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Flashback calendar

Android Pay is launched

Originally launched as Android Pay, the service was released at Google I/O 2015. Android Pay was a successor to and built on the base established by Google Wallet which was released in 2011. At launch, the service was compatible with 70% of Android devices and was accepted at over 700,000 merchants.

US Diplomatic Compounds attacked in Benghazi

The 2012 Benghazi attack was a coordinated attack against two US government facilities in Benghazi, Libya, by members of the Islamic militant group Ansar al-Sharia. Members of Ansar al-Sharia attacked the American diplomatic compound in Benghazi, causing the deaths of U.S. Ambassador to Libya J. Christopher Stevens and U.S. Foreign Service Information Management Officer Sean Smith.

Israeli troops withdraw from Gaza

The last Israel Defense Forces pulled out of the Gaza Strip on 1 September, 2005, as part of Israel's unilateral disengagement plan, ending 38 years of Israeli occupation. In addition, all Israeli citizens were evicted from the area. Thousands of Palestinians rushed into the areas vacated by Israel, waving flags and cheering.

The US declares war on terror

The War on Terror is an international military campaign that was launched by the US government after the September 11 terrorist attacks. The naming of the campaign uses a metaphor of war to refer to a variety of actions that do not constitute a specific war as traditionally defined.

Scots say "Yes" to home rule

The Scottish devolution referendum of 1997 was a pre-legislative referendum held in Scotland in September 1997 over whether there was support for the creation of a Scottish Parliament with devolved powers, and whether the Parliament should have tax-varying powers. The result was "Yes–Yes". Turnout for the referendum was 60.4%.

First item sold on eBay

One of the first items sold on AuctionWeb was a broken laser pointer for $14.83. Astonished, Omidyar contacted the winning bidder to ask if he understood that the laser pointer was broken. In his responding email, the buyer explained: "I'm a collector of broken laser pointers."

Atari releases its iconic video game console 2600

Released in September 1977, it is credited with popularizing the use of microprocessor-based hardware and games contained on ROM cartridges, a format first used with the Fairchild Channel F in 1976. The 2600 was bundled with two joystick controllers, a conjoined pair of paddle controllers, and a game cartridge: initially Combat and later Pac-Man.

Allende dies in coup

In September 1973, Salvador Allende, President of Chile, died of self-inflicted gunshot wounds during a coup d'état led by the Chilean Army Commander-in-Chief Augusto Pinochet. After decades of suspicions that Allende might have been assassinated by the Chilean Armed Forces, a Chilean court in 2011 authorized the exhumation and autopsy of Allende's remains.

America victorious on Lake Champlain

The Battle of Plattsburgh, also known as the Battle of Lake Champlain, ended the final invasion of the northern states of the United States during the War of 1812. Downie's squadron attacked shortly after dawn on September 1814 but was defeated after a hard fight in which Downie was killed.

The Battle of Brandywine takes place

The Battle of Brandywine was fought between the American Continental Army of General George Washington and the British Army of General Sir William Howe in September 1777. The "Redcoats" of the British Army defeated the American rebels in the Patriots' forces and forced them to withdraw northeast toward the American capital.

The Battle of Stirling Bridge

The Battle of Stirling Bridge was a battle of the First War of Scottish Independence. On 11 September 1297, the forces of Andrew Moray and William Wallace defeated the combined English forces of John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey, and Hugh de Cressingham near Stirling, on the River Forth.

Anniversaries of the (in)famous