| 1914
|
Southern Iraq invaded by Britain, replacing
Ottoman hegemony
|
| 1917
|
Baghdad falls to British troops
|
| 1920
|
Unrest spreads in southern Iraq; Britain attempts to suppress
it.
|
| 1922
|
October 10
An Alliance with Britain is signed.
|
| 1925
|
The League of Nations attaches Mosul to the State of Iraq,
envisaging 25 years as a formative state and Kurdish autonomy.
|
| 1930
|
Anglo-Iraq treaty declares a two-year plan towards an
independent Iraqi state.
|
1932
|
October 3
Iraq is declared an independent kingdom,
with King Faisal at its head.
Iraq joins the League of Nations.
|
| 1933
|
Faisal dies, is succeeded by his son, Ghazi.
|
| 1936
|
A treaty of non-aggression is signed with Saudi Arabia;
moves towards Pan-Arabism grow.
|
| 1939
|
King Ghazi dies; his son is only aged 3.
|
| 1941
|
More anti-British unrest. A pro-British government is
formed.
|
| 1943-46
|
The Soviet Union backs Kurdish unrest.
|
| 1953
|
Direct parliamentary elections are held. King Faisal the
Second assumes the throne.
|
| 1954
|
The US tries to increase influence in Iraq, which leads
to political instability.
|
| 1955
|
The Baghdad Pact, a military-security agreement, comprises
initially Iraq and Turkey; later Britain, Pakistan and
Iran.
|
| 1958
|
February 12
Creation of a Federation between Jordan
and Iraq, called the Arab Union of Jordan and Iraq, with
a common Prime Minister.
|
|
|
July 14
Military coup, led by General Karim Kassem,
killing the King, the Crown Prince and the Prime Minister
("1958 Revolution").
|
|
|
July 15
The Arab Union with Jordan is dissolved
by Iraq; Iraq works for closer relations with the United
Arab Republic, established by Egypt and Syria, earlier
the same year.
|
| 1959
|
Iraq withdraws from the Baghdad Pact.
|
| 1963
|
February 8
Kassem is overthrown by a group of officers,
mainly from the Ba'ath Party. Abdul Salam Arif becomes
the new President.
|
| 1966
|
April 13
President Arif dies, and is succeeded
by his brother, Abdul Rahman Arif.
|
| 1968
|
July 17
A coup overthrows Arif and Ahmed Hassan
al-Bakr becomes the new President. Iraq moves away from
the West, towards improved relations with the Soviet Union.
|
| 1971
|
Thousands of Faily Kurds deported to Iran; the beginning
of massive deportations with the aim if "arabizing"
Iraq. First of two attempts to assassinate Kurdish leader,
Mullah Mustapha Barzani.
|
| 1972
|
Nationalization of the oil industry begins. Thousands
of Kurdish and Turkoman families expelled to Iran.
|
| 1974
|
In March
, fights break out between government forces
and Kurdish groups, who allegedly received aid from Iran.
Kurdish cities, like Zakho and Qalaat Diza, are razed
to the ground, and hundreds of thousands of Kurds flee,
disappear, or are deported between 1974-1977; thousands
are killed.
|
| 1979
|
In June/July
, President Bakr is stripped of all
positions and put under house arrest. Saddam Hussein becomes
new President and Chief of Staff, inter alia. Saddam acts
against Shiites, declares a Syrian plot.
|
| 1980
|
September 22
Saddam tears up 1975 Algiers Accord
and launches war against Iran, bombing and invading the
country. He buys arms from the West, which backs him against
Khomeini's Iran for eight years.
|
| 1981
|
Iraq's French-built Osiraq nuclear reactor in Baghdad
bombed by Israel, to severe criticism by the West and
others.
|
| 1983
|
Iraq first uses chemical warfare against Iran.
|
| 1987
|
Poisonous gas attacks against Kurdish rebel areas, also
thallium attacks in Kurdish towns of Mardin and Diyarbakir.
|
| 1988
|
March 16
Gas used against Halabja Kurds.
|
|
|
August 20
Cease-fire with Iran is obtained.
|
| 1990
|
On August 2
, Iraq invades and occupies Kuwait.
The UN demands a withdrawal by January 15, 1991.
|
|
|
August 6
The UN imposes heavy sanctions on Iraq.
|
| 1991
|
January 16
The US-lead invasion, Operation Desert
Storm, begins.
|
|
|
March 3
A cease-fire is agreed.
|
|
|
April, Kurds and Shiites flee.
|
| 1993
|
New US military action in Iraq.
|
| 1999
|
February Russia signs a deal with Iraq on upgrading the
country's MiG jet fighters.
|
| 2002
|
November 8
UN Security Council passed Resolution
#1441. The resolution demanded that Iraq surrender all
weapons of mass destruction and warning that there would
be ‘serious consequences’, if they failed
to comply.
|
| 2002
|
November 27
UN inspectors re-enter Iraq.
|
|
|
December 7
Iraq produced a 12,000 page declaration
of its weapons – including chemical, nuclear, biological
and missile programs, a day before the deadline - without
offering any new information.
|
| 2003
|
January 27
The UN weapons inspectors report to
the Security Council on unsatisfactory progress.
|
|
|
February 10
US Secretary of State Colin Powell
put the US case to the Security Council; France, Russia,
China dispute it as circumstantial. The US has moved most
of its air, land and sea forces into operative positions
close to Iraq, with forces from the UK and Australia,
and over-flight permission from other countries.
|
|
|
February 14
UN weapons inspectors make "final"
report to Security Council.
|