WHAT ALL HAPPENED FEBRUARY TO OCTOBER 2003
Find out what all happened February to October 2003

An Ilyushin Il-76 military aircraft crashes near Kerman, Iran, killing 275. (19. February 2003)

The People's Republic of China begins filling the reservoir behind the Three Gorges Dam. (1. June 2003)

The Bengali Hindus declares the independence of the Republic of Bangabhumi from Bangladesh. (4. February 2003)

The 70-metre Eupatoria Planetary Radar sends a METI message (Cosmic Call 2) to 5 stars: Hip 4872, HD 245409, 55 Cancri (HD 75732), HD 10307 and 47 Ursae Majoris (HD 95128). The messages will arrive to these stars in 2036, 2040, 2044 and 2049 respectively. (6. July 2003)

Maldives civil unrest: the death of prisoner Hassan Evan Naseem sparks a day of rioting in Malé. (20. September 2003)

The Cedar Fire, the second-largest fire in California history, kills 15 people, consumes 250,000 acres (1,000 km2), and destroys 2,200 homes around San Diego. (26. October 2003)

In Haifa, 17 Israeli civilians are killed by a Hamas suicide bomb in the Haifa bus 37 massacre. (5. March 2003)

Widescale power blackout in the northeast United States and Canada. (14. August 2003)

A magnitude-8.0 earthquake strikes just offshore Hokkaidō, Japan. (25. September 2003)

France and Belgium break the NATO procedure of silent approval concerning the timing of protective measures for Turkey in case of a possible war with Iraq. (10. February 2003)

Europe launches its first voyage to another planet, Mars. The European Space Agency's Mars Express probe launches from the Baikonur space center in Kazakhstan. (2. June 2003)

Yuri Malenchenko becomes the first person to marry in space. (10. August 2003)

Delta Goodrem diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma. (8. July 2003)

The Arab League votes 21-1 in favor of a resolution demanding the immediate and unconditional removal of U.S. and British soldiers from Iraq. (24. March 2003)

An earthquake hits northern Algeria, killing more than 2,000 people. (21. May 2003)

The Tli Cho land claims agreement is signed between the Dogrib First Nations and the Canadian federal government in Rae-Edzo (now called Behchoko). (25. August 2003)

Mahathir bin Mohamad resigns as Prime Minister of Malaysia and is replaced by Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, marking an end to Mahathir's 22 years in power. (31. October 2003)

The first six-party talks, involving South and North Korea, the United States, China, Japan and Russia, convene to find a peaceful resolution to the security concerns as a result of the North Korean nuclear weapons program. (27. August 2003)

NATO takes over command of the peacekeeping force in Afghanistan, marking its first major operation outside Europe in its 54-year-history. (11. August 2003)

2003 invasion of Iraq: In the early hours of the morning, the United States and three other countries (the UK, Australia and Poland) begin military operations in Iraq. (20. March 2003)