2015 Event Hosni Mubarak, former president of Egypt, may be freed after the nation's high court overturned the sole remaining verdict against him for embezzling public funds; Mubarak has been serving his three-year prison term in a hospital due to poor health 2014 Event 27 hostages have been freed in Cameroon, including the wife of vice prime minister Amadou Ali and a group of Chinese workers; Nigerian Islamist group Boko Haram is suspected to be responsible 2014 Event 49 hostages of the Islamic State are freed and returned to Turkey after an operation enacted by the Turkish government after the June kidnapping in Mosul, Iraq; Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will not give information regarding its actions 2014 Event With help from Qatar officials, 45 U.N. peacekeepers from Fiji have been freed by their Syrian rebel captors; the troops were taken hostage two weeks ago after the rebels overtook the Syrian-controlled part of Golan Heights from government troops 2011 Event All remaining political prisoners in Tunisia are freed 2007 Event BBC journalist Alan Johnston is freed by Palestinian kidnappers 1993 Event Central African Republic ex-emperor Bokassa freed 1991 Event Winnie Mandela sentenced to 6 years for complicity in kidnapping and beating of four youths, one of whom died, She is freed pending appeal 1990 Event U.S. hostage Frank Reed freed after 4 years in hands of pro-Iranians 1990 Event Nelson Mandela, a political prisoner for 27 years, freed in South Africa 1989 Event South african ANC-founder/leader Walter Sisulu freed 1989 Event German war criminals Aus der Funten/Fischer, freed in Holland 1989 Event Kidnapped Belgian Premier Vanden Boeynants freed 1989 Event German war criminals Fischer and Aus der Funten freed 1987 Event South Africa ANC-leader Govan Mbeki freed 1985 Event 39 remaining hostages from Flight 847 are freed in Beirut 1984 Event Worker's union leader Billy Nair freed in South Africa 1983 Event South Africa worker's union leader Curnick Ndlovu freed after 19 years 1983 Event U.S. announces Lebanon freed American hostage David Dodge 1982 Event Polish Solidarity chairman Lech Walesa freed 1982 Event U.S. General Dozier freed from Red Brigade of Padua Italy 1981 Event Argentina ex-president Isabel Peron freed 1981 Event 52 Americans held hostage in Iran for 444 days are freed 1980 Event American hostage Richard I Queen freed by Iran 1979 Event 3 Puerto Rican nationalists who attempted to kill Truman are freed 1979 Event Algerian ex-president Ben Bella freed 1978 Event Dutch War criminal Pieter Menten freed 1978 Event War criminal Pieter Menten freed 1977 Event Frenchman Francois Claustre freed, after 33 months as hostage in Chad 1976 Event Patty Hearst is freed on $15 million bail 1975 Event Kidnapped AKZO director Herrema freed in Ireland 1974 Event Johnson Grigsby freed after 66 years in jail 1974 Event Italian Red Brigade officer Mario Sossi freed 1972 Event German mass murderers "Three of Breda" freed 1972 Event West-Pakistani sheik Mujib ur-Rahman freed 1971 Event John Sinclair (sentence: 10 yrs, sold 2 marijuana joints) is freed 1970 Event French author Regis Debray freed in Bolivia 1970 Event RAF-leader Andreas Baader freed after serving 2 years in West Berlin 1970 Event Greek composer Mikis Theordorakis freed 1968 Event Portuguese socialist Mario Soares freed 1966 Event Dr. Sam Sheppard freed after 9 years in jail, by a jury 1965 Death Alan Freed, DJ (Big Beat), dies at 42 1961 Event Jomo Kenyatta freed in Kenya 1961 Event Moise Tsjombe freed from prison in Congo 1960 Death Isadore Freed, composer, dies at 60 1960 Event Alan Freed and eight other DJ accused of taking radio payola 1960 Event Trotsky's murderer Jacques Mornard (Ramon Mercader), freed in Mexico 1959 Event WABC fires Alan Freed over payola scandal 1958 Event Alan Freed's Christmas Rock and Roll Spectacular opens 1958 Event Alan Freed joins WABC (New York City) radio 1958 Event WINS suspends Alan Freed for causing a riot in Boston, he quits 1957 Event Alan Freed hosts "Rock n' Roll Show" 1st prime-time network rock show 1956 Event Polish communist Gomulka freed from prison 1956 Event German war criminals Hinrichsen/Ruhl/Siebens/Viebahn freed 1954 Event Alan Freed leaves Cleveland to New York City for WINS radio 1954 Event WINS New York City begins playing rock n roll with Alan Freed Show 1952 Event Alan Freed presents Moondog Coronation Ball at old Cleveland Arena, 25,000 attend 1st rock and roll concert ever 1951 Event Alfred Krupp and 28 other German war criminals freed 1951 Event German general F Christian freed early from Dutch prison 1946 Birthday Roger Freed, baseball player 1945 Event Concentration camp Munchen-Allag freed 1945 Event Epe freed (by corporal G van Aken) 1945 Event Arnhem/Zwolle freed from nazis 1945 Event Coevorden freed from nazis 1945 Event Almelo Netherlands freed 1945 Event Hengelo freed from nazi control by Canadian army 1945 Event Manila freed from Japanese 1945 Event Warsaw freed by Soviet army 1944 Event Surprise attack on House of Keeping Axe, 29 prisoners freed 1944 Event Zeeuws and Flanders freed 1944 Event Tholen Island freed 1944 Event Hertogenbosch and Tilburg freed from nazi occupation 1944 Event Riga Latvia freed 1944 Event Gulpen, Meerssen and Maastricht freed 1944 Event Noorbeek and Mheer freed 1944 Event Sammellager Drancy freed 1944 Event Slomp Resistance fighter (Frits de Zwerver) freed from Arnhem prison 1944 Event Gandhi freed from prison 1943 Event Corsica freed by Free French 1939 Event Al Capone freed from Alcatraz jail 1939 Event U.S. worker's union leader Tom Mooney freed (jailed since 1916) 1934 Event Josip Broz (Tito) freed from jail 1927 Event Sea battle at Navarino (Greece freed of Ottoman occupation) 1924 Event Adolf Hitler freed from jail early 1922 Birthday Alan Freed, Penn, DJ, accepted payola/introduced term "rock-n-roll" 1919 Birthday Bert Freed, New York City, actor, Rufe-Shane 1900 Event Last 2000 British prisoners in Nooitgedagt South Africa freed 1900 Birthday Isadore Freed, composer 1894 Birthday Arthur Freed, American Producer 1848 Event Slaves freed in Danish West Indies (now U.S. Virgin Islands) 1833 Event Britain abolishes slavery in colonies; 700,000 slaves freed 1824 Event Freed American slaves forms country of Liberia 1793 Event Slaves in French colony of St. Domingue (Haiti) freed 1783 Birthday Simon Bolivar, freed 6 Latin American republics from Spanish rule 1678 Event Earl of Shaftesbury freed out of London Tower 1550 Event English Edward Seymour duke of Somerset, freed 1526 Event Parliament of Spiers: Lutheran monarchy freed of their belief 1526 Event French king Francois I freed from Spain 1227 Event Ferrand of Portugal freed from the Louvre
