An explosion in the Shahid Modarres missile base led to the deaths of 17 members of the Revolutionary Guards, including Hassan Tehrani Moghaddam, a key figure in Iran's missile program.
Although the Georgian government declared it illegal, South Ossetia held a referendum on independence, with more than 99 percent of voters in favour of preserving the region's status as a de facto independent state.
American Airlines Flight 587 crashed into residential buildings five minutes after takeoff from John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, killing a total of 265 people.
A Saudi Arabian Airlines Boeing 747 and a Kazakhstan Airlines Ilyushin Il-76 collided in mid-air near New Delhi, killing 349 people, the deadliest such collision in history.