Members of a right-wing Lebanese militia massacre 1500-3000 people in two Beirut-area refugee camps. The killings took over three days in the Palestinian refugee camps of Sabra and Shatila and were led by the Lebanese Christian Phalangist militia.

An earthquake measuring 7.7 on the Richter Scale rocks the city of Tabas in Iran. More than 11,000 people were killed during the natural disaster.

Malaysia is created. The Federation of Malaya united with Sabah, Sarawak, and Singapore to create Malaysia. Singapore left the arrangement two years later.

A bomb explodes on Wall Street, New York killing 38 people. The Wall Street Bombing, as the incident is known, was the deadliest such act on American soil to that date. It is still not known who was responsible for the bombing.

General Motors Corporation is founded in Flint, Michigan by William C. Durant and Charles Stewart Mott. The company, also known as GM, was one of the world's largest manufacturers of cars and trucks. Most notably, the company manufactured Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Pontiac, and Hummer brand cars.