasion.source
15 November – 1987 North Korean local electionsNorth Korea source
November 15 – Juanito Rivera, CPP's second highest ranking official, is arrested in Capas, Tarlac. –"In the Manila Times" The Manila Times (via Pressreader).Philippines source
30 December – Jorge Ochoa is released from prison on a habeas corpus petition.Colombia source

Disasters & Accidents

January 4 – 1987 Maryland train collision: An Amtrak train en route from Washington, D.C. to Boston collides with Conrail engines at Chase, Maryland, United States, killing 16 people.source
11 January – 2,500 bus passengers temporarily stranded in Kızıldağ Pass due to heavy snowfall.Turkey source
January 17 – The Jumalan teatteri ("The theatre of God") theatre students' group cause a huge scandal at the Oulu City Theatre in Oulu, Finland by throwing excrement, eggs and yoghurt on the audience during their two-minute performance.source
February 6 – The Soviet oil tanker Antonio Gramsci suffers a minor shipwreck in Finnish waters en route to the Neste oil refinery in Porvoo, resulting in an oil spill of approximately 570–650 tons.source
February 20 – A second Unabomber bomb explodes at a Salt Lake City computer store parking lot in the United States, injuring the owner's son.source
March 6 – Zeebrugge disaster: Roll-on/roll-off cross-channel ferry MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes off Zeebrugge harbor in Belgium; 193 people die.source
March 28 – An anti-tank landmine kills four people and injures one in the Josefsdal area near the Swaziland border.South Africa source
April 5 – Schoharie Creek Bridge Collapse: I-90 bridge collapse near Fort Hunter leaves 10 people dead. Investigators conclude that the bridge's piers had been weakened by structural flaws and significant scour. The accident leads to stricter safety standards in bridge design and inspection. The body of the 10th victim will ultimately be recovered from the Mohawk River more than two years later.source
May 9 – A Soviet-made Ilyushin Il-62 airliner, operated by LOT Polish Airlines, crashes into a forest just outside Warsaw, killing all 183 people on board.source
June 27 – A commercial HS 748 (Philippine Airlines Flight 206) crashes near Baguio, Philippines, killing 50.source
July 8 – A Delta Air Lines L-1011 strays 60 miles off course and nearly collides with a Continental Airlines 747 over the Atlantic Ocean. The two planes are carrying nearly 600 total passengers and may have come within 100 feet of each other.source
July 23: 1987 Tokyo Metropolitan area power outage, where 2.8 million household affected, which restore spent more three and half hours, according to Japanese government confirmed report.Japan source
July 27 – Salvage dives begin on the wreck of the Titanic; survivor Eva Hart likens the salvage teams to "vultures."source
August 16 – Northwest Airlines Flight 255 (a McDonnell Douglas MD-82) crashes on takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport in Romulus, Michigan, just west of Detroit, killing all but one (4-year-old Cecelia Cichan) of the 156 people on board.source
October 22 – The pilot of a British Aerospace BAE Harrier GR5 registered ZD325 accidentally ejects from his aircraft. The jet continues to fly until it runs out of fuel and crashes into the Irish Sea.source
November 18 – The King's Cross fire on the London Underground kills 31 people and injures a further 100.source
November 28 – South African Airways Flight 295 crashes into the Indian Ocean off Mauritius, due to a fire in the cargo hold; the 159 passengers and crew perish.source
November 29 – Korean Air Flight 858 is blown up over the Andaman Sea, killing 115 crew and passengers. North Korean agents are responsible for the bombing.source
29 November – Bombing of Korean Air Flight 858North Korea source
November 29 - Korean Air Flight 858 was blown by the detonated bomb by the North Korean agents.South Korea source
December 7 – Pacific Southwest Airlines Flight 1771 crashes near Paso Robles, California, United States, killing all 43 on board, after a disgruntled passenger shoots his ex-supervisor on the flight, then shoots both pilots.source
December 8 – Alianza Lima air disaster: A Peruvian Navy Fokker F27 crashes near Ventanilla, Peru, killing 43.source
8 December – Israeli truck driver collides with two taxis carrying workers returning from work in Israel. Four Palestinian from the refugee camp Jabalia in the Gaza Strip are killed in the incident. A rumor which spread among Palestinians that the crash was deliberate and made in retaliation for the murder of an Israeli businessman in Gaza City two days earlier, sparks the First Intifada the next day.Israel source
8 December: Israeli truck driver collides with two taxis carrying workers returning from work in Israel. Four Palestinians from the refugee camp Jabalia in the Gaza Strip are killed in the incident. A rumor which spread among Palestinians that the crash was deliberate and made in retaliation for the murder of an Israeli businessman in Gaza City two days earlier, sparked the First Intifada the next day.Palestine source
December 20 – In history's worst peacetime sea disaster, the passenger ferry MV Doña Paz sinks after colliding with the oil tanker Vector 1 in the Tablas Strait in the Philippines, killing an estimated 4,000 people (1,749 official).source
December 20 – Interisland passenger ferry MV Doña Paz, travelling from Leyte to Manila and said to be overloaded, and oil tanker MT Vector collide at Tablas Strait off Mindoro Island, setting both on fire; 26 survived, death toll later estimated to be 4,386; considered the deadliest peacetime maritime disaster in history.Philippines source

Climate & Environment

13 January – Avalanche in Tunceli Province results in 12 fatalities.Turkey source
March 2: The province of Drenthe is struck by an extreme amount of glazed frost. Objects were covered are covered by a 1 centimeter thick layer of ice. Trees and high voltage pylons snap. This event is known as the IJzelramp of 1987.Netherlands source
March 6 – A 6.9 magnitude earthquake occurs in Napo Province in northeast Ecuador, killing roughly 1,000 people.source
25 March: The 1987 Palestinian prisoners' hunger strike begins.Palestine source
March 28 – The 1987 Aegean crisis, which occurred near the Greek island of Thasos, was a confrontation between Greece and Turkey that was ultimately resolved peacefully. Turkey agreed to withdraw its vessels under the condition of Greece not pursue oil drills beyond its territorial waters.source
5-6 March – 1987 Ecuador earthquakes: 6.0-7.2 Mw.Colombia source
April 19 – A major power failure, similar to that of August 1986, hits Metro Manila and most of Luzon for several hours at evening, purportedly caused by a transmission line failure.Philippines source
June 17 – With the death of the last known individual, the dusky seaside sparrow, a subspecies native to the US state of Florida, becomes extinct.source
October 15–16 – The Great storm of 1987 strikes southern Great Britain and northwestern France. It is one of the strongest storms to affect the region in the past 200 years.source
21 October – Government falls over Voeren crisisBelgium source
November 17 – A tsunami hits the Gulf of Alaska.source
November 25 – Category 5 Typhoon Nina smashes the Philippines with 265 km/h winds and a devastating storm surge, causing destruction and 812 deaths.source
The overall flood situation seriously deteriorated following heavy rains on 30 and 31 July and an influx of flood water from the northern region. The worst affected districts were Rangpur, Netrokona, Gaibandha, Naogaon, Kurigram, Jamalpur, Cox's Bazar, Chittagong, and Noakhali. About 3.5 million people were reported affected, and approximately 650,000 acres of crops were considerably damaged. Roads from the capital to the north-eastern region were disrupted due to overflowing water and the collapse of culverts.Bangladesh source
Sultan of Kelantan: Sultan Ismail PetraMalaysia source

Culture & Society

23 January – The 1987 South American U-20 Championship begins in Armenia.Colombia source
March 29 – The World Wrestling Federation (later WWE) produces WrestleMania III from the Pontiac Silverdome in Pontiac, Michigan. The event is particularly notable for the record attendance of 93,173, the largest recorded attendance for a live indoor sporting event in North America until February 14, 2010, when the 2010 NBA All-Star Game has an attendance of 108,713 at AT&T Stadium.source
March 30 – The 59th Academy Awards take place in Los Angeles, with Platoon winning Best Picture.source
31 March: Land Day is marked by demonstrations across the occupied Palestinian territories and by some Arab citizens of Israel.Palestine source
May 4 – The U.S. Supreme Court rules in Rotary Int'l v. Rotary Club of Duarte that local Rotary Clubs do not have a constitutional right to deny membership to women. Other clubs thereafter comply with the ruling: Lions International begins admitting women in June, and Kiwanis Club in July.source
May 22 – The inaugural Rugby World Cup hosted by both New Zealand and Australia kicks off. In the opening match of the new tournament, New Zealand beat Italy in the pool stage.source
May 27 – At the Prater Stadium of Vienna, Porto of Portugal defeats Bayern München of West Germany 2–1 and wins its first European Cup.source
June 20 – New Zealand wins the inaugural Rugby World Cup after beating France in the final.source
June 29 – South Korean politician, presidential candidate of the ruling party Roh Tae-woo makes a speech promising a wide program of nationwide reforms, the result of the June Democracy Movement.source
August 4 – The World Commission on Environment and Development, also known as the Brundtland Commission, publishes its report, Our Common Future.source
August 19 – The Order of the Garter is opened to women.source
August 30: The Netherlands men's national field hockey team prolong the European title in Moscow by beating England after penalty shots in the final.Netherlands source
August 31 – Michael Jackson releases Bad, his first studio album since Thriller, the best-selling album of all time. The album would produce five number one singles in the US, a record which has not been broken.source
September 7–21 – The world's first conference on artificial life is held at Los Alamos National Laboratory in the United States.source
October 8–November 8 – The 1987 Cricket World Cup is held in India and Pakistan with Australia defeating England in the final.source
October 18 - A minor rally on Freedom Square, Yerevan for the unification of Artsakh with Armenia.Armenia source
21 October – The Bangladesh Civil Service Administration Academy was established.Bangladesh source
October 25 – The Minnesota Twins won 4 games to 3 in the 1987 World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals.source
November 7 – The Soviet Union celebrates the 70th Anniversary of The October Revolution with a Parade on Moscow's Red Square.source
Boavista Praia won the Cape Verdean Football ChampionshipCape Verde source
The Cyprus International, an international open in badminton, held its first game.Cyprus source
Mid 1987 – Construction begun on the Ryugyong Hotel. The hotel was an intention to be the world's tallest hotel, and was supposed to be opened in 1989 for the 1989 World Festival of Youth and StudentsNorth Korea source

Births

1 January - Abdullah Al Buraiki.Kuwait source
January 12 – Naya Rivera, American actress and singer (died 2020)source
January 17 – Oleksandr Usyk, Ukrainian boxersource
January 24 – Luis Suárez, Uruguayan football playersource
January 30 – Becky Lynch, Irish professional wrestlersource
February 1 – Ronda Rousey, American martial arts expert, actress and professional wrestlersource
February 4 – Gayas Christopher, cricketerSri Lanka source
February 13 – Eljero Elia, Dutch footballersource
April 19 – Maria Sharapova, Russian tennis playersource
May 15 – Andy Murray, Scottish tennis playersource
May 22 – Novak Djokovic, Serbian tennis playersource
June 17 – Kendrick Lamar, American rappersource
22 June - Khalid Sebil Lashkari.United Arab Emirates source
July 3 – Sebastian Vettel, German racing driver, 4-time champions in Formula Onesource
August 7 – Sidney Crosby, Canadian ice hockey playersource
August 11 – Greysia Polii, Indonesian badminton playersource
September 28 – Hilary Duff, American actress, businesswoman, singer, songwriter, producer, and writersource
September 30 – Elanne Kong, actress and singerHong Kong source

Deaths

February 22 – Andy Warhol, 58, American artist, director and writer, sudden post-operative irregular heartbeat.source
March 3 – Danny Kaye, 76, American singer, actor, dancer and comedian, internal bleeding and hepatitis.source
April 1 – Henri Cochet, 85, French tennis player, world number one player.source
May 3 – Dalida, 54, Egyptian-born French singer and actress (Bambino, Gondolier), suicide.source
June 22 - Yun Il-seon, politician, pathologist, and anatomist (born 1896)South Korea source
July 31 – An F4-rated tornado devastates eastern Edmonton, Alberta; hardest hit are an industrial park and a trailer park. 27 people are killed and hundreds injured, with hundreds more left homeless and jobless.source
July 31 – Four hundred pilgrims are killed in clashes between demonstrating Iranian pilgrims and Saudi Arabian security forces in Mecca.source
August 17 – Rudolf Hess, 93, German Nazi official, Deputy Führer, ostensibly suicide by hanging.source
August 24 – Bayard Rustin, 75, American civil and gay rights activist, perforated appendix.source
August 28 – John Huston, 81, American film director and actor (The Maltese Falcon, The African Queen, Moulin Rouge), pneumonia.source
September 13 – Mervyn LeRoy, 86, American film director and actor (The Wizard of Oz), heart issues.source
8 October: During a shootout that took place between Israeli security forces and four armed Islamic Jihad guerrillas in the Gaza Strip, all four guerrillas were killed, as well as one Shin Bet officer. The incident sparks unrest among Palestinians.Palestine source
11 October – Jaime Pardo Leal, 1986 presidential candidate for the Patriotic Union, is assassinated in a drive-by shooting between La Mesa and Bogotá.Colombia source
November 8 – Enniskillen bombing: Twelve people are killed by a Provisional Irish Republican Army bomb at a Remembrance Day service at Enniskillen.source
10 November – Bangladeshi activist Noor Hossain was killed by the Bangladesh Police while protesting against the rule of President Hussain Muhammad Ershad near zero point in Dhaka.Bangladesh source
November 18 – Jacques Anquetil, 53, French road racing cyclist, five-time Tour de France winner, stomach cancer.source
December 1 – James Baldwin, 63, African-American novelist, playwright and poet (Go Tell It on the Mountain), stomach cancer.source
December 24 – M. G. Ramachandran, 70, Indian actor and politician, Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, heart attack and stroke.source