December 25, 1989 Ousted Romanian President Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife, Elena, are executed following a popular uprising. His regime mobilized some 700,000 informants to keep tabs on the population of 23 million people.

December 26, 1990 Iranian spiritual leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, declares a fatwa against Salman Rushdie calling for his death. Rushdie is the author of The Satanic Verses, which is considered offensive by Muslims.

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