in Washington, D.C. September 20 – The overcrowded ferry boat Sobral Santos II capsizes in the Amazon River, Óbidos, Brazil, killing at least 300 people. September 21 – Belize, formerly British Honduras, gains its independence from the United Kingdom. September 25 – Sandra Day O'Connor takes her seat as the first female justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. September 26 The Boeing 767 airliner makes its first flight. The Sydney Tower opens to the public in Australia. September 27 – TGV high-speed rail service between Paris and Lyon, France, begins. September 27–29 – Iran–Iraq War: Iranian forces break the Siege of Abadan in Operation Samen-ol-A'emeh. October October 5 – Raoul Wallenberg becomes a posthumously honorary citizen of the United States. October 10 – The Ministry for Education of Japan issues the jōyō kanji. October 14 – Vice President Hosni Mubarak is elected President of Egypt, one week after the assassination of Anwar Sadat during a parade, by servicemen who belong to the Egyptian Islamic Jihad organization led by Khalid Islambouli and oppose his negotiations with Israel. October 16 – Gas explosions at a coal mine at Hokutan, Yūbari, Hokkaidō, Japan, kill 93 people. October 21 – Andreas Papandreou becomes Prime Minister of Greece. October 22 – The founding congress of the Nepal Workers and Peasants Organization faction led by Hareram Sharma and D. P. Singh begins. October 27 – Soviet submarine S-363 runs aground outside the Karlskrona, Sweden, military base, leading to a minor international incident. November November 1 – Antigua and Barbuda gain independence from the United Kingdom. November 9 – Slavery in Mauritania is abolished by Edict No. 81-234. November 12 – The Church of England General Synod votes to admit women to holy orders. November 22 – The Edmonton Eskimos (14-1-1) barely stave off defeat and win a record 4th consecutive Grey Cup in the Canadian Football League, at the 69th Grey Cup at Montréal's Olympic Stadium defeating the Ottawa Rough Riders (5-11-0) 26–23 in the final three seconds; after being down 20–1 at halftime. November 23 Iran–Contra affair: U.S. President Ronald Reagan signs the top secret National Security Decision Directive 17 (NSDD-17), authorizing the Central Intelligence Agency to recruit and support Contra rebels in Nicaragua. 1981 United Kingdom tornado outbreak, the largest recorded tornado outbreak in European history. November 25–26 – 1981 Seychelles coup d'état attempt: A group of mercenaries led by Mike Hoare take over