Other Notable Events, December 11

In 1994, up to 40,000 Russian troops invaded Chechnya, a semi-autonomous Republic on Russia's border with Georgia, to put down a secessionist rebellion.

In 1995, two Japanese cult members admitted they released the toxic sarin gas in Tokyo subway trains the previous March that killed 12 people.

In 2001, the United States filed its first charges in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, accusing Zacarias Moussaoui, a French citizen of Moroccan descent, of conspiring with others to carry out the assault.

Also in 2001, China joined the World Trade Organization.

In 2004, Vienna doctors treating the mystery illness of Ukrainian opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko determined he was poisoned with dioxin while campaigning for president.

In 2006, Jewish groups worldwide expressed anger as Iran opened a two-day conference in Tehran to determine if the Holocaust is reality or myth.

In 2007, as many as 26 people were reported killed in two suicide attacks near U.N. offices and government buildings in Algiers.

In 2008, Bernard Madoff, an investment manager, was charged with defrauding clients of as much as $50 billion in what may be the largest swindle in Wall Street history. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission officials said he ran a multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme.

Also in 2008, nearly 50 people were killed in the bombing at a restaurant in northern Iraq where Kurdish leaders and members of the Sunni Awakening Councils met to discuss ways to reduce tension in Kirkuk between Arabs and Kurds.

In 2009, Tiger Woods, acknowledging the pain his infidelity caused others, announced he was taking an indefinite break from pro golf to focus on his family.

Also in 2009, Pope Benedict XVI met with leaders of the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland and promised to investigate decades of sexual abuse of children.

In 2010, Mark Madoff, the 46-year-old eldest son of convicted multibillion-dollar Wall Street swindler Bernard Madoff, hanged himself in his New York apartment on the second anniversary of his father's arrest, police said.

In 2011, Israel warned Iran and Hamas it would be forced to take military action if Gaza missile attacks continued. Eighteen rockets were fired into Israel over the weekend, prompting an Israeli attack on Gaza.