On This Day

UN rejects Russian proposal to destroy atomic weapons

Israel is widely believed to possess nuclear weapons. Estimates of Israel's stockpile range from 90 to 400 warheads, and the country is believed to possess a nuclear triad of delivery options: by...

Israel is widely believed to possess nuclear weapons. Estimates of Israel's stockpile range from 90 to 400 warheads, and the country is believed to possess a nuclear triad of delivery options: by F-15 and F-16 fighters, by Dolphin-class submarine-launched cruise missiles, and by the Jericho series of medium to intercontinental range ballistic missiles. Its first deliverable nuclear weapon is estimated to have been completed in late 1966 or early 1967, which would have made it the sixth of nine nuclear-armed countries.

Israel maintains a policy of deliberate ambiguity, neither formally denying nor admitting to having nuclear weapons, instead repeating over the years that "Israel will not be the first country to introduce nuclear weapons to the Middle East".

Historical Significance

Israel is widely believed to possess nuclear weapons.

Events Before

  1. Mahatma Gandhi begins a march for peace in East Bengal

    Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist, and political thinker who employed nonviolent resistance to lead the successful campaign…

  2. Benelux agrees to work on related issues

    Benelux agrees to work on related issues

  3. Britain nationalizes its coal industry

    The Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946 (9 & 10 Geo. 6. c. 59) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which nationalised, or brought into state control, the coal industry in the United…

  4. French fashion designer Christian Dior presents his first influential collection, named the "New Look"

    French fashion designer Christian Dior presents his first influential collection, named the "New Look"

  5. Earl Mountbatten of Burma is appointed the last viceroy of India to oversee the move to independence

    The partition of India in 1947 was the division of British India into two independent dominion states, the Union of India and Dominion of Pakistan.

Events After

  1. US President Harry Truman labels his administration the "Fair Deal"

    Harry S. Truman's tenure as the 33rd president of the United States began on April 12, 1945, upon the death of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and ended on January 20, 1953.

  2. First Israeli election won by David Ben-Gurion's Mapai party

    Constituent Assembly elections were held in newly independent Israel on 25 January 1949. Voter turnout was 86.9%.

  3. 1st US daytime soap on TV "These Are My Children" (NBC in Chicago)

    1st US daytime soap on TV "These Are My Children" (NBC in Chicago)

  4. American diplomat Henry Kissinger (25) weds Ann Fleisher (23) in Washington Heights, Manhattan, NYC

    American diplomat Henry Kissinger (25) weds Ann Fleisher (23) in Washington Heights, Manhattan, NYC

  5. "Lovesick Blues" single is released by Hank Williams (Cashbox "Best Hillbilly Record of the Year," Billboard Song of the

    "Lovesick Blues" single is released by Hank Williams (Cashbox "Best Hillbilly Record of the Year," Billboard Song of the Year 1949)

More from the 1940s

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on October 21, 1948?
Israel is widely believed to possess nuclear weapons. Estimates of Israel's stockpile range from 90 to 400 warheads, and the country is believed to possess a nuclear triad of delivery options: by F-15 and F-16 fighters, by Dolphin-class submarine-launched cruise missiles, and by the Jericho series of medium to intercontinental range ballistic missiles. Its first deliverable nuclear weapon is estimated to have been completed in late 1966 or early 1967, which would have made it the sixth of nine nuclear-armed countries.
Why is UN rejects Russian proposal to destroy atomic weapons significant?
Israel is widely believed to possess nuclear weapons.

Explore More