Editing 1997 (section)

===February===
* [[February 4]]
** On their way to [[Lebanon]], two Israeli troop-transport helicopters [[1997 Israeli helicopter disaster|collide]], killing all 73 on board.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-02-05-mn-25740-story.html |title=Israeli Helicopters Collide in Midair; 73 Soldiers Killed |last=Miller |first=Marjorie |date=February 5, 1997 |work=Los Angeles Times |access-date=February 2, 2018 |language=en-US |issn=0458-3035 |archive-date=September 28, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150928170426/http://articles.latimes.com/1997-02-05/news/mn-25740_1_israeli-soldiers |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Israel-remembers-73-soldiers-who-died-in-helicopter-disaster-19-years-ago-444000 |title=Israel remembers 73 soldiers who died in helicopter disaster 19 years ago |last1=Amir |first1=Noam |first2=Maariv |last2=Hashavua |date=February 5, 2016 |work=The Jerusalem Post |access-date=February 2, 2018 |archive-date=February 3, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180203064350/http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Israel-remembers-73-soldiers-who-died-in-helicopter-disaster-19-years-ago-444000 |url-status=live }}</ref>
** After at first contesting the results, [[Serbia]]n President [[Slobodan Milošević]] recognizes opposition victories in the November 1996 elections.
** A [[1997 Bojnurd earthquake|magnitude 6.5 earthquake]] strikes [[North Khorasan province]], Iran, killing 88 people and injuring 1,948.<ref name=NGDC>[[National Geophysical Data Center]] / World Data Service (NGDC/WDS): NCEI/WDS Global Significant Earthquake Database. [[NOAA]] [[National Centers for Environmental Information]]. [[doi:10.7289/V5TD9V7K]] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220310061851/https://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/hazel/view/hazards/earthquake/event-more-info/5447 |date=March 10, 2022 }}</ref>
* [[February 10]] – [[Sandline affair]]: Australian newspapers publish stories that the government of [[Papua New Guinea]] has brought mercenaries onto [[Bougainville Island]].
* [[February 13]] – ''[[STS-82]]'': Tune-up and repair work on the [[Hubble Space Telescope]] is started by [[astronaut]]s from the [[Space Shuttle Discovery|Space Shuttle ''Discovery'']].<ref>{{cite book |title=Aeronautics and Space Report of the President ... Activities |publisher=National Aeronautics and Space Council |year=1996 |page=1}}</ref>
* [[February 28]] – [[North Hollywood shootout]]: Two robbers, wearing [[kevlar]] body armor, and armed with illegally modified [[Type 56|Type 56S rifles]] with high-capacity magazines and other weapons, injure 20 police officers and civilians in a gun battle. The incident sparks debate on the appropriate firepower for United States patrol officers to have available in similar situations in the future.{{relevance inline|date=April 2019}}