Live Update: August 1 in History – Bombing of Kwame Nkrumah and the Death of King Fahd

Today, August 1, marks significant historical events, including an attempted assassination on Ghanaian President Kwame Nkrumah and the death of Saudi King Fahd.

Kwame Nkrumah’s Assassination Attempt (1962)

On this day in 1962, Ghana’s President Kwame Nkrumah narrowly escaped assassination in Kulungugu, Upper East Bawku. Nkrumah, who had just returned from a meeting with Burkina Faso’s President Maurice Yaméogo, stopped to greet school children when a bomb exploded. The attack severely injured Elizabeth Asantewaa, a student who had handed Nkrumah a bouquet. Captain Samuel Buckman, Nkrumah’s bodyguard, heroically shielded the President, sustaining non-life-threatening injuries along with Nkrumah. The blast injured 55 others. Nkrumah received treatment for shrapnel wounds from a British doctor at Bawku Hospital.

A memorial now stands at the site as a reminder of this near-tragic event. Remarkably, Nkrumah survived at least five assassination attempts, each time narrowly escaping death.

Death of King Fahd (2005)

On August 1, 2005, Saudi Arabia’s King Fahd passed away at the age of 84 at King Faisal Specialist Hospital in Riyadh. The announcement was made by the Minister of Information, Iyad bin Amin Madani. The subsequent day saw King Fahd’s funeral, with Crown Prince Abdullah swiftly ascending to the throne. In a move of respect, many Arab nations lowered their flags to half-mast. King Fahd, who had been the ruler since June 1982 following the death of his half-brother, King Khaled, had faced declining health after a stroke in 1995, which led to Crown Prince Abdullah assuming the regency.

Other Historical Events on August 1

1936: Adolf Hitler opened the 11th Olympic Games in Berlin.
1914: Emperor Wilhelm II declared war on his nephew, Tsar Nicholas II, marking a significant escalation in World War I.
1943: U.S. forces executed Operation Tidal Wave, a daring air raid on Axis oil refineries.
1498: Christopher Columbus first sighted South America, mistakenly identifying it as an island.
1914: The First World War intensified as major world powers engaged in combat.
1981: Music Television (MTV) was launched, revolutionizing the music industry.
1834: Slavery was abolished in the British Empire.
1963: Nigeria established its Immigration Department through an Act of Parliament