On Sept. 24, 1996, the United States, represented by President Bill Clinton, and 70 other countries signed a treaty at the United Nations to end all testing and development of nuclear weapons. (To date, 183 countries have signed the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, but the agreement has yet to enter into force because of the refusal so far of eight nations – including the United States – to ratify it.)

Ten years ago

In a combative taped interview on “Fox News Sunday,” former President Bill Clinton defended his handling of the threat posed by Osama bin Laden, and accused host Chris Wallace of a “conservative hit job.” Democrats seized on an intelligence assessment that said the Iraq war had increased the terrorist threat, saying it was further evidence Americans should choose new leadership in upcoming elections. The Europeans turned the Ryder Cup into another rout, winning 18 / 9 / to make history as the first European team to win three straight times.

Five years ago

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev proposed Vladimir Putin as a presidential candidate for 2012, paving the way for Putin’s return to office four years after he was legally forced to step aside. NASA’s dead six-ton Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite fell to Earth, 20 years after being deployed from the space shuttle Discovery.

One year ago

A stampede and crush of Muslim pilgrims occurred at an intersection near a holy site in Saudi Arabia; The Associated Press estimates that at least 2,426 people were killed, while the official Saudi toll has stood at 769. A repurposed military “duck boat” carrying passengers swerved into an oncoming charter bus on Seattle’s Aurora Bridge; five international college students were killed in the crash.

— By The Associated Press