The North Atlantic Treaty was signed in Washington, establishing the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
A court judge in Paris ruled that Victor Kravchenko had been libeled by the Communist weekly Les Lettres Françaises when it published a series of articles claiming that his best-selling book about life in the Soviet Union, I Chose Freedom, had been ghostwritten by American agents and was full of lies. Kravchenko was awarded 150,000 francs (about $500 US) in damages although this would later be drastically reduced on appeal.[6]
OnBudget Day in the United Kingdom, Chancellor of the Exchequer Sir Stafford Cripps surprisingly increased taxes by £35 million instead of cutting them as was widely expected.[9] Despite a projected net invisible income of £100 million in 1948, Cripps said that it was "quite impossible to reduce taxation as long as the defence and social services were produced on the present scale."[10]
County council elections in London resulted in a heavy defeat for the Labour Party, which lost the majority it had held for 15 years. The results were seen as a rejection of the Cripps austerity budget.[11][12]
The Soviet Union vetoed South Korea's application for admission to the United Nations.[13]
Three-year old Kathy Fiscus died after falling into a well in San Marino, California. The attempted rescue was broadcast live on KTLA, marking a watershed event in live television coverage.
Italian Foreign Minister Carlo Sforza asked the United Nations to return Italy's prewar African colonies, promising that Italy would prepare them for independence at the earliest possible date.[18]
The Soviet Union agreed to give Albania equipment and materials on credit to compensate for the loss of trade with Yugoslavia.[20]
Pravda accused the West of sending intelligence agents to Mount Ararat near the Turkish-Soviet border posing as archaeologists hunting for Noah's Ark.[21]
The Ministries Trial ended in Nuremberg fifteen months after it began, making it the longest of the subsequent Nuremberg Trials and the last one to end. Two defendants were acquitted but the other nineteen were found guilty of at least one charge and given prison sentences ranging from three years including time served to 25 years' imprisonment.[22]
By a vote of 43-6, the UN General Assembly approved a resolution asking the Big Five powers not to use their veto in cases involving requests for UN membership, peaceful settlement of international disputes or appointment of inquiry commissions.[23]
The Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Detroit Red Wings 3-1 to win the Stanley Cup of hockey in a four-game sweep. It was the Leafs' third consecutive Stanley Cup and the eighth in franchise history.
The Chinese Communists gave the Nationalist government until April 20 to sign surrender terms. The consequences of refusal were not stated, but it was obviously a threat to invade southern China.[26]
The Nationalist Chinese government turned down the Chinese peace ultimatum as tantamount to unconditional surrender, but asked for a ceasefire and further negotiations.[20]
New York Governor Thomas E. Dewey vetoed a controversial bill designed to outlaw the sale of comic books with objectionable content, saying the language of the legislation was overly vague and sweeping to the point of being unenforceable.[28][29]
US Defense Secretary Louis A. Johnson ordered the military to assign qualified Negroes "to any type of position vacancy in organizations or overhead installations without regard to race."[32]
A few minutes before midnight, the US Senate voted 57-13 in favor of a housing and slum clearance bill that planned to erect 810,000 public housing units by 1955.[33]
By a vote of 34-6, the United Nations Ad Hoc Political Committee adopted a Bolivian resolution expressing deep concern at allegations that Hungary and Bulgaria had violated human rights in the recent trials of churchmen.[34]
Before a dinner audience of 2,300 people at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York, Israeli President Chaim Weizmann reiterated Israel's refusal to permit internationalization of Jerusalem but agreed to allow international control over holy places in the city.[37]
The Soviet Union seriously stepped up efforts to jam Voice of America broadcasts into the USSR, with at least 100 long-distance skywave and 250 local groundwave jammers devoted to this purpose.[38]
Seven years of candy rationing ended in Britain.[39] However, demand outstripped supply to such a degree that sweets would be rationed again just four months later and not be de-rationed for good until 1953.[40]
By a vote of 39-6, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution holding that the USSR's refusal to allow Russian wives to join their husbands abroad was a violation of the UN charter.[41]
The Soviet Union offered to end the Berlin Blockade if the Western powers would set a date for a Big Four foreign ministers' conference on Germany.[42] The offer was accepted that same day, but on the condition that no secret strings were attached.[43]
The United States Air Force released an official report on flying saucers to the public, reviewing in detail many reports of unidentified flying objects. The report considered several possibilities, including Martian visitors, but discounted that theory because it was "hard to believe that any technically established race would come here, flaunt its ability in mysterious ways over the years, but each time simply go away without ever establishing contact." The report concluded: "The 'saucers' are not a joke. Neither are they a cause for alarm to the population. Many of the incidents already have answers, Meteors, Balloons, Falling stars. Birds in flight. Testing devices, etc. Some of them still end in question marks. It is the mission of the AMC Technical Intelligence Division's Project 'Saucer' to supply the periods."[48][49]
The first Canadian Film Awards ceremony was held in Ottawa. The Loon's Necklace won the first award for Film of the Year.
The worst rail disaster in the history of South Africa took place in Orlando, Soweto when a triple train collision killed 74 people and injured more than 90 others. The accident was attributed to a faulty block signal system.[51]
