THE FOLLOWING HAS BEEN CLIPPED FROM THE GUARDIAN, UK ON OCT 2, 2004.
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| January 31 2004 Twelve people died and at least 50 were injured yesterday in two attacks by Iraqi insurgents in northern Iraq. Nine killed in bomb attack on Iraq police | ||
| January 30 2004 Condoleezza Rice, one of US president George Bush's most trusted lieutenants and a strong advocate of the invasion of Iraq, admits that the intelligence that said Iraq had WMDs may have been wrong. "What we have is evidence that there are differences between what we knew going in and what we found on the ground," she tells CBS News. Rice admits US doubts on WMD | ||
| January 28 2004 David Kay, the former head of the US weapons inspection teams in Iraq, tells a senate committee "we were almost all wrong" in believing before the war that Saddam Hussein had chemical or biological arms. We were all wrong, says ex-weapons inspector | ||
| January 19 2004 Tens of thousands of Shia Muslims demonstrate in Baghdad to demand prompt elections. 100,000 demand Iraqi elections | ||
| January 18 2004 A suicide bomber detonates a pick-up truck laden with 500kg of explosives at the main gate of the US headquarters in Iraq, killing at least 20 people and injuring more than 100. Suicide bomb at US headquarters kills 20 and injures more than 100 | ||
| January 17 2004 The number of US soldiers killed in Iraq since the invasion in March climbs to 500 when a roadside bomb killed three US soldiers and two Iraqi troops. Bomb takes US toll in Iraq war to 500 | ||
| January 9 2004 At least five people were killed and dozens more injured when a bomb exploded near a mosque in the central Iraqi town of Baquba. Five killed in Iraq mosque blast | ||
| January 6 2004 Two French nationals working in Iraq were shot and killed after their car broke down in the troubled town of Falluja, the French foreign ministry announces. French workers shot in Iraq | ||
| January 5 2004 Three American soldiers have been discharged after being found guilty of viciously beating and harassing Iraqi prisoners of war, it is revealed. US soldiers sent home for beating prisoners of war | ||
| January 1 2004 Two experienced members of the SAS were are in a crash in Baghdad SAS men killed in Baghdad crash | ||
| December 31 2003 Car bomb at a Baghdad restaurant kills eight and wounds more than 30, including three Western journalists. | ||
| December 27 2003 Attacks on government buildings and foreign troops' bases in the southern city of Kerbala using suicide car bombers, machine guns and mortars kill 19 and wound about 120. | ||
| December 23 2003 British security officials circulate stories that the former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein may have been hoodwinked into believing he possessed weapons of mass destruction; a distinguished Kurdish judge, Youssef Khoshi, is shot dead while driving in the Northern Iraqi city of Mosul. New theory for missing WMD: Saddam was fooled Judge shot dead in northern Iraq | ||
| December 19 2003 US administrator Paul Bremer reveals that he survived an assassination attempt earlier in the month when a roadside bomb exploded near his vehicle convoy. Bremer survived assassination attempt | ||
| December 18 2003 A Ministry of Defence inquiry finds that the death of the first British casualty of the war in Iraq, Sergeant Steve Roberts, could have been prevented with better body armour. Soldier's Iraq death 'avoidable' | ||
| December 16 2003 Germany and France agree to a US request to write off part of Iraq's $120bn (£68bn) debt; two divisions of Halliburton - the oil services firm formerly run by the US vice president, Dick Cheney - file for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as part of a $4.2bn (£2.5bn) plan to settle hundreds of thousands of asbestos claims. Chirac and Schröder agree to debt cuts Halliburton units file for bankruptcy | ||
| December 13 2003 Saddam Hussein, Iraq's deposed leader,is found by US forces at the bottom of a hole near his home town of Tikrit. Saddam Hussein captured | ||
| December 12 2003 A Pentagon audit finds that Halliburton overcharged the government by $61m (about £35m) for delivering petrol to Iraq; Tony Blair insists at the EU summit that it is "for the Americans to decide how to spend their own money" over Iraq reconstruction. Cheney oil firm accused of overcharging $61m in Iraq Iraq splits EU summit as Blair backs US | ||
| December 10 2003 Pentagon excludes countries that opposed the Iraq invastion from bidding for reconstruction contracts. US bans anti-war countries from Iraq deals | ||
| December 9 2003 Forty-one US troops and six Iraqi civilians are wounded in a suicide car bombing outside a barracks near the northern Iraqi city of Mosul. Barracks blast injures 41 US troops | ||
| December 8 2003 Key contract decisions postponed again as Tony Blair is drawn into row over lack of 'level playing fields' Iraq delays hand Cheney firm $1bn | ||
| December 7 2003 An Iraqi officer claims he warned British intelligence about Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction programme. Iraqi says he was source for 45-minute claim | ||
| December 4 2003 US secretary of state says alliance is united on need to play bigger role. Powell calls on Nato to send troops to Iraq | ||
| December 3 2003 The US is planning to set up a paramilitary battalion in Iraq drawn from the five main political parties to help American troops fighting a fast-spreading insurgency. Security unit to be run by Iraqi parties | ||
| December 2 2003 An American soldier is expecting to be dismissed from the army for taking a break from patrol in Baghdad to marry his Iraqi girlfriend, says his lawyer. US soldier left patrol duty to marry Iraqi | ||
| December 1 2003 Iraqi officials in Samarra challenge US military accounts of a bloody battle, accusing American soldiers of spraying fire at random on the city streets, killing several civilians. Iraqis challenge US account of battle | ||
| November 30 2003 American soldiers kill 46 Iraqis and capture eight in three repelled ambushes on US convoys in the central Iraqi city of Samarra, according to a military spokesman. Troops kill 46 in Iraq as violence spreads | ||
| November 29 2003 US troops return fire on insurgents in the central Iraqi city of Samarra after an ambush on a convoy. Seven Spanish intelligence agents, two Japanese diplomats, two US soldiers and a Colombian oil worker are also killed. | ||
| November 27 2003 George Bush makes a surprise visit to US troops in Baghdad to serve them a Thanksgiving Day dinner. | ||
| November 12 2003 A suspected car bomb on an Italian military police base in the southern town of Nassiriya kills at least 14 Italian officers and eight Iraqis. Until now, no Italian military personnel had been killed in combat in Iraq. 22 killed in Iraq blast | ||
| November 11 2003 Head of the US coalition, Paul Bremer, is summoned to Washington for high level talks amid growing unease at the lack of progress in Iraq and the mounting human and financial cost. The visit prompts speculation that the US is trying to speed up the transfer of power. Bremer flies to US for crisis talks | ||
| November 7 2003 Six US soldiers are killed when their Black Hawk helicopter crashes in central Iraq, apparently after being hit by a rocket-propelled grenade. It is the third time in two weeks that Iraqi fighters have brought down a US military helicopter. Six US soldiers die in helicopter attack | ||
| November 6 2003 Several US papers report that, in the weeks before its fall, Iraq's Ba'athist regime made a series of increasingly desperate peace offers to Washington, promising to hold elections and even allow US troops to search for banned weapons. Saddam's desperate offers to stave off war | ||
| November 4 2003 The US president, George Bush, wins Senate approval for $87.5bn (£52bn) in funds to continue the US-led occupation of Iraq. Bush wins $87bn to keep up fight in Iraq | ||
| November 2 2003 Sixteen US soldiers are killed after their Chinook helicopter is struck six miles south of Falluja in the deadliest attack against the occupying powers since the US declared major combat to be over. 16 die in attack on US helicopter | ||
| October 27 2003 Thirty-five people are killed in attacks in Baghdad on its bloodiest day since the fall of Saddam. A suicide bomber rams an explosive-laden ambulance into barriers outside the Red Cross headquarters and three police stations are attacked. 35 killed and 224 injured in Baghdad bomb attacks | ||
| October 26 2003 Iraqi resistance fighters fire a rocket salvo at the Rashid hotel in Baghdad, narrowly missing Paul Wolfowitz, the US deputy defence secretary. An American colonel is killed and 18 people wounded. US hawk escapes Baghdad rocket attack | ||
| October 24 2003 Last-minute pledges from Arab states and Japan gave a major boost to Iraq's reconstruction funds as governments opposed to the US-led invasion began to soften their positions. Arabs and Japan pledge reconstruction cash | ||
| October 23 2003 Major security failures at the United Nations headquarters in Baghdad were partially responsible for the large number of deaths and casualties caused by the truck bomb there in August, according to a report on the incident. Security lapses blamed for UN bomb | ||
| October 19 2003 Two American soldiers are killed and one wounded in an ambush outside the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk. Troops die as Saddam urges jihad | ||
| October 17 2003 Three American soldiers and at least seven Iraqis are killed in a gun battle outside the office of a Shia cleric in the holy Iraqi city of Kerbala. Ten killed in firefight as tension grows in Iraq | ||
| October 14 2003 A suicide car bomber exploded his vehicle outside the Turkish embassy, killing the driver and a bystander, and wounding at least 13. | ||
| October 12 2003 A suicide car bombing near the Baghdad Hotel leaves eight people dead and at least 32 wounded. Another day in Iraq, another bomb - 84 dates that tell tale of mayhem | ||
| October 9 2003 A suicide bomber drives his Oldsmobile into a police station in Baghdad's Sadr City district, killing himself and nine other people. Eight die in suicide bomb attack Two US soldiers killed in Baghdad ambush | ||
| October 2 2003 The man in charge of a hunt for Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction admits that no weapon stocks had been found, and that all a three-month search, costing some £180m ($300m), had uncovered was a single vial containing a possible strain of biological agent. 'There are no shining weapons' | ||
| September 25 2003 Aqila al-Hashmi, the most prominent of three women on Iraq's governing council, dies of wounds sustained in an ambush. A planted bomb damages a hotel housing the offices of NBC News, killing a Somali guard. Iraq council member dies after shooting | ||
| September 21 2003 Officials on Iraq's governing council warn that they are increasingly at risk from attack, a day after one of their number was shot and badly wounded in an assassination attempt. Attack on Iraq council member spurs tighter security call | ||
| September 19 2003 Saddam Hussein's former defence minister surrenders to US troops in northern Iraq following weeks of negotiations, says a Kurdish mediator. Former Iraqi defence minister surrenders | ||
| September 18 2003 The former UN chief weapons inspector, Hans Blix, says he believes Iraq destroyed most of its weapons of mass destruction 10 years ago. Iraq dumped WMDs years ago, says Blix Blix accuses UK and US of spin over Iraq | ||
| September 17 2003 An audio tape message purported to have been recorded by the deposed Iraqi leader, Saddam Hussein, is aired by Arabic television channel al-Arabiya. New 'Saddam tape' issued | ||
| September 14 2003 Colin Powell, US secretary of state, meets Iraqi politicians in Baghdad as an American soldier is killed and three wounded in an attack near Falluja, where Iraqi police died in a "friendly fire" incident. Powell flies in to Iraqi anger at deaths | ||
| September 13 2003 President George Bush's approval ratings have slumped to a lower point than they were in the week of the terrorist attacks two years ago, according to the latest Gallup poll. Support for Bush and war slumps | ||
| September 12 2003 The US military reignites tension in one of Iraq's most troubled towns when its troops mistakenly shoot dead eight policemen who were chasing a car full of suspected bandits. US killing of eight Iraqi police fuels anger in troubled town | ||
| September 10 2003 A suicide car bomber attacks the US intelligence base in the northern Iraqi city of Irbil, killing three people and injuring 41. Three killed in Irbil suicide bombing | ||
| September 8 2003 Britain will send 1,000 more troops to bolster its security operation in Iraq, says defence secretary Geoff Hoon. UK to send 1,000 more troops to Iraq | ||
| September 7 2003 President George Bush seekst to reassure jittery Americans about their country's involvement in Iraq, dismissing doubts by arguing that it remains a central front in the war on terror. Fear of $80bn Iraq bill moves Bush to address nation | ||
| September 5 2003 A Briton and an American working in Iraq are shot and killed in separate incidents, fuelling concerns that guerrillas launching attacks on the military occupiers may be widening their targets. British charity worker killed in Iraq gun attack | ||
| September 3 2003 Resolution is defeat for hawks in White House. Bush asks UN for help in Iraq | ||
| September 2 2003 Tens of thousands of mourners turn the funeral service for the murdered Iraqi cleric Ayatollah Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim into a show of defiance against the US-led occupation. Shia mourners demand end to US occupation | ||
| September 1 2003 Two Arabic television channels broadcast what they say is a recorded message from Saddam Hussein, denying responsibility for last week's devastating car bomb in Najaf. Tape said to be by Saddam denies role in Najaf bombing Iraqi quits council in security protest | ||
| August 29 2003 A leading Shia cleric is among the many people killed in a car bomb attack outside a mosque in the Iraqi town of Najaf. Huge bomb blast in Najaf Spiritual and political leader of the Iraqi Shias | ||
| August 26 2003 Humanitarian aid agencies say they are evacuating their workers from Iraq in the latest sign that the security situation is slipping out of the US-British coalition's control. Aid agencies evacuate their workers | ||
| August 24 2003 Three Iraqi security guards are killed when a bomb explodes at the office of a senior cleric in Najaf in central Iraq. Bomb kills three in Najaf | ||
| August 23 2003 The British and American-led mission in Iraq suffers a new blow when three British soldiers are killed and one seriously wounded by unidentified attackers in the southern city of Basra. British soldiers gunned down in Basra ambush | ||
| August 22 2003 America and Britain will face a challenge to persuade the international community to send troops to Iraq unless they agree to share power, says the UN secretary general, Kofi Annan. Annan throws doubt on international help in Iraq | ||
| August 22 2003 A previously unknown group claims responsibility for the bomb attack on the UN compound in Baghdad that killed at least 23 people, and threatened further attacks. Mystery group says it planted Baghdad bomb | ||
| August 21 2003 The former high-ranking Iraqi official known as 'Chemical Ali' is captured and taken into custody, according to US central command. 'Chemical Ali' captured by US forces | ||
| August 20 2003 The official message from the UN breathed defiance - the terrorist attack that had killed more than 20 of its staff would not stop the rebuilding of Iraq. Bloodied but unbowed, UN vows to stay to finish the job of rebuilding Iraq | ||
| August 19 2003 A truck bomb strikes at the heart of the international humanitarian effort in Iraq, destroying part of the UN headquarters in Baghdad and killing at least 20 people, including the head of the UN mission. Iraq: the agony goes on | ||
| August 17 2003 US attempts to restore Iraq's shaky infrastructure suffer a serious setback when guerrillas blow up a vital oil pipeline in the north for the second time. A hole is also blown in a water main in Baghdad. Iraq hit by fresh attack on oil pipeline | ||
| August 17 2003 A Reuters TV cameraman is shot dead by US troops after they mistake his camera for a grenade launcher. Cameraman shot dead by US troops | ||
| August 15 2003 Saboteurs blow up a crude oil export pipeline in northern Iraq, starting a huge oil fire, halting all oil exports to Turkey and starving an economy in chaos of much-needed income to rebuild. Terror blast cuts off Iraq's oil pipeline to Turkey | ||
| August 14 2003 A British soldier is killed, and two others injured, in an attack on an army ambulance travelling through the outskirts of Basra. British soldier killed in Basra | ||
| August 10 2003 US officials say they are braced for further large-scale terrorist attacks in Iraq after reports from intelligence sources that hundreds of Islamic militants, who escaped across the border to Iran during the war, may have got back into the country. Be prepared for terror attacks, says Bremer | ||
| August 9 2003 British troops in riot gear fight to restore calm in the southern Iraqi city of Basra as dire shortages of fuel and power spark disturbances. British troops battle to control mobs in Basra | ||
| August 8 2003 US snipers shoot dead two Iraqis and injure at least two others they claim were selling weapons at a street market in Saddam Hussein's home town, Tikrit. US shoots two dead at start of softer rule | ||
| August 8 2003 Six Iraqis, including a father and three of his children, are killed in Baghdad by US troops who open fire on them as they hurry home to beat the curfew. Civilians killed by US troops | ||
| August 7 2003 Att least 11 people are killed in a car bomb explosion outside the Jordanian embassy in Baghdad, sparking fears that guerrilla fighters may be turning their attention towards so-called soft targets. Jordanian embassy blast kills 11 in Baghdad | ||
| August 2 2003 With their coffins wrapped in the Iraqi flag, but guarded by the troops of their mortal enemy, the bodies of Uday and Qusay Hussein are laid to rest in a dusty cemetery in the village where their father was born. Tribe gathers to bury Saddam's sons | ||
| July 31 2003 Around 10,000 young men have come forward to join an "Islamic army" in the holy city of Najaf, according to Muqtada al-Sadr, the fiery cleric who is trying to become the unchallengeable leader of Shia opposition. Anti-US cleric rallies recruits for Islamic army | ||
| July 29 2003 A tape recording purported to be by Saddam Hussein declares that his two sons, Uday and Qusay, died as martyrs for Iraq, and pledges that the US will be defeated. Saddam praises dead sons | ||
| July 28 2003 Tony Blair and other British ministers are accused of crimes against humanity in prosecuting the war against Iraq in a case lodged with the international criminal court by Greek lawyers. Greeks accuse Blair of war crimes in Iraq | ||
| July 27 2003 Iraqi guerrillas kill a US soldier in a grenade attack south of Baghdad, bringing the American death toll in 24 hours to five. Iraqis kill five more US soldiers | ||
| July 25 2003 Tokyo approves its biggest deployment of troops since 1945 as Washington casts around for help shouldering the post-Saddam burden. End of an era as Japan enters Iraq | ||
| July 24 2003 Three US soldiers are killed when their convoy is ambushed near the northern Iraqi town of Mosul. Three US soldiers die in Iraq convoy ambush | ||
| July 23 2003 Photographs of Saddam Hussein's sons laid out in plastic body bags are released by the US in a bid to convince sceptical Iraqis that neither will follow their father into power. US releases photos of Saddam sons 'A grisly exhibition of death' | ||
| July 22 2003 Uday and Qusay, Saddam Hussein's sons and his most feared lieutenants, are killed in a gun battle at their hideout in the northern Iraqi town of Mosul. Dead: the sons of Saddam Lack of safety and power worries Iraqis more than fate of Saddam's sons | ||
| July 21 2003 The United Nations secretary-general gives his stamp of approval to Iraq's governing council, selected by the US-led occupation forces in Iraq. Annan backs Iraq's US-picked leaders | ||
| July 17 2003 An audio tape purported to be of Saddam Hussein, and apparently timed to coincide with the anniversary of the 1968 Ba'athist revolution, is played on Arab television station al-Arabiya. 'New Saddam tape' condemns Iraqi governing council | ||
| July 16 2003 Guerrilla attacks in western Iraq claim the lives of a pro-US mayor and his son, as well as a US soldier. Pro-US mayor killed by Iraqi guerrillas | ||
| July 14 2003 The foreign secretary, Jack Straw, says the CIA believed British intelligence reports that Iraq was attempting to obtain uranium from Africa. One US soldier is killed and six injured in an attack on a convoy of military vehicles in Baghdad. Straw defends Iraq uranium claim US soldier killed in Baghdad | ||
| July 13 2003 Iraq's governing council, which is to prepare the way to free elections, has its first meeting. Ruling council in symbolic first step | ||
| July 11 2003 The CIA director, George Tenet, apologises for not preventing George Bush from making use of the British-sourced uranium claims in his state of the union address. CIA chief takes rap for Bush's false war claim | ||
| July 8 2003 Tony Blair tells a committee of MPs that his evidence for Iraq's attempts to secure uranium from Niger did not come from forged documents but "separate intelligence". White House spokesman Ari Fleischer says the report on the uranium "did not not turn out to be accurate". | ||
| July 7 2003 Downing Street's communications director, Alastair Campbell, is cleared by MPs of exerting "improper influence" on the drafting of the government's intelligence-led dossier on Iraq but the Commons foreign affairs committee attacks the government over its handling of the affair. Dossier report clears Campbell | ||
| July 6 2003 The BBC's governors issue a pugilistic statement demanding that Downing Street retract its claims of bias against the corporation's journalism. Former US diplomat Joseph Wilson says it was "highly doubtful" that Niger sold uranium to Iraq. Governors back BBC in row over Iraq dossier | ||
| July 5 2003 A British freelance TV cameraman is shot and killed by an Iraqi gunman in the centre of Baghdad. Reporter killed covering his first war | ||
| July 4 2003 A tape recording purportedly of Saddam Hussein is broadcast urging guerrilla fighters in Iraq to continue their resistance to the US-led occupation of the country. 'Saddam' tape urges guerrillas to fight on | ||
| July 2 2003 Jack Straw claims that the political and security situation in Iraq is improving, in spite of attacks on US soldiers and sabotage of electricity and oil supplies. Straw denies allies are in quagmire | ||
| July 1 2003 A huge explosion destroys a mosque in central Iraq, killing at least five Iraqis and injuring four others, according to witnesses and officials. Five killed in Fallujah mosque blast | ||
| June 28 2003 Andrew Gilligan, the reporter at the centre of claims that Number 10 deliberately 'sexed up' evidence against Saddam Hussein, announces he is ready to sue a serving Minister. BBC set to sue Minister over Iraq 'lies' claim | ||
| June 26 2003 One US solider is killed and another injured when their vehicle is ambushed on a road leading to Baghdad airport. An Iraqi passer-by also dies in the attack. | ||
| June 24 2003 Six British soldiers are killed and eight injured in two attacks in the south eastern town of Majar al-Kabir. Six British soldiers dead, eight hurt as a fragile peace fractures | ||
| June 22 2003 George Bush addresses increasing national disquiet over the number of US servicemen killed in Iraq. More than a quarter of US casualties have occurred since the president declared an end to major military combat on May 1. Bush forced to defend rising US death toll | ||
| June 19 2003 One American soldier is killed and two are injured when the military ambulance they are travelling in is struck by a rocket-propelled grenade. US soldier killed in Iraq grenade attack | ||
| June 17 2003 Scores of American troops mount new searches through Baghdad after a sniper shot dead a US solider on patrol. Sniper adds to US toll in Iraq | ||
| June 15 2003 Hundreds of American soldiers sweep through Falluja in a further, apparently more precise, operation against guerrilla resistance. Policing Iraqis tests US troops | ||
| June 13 2003 Almost 100 Iraqis are killed in two of the bloodiest attacks since the fall of Baghdad. A independent research group meanwhile says that as many as 10,000 civilian may have died in the war. 100 Iraqis killed in violent clashes War may have killed 10,000 civilians, researchers say | ||
| June 12 2003 US troops questioning about 400 suspects after the biggest military operation in Iraq since the regime collapsed two months ago. US moves in on Iraq's resistance | ||
| June 10 2003 The all-party parliamentary intelligence and security committee serves notice that it expects ministers to cooperate fully with its inquiry into Iraq's banned weapons programme. Hans Blix, the UN chief weapons inspector, meanwhile lashes out at the "bastards" in who he says tried to undermine him throughout the three years he has held his high-profile post. MPs chastise No 10 over 'dodgy dossier' Blix: I was smeared by the Pentagon | ||
| June 8 2003 David Blunkett becomes the most senior minister to admit publicly that Downing Street was wrong to publish the "dodgy dossier" on the military threat posed by Saddam Hussein. Blunkett admits weapons error | ||
| June 6 2003 Hans Blix hits out at the quality of intelligence given to him by the United States and Britain on Iraq's alleged chemical and biological weapons programmes. "Only in three of those cases did we find anything at all, and in none of these cases was there any weapons of mass destruction, and that shook me a bit, I must say," he says. Blix criticises weapons intelligence | ||
| June 4 2003 Tony Blair rejects calls for an independent judicial inquiry into the case for the Iraq war. Blair rules out judicial inquiry | ||
| June 2 2003 Tony Blair faces mounting pressure from across the House of Commons to hold an independent inquiry into the Iraq war after Clare Short levelled the incendiary allegation at the prime minister that he had lied to the cabinet. Short: Blair lied to cabinet and made secret war pact with US | ||
| May 30 2003 Military police question a British soldier about photographs of alleged "torture" of Iraqi prisoners of war, including one gagged and bound, and dangling in netting from a fork-lift truck. Soldier arrested over Iraqi torture photos | ||
| May 29 2003 Tony Blair's Iraq crisis deepens as ministers accused of distorting the findings of the chief UN weaponsinspector to support Britain's claims about Saddam weapons programme. Ministers 'distorted' UN weapons report | ||
| May 27 2003 Two US soldiers are killed and nine injured in an attack on an army checkpoint in the Iraqi town of Falluja. Two US soldiers killed | ||
| May 22 2003 The UN security council votes 14-0 to lift sanctions on Iraq and hand temporary control of the country to the US and Britain. Syria boycotts the vote. UN mandate oils wheels for reconstruction of Iraq | ||
| May 15 2003 Foreign secretary, Jack Straw, concedes that hard evidence of weapons of mass destruction might never be found in Iraq. He says it is "not crucially important" to find them because the evidence of wrongdoing was overwhelming. Straw retreats on finding banned weapons | ||
| May 14 2003 Human rights workers accuse the US military of failing to protect and properly excavate the largest mass grave discovered in Iraq. More than 3,000 bodies were dug up in a field near the ancient Babylonian city of Hilla, south of Baghdad. US accused of failing to protect mass grave | ||
| May 13 2003 A mass grave is found near Baghdad. It could hold the remains of up t0 15,000 people, missing since a Shiite uprising in 1991. British-trained microbiologist Dr Rihab Taha, known as "Dr Germ" for her role in Iraq's biological weapons programme, surrenders to coalition forces. Iraq's 'Dr Germ' surrenders to coalition forces | ||
| May 12 2003 The new head of the US-led interim administration arrives in Baghdad as the foreign secretary, Jack Straw, concedes that progress towards restoring order in the Iraqi capital was "not satisfactory". New US chief takes control in Baghdad | ||
| May 11 2003 Iraqi agriculture is on the brink of collapse, with fears that many of its 24.5 million people will go hungry this summer, according to a confidential report being studied by the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation. Iraq in danger of starvation, says UN | ||
| May 9 2003 America and Britain lay out their blueprint for postwar Iraq in a draft resolution to the United Nations security council, naming themselves as "occupying powers" and giving them control of the country's oil revenues. Blueprint gives coalition control of oil | ||
| May 8 2003 Behind the scenes horse-trading at the United Nations increases as the US/Uk and Spain prepare to present a draft resolution on May 9 calling for the lifting of sanctions on Iraq and the phasing out of the oil- for-food programme. Horse-trading on sanctions begins at UN | ||
| May 7 2003 The US military says it has found a vehicle which appears to be a mobile bio-arms lab. The US president, George Bush, names Paul Bremer, a former ambassador and head of America's counter-terrorism office as Iraq's new civil administrator. US says it has found mobile bio-arms lab Former diplomat to take charge in Iraq | ||
| May 6 2003 Qusay Hussein, one of Saddam's sons fled Iraq with $1bn (£620m) in cash hours before the US-led war on the country began, it is claimed. Qusay Hussein 'fled with $1bn in cash' | ||
| May 5 2003 The Pentagon announces that Huda Ammash, the woman dubbed "Mrs Anthrax" for her alleged role in clandestine Iraqi biological weapons programmes, is in US custody. Anthrax weapons suspect held by US | ||
| May 4 2003 The army investigates the reported fatal shooting of a 14-year-old Iraqi boy in Basra. A British army spokesman says initial inquiries pointed to an "unfortunate accident". Boy, 14, killed in Basra army incident | ||
| May 3 2003 The Bush administration moves to heal a damaging rift with London, following claims from a senior Washington official that Saddam Hussein may have got rid of most of his weapons of mass destruction before the war. Such claims are highly awkward for Tony Blair, who remains adamant that banned weapons will be found and prove the coalition was justified in going to war. US denies rift over weapons search | ||
| May 2 2003 US troops yesterday took custody of Saddam Hussein's minister of military industrialisation, Abdul Tawab Mullah Hwaish, who is suspected of playing a central role in developing Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. One of Saddam's vice-presidents, Taha Mohieddin Ma'rouf, is also arrested bringing the total number of regime members under arrest to 17, out of 55 being sought. Arms supremo's arrest raises hope of weapon finds | ||
| May 1 2003 Seven US soldiers are wounded when grenades are lobbed into their base in the Iraqi city of Falluja, in an apparent revenge attack after troops killed at least 15 civilians during protests. Falluja grenade attack injures US soldiers | ||
| April 30 2003 US troops open fire on Iraqi civilians for the second time as an angry crowd in Falluja protested over an earlier shooting US troops 'shoot dead two more Iraqis' | ||
| April 28 2003 US troops fire on a group of Iraqi demonstrators near Baghdad, killing at least 13 people and wounding 75 others. US troops 'kill 13 Iraqi protesters' | ||
| April 26 2003 US forces say they have captured former Iraqi spy chief Farouk Hijazi near the Syrian border. Mr Hijazi, who most recently served as Iraq's ambassador to Tunisia, was once a senior official in the Mukhabarat, Saddam's feared intelligence service. US officials claimed he met Osama bin Laden in 1998. | ||
| April 25 2003 Tariq Aziz, the former Iraqi deputy prime minister, surrenders to US forces in Baghdad. US seizes Saddam's deputy | ||
| April 24 2003 The UN secretary general, Kofi Annan, calls on the US-led coalition to respect international law as the "occupying power" in Iraq, drawing immediate ire from US officials who resist the label "occupier". Garner plays down Shia demonstrations | ||
| April 22 2003 The UN chief weapons inspector, Hans Blix, condemns British and American handling of the hunt for any possible weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Blix attacks 'shaky' intelligence on weapons | ||
| April 21 2003 Jay Garner, the retired former US general, arrives in Baghdad to take up the post of Iraq's postwar civil administrator. Jay Garner arrives in Baghdad US central command announces that Iraq's scientific research minister, Abd al-Khaliq Abd al-Ghafar, was captured on Saturday (April 19). | ||
| April 20 2003 Saddam Hussein's son-in-law, Jamal Mustafa Abdallah Sultan al-Tikriti, has surrendered to the Iraqi National Congress in Baghdad after leaving Syria, a London-based spokesman claims. Saddam son-in-law 'surrenders' | ||
| April 19 2003 US central command says that Iraqi police in Baghdad yesterday arrested the former finance minister, Hikmat Mizban Ibrahim al-Azzawi, who also served as a deputy prime minister. US holds 'eight of diamonds' | ||
| April 18 2003 Tens of thousands of Iraqis demonstrate against the US occupation of Iraq in central Baghdad. Thousands demonstrate against US Tony Blair reveals that he was ready to quit his job as prime minister if he had lost a crucial Commons vote over the war with Iraq. The head of the Iraqi National Congress, Ahmad Chalabi, who some in Washington want as a new Iraqi leader, makes his first public appearance in Baghdad. Iraqi Kurds near Mosul hand over to the US Samir Abul Aziz al-Najim, a senior Ba'ath party figure and number 24 on America's list of 55 most wanted Iraqis, according to US officials. | ||
| April 17 2003 Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti, a half-brother of Saddam Hussein who is believed to have extensive knowledge of the toppled Iraqi regime's inner workings, is captured, says US Brigadier General Vincent Brooks. US forces capture Saddam's half-brother The UK-based aid agency Oxfam flies out vital water supplies and sanitation to Iraq, as Sir Richard Branson's airline, Virgin Atlantic, announces that it is to begin flying relief supplies to Iraq, and plans to reintroduce scheduled services to Baghdad. | ||
| April 16 2003 US officials trumpet the capture in Iraq of Palestinian guerrilla Abu Abbas, who masterminded the 1985 hijacking of an Italian cruise ship, as evidence of a link between Saddam and terrorism. American marines raid the Baghdad home of a scientist wanted for work on Saddam's banned weapons programme and, elsewhere, claim to have found a terrorist training camp. George Bush urges the UN to lift the economic sanctions that have been imposed on Iraq for 13 years, saying that the country had been liberated. | ||
| April 15 2003 The first political talks involving different Iraqi groups take place at an airbase outside Nassiriyia despite a boycott from the main Shia Muslim group. At least seven Iraqis are killed when US troops try to restore order at a demonstration in Mosul. | ||
| April 14 2003 US marines enter the centre of Tikrit. There is a firefight in Baghdad but otherwise some order appears to be returning to the city - there are US foot patrols, police volunteer to return to work and some shops open. Saddam's final stronghold crumbles | ||
| April 13 2003 US marines enter the outskirts of Tikrit, Saddam Hussein's home town, encountering some resistance. Television crews report heavy damage to Iraqi army positions. Seven US troops listed as missing are found alive on the road to the city from Baghdad and the US confirms that Saddam's half-brother, Watban al-Tikriti, is captured apparently trying to reach Syria. The final fortress crumbles | ||
| April 12 2003 General Amer Hammoudi al-Saadi, Iraq's chief scientist, gives himself up to US forces in Baghdad. Looting and lawlessness continue in Baghdad and Iraq's major cities. Saddam's weapons chief surrenders to US forces | ||
| April 11 2003 The entire Iraqi army's 5th Corps surrenders as US special forces and Kurdish fighters enter Mosul. US paratroopers arrive in Kirkuk so Kurdish forces can withdraw. The US publishes a pack of 55 playing cards identifying its most wanted suspects in Iraq. Mosul descends into chaos as even museum is looted | ||
| April 10 2003 Kirkuk falls to Kurdish fighters. Turkey, fearing the Kurds will seize the city's oil wealth and make a bid for independence, sends in military observers at the invitation of the US. Looting and lawlessness continue in Baghdad. Aid agencies warn of a humanitarian disaster if US and British forces do not stabilise the situation. Sliding towards anarchy | ||
| April 9 2003 US marines help crowds to topple a giant statue of Saddam Hussein in the heart of Baghdad. Widespread looting breaks out unhindered in the Iraqi capital. Fighting is continuing in some areas of the city, but many Iraqis welcome the advancing US marines with waving and cheering. The US vice-president, Dick Cheney, says the Iraqi regime is collapsing, and that military progress shows criticism of the war was misguided. But he warns that there is "still a lot to do" and says he cannot predict when the conflict will end. US central command says that Iraq has reached the "tipping point" as citizens realise that Saddam's reign has ended. | ||
| April 8 2003 US forces, operating from a presidential palace in Baghdad, continue their show of strength in the city centre, targeting government buildings. Three journalists are killed by coalition fire. Two die after a shell hits the main hotel in which the media are staying in the city. Pentagon officials say they cannot confirm whether the Iraqi president, Saddam Hussein, was killed in the bombing of a Baghdad suburb. However, Iraqi command orders are still being issued to key elements of the regime's military. US marines seize the Rashid military airfield, 5km from the centre of Baghdad. The US president, George Bush, says that he sees a "vital" role for the UN in establishing an interim authority made up of Iraqis. | ||
| April 7 2003 US forces make their most far-reaching move into Baghdad, capturing two palaces, including Saddam Hussein's new presidential palace, which is on the west of the city by the Tigris river. Marines are pictured relaxing in its opulence. Resistance is moderate and US commanders later confirm that the forces will not pull back. In the south, British forces say that while they still expect some resistance they now have control of Basra. British troops walked into the city centre and did not fire a single shot; there was no sign of militia loyal to President Saddam. There was no euphoria from locals but some people welcomed the troops, although others were concerns at rampant looting by Iraqis. Reports claim US forces have found suspected chemical weapons outside Baghdad but officials are cautious about commenting before they are conclusively identified after previous claims of finding such weapons proved inaccurate. Three houses in Baghdad's up-market al-Mansour area are destroyed in what neighbours said was an allied missile attack. US officials say early on April 8 that they had intelligence President Saddam and his sons were meeting there. Two bodies have been recovered, but the toll may be as high as 14, rescue workers said. | ||
| April 6 2003 Forces loyal to Saddam Hussein appear to lose control of much of Basra after columns of British troops pour into Iraq's second city, destroying its Ba'ath party headquarters. Three British soldiers were killed in action. US forces isolate Baghdad and claim to have closed off the major roads into the city, which is hit by air strikes and artillery shells. The city is braced for a looming battle. The BBC reporter John Simpson witnesses a "friendly fire" attack in Northern Iraq in which his translator, and up to 17 Americans and Kurds are killed. US troops battle alongside more than 1,000 Kurdish peshmerga fighters to flush Iraqi soldiers out of the northern Iraqi town of Ain Sifni. | ||
| April 5 2003 US armour makes a brief foray into a Baghdad suburb in an attempt at displaying military might with tanks crossing into the city limits for the first time. British forces in the south say they have struck the home of Ali Hassan al-Majid, the Iraqi general who ordered the poison gas attack that killed thousands of Kurds in 1988. | ||
| April 4 2003 A figure purported to be the Iraqi leader, Saddam Hussein, going on a walkabout in Baghdad is shown by Iraqi TV. There is debate about whether it is really him. Two Iraqis are held over the "execution" of two British soldiers. Ministry of Defence confirms they are being questioned "in accordance with the Geneva convention". Bombing of Baghdad continues with Saddam Hussein's palaces targeted. British forces continue making offensives in and around Basra. Hundreds of US soldiers are flown in to reinforce Baghdad airport. It emerges the US president, George Bush, and the prime minister, Tony Blair, will meet in Belfast on Monday April 7 for talks. | ||
| April 3 2003 US troops from the 3rd Infantry Division reach Saddam international aiport, 10 miles from Baghdad's city centre, after heavy overnight bombardment. About 320 Iraqi soldiers were killed in the advance by some 1,000 US troops, US military sources say. As many as 80 Iraqis, some of them civilians, are reported to have been killed at the village of Furat near the airport in what witnesses described as a rocket attack. The attack on the airport comes hours after a power cut in Baghdad, the first since the war began, prompting speculation that a 'blackout bomb' had been dropped to allow special forces to infiltrate the city. In the south, British troops make their deepest incursion yet into Basra, "poking a toe" within four miles of the centre. The Ministry of Defence admits to having used Israeli-made manufactured cluster shells around Basra as well as cluster bombs dropped from RAF Harrier jets. The Arabic satellite television service al-Jazeera says it would no longer cover the war inside government-controlled Iraq in protest at the ban imposed on two of its reporters. | ||
| April 2 2003 US officials announce they have rescued American prisoner of war Private Jessica Lynch, 19, of Palestine, West Virginia. US forces 'surround and secure' the southern holy city of Kerbala. The US claims Iraqis are firing on its troops from inside the Ali mosque in Najaf, an important Shia Muslim shrine, but American soldiers are not returning fire. Further north, US troops continue their advance on Baghdad. CentComm claims they are now 19 miles from the capital and inside the 'red line' within which it is feared Saddam's regime may use chemical weapons on troops. A Republican Guard division to the south-east of the city has been 'destroyed' and a key bridge over the Tigris river has been secured, the US military says. | ||
| April 1 2003 In the second civilian shooting in 24 hours by US marines, one man is killed and another injured after troops fire on their car as it approaches a roadblock. Saudi Arabia urges Saddam to make a war-ending 'sacrifice' and quit, while Saddam Hussein's aides deny US reports that some of the president's family have fled abroad. A presidential palace, Iraq's Olympic headquarters and an airforce officers' club are targeted in the latest round of air raids on Baghdad. Iraqi civilians killed at checkpoints Hour-by-hour timeline: day 13 of war | ||
| March 31 2003 The US military launches an investigation after troops kill seven women and children at a checkpoint in southern Iraq. US marines launch a dawn raid on the southern Iraqi town of Shatra, north of Nassiriya, after a tip-off that General Ali Hassan al-Majid, the Iraqi general known as 'Chemical Ali', may be using it as a base to orchestrate guerrilla attacks. A wave of bombardments begins on positions south of Baghdad, where Saddam Hussein's elite troops are believed to be guarding the route to the city, and at least one US marine is reported killed in fighting around 70 miles south of Baghdad in clashes in and around the town of Imam Aiyub. Baghdad ablaze after raids Hour-by-hour timeline: day 12 of war | ||
| March 30 2003 General Richard Myers apologises for the deaths of five British soldiers under 'friendly fire' and says it will be his quest to ensure it does not happen again. Around 600 commandos launch the largest single British assault of the war to secure a suburb to the south-east of Basra. Iraqi tanks are destroyed and 300 prisoners taken. But a Royal Marine on patrol in the Basra canal is killed in an attack on his landing craft. Donald Rumsfeld, the US defence secretary, accuses Syria of being engaged in 'hostile acts' by delivering military equipment to Iraq. Damascus accuses Mr Rumsfeld of trying to divert attention from 'the acts committed by US troops against civilians'. Claims of splits in the US between the defence secretary and army chiefs over tactics intensify. General Tommy Franks, head of US Central Command, denies any pause in the drive towards Baghdad. War tactics split is denied by US Hour-by-hour timeline: day 11 of war | ||
| March 29 2003 Four US servicemen are killed by a suicide bomber at a checkpoint near Najaf - the first such attack but a tactic that Iraqi vice president Taha Yassin Ramadan says will become 'routine military policy'. He also vows to launch suicide attacks in Britain and America and says the bomber was a non commissioned officer in the Iraqi army. The bodies of the first British servicemen to die in the war arrive at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire. All 10 died in accidents - eight in a helicopter crash and two RAF pilots shot down by a US patriot missile. A spokesman for the prime minister says the commander of Iraqi air defence forces in Baghdad has been replaced after Iraqi missiles went astray and hit the capital. Day the war came home Hour-by-hour timeline: day ten of war | ||
| March 28 2003 Aid ship the Sir Galahad finally docks at the port of Umm Qasr, carrying over 200 tonnes of food, medicine and blankets. The British military claims a group of around 200 civilians fleeing Basra are fired upon by Iraqi mortars. Shelling continues over Baghdad. The sister of one of the two soldiers whose corpses were shown on Iraqi television accuses the government of lying about how they died. The prime minister's spokesman says it looks as though they were executed but she insists they died in combat because that is what the British army told her. Iraq militia 'fired on fleeing citizens' Hour-by-hour timeline: day nine of war | ||
| March 27 2003 US forces advancing towards Baghdad are held up by fierce fighting in the city of Samawah against 1,500 Iraqi paramilitaries guarding a bridge across the Euphrates river, which they eventually capture. Iraq says 350 civilians have died in air raids since the conflict began. British tanks destroy 14 Iraqi tanks outside Basra. The US military airlifts troops and equipment into northern Iraq after about 1,000 paratroopers secure a key airfield. | ||
| March 26 2003 Iraq says that a US missile has struck a busy Baghdad market, killing 'many' civilians. Overnight strikes aimed at Baghdad's national television station fail to take the state channel off the air. Britain and the US say aid is now on its way to Iraq, as the Sir Galahad supply ship sets sail for the now 'secure' port of Umm Qasr. The MoD reveals that two British tank crew were killed on March 24 in another 'friendly fire' incident, bringing the UK death toll to 20. | ||
| March 25 2003 US planes heavily bomb Republican Guard encampments south of Baghdad in a bid to soften up the city's defences, amid fears that Saddam may unleash chemical weapons when troops invade the city. Further south in Najaf, a fierce battle between US and Iraqi forces may have killed as many as 700 enemy soldiers. Britsh forces bombard the southern city of Basra in an apparent reversal of an earlier decision not to take the city, amid reports of a popular uprising and an increasingly critical humanitarian situation.British marines finally secure the town and harbour of Umm Qasr, fuelling hopes that humanitarian aid supply lines will soon be established. Two British soldiers - the UK's first combat fatalities of the war - are confirmed to have been killed in action in the south, bringing the British death toll up to 18, with two other soldiers missing since March 23. An opinion poll shows British public support for the war has surged to 54%. | ||
| March 24 2003 In day five of the war on Iraq, coalition forces staying back to secure the push to Baghdad, in key towns such as Nassiriya and Basra, continue to suffer casualties in the face of stronger than expected resistance from Iraqi soldiers. Two British soldiers are confirmed as missing in southern Iraq while the US confirms one of its Apache helicopters has been shot down. It is revealed that a US missile hit a Syrian passenger bus near the Iraqi border yesterday, killing five people. The Red Cross warns of an humanitarian emergency as water supplies begin to run out in Basra. As B-52s begin heavy bombardments on Iraqi Republican Guard bunkers encircling Baghdad, US and British forces - some now just 50 miles south of the city - begin to dig in in preparation for a major assault on the capital. | ||
| March 23 2003 American B-52 bombers continue their heavy raids on Baghdad: Iraq says last night's raids killed 106 civilians. An RAF Tornado is accidentally shot down by a US Patriot missile, killing its two crewmen. Fierce fighting continues in the southern port town of Umm Qasr and five US soldiers are captured by Iraqi forces near Nassiriya. TV images of them, and the bodies of five other US soldiers, are later broadcast by al-Jazeera TV, in what the US brands as a contravention of the Geneva convention. ITN confirms that its reporter Terry Lloyd was killed by 'friendly fire'. American prisoners paraded by Iraqis Hour-by-hour timeline: day four of war | ||
| March 22 2003 Bombing continues in Baghdad. Two British Sea King helicopters collide in another apparent accident, killing all seven crew. US troops attempting to take the southern city of Nassiriya encounter stiff resistance. A US officer is killed in a grenade attack by one of his own men on an army base in Kuwait. ITN reporter Terry Lloyd and two of his news crew are reported missing en route to Basra. There are conflicting reports over whether Turkish troops have crossed their border into northern Iraq. More than 200,000 people take to the streets in London as anti-war protests are held in cities around the world. | ||
| March 21 2003 Parts of the port town of Umm Qasr, south of Basra, are seized by US military. To the west of Basra, British troops help US soldiers to secure oilfields from possible sabotage. Some 15 oilfields are reportedly set on fire by Iraq. Coalition forces suffer their first casualties when eight British and four American servicemen die in a helicopter accident over Kuwait. It is later revealed that a US marine died during the battle for Umm Qasr, where sporadic fighting is continuing. Bombs and missiles begin to strike Baghdad for a third successive night, in a massive scaling-up of air strikes that are designed, say the US military, to 'shock and awe' the Iraqi people into submission. Ground forces push into Iraq Hour-by-hour timeline: day two of war | ||
| March 20 2003 War begins. At around 0230 GMT, shortly after the 48-hour deadline for Saddam to quit Iraq expires, America launches its first series of air strikes on Baghdad. George Bush says the US has begun attacks against 'targets of military opportunity'. Saddam Hussein gives a televised address to the Iraqi people at around 0530 GMT, calling the attack a 'shameful crime' and vowing to win the war. China, France and Russia denounce the US-led action. At around 1805 GMT, US planes begin a heavy bombardment of military targets in central Baghdad. Later on, British marines invade the Faw peninsula in the south of the country. | ||
| March 19 2003 Government aide David Kinley confirms he has resigned, bring the total of government casualties over Iraq to nine. With 170,000 coalition troops massed on the Kuwaiti border, coalition aircraft bomb military targets in Iraq to 'soften up' the country's defences ahead of a US and British invasion. The foreign ministers of Germany, France and Russia condemn the impending military action in strong terms, saying that the use of force against Iraq has not been approved by any UN resolution. Bid to assassinate Saddam | ||
| March 18 2003 In a televised address at 0100GMT, Mr Bush gives Saddam Hussein 48 hours to leave Iraq or face invasion. During the course of the day, British government ministers John Denham and Lord Hunt resign in protest, along with four government aides. In the evening parliament holds a debate over military action in Iraq. The government's motion endorsing an attack is passed by 412 to 149, although the number of rebel Labour MPs voting for an anti-war amendment rises to 139, up from 122 three weeks ago. Bush gives Saddam and his sons 48 hours to leave Iraq | ||
| March 17 2003 With China, France and Russia opposed to an attack, the US and UK abandon hope of gaining security council support for a second resolution authorising war on Iraq. They withdraw the resolution, blaming the French veto threat. The leader of the Commons, Robin Cook, resigns in protest at the government's decision to back a war without 'international authority nor domestic support'. | ||
| March 16 2003 Speaking at a hastily-arranged summit in the Azores, Mr Bush and Mr Blair give the United Nations a 24-hour ultimatum to enforce its own demands for immediate Iraqi disarmament, or face an American- and British-led coalition that will go to war within days. Iraq: the final 24 hours | ||
| March 14 2003 The French president, Jacques Chirac, removes any lingering doubts about France's intentions on Iraq, confirming to Mr Blair in a brief phone call that France was willing to seek a compromise on disarming Saddam Hussein but would not accept any UN resolution that set an ultimatum. Chirac spells it out: no ultimatum | ||
| March 11 2003 The US defence secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, causes a poltical storm after suggesting America could attack President Saddam alone. Mr Blair later stresses Britain will fight alongside the US in any attack. US may go it alone as Blair is caught in diplomatic deadlock | ||
| March 10 2003 Britain announces 'six key tests' for Iraq to comply to if it is to avoid war, including President Saddam making a TV address admitting having weapons of mass destruction. The idea galvanises some diplomatic support, but not enough to suggest the US/UK could win a second UN resolution, effectively authorising an attack. Straw spells out key tests for Saddam | ||
| March 9 2003 Following lobbying from undecided UN security council members, the US and Britain agree to set out the precise acts of disarmament that Saddam would have to undertake by March 17 to avoid war. Meanwhile, Clare Short, the international development secretary, threatens to resign if the UN fails to pass a second resolution authorising war. A parliamentary aide to Margaret Beckett, Andy Reed, earlier resigned over the issue. Britain and US spell out steps to avoid attack | ||
| March 7 2003 Hans Blix gives another ambivalent report to the UN security council on Iraqi compliance, which is followed by a tense debate that further deepens the divide within the council. The foreign secretary, Jack Straw, proposes the UN sets an ultimatum that Iraq will be invaded unless the country demonstrates 'full, unconditional, immediate and active cooperation' by March 17. France makes a clear threat that it will veto such a resolution. Showdown as Britain sets March 17 deadline on Iraq | ||
| March 6 2003 In a nationwide television address, the US president, George Bush, indicates that war is very close. Iraq attack very close, says Bush | ||
| March 5 2003 The foreign ministers of France, Russia and Germany release a joint declaration stating that they will 'not allow' a resolution authorising military action to pass the UN security council. The hardening stance from the anti-war bloc increases the pressure on the US and Britain to compromise on their draft UN resolution. France, Russia and Germany harden stance | ||
| March 4 2003 The chancellor, Gordon Brown, makes clear his support for war by saying he is prepared to 'spend what it takes' to disarm Iraq. Mr Brown has already earmarked £1.75bn to fund a war. Brown signs blank cheque for conflict | ||
| March 3 2003 Iraq claims that six civilians were killed and 15 wounded in last night's allied raid on the port city of Basra. Meanwhile, the Russian foreign minister, Ivan Ivanov, hints, on BBC radio, that his country may use its UN veto to block a resolution authorising war. No-fly zone raids 'opening new war' | ||
| March 2 2003 It emerges that Britain and the US have been increasing their air strikes on Iraq in recent days, in an apparent bid to 'soften up' the country's defences ahead of a war. The two countries insist that there has been no change in the policy of no-fly zone bombing. Allies bomb key Iraqi targets | ||
| March 1 2003 In an unpleasant surprise for the Bush administration, the Turkish parliament narrowly rejects a plan to deploy 62,000 US troops in the country, to form a northern front in the event of war. Shock blow to Bush as Turkey snubs US troops | ||
| February 28 2003 Hans Blix's interim report to the UN is published, giving a mixed assessment of Iraqi cooperation with weapons inspectors, but hailing Saddam Hussein's commitment to comply with tomorrow's UN deadline for the destruction of Iraq's illegal Samoud 2 missiles. Report gives small comfort to the hawks and doves | ||
| February 27 2003 Saddam Hussein agrees 'in principle' to destroy his Samoud 2 missiles, discovered by weapons inspectors to break range limits set down by the UN. The US and Britain dismiss the concession as game-playing by the Iraqi leader. Saddam backs down on missiles | ||
| February 26 2003 Britain's biggest parliamentary revolt against a governing party in more than a century sees 121 Labour MPs vote against Tony Blair's war strategy at the end of an impassioned debate on Iraq. In a major blow to the prime minister, 198 MPs vote for an amendment arguing that the case for war is not yet made. Rebel vote stuns Blair | ||
| February 24 2003 Russia, France and Germany put forward a counter-proposal to America and Britain's draft resolution: a step-by-step programme for Iraqi disarmament. The Turkish cabinet strikes a deal with America to allow US troops to be deployed there for in exchange for a billion-dollar aid package, but it still has to be passed by the Turkish parliament. Meanwhile, the first consignment of Nato equipment to defend Turkey from an attack by Iraq in the event of war arrives. A triple alliance puts case for delay | ||
| February 17 2003 Amid growing domestic opposition to war, the Turkish government delays a parliamentary vote on whether to allow US troops into the country, to form a northern front during a war on Iraq. Turkey stalls vote for US troops | ||
| February 16 2003 The Nato deadlock over Turkey is broken after the organisation strikes a deal to send military hardware into the country for its defence in the event of war. France snubbed as Nato strikes Turkish deal | ||
| February 15 2003 Anti-war protesters take to the streets of London and cities around the world. Around one million people march through the British capital to hear speakers, including Jesse Jackson, address the crowds in Hyde Park, in what is the UK's biggest-ever protest. More than 50,000 gather in Glasgow. One million. And still they came | ||
| February 14 2003 Hans Blix gives his latest report on Iraqi compliance with resolution 1441 to the UN security council, surprising the members with a more upbeat assessment of the pace of Iraq's disarmament than had been expected. The report, which lists examples of Iraqi compliance with the inspectors, thus failing to provide any clear casus belli, throws into confusion British and American plans to draft a new resolution mandating military action. It severely embarrasses Colin Powell by questioning the US intelligence on Iraqi munitions that he presented to the council earlier in the month. A case for war? Yes, say US and Britain. No, say the majority | ||
| February 12 2003 The UN weapons inspectors announce they have discovered that Iraq possesses illegal missiles: its Samoud 2 rockets exceed the maximum range of 150km set down in the 1991 Gulf war ceasefire agreement. UN team finds Iraq has illegal missiles | ||
| February 11 2003 Nato's plans to defend Turkey in case of war with Iraq remain deadlocked after France, Germany and Belgium ignore the entreaties of their fellow allies to back down. Nato deadlocked as France and Germany refuse to back down | ||
| February 10 2003 France, Germany and Belgium veto a US request for Nato to make plans to protect Turkey if Saddam Hussein attacks, throwing the Atlantic alliance into one of its worst-ever crises. Nato crisis over veto on plans to defend Turkey | ||
| February 9 2003 The US reacts furiously to a Franco-German peace initiative to triple the number of arms inspectors in Iraq and back them up with surveillance flights. The Bush administration sees it as a thinly-disguised attempt to derail the US timetable for war. US fury at European peace plan | ||
| February 8 2003 Hans Blix and Mohamed El Baradei are given new documents by Iraq, and describe key talks with Iraqi officials in Baghdad as 'very substantial'. Hope as Iraq gives ground over arms | ||
| February 7 2003 Downing Street admits that much of its dossier on Iraq, released a week earlier in an attempt to reinforce the case for war, was lifted from academic sources and compiled by mid-level officials in Alastair Campbell's Downing Street communications department. Downing St admits blunder on Iraq dossier | ||
| February 6 2003 Around 100 aircraft and 7,000 RAF personnel are to be deployed in the build up for a possible war against Iraq, the defence secretary, Geoff Hoon, announces. 100 RAF jets to be deployed to Gulf | ||
| February 5 2003 Colin Powell uses satellite photographs, tapes of intercepted conversations and newly opened CIA files to make the United States case against Iraq in a determined attempt to win over international opinion. Powell raises the banner for war but the world remains divided | ||
| January 19 2003 The US offers President Saddam immunity from prosecution if his departure from Baghdad would avert war. US offers immunity to Saddam | ||
| January 18 2003 It emerges that the Saudi government is canvassing a plan to give President Saddam a last-ditch chance to go into exile if the United Nations security council passes a new resolution authorising war against Iraq, western and Arab diplomats confirm. Anti-war demonstrators take to the streets of cities from Tokyo to San Francisco to protest against the build-up of American and British military forces in the Gulf. | ||
| January 16 2003 In their first significant disovery, UN weapons inspectors find 12 warheads designed to carry cheamical weapons. The inspectors believe the warheads were not accounted for in Iraq's 12,000 page submission to the security council. Iraq weapons inspectors find empty chemical warheads | ||
| January 14 2003 The international development secretary, Clare Short, makes an impassioned appeal for countries to reach "agreement by consensus" through the UN. Short: we must aim for UN consensus | ||
| January 13 2003 In his monthly televised briefing, Tony Blair says that weapons of mass destruction will reach terrorists and that Britain could act against Iraq with the US without a second UN resolution. Mohammed el-Baradei, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), says that UN weapons inspectors would need "a few months" to finish their work in Iraq. | ||
| January 11 2003 A British naval task force leaves for the Gulf headed by the HMS Ark Royal aircraft carrier and carrying some 3,000 marines. Fleet heads for Gulf as war threat intensifies | ||
| January 9 2003 Hans Blix says UN weapons inspectors have not found any "smoking guns" in their search for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, but acknowledges that Iraq's 12,000 page weapons declaration was incomplete. Blix: no 'smoking guns' in Iraq | ||
| January 6 2003 Saddam Hussein says he is ready for war, accuses UN weapons inspectors of being spies and calls his enemies the "friends and helpers of Satan". 'War-ready' Saddam accuses UN of spying | ||
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December 31 2002 | ||
| December 30 2002 It emerges that the Reagan administration and its special Middle East envoy, Donald Rumsfeld, did little to stop Iraq developing weapons of mass destruction in the 1980s, even though they knew Saddam Hussein was using chemical weapons "almost daily" against Iran. Rumsfeld 'offered help to Saddam' | ||
| December 22 2002 Baghdad fights back in the propaganda war between Iraq, the US and Britain by inviting the CIA to enter the country and track down its alleged weapons of mass destruction. Iraq hits back with CIA offer | ||
| December 19 2002 The United States accuses Baghdad of being in "material breach" of the UN resolution after the UN's chief weapons inspector, Hans Blix, says the Iraqi arms declaration contains little new information about its weapons of mass destruction capability. January 27 is decision day for war against Iraq | ||
| December 18 2002 The foreign secretary, Jack Straw, indicates that the UK government believes Iraq has made a "material breach" of the UN resolution. Meanwhile the Ministry of Defence reveals that ships are being chartered to carry troops and heavy armour to the Gulf. Saddam lied about weapons, says Straw | ||
| December 17 2002 Colin Powell, the US secretary of state, hints that the White House will reject the Iraqi weapons declaration, saying there were problems with the 12,000-page document. Powell picks holes in Iraq's dossier | ||
| December 8 2002 Copies of the dossier are flown to the UN inspection agency in New York, the security council and the UN nuclear agency in Vienna for examination. General Amir al-Sadi, an adviser to President Saddam Hussein, admits that Iraq had come 'close' to developing a nuclear bomb but that programme had long been abandoned. | ||
| December 7 2002 Iraqi officials in Baghdad present the UN with a 12,000 page dossier disclosing Iraq's programmes for weapons of mass destruction, as demanded by UN resolution 1441. General Hasam Amin of Iraq's national monitoring directorate says the dossier shows 'that Iraq is empty of weapons of mass destruction. I reiterate Iraq has no weapons of mass destruction. This declaration has some activities that are dual-use'. The contents of the Iraqi dossier are met with widespread scepticism in Washington and London, prompting fears that Iraq is now set on a collision course with the US, which claims to have intelligence that Iraq retains banned weapons and is expected to hotly dispute Iraq's declaration. In a surprise move, Saddam Hussein uses a televised address to apologise to the people of Kuwait for invading their country in 1990. | ||
| December 4 2002 The UN security council agrees to extend the UN oil for food programme in Iraq for another six months, but concedes to US demands to review the list of goods Baghdad is barred from importing. UN extends oil for food programme | ||
| December 3 2002 In a public relations coup for Iraq, government officials cooperate fully with UN weapons inspectors when a surprise search is sprung on one of Saddam Hussein's Baghdad palaces. Iraq says it will hand the security council a declaration about weapons programmes on December 7, one day ahead of the deadline. Iraq to make early weapons declaration | ||
| December 2 2002 The British government publishes a dossier documenting human rights abuses in Iraq. It is attacked by Amnesty International for being 'opportunistic and selective'. Critics say it uses longstanding human rights abuses to achieve current military goals, and ignores US and UK support for Saddam at the time of some of the worst atrocities. Anger over Straw's dossier on Iraqi human rights Leader: All change on Iraq | ||
| November 27 2002 The weapons inspectors start inspections, visiting two sites, and thank the Iraqis for their cooperation but do not comment on findings. UN inspectors welcome Iraqi cooperation | ||
| November 22 2002 Vladimir Putin warns the US not to go it alone against Iraq, sounding a note of caution after an otherwise warm welcome to President Bush in Russia. Russia tells US to stick to UN script | ||
| November 18 2002 United Nations weapons inspectors arrive in Baghdad to re-launch the search for weapons of mass destruction. UN weapons inspectors arrive in Iraq | ||
| November 13 2002 President Saddam sends a letter to the UN secretary-general, Kofi Annan, accepting the UN resolution. Defiant Saddam accepts UN team | ||
| November 8 2002 UN security council votes unanimously to back a US-British resolution requiring Iraq to reinstate weapons inspectors after a four year absence. UN vote casts the die | ||
| October 16 2002 Iraq renews offer to UN weapons inspectors, after 'referendum' gives Saddam Hussein another seven-year term as president with 100% of the vote. | ||
| September 30 2002 UN negotiators and an Iraqi delegation meet in Vienna for three days of talks to agree terms for resuming weapons inspections. But talks leave eight presidential compounds off-limits, and US rejects inspectors' return without a new security council resolution. US rejects Iraq inspections deal | ||
| September 24 2002 Britain publishes dossier saying Iraq could produce a nuclear weapon within one or two years, if it obtains fissile material and other components from abroad. Blair: we have the evidence | ||
| September 16 2002 Iraq accepts 'unconditional' return of UN inspectors. Saddam caves in on inspectors | ||
| September 12 2002 President Bush addresses UN to put the case for war against Iraq. Bush sets the war clock ticking | ||
| August 1 2002 Iraq invites UN chief weapons inspector to Baghdad. Iraq invites UN weapons inspector to talks | ||
| July 5 2002 Talks in Vienna between the United Nations and Iraq break down without agreement. UN and Iraq fail in weapons talks | ||
| May 14 2002 UN introduces 'smart sanctions' targeted at military equipment, to replace existing sanctions. UN agrees long-awaited smart sanctions for Iraq | ||
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January 15, 2001 January 16, 2001
January 30 2002 | ||
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| December 17 1999 UN replaces Unscom with Unmovic, the 'monitoring, verification and inspection commission'; Iraq rejects the move. UN plan to ease anti-Iraq sanctions | ||
| December 16-19 1998 Operation 'Desert Fox' begins: four days of US-British air strikes against Iraqi weapons programmes. Missile blitz on Iraq | ||
| December 16 1998 UN inspection team is withdrawn, after concluding that Iraq is not cooperating fully. | ||
| November 14 1998 Iraq allows inspections to resume. | ||
| October 31 1998 Iraq suspends cooperation with UN inspectors. | ||
| February 23 1998 Iraq promises Kofi Annan unrestricted access for UN inspectors. Back from the brink | ||
| January 13-22 1998 Iraq withdraws cooperation with UN inspectors, claiming too many members are American and British; then denies UN inspectors access to presidential sites. | ||
| October 29 1997 Iraq demands that Americans on UN inspection team leave; they go temporarily, but return on November 20. | ||
| June 21 1997 UN demands Iraq allow inspection teams access to disputed sites. | ||
| March-June 1996 UN inspection teams denied access to militarily sensitive sites. | ||
| July 1995 Iraq threatens to withdraw cooperation with inspectors unless some sanctions and oil embargo are lifted by August 31. | ||
| April 14 1995 'Oil-for-food' programme begins, allowing Iraq to export oil to buy food and medicine. | ||
| June 27 1993 US conducts air strikes against Iraqi intelligence service, in retaliation for assassination plot against former president George Bush. | ||
| August 26 1992 No-fly zone established in southern Iraq. | ||
| April 10 1991 UN 'safe haven' established in northern Iraq for protection of Kurds. | ||
| April 6 1991 Iraq accepts UN resolution requiring it to end production of weapons of mass destruction and to allow monitoring by the UN special commission inspection team (Unscom). | ||
| March-April 1991 Kurdish refugees flee as Iraq bombs northern towns. The valleys of death: refugees appeal for Western intervention | ||
| March 3 1991 Iraq accepts terms of ceasefire. | ||
| February 27 1991 Kuwait is liberated after three-day ground operation. | ||
| January 16 1991 Gulf War starts. US-led coalition begins air strikes against Iraq. Allied planes bomb Iraq: Kuwait's liberation begun, says US | ||
| August 6 1990 UN imposes economic sanctions on Iraq. | ||
| August 2 1990 Iraq invades Kuwait. UN security council resolution 660 calls for full withdrawal. Superpowers unite on Iraq | ||
| August 29 1988 Iran-Iraq war ends; at least a million people are thought to have died, but neither side has achieved any significant territorial gain. | ||
| March 16 1988 Saddam Hussein's administration uses chemical weapons against Kurds at Halabja in Iraq: more than 5,000 die. | ||
| September 22 1980 Border dispute between Iran and Iraq escalates into full-scale war. Open war as Iraq is bombed | ||
| July 16 1979 Saddam Hussein becomes president of Iraq, after engineering the resignation of president Hasan al-Bakr. |