1994 CE

Nelson Mandela is elected President of South Africa in the nation's first multiracial democratic elections; the 1994 FIFA World Cup is held in the United States and was won by Brazil; the 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; the Rwandan genocide unfolds over 100 days, resulting in the deaths of an estimated 800,000 Tutsi and Hutu; the First Chechen War begins as Russian forces invade Chechnya; the 1994 Northridge earthquake devastates Southern California, causing widespread destruction and killing dozens; Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 breaks up and violently collides with Jupiter; the Zapatista uprising erupts in Chiapas, Mexico; and the Sony PlayStation is released in Japan.

In the 1990s, the 20th century.

1994 at a glance

World population
about 5.68 billion Our World in Data
United States
Bill Clinton (President) Wikipedia rev. 1371751893
United Kingdom
Elizabeth II (Queen); John Major (Prime minister) Wikipedia rev. 1371751893
Russia
Boris Yeltsin (President); Viktor Chernomyrdin (Prime minister) Wikipedia rev. 1371751893
People's Republic of China
Jiang Zemin (General Secretary; Paramount Leader); Jiang Zemin (President); Li Peng (Premier) Wikipedia rev. 1371751893
France
François Mitterrand (President); Édouard Balladur (Prime minister) Wikipedia rev. 1371751893
Federal Republic of Germany
Richard von Weizsäcker (President of reunified Germany); Roman Herzog (President); Helmut Kohl (Chancellor of reunified Germany) Wikipedia rev. 1371751893
$1 in 1994
$2.27 in September 2026 dollars BLS CPI-U
Gallon of gas (U.S. average)
$1.11 ($4.48 in September 2026) BLS
Most weeks at No. 1 in 1994
“I'll Make Love to You” by Boyz II Men, 14 weeks Wikipedia rev. 1363062363

Who led every country in 1994 →Born in 1994? What it cost, who led, what was No. 1 →

Geopolitics & Diplomacy

  • January 14 – U.S. president Bill Clinton and Russian president Boris Yeltsin sign the Kremlin accords, which stop the preprogrammed aiming of nuclear missiles toward each country's targets, and also provide for the dismantling of the nuclear arsenal in Ukraine.source
  • February 9 – The Vance–Owen peace plan for Bosnia and Herzegovina is announced.source
  • February – The People's Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ) was founded.Eritreasource
  • March 6 – A referendum in Moldova results in the electorate voting against possible reunification with Romania.source
  • March 27 – TV tycoon Silvio Berlusconi's right-wing coalition wins the Italian general election.source
  • April 2 – The National Convention of New Sudan of the SPLA/M opens in Chukudum.source
  • April 27 – South Africa holds its first fully multiracial elections, marking the final end of the last vestiges of apartheid. Nelson Mandela wins the elections and is sworn in as the first democratically elected president the following month.source
  • May 5 – The Bishkek Protocol between Armenia and Azerbaijan is signed in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, effectively freezing the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.source
  • May 10 – Nelson Mandela is inaugurated as South Africa's first black president.source
  • June 15 – Israel and the Vatican establish full diplomatic relations.source
  • June 19 – Ernesto Samper is elected President of Colombia.source
  • June 30 – The Liberal Democratic Party in Japan regains power after spending 11 months in opposition, in coalition with the Japan Socialist Party.source
  • July 4 – The Hutu government is finally defeated by the Rwandan Patriotic Front, thus ending the genocide.Rwandasource
  • July 18 – Rwandan Patriotic Front troops capture Gisenyi, forcing the interim government into Zaire and ending the Rwandan genocide.source
  • July 25 – Israel and Jordan sign the Washington Declaration as a preliminary to signature on October 25 of the Israel–Jordan peace treaty, which formally ends the state of war that has existed between the nations since 1948.source
  • 16 August – 1994 Sri Lankan parliamentary election: The People's Alliance led by Chandrika Kumaratunga wins 105 seats, thus making it the largest party in the Parliament and bringing a decisive end to 17 years of United National Party rule.Sri Lankasource
  • Emmanuel Aboki Essien, representing the Grand Lodge of Ghana becomes the first black and African Imperial Grand President of the Orange Order.Ghanasource
  • October 1 – Palau gains independence from the United Nations Trusteeship Council.source
  • October 1 – In Slovakia, populist leader Vladimír Mečiar wins the general election.source
  • October 1994: Signing of the Agreed Framework between North Korea and the United States;North Koreasource
  • November 8 – "Republican Revolution": Georgia Representative Newt Gingrich leads the United States Republican Party in taking control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate in midterm congressional elections, the first time in 40 years the Republicans secure control of both houses of Congress. George W. Bush is elected Governor of Texas.source
  • 10 November – Iraq recognizes the Sovereignty of Kuwait and accepts its UN recognized borders in a bid to have the sanctions lifted.Iraqsource
  • November 13 – Voters in Sweden decide to join the European Union in a referendum.source
  • November 15 – 1994 Nepalese general election The CPN (UML) is elected with a minority government, becoming the first democratically elected Communist party in Asia.source
  • November 20 – The Angolan government and UNITA rebels sign the Lusaka Protocol.source
  • November 28 – Voters in Norway decide not to join the European Union in a referendum.source
  • December 1 – Ernesto Zedillo takes office as President of Mexico.source
  • December 2 – The Australian government agrees to pay reparations to indigenous Australians who were displaced during the nuclear tests at Maralinga in the 1950s and 1960s.source
  • December 3 – Taiwan holds its first full local elections: James Soong is elected as the first and only directly elected Governor of Taiwan; Chen Shui-bian becomes the first direct elected Mayor of Taipei; Wu Den-yih becomes the first directly elected Mayor of Kaohsiung.source
  • 5 December – The Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances was signed at the OSCE conference in Budapest, Hungary.Ukrainesource
  • December 19 – Civil unions between same-sex couples are legalized in Sweden.source
  • 4 & 5 December – General elections were held in the country.Namibiasource

Conflict & Security

  • January 1 – Beginning of the Zapatista uprising in Mexico.source
  • February 3 – In the aftermath of the Chadian–Libyan conflict, the International Court of Justice rules that the Aouzou Strip belongs to the Republic of Chad.source
  • 3 February – The Libya–Chad Territorial Dispute case was decided by the International Court of Justice in favor of ChadLibyasource
  • February 6 – Markale massacres: a Bosnian Serb Army mortar shell kills 68 civilians and wounds about 200 in a Sarajevo marketplace.source
  • February 28 – Four United States F-16s shoot down four Serbian J-21s over Bosnia and Herzegovina for violation of the Operation Deny Flight and its no-fly zone.source
  • March 28 – Shell House massacre: Inkatha Freedom Party and ANC supporters battle in central Johannesburg, South Africa.source
  • April 6 – Rwandan President Juvénal Habyarimana and Burundi President Cyprien Ntaryamira die when a missile shoots down their jet near Kigali, Rwanda. This is taken as a pretext to begin the Rwandan genocide.source
  • April 6 - The airplane carrying Rwandan President Juvénal Habyarimana and Burundian President Cyprien Ntaryamira was shot down by Hutu extremists as it prepared to land in Kigali. This was the major cause for the Rwandan genocide in Rwanda.Burundisource
  • April 6 – The airplane carrying Rwandan President Juvénal Habyarimana and Burundian President Cyprien Ntaryamira was shot down as it prepared to land in Kigali. This was the major cause for the Rwandan genocide.Rwandasource
  • April 7 – The Rwandan genocide begins in Kigali, Rwanda.source
  • April 21 – The Red Cross estimates that hundreds of thousands of Tutsi have been killed in Rwanda.source
  • 18 May – Israeli forces withdraw from Jericho and Gaza City in compliance with the Oslo accords.Palestinesource
  • May – The Kurdish Civil War breaks out between the two leading Kurdish parties, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and the Kurdistan Democratic Party over power sharing in the Iraqi Kurdistan government.Iraqsource
  • June 6–8 – Ceasefire negotiations for the Yugoslav War begin in Geneva; they agree to a one-month cessation of hostilities (which does not last more than a few days).source
  • June 17 – NFL star O. J. Simpson and his friend Al Cowlings flee from police in a white Ford Bronco. The low-speed chase ends at Simpson's Los Angeles mansion, where he surrenders.source
  • July 4 – Rwandan Patriotic Front troops capture Kigali, a major breakthrough in the Rwandan Civil War.source
  • July 7 – 1994 civil war in Yemen: Aden is occupied by troops from North Yemen.source
  • July 12 – The Allied occupation of Berlin officially ends with a casing of the colors ceremony attended by U.S. president Bill Clinton.source
  • July 18 – AMIA bombing: In Buenos Aires, a terrorist attack destroys a building housing several Jewish organizations, killing 85 and injuring many more.source
  • August 5 – Maleconazo: Groups of protesters spread from Havana, Cuba's Castillo de la Punta ("Point Castle"), creating the first protests against Fidel Castro's government since 1959.source
  • August 31 – The Troubles: The Provisional Irish Republican Army announces a "complete cessation of military operations" as part of the Northern Ireland peace process. This will temporarily end in 1996 with the Docklands bombing in England before a definite ceasefire in 1997. In 1998, the Good Friday Agreement is signed and the IRA decommissions its weapons in 2005source
  • August 31 – The Russian Army leaves Estonia and Latvia, ending the last traces of Eastern Europe's Soviet occupation.source
  • September 5 – New South Wales State MP for Cabramatta John Newman is shot outside his home, in Australia's first political assassination since 1977.source
  • September 13 – President Bill Clinton signs the Federal Assault Weapons Ban, which bans the manufacture of new firearms with certain features for a period of 10 years.source
  • September 19 – Operation Uphold Democracy: U.S. troops stage a bloodless invasion of Haiti to restore the legitimately elected leader, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, to power.source
  • September–October – Iraq disarmament crisis: Iraq threatens to stop cooperating with UNSCOM inspectors and begins to once again deploy troops near its border with Kuwait. In response, the U.S. begins to deploy troops to Kuwait.source
  • October 15 – Iraq disarmament crisis: following threats by the U.N. Security Council and the U.S., Iraq withdraws troops from its border with Kuwait.source
  • November 11 – Iraq formally rescinds its claims over Kuwait, which it has claimed as a province since 1990 and had administered under military occupation until 1991 when it was ejected by an international coalition during the Persian Gulf War.source
  • December 11 – Russian president Boris Yeltsin orders troops into Chechnya.source
  • December 1994: North Koreans shoot down US Army helicopter. One US KIA and one US POW for 13 days;North Koreasource
  • Kuwaiti Premier League 1994–95Kuwaitsource
  • Following his assassination, Dissanayake's wife Srima Dissanayake is appointed as the UNP candidate for the 1994 elections.Sri Lankasource

Exploration & Expansion

  • 1 January – Visit Malaysia Year 1994 officially began.Malaysiasource
  • 20 May - The section of the A1 motorway between Croix de Gasperich and Irrgarten opens.Luxembourgsource
  • 1 July – Palestinian President Yasser Arafat returns to Palestine after 27 years of exile by crossing the border from Egypt to the Gaza Strip, arriving first in Rafah and then Gaza City.Palestinesource
  • 5 August: Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay decide in Buenos Aires to create a free trade zone between MERCOSUR and Bolivia.Brazilsource
  • August 8 – The Wadi Araba Crossing opens, becoming the first border crossing between Israel and Jordan.Israelsource
  • September 4 – Kansai International Airport in Osaka, Japan opens. All international services are transferred from Itami to Kansai.Japansource
  • Ásgeir Elíasson is the coach of the Icelandic Association Football team.Icelandsource
  • Dos mujeres, un camino, on TelevisaMexicosource

Religion & Belief

  • February 25 – Israeli Kahanist Baruch Goldstein opens fire inside the Cave of the Patriarchs in the West Bank; he kills 29 Muslims before worshippers beat him to death.source
  • 25 February – Cave of the Patriarchs massacre: Israeli Kahanist Baruch Goldstein opens fire inside the Cave of the Patriarchs, Hebron, in the West Bank; he kills 29 Muslims.Palestinesource
  • March 12 – The Church of England ordains its first female priests.source
  • 26 March – The 1994 Mackellar by-election is won by Bronwyn Bishop whose leadership ambitions stalled when she suffered a 5% swing.Australiasource
  • 24 April – The Crans Montana Forum ends after 4 days. Shimon Peres of Israel and Yasser Arafat of the Palestine Liberation Organization take part.Romaniasource
  • April 25 – Sultan Azlan Muhibbudin Shah ibni Almarhum Sultan Yusuff Izzudin Shah Ghafarullahu-lahu ends his term as the 9th Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia.source
  • April 26 – Tuanku Jaafar ibni Almarhum Tuanku Abdul Rahman, Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan, becomes the 10th Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia.source
  • May 22 – Pope John Paul II issues the Apostolic Letter Ordinatio sacerdotalis from the Vatican, expounding the Catholic Church's position requiring "the reservation of priestly ordination to men alone".source
  • 18 October – Turkic Council in IstanbulTurkeysource
  • December 10 – Yitzhak Rabin, Shimon Peres and Yasser Arafat receive the Nobel Peace Prize.Israelsource
  • Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan: Tunku Naquiyuddin (Regent)Malaysiasource
  • Belisario Domínguez Medal of Honor – Jaime SabinesMexicosource
  • Construction of the Basilica of Christ of José was completed.Venezuelasource

Economy & Finance

  • January 1 – The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is established.source
  • January 1 – The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) between Mexico, Canada and the United States goes into effectMexicosource
  • January - October 1994: 1994 North Korean nuclear crisis;North Koreasource
  • 13 June – México, Colombia, and Venezuela sign the G3 Free Trade Agreement.Colombiasource
  • July 5 – Jeff Bezos founds Amazon.source
  • August – The Supreme Court declares the controversial VAT (value-added tax) Law legal, and rules as well that the enacted law does not interfering human rights. In response, the Energy Regulatory Board (ERB) later orders a rollback of gasoline prices by ₱1, and also orders the National Power Corporation to lower fuel price cost adjustment charges covering a 17-day period in the first quarter of the year.Philippinessource
  • 18 September - The first tier of the 1994 Hong Kong electoral reform, pertaining to the reform of the local councils, was carried out by the last governor of Hong Kong, Chris Patten, to broaden the electorate base of the territory.Hong Kongsource
  • 22 October - The last National Registration Identity Card (NRIC) replacement exercise takes place in Choa Chu Kang Community Club, marking the end of a three-year replacement programme. For those who did not re-register yet, a grace period will be given until 1995. From 1 January 1996, the old laminated NRICs will be invalid.Singaporesource
  • 8 November – Rahmi Koç was elected as the new president of the International Chamber of CommerceTurkeysource
  • December 19 – A planned exchange rate correction of the Mexican peso to the US dollar, becomes a massive financial meltdown in Mexico, unleashing the 'Tequila' effect on global financial markets. This prompts a US$50 billion "bailout" by the Clinton administration.source
  • Iceland's primary import source is the United Kingdom, with imports valued at $221,000,000.Icelandsource

Technology & Infrastructure

  • January 11 – The Irish government announces the end of a 15-year broadcasting ban on the Provisional Irish Republican Army and its political arm Sinn Féin.source
  • 1 February - Radio Singapore International (RSI) is launched as Singapore's first international shortwave radio station.Singaporesource
  • February – Proton Saga Iswara cars are used as taxicabs in Kuala Lumpur, replacing Isuzu taxicabs.Malaysiasource
  • 1 March – The opening of the civil section of Kinmen Airport in Kinmen County.Taiwansource
  • March 2 – 18 – Charles L. Abernethy visits the country to write a report for the International Irrigation Management Institute.Burkina Fasosource
  • March 29 – The Philippines gets connected to the Internet. The Philippine Network Foundation (PHNet) connected the country to Sprint in the United States via a 64 kbit/s link.Philippinessource
  • March – China gets its first connection to the Internet.source
  • May 6 – The Channel Tunnel, which took 15,000 workers more than seven years to complete, officially opens between England and France; it will enable passengers to travel by rail between the two countries in 35 minutes.source
  • 3 June - Sections of the A13 motorway between Sanem and Lankelz and Esch-sur-Alzette and Schifflange open.Luxembourgsource
  • June 23 – NASA's Space Station Processing Facility, a new state-of-the-art manufacturing building for the International Space Station, officially opens at Kennedy Space Center.source
  • c. August – Pizza Hut becomes the first restaurant to offer online food ordering, in California.source
  • September 16 – Britain lifts the broadcasting ban imposed on Sinn Féin and paramilitary groups from Northern Ireland.source
  • November 6 – Bražuolė bridge bombing in Lithuania damages a railway bridge but trains are stopped in time to avoid casualties.source
  • November 7 – WXYC, the student radio station of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, provides the world's first internet radio broadcast.source
  • November 14 – The first Eurostar train passengers travel through the Channel Tunnel.source
  • December 14 – Construction commences on the Three Gorges Dam, at Sandouping, China.source
  • December 31 – This date is skipped by the Phoenix Islands to switch from the UTC−11 time zone to UTC+13, and by the Line Islands to switch from UTC−10 to UTC+14. The latter becomes the earliest time zone in the world, one full day ahead of Hawaii.source
  • Baghdad tower, a landmark of the city of Baghdad is opened to the public. Work on the tower started in 1991 and stalled due to being damaged during the Gulf war and the subsequent sanctions.Iraqsource
  • Bienvenido-Welcome of Gabriel RetesMexicosource

Science & Discovery

  • January 8 – Soyuz TM-18: Valeri Polyakov begins his 437.7-day orbit of the Earth, eventually setting the world record for days spent in orbit.source
  • 7 February – The Planetarium Negara (National Planetarium) in Kuala Lumpur officially opened.Malaysiasource
  • March 31 – The journal Nature reports the finding in Ethiopia of the first complete Australopithecus afarensis skull.source
  • 5 May – Weightlifter Naim Süleymanoğlu gained the title European championTurkeysource
  • July 16–22 – Fragments of Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9 impact the planet Jupiter.source
  • August 18 – Yeshayahu Leibowitz (born 1903), Russian (Latvia)-born Israeli philosopher and scientist.Israelsource
  • 25 September - Portuguese Grand PrixPortugalsource
  • October 13 – Kenzaburō Ōe receives the Nobel Prize in Literature.Japansource
  • 1 November – SES launches its fourth satellite, Astra 1D.Luxembourgsource
  • December 3 – Sony releases the PlayStation video game system in Japan; it will sell over 100 million units worldwide by the time it is discontinued in 2006.source
  • Dr. Muhammad Yunus wins the World Food PrizeBangladeshsource
  • Kousoku Sentai Turboranger on IBC-13 – June 25; Saturday 6:00 pmPhilippinessource

Health & Medicine

  • February 19 – Yitzhak Yitzhaky (born 1936), Israeli educator and politician.Israelsource
  • March 27 – The biggest tornado outbreak in 1994 occurs in the southeastern United States; one tornado kills 22 people at the Goshen United Methodist Church in Piedmont, Alabama.source
  • 5 April – Economic rehabilitation program (known as bitter recipe)Turkeysource
  • May 3 — Some scientists at Anhui use the technology of Genetic engineering to successful improve Oryza sativa.Chinasource
  • May 18 – The Flavr Savr, a genetically modified tomato, is deemed safe for consumption by the FDA, becoming the first commercially grown genetically engineered food to be granted a license for human consumption.source
  • June 28 – Members of the Aum Shinrikyo cult execute the first sarin gas attack at Matsumoto, Japan, killing eight and injuring 200.source
  • June 28 – Members of the Aum Shinrikyo cult execute the first sarin gas attack at Matsumoto, Japan, killing 8 and injuring 200.Japansource
  • September 15 – The Manila RTC, through a temporary restraining order, stops an order from Malacañang disallowing jai alai.Philippinessource
  • November 5 – A letter by former U.S. president Ronald Reagan, announcing that he has Alzheimer's disease, is released.source
  • Chile national football team 1994Chilesource
  • Northern Ireland population estimated to be 1,643,700.Northern Irelandsource
  • Tens of thousands of Tutsi Rwandans flee to Zaire, Burundi and Tanzania.Rwandasource

Crime & Justice

  • February 12 – Edvard Munch's painting The Scream is stolen in Oslo (it is recovered on May 7).source
  • 13 February – Three homeless children, Javier Gonzalez (16), Jairo Murcia (14), “Asprilla” (12), are shot while sleeping and killed in Timiza, Bogotá. They are believed to be victims of the "social cleansing" carried out by armed right-wing gangs and militias.Colombiasource
  • February 24 – In Gloucester, England, local police begin excavations at 25 Cromwell Street, the home of Fred West, a suspect in multiple murders. On February 28, he and his wife are arrested.source
  • April 7 – The Hutu Rwandans started murdering thousands of Tutsi Rwandans and moderate Hutus. Prime Minister Agathe Uwilingiyimana was among those murdered.Rwandasource
  • 9 June – The biggest single robbery to strike a private home occurs at a property in Bukit Timah, in which S$6 million worth of valuables were stolen. All five men involved in the armed robbery were subsequently arrested.Singaporesource
  • July – Former members of the MNLF's Bangsa Moro Army kidnap city sports official So Kim Cheng in Davao City; despite closed negotiations, captors did not release the victim and later killed him instead after they learned of a group of operatives conducting own rescue attempt.Philippinessource
  • 14 August - Disappearance of Arlene Arkinson, a 15-year-old Northern Irish teenager from Castlederg, County Tyrone. Her body has never been recovered.Northern Irelandsource
  • August 18 – Liebeck v. McDonald's Restaurants: a 12-person jury reaches its verdict to award Stella Liebeck $2,860,000 in compensatory and punitive damages, later reduced to $640,000, for burns she received from a spilled hot coffee. McDonald's and Liebeck will later settle out of court.source
  • August 20 – Tyke, a female African bush elephant, injures her groomer and kills her trainer at the Neal S. Blaisdell Center in Honolulu, Hawaii. She then escapes the arena, and runs amok in the streets for half an hour, before police officers shoot her 86 times. She eventually collapses from her wounds and dies.source
  • 31 August – biggest heist in Malaysia prepared by Mamak Gang at the Subang International AirportMalaysiasource
  • September 16 – Danish tour guide Louise Jensen is abducted, raped and murdered by three British soldiers in Cyprus.source
  • October 5 – The day after five members of the Order of the Solar Temple were found dead in Morin-Heights, Quebec, Canada, Swiss police find 48 members of the cult dead, in what was found to be a mass murder-suicide.source
  • 9 October – Kidnapping of Nachshon Wachsman: IDF soldier Corporal Nachshon Wachsman is kidnapped by Hamas militants disguised as Jewish settlers. They later demand the release of Sheikh Ahmed Yassin and another 200 Palestinian Arab prisoners from Israeli prison in return for Wachsman's release.Palestinesource
  • October 16 – Robbery on the Bank of the Republic: In the Colombian city of Valledupar, a branch of the Colombian central bank Banco de la Republica (Bank of the Republic) is robbed of COP$24,075 million of non emitted bills (some US$33 million); this comes to be known as "El Robo del Siglo" (the bank heist of the century).source
  • 23 October – Khulna Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shibir leader Abul Kashem Pathan was shot dead by activists of the Bangladesh Jatiotabadi Chatra DalBangladeshsource
  • December 13 – The trial of former president Mengistu begins in Ethiopia.source
  • December 13 – Fred West, 53, a builder living in Gloucester, England, is remanded in custody, charged with murdering 12 people (including two of his own daughters) whose bodies are mostly found buried at his house in Cromwell Street. His wife Rosemary West, 41, is charged with 10 murders.source

Disasters & Accidents

  • January 12 – Major General Nehemiah Tamari's helicopter crashed near Central Command headquarters, killing both him and three other officers.Israelsource
  • March 23 – Green Ramp disaster: two military aircraft collide over Pope Air Force Base, North Carolina, United States, causing 24 fatalities.source
  • 4 April – The KLM Cityhopper Flight 433 crashed during an emergency landing.Netherlandssource
  • April 26 – China Airlines Flight 140, an Airbus A300, crashes while landing at Nagoya, Japan, killing 264 people.source
  • 2 June - 1994 Scotland RAF Chinook crash: A Royal Air Force Chinook helicopter carrying almost all the United Kingdom's senior Northern Ireland intelligence experts, crashes on the Mull of Kintyre, Scotland, killing all 25 passengers and 4 crew members.Northern Irelandsource
  • September 8 – USAir Flight 427, a Boeing 737 with 132 people on board, crashes on approach to Pittsburgh International Airport killing all on board.source
  • September 28 – The car ferry MS Estonia sinks in the Baltic Sea, killing 852 people.source
  • 28 September – Sinking of the MS Estonia: the car ferry MS Estonia sank in the Baltic Sea, killing 852.Estoniasource
  • November 27 – A Fuxin Yiyuan dance hall catches fire in Liaoning Province, China, killing 233 persons, with another 71 rescued, according to a confirmed Chinese government official report.source
  • December 11 – A bomb, allegedly planted by Ramzi Yousef, explodes aboard Philippine Airlines Flight 434 bound for Tokyo, killing a Japanese businessman. The bombing, with another one at a movie theater in Manila on Dec. 1, is part of a test run for Project Bojinka.Philippinessource
  • 19 December – Nigeria Airways Flight 9805 crashes in marshland near Kiri KasamaNigeriasource
  • 29 December – Turkish Airlines Flight 278 crashed on approach to Van Ferit Melen Airport killing 57. Nineteen survived the incident.Turkeysource
  • 4–5 October – 53 members of the cult, Order of the Solar Temple, commit mass suicide in Switzerland and Canada.Switzerlandsource

Climate & Environment

  • January 17 – The 6.7 Mw Northridge earthquake strikes the Greater Los Angeles Area of the United States, with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent), leaving 57 people dead and more than 8,700 injured.source
  • 3rd - ethnic violence erupts between Konkomba and Nanumba tribal groups. The two groups are in the Northern region.Ghanasource
  • 6 June – 1994 Páez River earthquake: Over 1,000 indigenous Páez people die as a result of a 6.8 magnitude earthquake at the Páez River and ensuing mudslides and avalanches.Colombiasource
  • June 30 – Tropical Storm Alberto forms, hitting parts of Florida causing $1.03 billion in damage and 32 deaths.source
  • August 18 – 1994 Mascara earthquake: a 5.8 earthquake leaves 171 dead in Algeria.source
  • 16 September – The 6.8 Mw Taiwan Strait earthquake occurred.Taiwansource
  • October 2 – 16 – The Philippines participates in the 1994 Asian Games held in Hiroshima, Japan from October 2 to 16, 1994. It Ranks 14th with three gold medals, two silver medals and eight bronze medals with a total of 13 over-all medals.Philippinessource
  • November 6 – A flood in Piedmont, Italy, kills dozens of people.source
  • November 8 – Hurricane Gordon hits Central America, Jamaica, Cuba, the Bahamas, Haiti and the Southeastern United States, causing $594 million in damages and 1,152 fatalities.source
  • November 15 – 1994 Mindoro earthquake A 7.1 earthquake hits the central Philippine island of Mindoro, killing 78 people, injuring 430 and triggering a tsunami up to 8.5 m high.source
  • 19 November – Weightlifter Halil Mutlu broke 3 world records in 54 kgTurkeysource
  • December 21 – The Popocateptl volcano spewed gas and ash, which was carried as far as 25 km away by prevailing winds. The activity prompted the evacuation of nearby towns and scientists to begin monitoring for an eruption.Mexicosource
  • Bangladesh participated in the 1994 Asian Games which were held from 2 to 16 October 1994 in Hiroshima, Japan. Bangladesh national kabaddi team won the only silver medal for the country in their event in the tournament. The other noticeable achievement in the tournament was that Bangladesh ranked 7th in the field hockey.Bangladeshsource
  • Sultan of Kelantan: Sultan Ismail PetraMalaysiasource

Culture & Society

  • February 12 – The 1994 Winter Olympics begin in Lillehammer.source
  • February – Australia takes its first Winter Olympic medal when the Australian short track speed skating team wins bronze in the 5000m relay at the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway.Australiasource
  • March 21 – The 66th Academy Awards, hosted by Whoopi Goldberg, are held at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles. Steven Spielberg's Holocaust drama Schindler's List wins seven Oscars including Best Picture and Best Director (Spielberg).source
  • April 20 – South Africa adopts a new national flag, replacing the "Oranje, Blanje, Blou" flag adopted in 1928 that was used during apartheid.source
  • 20 April to 24 April - The International Junior Championships of Hong Kong were held in the territory, with Jeong-min lee, along with Hae-sung chung, winning the Boys Singles' and Doubles', and Ludmilla Varmuza, along with Fransesca La'o winning the Girls Singles' and Doubles' respectively.Hong Kongsource
  • May 20 – After a funeral in Cluny Parish Church, Edinburgh attended by 900 people and after which 3,000 people line the streets, UK Labour Party leader John Smith is buried in a private family funeral on the island of Iona, at the sacred burial ground of Reilig Odhráin, which contains the graves of several Scottish kings as well as monarchs of Ireland, Norway and France.source
  • June 17 – The 1994 FIFA World Cup starts in the United States.source
  • July 17 – Brazil wins the 1994 FIFA World Cup, defeating Italy 3–2 in a penalty shootout in the final (full-time 0–0).source
  • 1st - Republic day celebrations held across the country.Ghanasource
  • July 1994: Death and state funeral of Kim Il Sung;North Koreasource
  • August 12 – Woodstock '94 begins in Saugerties, New York, United States, marking the 25-year anniversary of Woodstock in 1969.source
  • September 14 – The 1994 World Series in baseball is officially cancelled due to the ongoing work stoppage. It is the first time a World Series will not be played since 1904.source
  • 30 October – The 1994 local elections take place.Colombiasource
  • November 5 – American boxer George Foreman wins the WBA and IBF World Heavyweight Championships by KO'ing Michael Moorer becoming the oldest heavyweight champion in history.source
  • November 11 – Duy Tan University, Vietnam's University, is established.source
  • CD Travadores of Praia won the Cape Verdean Football ChampionshipCape Verdesource
  • The Common Movement for Development was founded by Paul Biyoghé Mba.Gabonsource
  • 10 to 17 April – The 1994 European Badminton Championships were held in Den Bosch.Netherlandssource
  • 3 / 4 June – The Democratic Alternative, a Nigerian opposition political party, is established in Benin City by about 200 Nigerians critical of the military politiciansNigeriasource

Births

Deaths

  • 5 January - Igor Boelza, music historian and composerUkrainesource
  • February 6 – Jack Kirby, 76, American comic book artist and writer (Fantastic Four, Captain America, X-Men), heart failure.source
  • March 10 – Rupert Bruce-Mitford, 79, British archaeologist and scholar.source
  • March 23 – Mexican presidential candidate Luis Donaldo Colosio is assassinated at a campaign rally in Tijuana.source
  • April 5 – Kurt Cobain, the lead singer of Nirvana. commits suicide at the age of 27 at his home in Seattle. His body was found three days later.source
  • 6 April – Juvénal Habyarimana, politician, President (1973–1994; born 1937)Rwandasource
  • April 22 – Richard Nixon, 81, 37th President of the United States, stroke.source
  • May 1 – Ayrton Senna, 34, Brazilian racing driver, racing accident.source
  • May 1 – Three-time Formula One world champion Ayrton Senna is killed in an accident during the San Marino Grand Prix in Imola, Italy.source
  • May 10 – John Wayne Gacy Jr., 52, American serial killer and sex offender, execution by lethal injection.source
  • May 19 – Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, 64, American socialite, writer, and First Lady of the United States, non-Hodgkin lymphoma.source
  • May 29 – Erich Honecker, 81, German communist politician and leader of the GDR, liver cancer.source
  • 27 June – Tai Solarin, educator and author who established the Mayflower School in Ikenne (born 1922)Nigeriasource
  • July 3 – Lew Hoad, 59, Australian tennis player, leukemia.source
  • July 8 – Kim Il Sung, 82, founder and first leader of North Korea, heart attack.source
  • November 5 – Influential Afrikaner theologian and critic of apartheid Johan Heyns is assassinated; the killers are never apprehended or identified.source
  • November 28 – Jeffrey Dahmer, 34, American serial killer and sex offender, beaten to death.source
  • 12 December – Jabra Ibrahim Jabra, Palestinian-Iraqi writer and translator. (b.1920)Iraqsource