February 2003
2003 :
January -
February -
March -
April -
May -
June -
July -
August -
September -
October -
November -
December
A timeline of events in the news for
February,
2003.
February 28, 2003
\n*Iraq crisis of 2003:
Iraq begins the process of destroying Al Samoud two missiles on
March 1. Hans Blix, U.N. chief weapons inspector said "It is a very significant piece of real disarmament". However, the spokesman of the White House, Ari Fleischer declared that the Iraq commitment to destroy these missiles is a fraud that President
George W. Bush had predicted, and indicated that the United States wanted a total and complete disarmament of Iraq. He also repeated that if the United Nations did not act to disarm Baghdad, the United States would lead a coalition of voluntary countries to disarm
Saddam Hussein.\n*
Canada's prime minister
Jean Chrétien indicates that he believes that
regime change is a dangerous goal for an invasion of Iraq, and that disarmament only should be the goal of international pressure.
[1]\n*It is reported that, citing "national interest" as a reason, the British government under
Margaret Thatcher contributed approximately £1bn of taxpayer money to
Iraq under
Saddam Hussein in the
1980s. Most of this money went into military infrastructure built by British companies such as
BAe Systems.
[1]\n*The new
Austrian government, again headed by Federal Chancellor
Wolfgang Schüssel, is sworn in by Federal President
Thomas Klestil. After more than three months of negotiations following the general elections of
November 24, 2002, Schüssel (
Austrian People's Party) decided to continue the coalition with the right-of-centre
Austrian Freedom Party begun in early
2000. Although any future influence on federal politics by
Jörg Haider was averted, one of the new members of the government is Ursula Haubner, Haider's sister.\n*
Darren Flutie,
Canadian Football's all-time leader in receptions, retires.\n*The
Czech Republic finally chooses a new
President, former
Prime Minister Václav Klaus. The county had been without a President after three attempts at choosing a replacement for former President
Václav Havel.\n*The
United States 9th
Circuit Court, based in
San Francisco, California, reaffirmed its ruling that the words "Under God" in the
Pledge of Allegiance are unconstitutional. It is expected that the
Bush administration will appeal to the
Supreme Court.\n*The
United States government backtracked on its pledge to send American combat troops to the
Philippines in order to track down
Islamic terrorists in that nation. Philippine opponents of the plan threatened to
impeach President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, if she had allowed foreign troops on Philippine soil in contradiction to the Philippine constitution.
February 27, 2003
\n*Ariel Sharon presents the new politcally
right-wing Israeli government. Part of his coalition are Sharon's
Likud bloc, the
National Religious Party, the
National Union and
Tommy Lapid's secular
Shinui party. \n*
Spanish Prime Minister
José María Aznar personally asks
United States President
George W. Bush to silence
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, indicating that Rumsfeld's numerous public remarks on
European countries'
Iraq policies are generally viewed as inflammatory and overwhelmingly counterproductive within the European
diplomatic community. Aznar indicated a preference for
Secretary of State Colin Powell.
[1]\n*Career diplomat John Brady Kiesling resigns from the U.S. Foreign Service with a sharp public rebuke for the Bush administration's foreign policy, asking "Has
oderint dum metuant really become our motto?" and "Is the Russia of the
late Romanovs really our model, a selfish, superstitious empire thrashing toward self-destruction in the name of a doomed status quo?"
Full text\n*
Fred Rogers, the host of
Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, dies of stomach cancer in his Pittsburgh home at the age of 74.\n*An internal investigation by the
Washington, D.C police department indicates that hundreds of people arrested for failure to obey a police order to disperse at Pershing Park on
September 27,
2002 during protests against the
World Bank and the
International Monetary Fund were never actually ordered to disperse before being arrested. Washington police chief Charles Ramsey was unapologetic, indicating that the actions of the police were necessary to protect the city.
[1]\n*
Iraq crisis of 2003: Regarding the
disarmament of Iraq, the chief weapons inspector
Hans Blix, says "The results in terms of disarmament have been very limited so far."\n*
Rowan Williams is enthroned as
Archbishop of Canterbury.\n*
U.S. presidential election, 2004:
Senator Bob Graham of
Florida announces his candidacy for the
Democratic Pary nomination of
President.\n*
Rauf Denktash, chief of the
Turkish Cypriots, rejected the latest version of a
United Nations plan to reunite
Cyprus.\n*
Elie Wiesel,
Nobel Peace Prize winner and
Holocaust survivor, announced his support to the
United States and
United Kingdom campaign against
Iraq.
February 26, 2003
- Daniel Libeskind's design is announced as the winner and future occupant of the former World Trade Center site. The design includes an office building and a Wedge of Light which will honor the victims of the terrorist attacks by shutting down its lights between 8:46AM and 10:28AM EST every September 11. It will also use the WTC's foundations.[1]\n* North Korea nuclear weapons program: Officials from the United States state that North Korea reactivated a reactor at its main nuclear complex. [1]\n* David Ricci, 22, is prosecuted by the United States Department of Justice for "conspiring to import, market and sell circumvention devices known as modification (or 'mod') chips in violation of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act." In a plea bargain, the DoJ takes control of the Internet news and discussion site Isonews.com, which is used as a database of warez releases (without links to the actual content).\n* US plan to invade Iraq: Hans Blix stated that Iraq still had not made a "fundamental decision" to disarm, despite recent signs of increased cooperation. Specifically, Iraq refused to destroy it's al-Samoud 2 long range missiles - a weapon system that was in violation of the UN Security Council's resolutions and the US treaty with Iraq. These missiles are deployed and mobile. Also, an R-400 aerial bomb was found that could possibly contain biological agents. Given this find, the UN Inspectors have requested access to the Al-Aziziyah weapons range to verify that all 155 R-400 bombs can be accounted for and proven destroyed.\n* Gerorge Bush commits publicly to a post-invasion democracy in Iraq, says it will be "an example" to other nations in Arabia\n* The House of Commons saw the largest rebellion by MPs from any governing party in Britain for at least 100 years. 122 MPs from the ruling Labour party were among 199 from all parties who voted to add the phrase " [This House] finds the case for military action against Iraq as yet unproven" to a government motion. The motion itself endorsed UN Security Council Resolution 1441 and supported " ...the Government's continuing efforts in the UN to disarm Iraq of its weapons of mass destruction".\n* Saddam Hussein, in an interview with Dan Rather, rules out exile as an option. He calls for dialogue with United States president George W. Bush, and suggests that the two should engage in a televised debate.\n*Dr. Sami Al-Arian was terminated from his teaching position at the University of South Florida. USF President Judy Genshaft indicated that Dr. Al-Arian's non-academic activities created a conflict of interest with the University, and also cited items from Al-Arian's 50 count indictment. A representative from the American Association of University Professors indicated that the AAUP does not feel that due process was followed in Al-Arian's case, and that the organization will likely formally censure USF at its June meeting. [1], [1]
February 25, 2003
\n*US plan to invade Iraq: The
United States,
Britain and
Spain present to the
UN Security Council a much-anticipated second resolution stating that Iraq "has failed to take the final opportunity" to disarm, but does not include deadlines or an explicit threat of military force. Meanwhile,
France,
Germany, and
Russia offer a counter-proposal calling for peaceful disarmament through further inspections.\n* Both major parties of
Kurdistan, an autonomous region in Northern
Iraq, vow to fight
Turkish troops if they enter
Kurdistan to capture
Mosul or interfere in Kurdish self-rule. Between them the two parties can mobilize up to 80,000 guerillas - most likely no match for the modern Turkish army, but a severe blow to the unity of U.S. allies on the Northern front expected in the
U.S. plan to invade Iraq.\n*
Roh Moo-hyun becomes the new president of
South Korea.\n*
North Korea fires test missiles into the
Sea of Japan.\n*
Toshihiko Fukui, former Bank of Japan Deputy Governor, is named as a new chief of
Bank of Japan.\n*Four former executives of Qwest Communications International are criminally charged with fradulently booking $33,000,000 in revenue during
2001. The
Securities and Exchange Commission also files a civil suit against 7 former (including the 4 criminally charged) and 1 current Qwest executives, alleging fradulent
accounting practices in violation of SEC rules.
[1]\n*
NASA reports that the space probe
Pioneer 10 finally ceased its transmissions from deep space, after more than thirty years of a mission which was originally intended to last less than two.
February 24, 2003
\n*A magnitude 6.8
earthquake strikes
China's remote western region of
Xinjiang at 10:03 AM local time (0203
UTC) near the mountainous border with
Kyrgyzstan. At least 266 are killed, more than 4,000 are injured, and over 1,000 buildings, including housing and schools, collapse.\n*
U.S. plan to invade Iraq: General
Colin Powell states at a meeting in
Beijing that "It is time to take action. The evidence is clear ... We are reaching that point where serious consequences must flow." His speech appears to imply that military action is likely to follow within three weeks, based on previous
Pentagon briefings.\n* Reports of the results of a study of VaxGen's experimental
AIDS vaccine show little effect on the spread of
AIDS in the overall experimental group. However, there are possible signs of partial resistance to
HIV infection in the subgroup of subjects of
African and
Asian ethnic origin.\n* The major Netherlands-based food concern
Ahold announces that financial malversations in a US daughter firm lead to an unanticipated loss of 500 million dollars.\n*In
Athens, Greece, senior
U.S diplomat Brady Kiesling resigned in protest at the
Bush administration's policy on
Iraq.
February 22, 2003
\n* Jesica Santillan, who was made critically ill after receiving donor organs of the wrong
blood type in a medical accident during a
heart-lung transplant, is taken off
life support after being declared
brain dead after a second heart-lung transplant operation.\n*In
Memphis, Tennessee,
Mike Tyson beats fringe contender
Clifford Etienne 49 seconds into round one of a
boxing match. In an undercard bout, controversial former
skater Tonya Harding loses a four round decision in her
women's professional boxing debut.
February 21, 2003
\n*Michael Jordan makes
NBA history when he scores 43 points for the
Washington Wizards versus the
New Jersey Nets, becoming the first player over 40 years old ever to score 40 or more points in a game, and leading the Wizards to a 89-86 win.
February 20, 2003
\n* The Station nightclub fire: A fire started by
pyrotechnics set-off by
Great White, a
rock band playing a
nightclub in
West Warwick,
Kent County, Rhode Island kills at least 96 and injures nearly 200, with 35 in critical condition. Fatalities from burn injuries are expected to increase.
[1]\n*
University of South Florida computer engineering professor Dr.
Sami Al-Arian was arrested by the
FBI after he and seven others were indicted on 50
terrorism-related charges.
United States Attorney General John Ashcroft alleged at a news conference that Al-Arian is the
North American leader of the
Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
February 19, 2003
\n*A military plane carrying 302 members of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards crashed in the mountains of southeastern Iran killing all on board. The government did not go into the possible cause of the crash. The plane was en route from Zahedan, on the
Pakistan border, to Kerman, about 500 miles southeast of
Tehran.
February 18, 2003
\n*An arson attack on an
underground train in the Daegu,
South Korea claims at least 180 lives with more than 140 injured and dozens missing. Witnesses reportedly saw a man throwing a milk carton filled with a flammable substance into a train.\n*The
World Health Organization confirms that a new outbreak of the
Ebola virus in the
Republic of the Congo killed 64.
[1] finance minister
John Manley brings down a budget, the last and one of those with the most expenditures in the career of Prime Minister
Jean Chrétien. It uses money from the federal surplus to replace a portion of the amount the Liberals cut from a variety of programs during their mandate, partially funds the implementation of the Romanow report on health care, and increases military spending.\n*Hours before the first ships transporting heavy
United States military equipment to
Turkey were supposed to reach port, the Turkish government announces that it will withhold approval to dock unless the United States increases a reciprocal $6 billion foreign aid grant to $10 billion. The
Bush administration indicated that no substantial changes will be made to the proposed aid package.
[1]
February 17, 2003
\n* London congestion charging begins: Motorists must pay £5 per day to enter central London. This attempt by the
Transport for London group to reduce
traffic density and
pollution, and encourage use of
public transport is being followed closely by cities around the world.\n* In
Chicago, Illinois, a stampede at a south side nightclub kills at least 20 people.
February 15, 2003
\n* Global protests against war on Iraq: People around the world demonstrated against the planning of war against
Iraq. In
Rome one million people were on the streets, in
London one million. In
Berlin there were half a million in the largest demonstration for some decades. There were also protest marches all over France as well as in many other smaller European cities. Protests were also held in
South Africa,
Syria,
India,
Russia,
Canada and in the
USA, in around 600 cities in total.
\n
February 14, 2003
February 13, 2003
\n*Austria bars
USA military units involved in the attack on Iraq from entering into or flying over its territories without a
UN mandate to attack
Iraq.\n*
United States military officials anonymously confirm to the
Washington Post that two
Special Forces units have been operating on the ground inside
Iraq for over a month, making preliminary preparations for a large-scale invasion.
[1]\n*
U.S. Senate Democrats continue to threaten to
filibuster the candidacy of Miguel Estrada for the D.C. Circuit Court. The Democrats argue that Estrada is too conservative and not answering all of their questions. Estrada was first nominated for the position in
May 2001.\n* A
UN panel reports that
Iraq's
al-Samoud 2 missiles, disclosed by Iraq to weapons inspectors in December, have a range of 180 km (above the 150 km limit allowed by the UN), splitting opinion over whether they breach
UNSCR 1441.\n*
Motorola announces that they will release a
cell phone running the
Linux operating system. \n* At
London Gatwick Airport, British police arrest a man carrying a
hand grenade under the
Terrorism Act 2000. Two men have also been arrested at
Heathrow airport under the same legislation.
February 12, 2003
\n* The British government deploys troops around Heathrow airport after reports that
al-Qaeda agents may have smuggled surface-to-air missiles into Britain.\n* An audio tape attributed to
Osama bin Laden is released by
al-Jazeera television. It recounts the battle of
Tora Bora and urges Muslims to fight the
United States and to overthrow the
Iraq regeme of
Saddam Hussein.
February 11, 2003
\n*The 2002 nominees for the Academy Award (
Oscar) were announced to the public.
February 10, 2003
\n*France and
Belgium broke the
NATO procedure of silent approval concerning the timing of protective measures for
Turkey in case of a possible war with
Iraq.
Germany said it supports this veto. The procedure was put into operation on
February 6 by secretary general
George Robertson. In response Turkey called upon Article 4 of the NATO Treaty, which stipulates that member states must deliberate when asked to do so by another member state if it feels threatened.\n*
Muslims celebrate the Islamic festival of
Eid al-Adha. See also
Hajj.
\n
February 8, 2003
\n*Sections of a 'dossier' issued by the UK government, which purported to present the latest British intelligence about Iraq, and which had been cited by
Tony Blair and
Colin Powell as evidence for the need for war, were criticized as plagiarisms. They had been copied without permission from a number of sources including
Jane's Intelligence Review and a 12-year-old doctoral thesis of a Californian student that had been published in the US journal
Middle East Review of International Affairs. Some sentences were copied word-for-word, and spelling mistakes had been reproduced from the original articles. Downing Street responded by saying that the government had never claimed exclusive authorship and that the information was accurate.
February 7, 2003
\n*The Center for Public Interest, a United States nonprofit watchdog group, obtained a leaked draft version of
John Ashcroft's proposed
Domestic Security Enhancement Act of 2003, also known as "the Patriot Act II". If enacted, the legislation would grant the
United States government unprecedented secret internal surveillance powers and sharply curtail
judicial review of such surveillance,\n*The chief
United Nations arms inspector
Hans Blix said
Iraq appeared to be making fresh efforts to cooperate with
U.N teams hunting
weapons of mass destruction, as Washington said the "momentum is building" for
war with Iraq.\n*The
United States said it was ready for any contingency after
North Korea issued threats of pre-emptive attack and suggested it was poised to restart an
atomic reactor central to its suspected drive for nuclear arms.\n*A
car bomb at an upscale club in
Bogotá,
Colombia kills 36 and wounds 150 in the worst attack in many years.\n*
Israeli police said they had found a
suicide bomber's explosives belt hidden in a mosque in Israel, and said it was the first such discovery since the
al-Aqsa Intifada began more than two years ago.\n*President
George W. Bush ordered the government to draw up guidelines for
cyber-attacks against enemy computer networks, according to a
Washington Post report. The order is known as National Security Presidential Directive 16.\n*An
oil tanker carrying 35,000 tons of fuel oil ran aground off
Denmark but no immediate spill was reported in the area noted for its wildlife, a Danish Royal Navy spokesman said.\n*
Pakistan's most feared Islamic militant group, branded by Washington last week a foreign
terrorist group, was severely weakened by a crackdown on
extremism,
intelligence officials claimed.\n*Senior citizens groups began a call for a boycott of
British-owned
pharmaceuticals company
GlaxoSmithKline, the largest in the world, after the company announced that it would no longer sell drugs to
Canadian companies that sell drugs at steep discounts to Americans over the
Internet. The boycott would include such brands as Tums antacid, Aquafresh toothpaste, Contac cold remedy, Paxil and Flonase.\n* The last game is completed in the
FIDE Man vs Machine World Chess Championship, in which
Garry Kasparov, the highest rated human chess master, competed against the world champion computer program,
Deep Junior. The six game match was played to a 3-3 draw.
February 6, 2003
\n* In the United Kingdom, seven more arrests have been made under the
Terrorism Act 2000 in raids in the cities of
Edinburgh,
Glasgow,
London and
Manchester.
February 5, 2003
\n* At the United Nations US Secretary of State Colin Powell presents the
US government's case against the
Saddam Hussein government of
Iraq, as part of the diplomatic side of the
U.S. plan to invade Iraq. The presentation includes tape recordings, satellite photographss and other
intelligence data, and aims to prove
WMD production, evasion of
weapons inspections and a link to
Al-Qaida.\n* The
International Court of Justice orders the
United States to take "all measures necessary" to prevent the execution of three
Mexican nationals, pending its final judgment
[1]\n*
Congressman Howard Coble, of
North Carolina, chairman of the House committee overseeing
homeland security, said that the
internment of
Japanese-
Americans during
World War II was justified, and that it had been done for "their own safety." He was roundly criticized by
Asian American members of Congress and spokespeople for Asian American organizations.
\n
February 4, 2003
\n* Federal Republic of Yugoslavia renamed to
Serbia and Montenegro with a new constitution converting the federal republic to a "loose union".\n* Sheikh
Abu Hamza al-Masri was removed from his position as an agent of
Finsbury Park mosque.
BBC News Story\n*
United Kingdom parliament: MPs in the
British House of Commons have voted to reject all seven options presented for the reform of the
House of Lords.
February 3, 2003
\n*Record producer Phil Spector was arrested in relation to an investigation into the fatal shooting of a 40-year-old woman in
Los Angeles. Press reports identify the woman as the actress
Lana Clarkson.\n*Radical Muslim cleric
Abu Hamza al-Masri claims
Space Shuttle Columbia disaster is a sign from God. He says "It is a punishment from God. Muslims see it that way. It is a trinity of evil because it carried Americans, an Israeli and a Hindu, a trinity of evil against Islam." al-Masri's remarks are widely denounced by many other Muslim clerics.
Reported in a BBC News Article: Muslim cleric's shuttle outburst attacked.
February 2, 2003
\n*The term of Czech Republic President
Václav Havel ends without an elected successor to fill the position.
February 1, 2003
\n* Space Shuttle Columbia disaster: The
Space Shuttle Columbia broke apart and disintegrated over
Texas as it embarked on its final approach to a landing after its
28th space mission. All seven crew members are lost.\n* A crowded passenger train and a freight train collided head on and burst into flames in northwestern
Zimbabwe, killing 40 people and injuring about 60. Flames were still burning 14 hours after the collision.
