Today in History: Vietnam War: Operation Linebacker II ends

The following are some of the major notable events that occurred on December 30 throughout history:

534 – The second and final edition of the Code of Justinian comes into effect in the Byzantine Empire.

1460 – Wars of the Roses: Lancastrians kill the 3rd Duke of York and win the Battle of Wakefield.

1896 – Filipino patriot and reform advocate José Rizal is executed by a Spanish firing squad in Manila.

1916 – Russian mystic and advisor to the Tsar Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin is murdered by a loyalist group led by Prince Felix Yusupov. His frozen, partially-trussed body was discovered in a Petrograd river three days later.

1922 – The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) is formed.

1952 – An RAF Avro Lancaster bomber crashes in Luqa, Malta after an engine failure, killing three crew members and a civilian on the ground.

1972 – Vietnam War: Operation Linebacker II ends.

1993 – Israel establishes diplomatic relations with Vatican City and also upgrades to full diplomatic relations with Ireland.

2006 – Former President of Iraq Saddam Hussein is executed.

2013 – More than 100 people are killed when anti-government forces attack key buildings in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo.