Today in History: October 25, 1978 — Sharjah bans Osibisa band
Move is the latest in a series of bombshells to hit the rock group as they prepare for what would have been their first tour of the Gulf
1978 - The top pop group Osibisa have been banned from appearing at Holiday Inn hotel in Sharjah, just five days before they were to stage two highly publicised concerts. The ban is the latest in a series of bombshells to hit the group as they prepared for what would have been the rock group’s first tour of the Gulf. It follows a similar ban by authorities in Kuwait and Bahrain and could lead to a cancellation of the tour. The group’s agents in the Gulf suspended a massive advertising campaign in local newspapers and on the radio. The group, who are believed to still be in England preparing for the tour, have become embroiled in a religious row over one of their songs.
Other important events on October 25
1909 Murder of Japan’s Prince Ito by Korean fanatics leads to Japanese dictatorship in Korea.
1918 Canadian passenger liner SS Princess Sophia sinks off the coast of Alaska, killing at least 343 people.
1956 Egypt, Jordan and Syria form a unified military command.
1971 UN General Assembly votes to admit mainland China and expel Taiwan.
1983 US forces invade Marxist-ruled Grenada.
1995 Israel begins to pull out troops from Jenin after 28-year occupation.
1999 The UAE and India sign an extradition treaty in New Delhi.
2000 A Russian military plane crashes into a mountain in the Caucasus republic of Georgia, killing all 75 people aboard.
2003 Faisal Al Fayez is sworn in as Jordan’s new prime minister.
2007 The first commercial A380 flight touches down at Sydney after a flight from Singapore.
2009 Twin suicide car bombings devastate the heart of Baghdad, killing at least 147 people.
2014 A coal mine shaft collapses in north-western China, killing 16 miners.
2016 At least 61 people are killed after gunmen storm a Pakistani police training academy in Quetta, Balochistan.