Sudan

Sudan is conquered by an Ango-Egyptian force under Lord Kitchener. This forestalls any action by the French, Belgians and Italians wanting to establish their influence in the region. [6] [7]

1899:

Sudan is proclaimed a condominium under British-Egyptian administration. While maintaining the appearance of joint administration, the British Empire formulate policies, and supply most of the top administrators. The seat of the administration is at Khartoum. [6] [7]

1899-1918:

Persons claiming to be mahdies ('expected ones') appear in 1903, 1908 and 1912. They are arrested and executed. Measures are undertaken to establish or consolidate Anglo-Egyptian rule over areas in the southern Sudan inhabited by non-Muslim African tribes. [7]

In international agreements the borderlines with French Central Africa (1899), with Italian Eritrea (1898, 1902), with Abyssinia (1902) are established. The border with Uganda, a British protectorate, is delimited in 1913, and then altered in 1914 when Sudan cedes parts of the Lado Enclave to Uganda in return for a stretch of territory of northern Uganda. [7]

The infrastructure and economy are developed. Between 1900 and 1913 the state revenue grew tenfold. The main export product was Egyptian cotton, grown in the gezira south of Khartoum. [7]

In November 1914 the Ottoman Empire enters the war on the side of the Central Powers; Britain responds by deposing the Egyptian Khedive (formally an Ottoman official). In 1914, the British Government formally recognizes Egyptian independence, under Sultan (King) Fuad. These events have an immediate impact on the Sudan, as, formally, the latter was an Anglo-Egyptian Condominium. However, the British make it clear that they will not give up their hold on the Sudanese administration. [7]

The Sudanese administration long had regarded the autonomy of Darfur an obstacle; in 1916 the Sultan of Darfur declares his loyalty to the Ottoman Emperor and calls for Holy War against the British. His sultanate is quickly occupied and he is deposed (1916). The Sudan experiences a significant rise in her revenue due to rising exports and good prices. [7]

1919-1939:

Political organizations such as the White Flag League are founded which envisions an independent Sudanese nation. In 1924 demonstrations are held, after which White Flag League leader Ali Abd al-Latif is arrested. On Nov. 19th, while on a visit to Cairo, Governor-General Lee Stack is assassinated. Egypt then finds herself confronted with the ultimative demand to withdraw her officials and forces from the Sudan; whilst Egypt complies, a Sudanese battalion mutinies; the mutineers, refusing to surrender, all die fighting. The Sudan formally remains a condominium, but in 1924 de facto becomes a separate unit. Relations with Egypt, especially the question of the Nile water (on which Egypt depends) are regulated in international treaties (1929). In the aftermath of World War I, the Sudanese-Libyan border is redrawn at Sudanese expense, a British attempt to compensate Italy for Dalmatia. [7]

Irrigation and infrastructure projects are undertaken, in order to increase the grain and cotton production. Whilst the area where cotton and grain is extended, in the late 1920's and early 1930's, diseases and locusts severely damage the harvest, in addition to lower prices due to the Great Depression this causes a significant fall in state revenues. The administration, in order to reduce costs, reduces her British personnel and hires Sudanese to take their place (Sudanization). Also, salaries paid to officials are cut; a cut which affects Sudanese officials (graduates from Gordon Memorial College) more severely than their British colleagues, much to the dismay of the former. They go on strike, returning to work after the administration concedes to apply a lesser cut in their salaries. [7]

From 1934 onwards, the economic situation improves. In 1936 (Italy just had conquered Abyssinia) a treaty with Egypt is signed. Among the Sudanese educated elite, nationalism is the prevailing political view. In 1938 the Graduate's General Congress was founded (that is graduates of Gordon Memorial College); it was to become a prominent organization in the Sudanese movement for independence. [7]

1943:

Out of the Graduates' General Congress grows the Ashiqqa (reformed in 1951 as National Unionist Party), led by Isma'il Azhari, Sudan's first political party. The Ashiqq was a radical group, and the moderates formed the Ummah party, led by Sayyid Aburrahman al-Mahdi, son of the Mahdi. [8]

1947:

All of Sudan is included in a legislative council, following the entry of the southern provinces. [8]

1951:

In protest to the formation of the legislative council 4 years earlier, Egypt abrogates the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty and proclaims full Egyptian control over Sudan. [8]

1953:

12th February - The new leaders of Egypt sign an agreement with Britain granting self-government for Sudan, and the possibility of independence within 3 years. [8]

November/December - Elections for a representative parliament, where the National Unionist Party wins an overwhelming victory. [8]

1954:

The transitional period toward independence begins with inauguration of the first parliament. [6]

In the run-up to the granting of Sudan's independence, the civil service and administration are placed increasingly in Northern Sudanese hands - largely excising the Southern Sudanese from the government. The British failure to ensure equity for both the north and the south would has lasting effects. The Arab-led Khartoum government reneges on promises to southerners to create a federal system, which leads to a mutiny by Southern troops in the Equatoria Province. Feeling disenfranchised and cheated, these separatist Southerners begin an initially low-intensity civil war aimed at establishing an independent South. This war would last seventeen years, from 1955 to 1972. [6]

1st January - Sudan becomes independent, following a process where the National Unionist Party had left the line of uniting Sudan and Egypt, and begun to emphasize the need to control the southern regions. [8]

The 2 years of liberal democracy of Sudan proved to be difficult. The parties were badly organized, fractures appeared according to old division lines, like religion and tribes, but also new personal interests. Hence the political Sudan proved unable to build the country in the way people had hoped for. [8]

16th-17th November - General Ibrahim Abbud, commander in chief of the army, takes control over the political structures of Khartoum, dissolves the political parties, prohibits assemblies and suspends newspapers. A Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, made up of 12 officers takes control, and starts implementing needed economical reforms. Among the more important new measures is one to abolish fixed prices on cotton. More problematic is that almost all important positions in administration and police are filled with northern Sudanese, further alienating the southerners. [8]

1962:

Christian missionaries are asked to leave Sudan. [8]

October - Strike in schools and widespread demonstrations in the south, as well as flight of Christians to neighbour countries. [8]

September - The beginning of an uprising led by the guerilla organization Anya Nya, aiming at better governance over southern Sudan. The government of Khartoum responds, resulting in many clashes. [8]

December - Demonstrations in Khartoum against the regime's policies towards southern Sudan. As the military forces are engaged in fighting in the south, the regime of Abbud is unable to quell the unrest, Abbud resigns, and a transitional government is established. [8]

1965:

April/May - General elections, resulting a coalition government headed by Muhammad Mahjub of the Ummah party. [8]

Due to many divisions in the parliament, the new regime proves unable to address the many problems and challenges of Sudanese society. [8]

25th May - A coup is staged by a group of officers headed by Gafar Mohammad an-Nimeiri and the government is dissolved. [8]

By the late 1960s, the war had resulted in the deaths of about 500,000 people. Several hundred thousand more southerners hid in the forests or escaped to refugee camps in neighbouring countries. [6]

By 1969 the rebels had developed foreign contacts to obtain weapons and supplies. Israel, for example, trained Anya Nya recruits and shipped weapons via Ethiopia and Uganda to the rebels. Anya Nya also purchased arms from Congolese rebels and international arms dealers with monies collected in the south and from among southern Sudanese exile communities in the Middle East, Western Europe, and North America. The rebels also captured arms, equipment and supplies from government troops. [6]

Militarily, Anya Nya controlled much of the southern countryside while government forces occupied the region's major towns. The guerrillas operated at will from remote camps. However, rebel units were too small and scattered to be highly effective in any single area. Estimates of Anya Nya personnel strength ranged from 5,000 to 10,000. [6]

Government operations against the rebels declined after the 1969 coup. However, when negotiations failed to result in a settlement, Khartoum increased troop strength in the south to about 12,000 in 1969, and intensified military activity throughout the region. Although the Soviet Union had concluded a US$100 million to US$150 million arms agreement with Sudan in August 1968, which included T-55 tanks, armored personnel carriers, and aircraft, the nation failed to deliver any equipment to Khartoum by May 1969. During this period, Sudan obtained some Soviet-manufactured weapons from Egypt, most of which went to the Sudanese air force. By the end of 1969, however, the Soviet Union had shipped unknown quantities of 85mm antiaircraft guns, sixteen MiG-21s, and five Antonov-24 transport aircraft. Over the next two years, the Soviet Union delivered an impressive array of equipment to Sudan, including T-54, T-55, T56 and T-59 tanks; and BTR-40 and BTR-152 light armored vehicles. [6]

1971:

The southern Sudanese rebels unite under the leadership of Joseph Lagu. [8]

July - An attempt to remove Nimeiri from power fails due to popular and foreign support of his regime. Nimeiri now makes himself president, and makes the Sudanese Socialist Union the only legal party. Moreover he puts in extra efforts in finding a solution to the unrest in the south. [8]

27th March - Peace is achieved between Nimeiri and Lagu's forces, with the signing of the Addis Ababa Agreement. The agreement secures autonomy for the southern provinces, unites the 3 southern provinces into one, and establishes separate legislature and executive bodies, but joint army and police forces, with members from all over the country. [6] [8]

1970s:

Following the peace agreement, Sudan becomes a country of investment for foreign interests. The food producing potential especially, leads to many Arab-backed projects, like expanding the national infrastructure and the construction of the Jonglei Canal to make the As-Sudd swamps into agricultural land. Unfortunately, few of the projects are properly implemented and never lead to the intended results. There is never any overall control, planning is insufficient and corruption becomes widespread. [8]

Large findings of oil are made in Bentiu, southern Sudan. The oil becomes an important factor in the strife between North and South. [2]

1980s:

Following the failed politics of investments in the 1970s', 1980's Sudan is a land of deep economic crisis. [8]

May - The civil war of the south resumes as an army battalion of Bor led by Colonel John Garang breaks with Khartoum and establishes itself in the bush. They are soon joined by many other discontented southerners. [8]

June - Nimeiri divides the southern province into the original 3 provinces, violating the agreement of 1972. [8]

September - In order to gain support from the increasingly important Muslim Brotherhood, Nimeiri introduces the so-called Islamic law system of Sharia for all of the country, even the southern Christian and animist region. [8]

April - Nimeiri is overthrown in a bloodless coup by General Aburrahman Siwar. [8]

1986:

Elections bring Sadiq al-Mahdi to position of prime minister. [8]

1988:

The Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) and the DUP agree on a peace plan calling for the abolition of military pacts with Egypt and Libya, freezing of Islamic law, an end to the state of emergency, and a cease-fire. A constitutional conference would then be convened. [6]

The Sadiq al-Mahdi government approves the peace plan and engages in several rounds of talks with the SPLA. A constitutional conference is tentatively planned for September 1989. [6]

March - The government agrees with the UN and donor nations (including the U.S.) on a plan called Operation Lifeline Sudan (OLS), under which some 100,000 tons of food are moved into both government and SPLA-held areas of the Sudan and widespread starvation is averted. [6]

30th June - A new coup, this time staged by Lieutenant General Ahmad al-Bashir, removes al-Mahdi from power. The so-called Revolutionary Command Council for National Salvation takes power, but behind this is the Islamic National Front, the political party of the Muslim Brotherhood. [8]

The new government repudiates the DUP/SPLA agreement and states it wishes to negotiate with the SPLA without preconditions. Negotiating sessions in August and December bring little progress. [6]

A period of extreme political suppression starts, where the new Islamist regime imprisons hundreds of political dissidents, bans trade unions and political parties, introduces heavy censorship of the press and removes the judiciary institutions. The politics of the Islamists lead to the hardest suppression Sudan has seen and the virtual destruction of the economy with great poverty for the population. [8]

1990:

March - Phase II of OLS to cover 1990 is approved by both the government and the SPLA. [6]

Sudan faces a 2-year drought and food shortages across the entire country. The U.S., UN, and other donors attempt to mount a coordinated international relief effort in both north and south Sudan to prevent a catastrophe. However, due to Sudan's human rights abuses and its pro-Iraqi stance during the Gulf War, many donors cut much of their aid to the Sudan. [6]

March - Sharia is reintroduced for all of the country. [8]

August - Internal dissention among the rebels leads opponents of Colonel Garang's leadership of the SPLA to form the so-called Nasir faction of the rebel army. [6]

1992:

September - William Nyuon Bany forms a second rebel faction. [6]

1993:

February - Kerubino Kwanyin Bol forms a third rebel faction. [6]

April - The three dissident rebel factions announce a coalition of their groups called SPLA United at a press conference in Nairobi, Kenya. [6]

October - Bashir dissolves the military government, and introduces steps towards an elected legislature. [8]

1994:

Ali A. Mohamed, a former US Army sergeant, allegedly trains bodyguards for Osama bin Laden in Khartoum according to a 1999 US indictment. [3]

Sudan's government begins funding the (LTA) Lord's Resistance Army in retaliation for Uganda's support of the southern-based rebel Sudan People's Liberation Army. [3]

The Sudanese government are accused of being part of an attempt on the life of Egyptian prime minister Mubarak. UN decides on sanctions against Sudan. [2]

A coalition of internal and exiled opposition parties in the north and the south create the National Democratic Alliance as an anti-government umbrella group. This development opens a northeastern front to the civil war, making it more than before a center-periphery rather than simply a north-south conflict. The SPLA, DUP, and Umma Parties are the key groups forming the NDA, along with several smaller parties and northern ethnic groups. [6]

1996:

The US embassy in Khartoum is abandoned. [3]

March - Legislative elections are held. [8]

A coup against the government is prevented. [8]

April - A new military cabinet is installed. [8]

The UN imposes diplomatic sanctions on Sudan. [8]

May - Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch accuse Sudan of human rights violations. [3]

July - At least 700,000 people are facing starvation in southern Sudan because of the Khartoum government's refusal to allow large-scale food aid. [3]

1997:

The government signs a series of agreements with rebel factions, led by former Garang Lieutenant Riek Machar, under the banner of "Peace from Within." These include the Khartoum, Nuba Mountains, and Fashoda agreements that end military conflict between the government and significant rebel factions. Many of those leaders then move to Khartoum where they assume marginal roles in the central government, or collaborate with the government in military engagements against the SPLA. [6]

March - The government signs an agreement to build a 900-mile pipeline from the southern oilfields to Port Sudan on the Red Sea. Chinese National Petroleum will control 40% and Petronas of Malaysia would own 30% through its state owned oil company. [3]

4^th November - US sanctions against Sudan are tightened due to the Iran-allied government’s support for international terrorism and abysmal human-rights record. After lobbying by trade associations the sanctions exclude US imports for gum arabic, a key ingredient for soft drinks, and other goods as an emulsifier. [3]

Production of gum arabic from the acacia tree accounts for nearly half of Sudan’s $20 million annual exports to the US. The derivative is used in soft drinks, cookies, and printing ink. [3]

April - Sudanese soldiers shoot and beat to death 74 student conscripts who try to flee the Ailafoon military camp. At least 55 others drown when their boat capsizes on the blue Nile while they try to escape. [3]

June - A new constitution is introduced, allowing political parties and greater freedom of expression and association. [8]

July - Famine strikes hard on Sudan, especially the south, with 2.6 million people in great danger. International aid organizations are often hindered in aiding the hungry, as the Khartoum based government tried to starve out the rebel forces. [8]

Sudanese rebels declare a 3 month cease fire to allow food shipments to reach hundreds of thousands hungry people in the southwest. [3]

3^rd August - The government declares a unilateral cease-fire. [3]

7^th August - Immediately after the bombing of 2 US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, Sudanese authorities arrest 2 men suspected of being involved in the plot. [3]

20^th August - President Clinton orders cruise missile attacks on Sudan and Afghanistan. About 50 missiles are fired at the camp of Osama Bin Laden and some 25 missiles against a suspected chemical plant in Khartoum. The plant in Sudan was suspected of producing the chemical EMPTA, one of the ingredients in VX nerve gas, but also an ingredient in fungicides and anti-microbial agents. The US Operation Infinite Reach began in Afghanistan and Sudan and costs over $50 million. [3]

Britain provides strong political support for the attack. Tony Blair says 'I strongly support this American action against international terrorists.' and 'our ally, the United States, said at the time of the strike against Al Shifa that they had compelling evidence that the chemical plant was being used for the manufacture of chemical weapons materials'. Later Donald Anderson, former US ambassador to Sudan admits 'the evidence was not conclusive and was not enough to justify an act of war'. [4]

The plant, which had its official opening in June, 1997, was privately owned and partly financed by the Eastern and Southern African Preferential Trade Association. Al-Shifa was extremely important to the Sudan: it had raised the country's self-sufficiency in medicine from about 3% to over 50%. It produced 60-90% of the drugs used to treat the Sudan's seven leading causes of death; malaria and tuberculosis are at the top of the list. [5]

Al-Shifa produced virtually all of the country's veterinary medicine. The Sudan has very large herds of camels, cattle, sheep and goats which are vital to the economy and food supply. The herds are susceptible to treatable infestations of parasites and other diseases. [5]

In Addition, The Plant Was An Important Exporter Of Human And Veterinary Medicines To Other African And Middle Eastern Countries, And Was Contracted Earlier This Year By The United Nations Sanctions Committee (661 Committee) To Ship Medical Supplies To Iraq, Under The "Oil For Food" Deal. (Interestingly, USA being the head of UN didn’t know about it ? - Deliberately) [5]

What made Al-Shifa so vital was that it enabled the Sudan to obtain medicines at about 20% of the purchase cost on the world market. In this respect it is irreplaceable for a country that is one of the world's poorest. The Sudan, The Largest Country In Africa, Has A Gross National Product Of About $8.3 Billion And A Population Of Approximately 28 Million; The GNP Is Only About $300 Per Person Annually. Importing Replacement Pharmaceuticals For What Was Lost On August 20 Is Beyond The Government's Means. [5]

Later is it estimated in a Boston Globe report and by Germany's ambassador to Sudan, that the attack led to the deaths of tens of thousands of people through lack of medicines, which the factory formerly produced. [4]

The missile attack destroys the Sugar Sweet and Candy factory of Mustafa S. Ismaeil and kills a guard there. The owner plans to sue the US for damages. [3]

21^st August - Sudanese authorities, angered by the US attack of US cruise missiles, release 2 men suspected in the bombing of 2 US embassies on Aug 7. The men are sent to Pakistan. [3]

24^th August - It is reported that Salaheldin Idris, a Saudi Arabian banker, plans to sue the US for $50 million for damages to his Ashifa pharmaceutical factory. [3]

2^nd September - It is reported that US officials acknowledge that they were not aware that the Shifa factory produced human and veterinary medicines. The admit that their only knowledge about what the plant produced came from its Web site. [3]

December - The death toll from the 15 year civil war is reported to have reached at least 1.9 million. A 40 nation African conference on refugees opens in Khartoum. [3]

1999:

15^th January - The government and rebels agree to a 3-month extension of a cease-fire in a southwestern province. [3]

8^th February - An independent scientist hired by the owner of the pharmaceutical plant bombed by the US in August finds no traces of chemical weapons. [3]

28^th April - The US announces that it will allow US firms to sell food and medicine to Iran, Sudan and Libya. [3]

3^rd May - The US Justice and Treasury departments agree to unfreeze the assets of Saleh Idris, the owner of the Sudanese factory that was bombed by US cruise missiles. [3]

7^th May - The rebels postponed peace talks indefinitely. [3]

May - A team of 10,000 Chinese laborers under China Natural Petroleum Corp. complete a 1,000 mile oil pipeline, 2 wells and a refinery after 18 months of work. In exchange Sudan gave CNPC exclusive drilling rights to over 40,000 square miles near the city of Bor. [3]

14^th July - The Sudanese government bans aid flights to Western Upper Nile province where 2 factions allied to the government are fighting for control of oil fields. This soon puts 150,000 people to face starvation. [3]

27^th July - The US eases sanctions against Iran, Libya and Sudan to allow the sale of food, medicine and medical equipment. [3]

30^th August - Southern SPLA rebels reject an Egyptian-Libyan peace plan. The rebels hold that conditions put forward in negotiations were not included in the plan. [3]

31^st October - 25 Sudanese fighters are massacred by rival militiamen when they arrive for talks with Paulino Matep at Benitu. [3]

26^th November - Sudan signs a peace agreement with the opposition Umma Party in Djibouti to end the 16-year old civil war. [3]

29^th November - The rebel Sudan People's Liberation Army reject the Djibouti reconciliation between the government and an exiled opposition group. [3]

12^th December - President Bashir dissolves the National Assembly and declares a state of emergency following a power struggle with parliamentary speaker, Hassan al-Turabi. [1]

Sudan start export of oil assisted by China, Canada, Sweden and other countries. [2]

2000:

24^th January - Omar el-Bashir reappoints an entirely new government. He fires 10 ministers, disbands 2 ministries and appoints 25 new state governors. [3]

24^th February - Some 160 aid workers begin leaving the southern region following a rebel ultimatum to comply with new terms for aid deliveries or face expulsion. At least 11 international aid organizations refused demands for higher taxes and more control. [3]

September - Governor of Khartoum issues decree barring women from working in public places. [1]

President Bashir meets for the first time ever leaders of opposition National Democratic Alliance in the Eritrean capital, Asmara. [1]

18^th December - It is reported that some 3.2 million people face serious food and water shortages due to the civil war and drought. [3]

December - Bashir is reelected as President. The main opposition parties boycotted the elections. Bashir extends the state of emergency until 2001. [8]

An internal struggle in the government, leads to the arrest of an ideological leader who was making peace attempts with the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA). [2]

March - Hunger and famine in Sudan affects 3 million people. [2]

May - A Danish pilot flying for the International Red Cross is attacked and killed when delivering aid in southern Sudan. All flights in the area are temporarily stopped. [2]

27^th May - Secretary of State Colin Powell stops in Uganda and urges the government of Sudan to halt bombing in southern towns and to stop interfering with the delivery of emergency assistance to victims of drought and war. [3]

June - Peace negotiations breaks down in Nairobi, Kenya. [2]

The US House voted (422-2) to forbid foreign oil companies doing business in Sudan from selling securities in the US. [3]

August - The Nile river floods leaving thousands homeless in Sudan. [2]

29^th August - In Sudan the UN reports that 3,480 child soldiers have been sent back to their southern homes following 6 months of retraining. 4,000 more children were expected to transition out of the Sudan People's Liberation Army over the next 18 months. [3]

September - the UN lifts on sanctions against Sudan to support ongoing peace negotiations (US abstains). [2] [3]

October - Following the New York terror attacks, USA puts new sanctions on Sudan due to accusations of Sudan's involvment with international terrorism. [2]

During 2001 more than 14,550 slaves are freed after pressure from human rights groups. [2]

The Government of Sudan (GOS) has used aerial bombardments and helicopter gunships to attack the southern Sudanese civilian population for years. In 1999, there were 65 confirmed aerial bombings of civilians in southern Sudan, however, the number of such attacks more than doubled in 2000 to 132 and tripled in 2001 to 195 confirmed bombings. Most of these attacks occurred in the Bahr el Ghazal, Eastern Equatoria, Southern Blue Nile, and Upper Nile regions. [6]

January - A ceasefire between government forces and the SPLM are finally agreed upon. [2]

20^th February - In Sudan a government helicopter gunship attacks civilians waiting for food at a UN site and at least 17 people are killed. The US suspends peace efforts following the attack. [3]

20^th April - Sudanese government forces begin a major offensive against 3 southern provinces to oust the rebel Sudan People's Liberation Army. Rebels say hundreds of thousands of people are displaced. [3]

20^th July - The government and SPLA signs a protocol to end the civil war. [2]

27^th July - President al-Bashir meets for the first time with SPLA leader John Garang. Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni has arranged the meeting. The war in Sudan is also having huge impact on the northen Uganda. [2]

31^st July - Sudanese rebels claim that government troops using bombers and helicopter gunships attacked areas of a town in Sudan's oil-producing Western Upper Nile Province. [3]

October - The ceasefire is confirmed again, but remains very uncertain. Pecae negations still continues during the next years. [2]

12^th October - It is reported that 164,000 Eritrean refugees have begun returning home from camps in Sudan. Some 60,000 had already returned since 2001. [3]

20^th October - Sudan's government lifts a ban on relief flights to the southern Equatoria region after it signs a cease-fire with southern rebels. [3]

February - 2 rebel groups representing the African population in Darfur start a rebellion against the government as protest against neglection and suppression. [2]

25^th September - Sudan's government and the main rebel group sign an agreement on security arrangements for a six-year political transition in efforts to end their 20-year civil war. [3]

18^th October - In western Sudan 9 commercial hauling workers are killed during clashes between warring tribes. Recent fighting in Darfur has created more than 600,000 refugees. [3]

1^st November - It is reported that central Sudan is experiencing its worst grasshopper attack in 3 decades. At least 11 people die and more than 16,000 are hospitalized with a respiratory illness doctors link to the annual locust invasion. [3]

December - Progress is made in the peace negotiations. The negotiations are mainly focused on sharing the important oil-ressources. [2]

The Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) appears in the Darfur region. It consists largely of members of the Zaghawa tribe. Soon after, the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) sprang up. In response the government unleashed the janjaweed, an Arab militia with ranks swollen by ex-criminals. [3]

January - Government army strikes down on uprising in Darfur region in the Western Sudan. More than 100,000 people seeks refuge in Chad. [2]

27^th February - Sudanese government forces launch a series of raids on western villages, killing at least 70 civilians and forcing tens of thousands to flee. [3]

19^th March - A senior U.N. official says that fighting in western Sudan has intensified in recent weeks, accusing Arab militia of systematically attacking villages and raping women. [3]

March - UN officers reports that systematic killings on villagers are taking place in Darfur. UN names Darfur as the worst humanitarian currently, but nothing happens. UN fails to take action as Western countries and media has close to no focus on the problems in Sudan. But even the African leaders refuse to take action on the problem. [2]

21^st April - Refugees in Chad report that Sudanese and Arab militias are conducting a "reign of terror" to push blacks out of western Sudan. [3]

25^th May - Sudanese officials say the government has reached an agreement with rebels on issues that have stalled talks to end the 21-year-old war, clearing the way for a comprehensive peace deal. The talks in Naivasha, 60 miles west of Nairobi, do not involve insurgents fighting a 15-month rebellion in the Darfur region of western Sudan. [3]

26^th May - The U.N. Security Council calls for the immediate deployment of international monitors to Sudan's western Darfur region and put new pressure on the country's government to end the conflict there. [3]

27^th May - Relief workers are racing against the clock to keep hundreds of thousands of people from dying in Sudan's western Darfur region, in what has become the biggest humanitarian crisis of "our age." [3]

28^th May - The Sudanese government and rebels from Darfur agree that the first international observers of a fragile ceasefire will deploy there next week. Villagers in west Sudan say Sudanese aircraft bombed their village and killed at least 11 people. [3]

14^th June - UN humanitarian chief Jan Egeland criticizes the Sudanese government for blocking aid workers, food and equipment from reaching the Darfur region. [3]

19^th June - Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir orders "complete mobilization" to disarm all illegal armed groups in the western region of Darfur, including the Arab militias who have been harassing African villagers. [3]

1^st July - The United Nation's World Food Program (WFP) begins airlifting enriched food from the Ethiopian capital to Sudan's western Darfur region, where it estimates 1.2 million people will need food aid every month until October. UN Sec. General Kofi Annan visits the area. [3]

17^th July - Sudanese rebels walk out of peace talks, saying government representatives have refused to meet their conditions for a new round of negotiations. [3]

1^st August - The Sudanese cabinet condemns the 30-day deadline for action on Darfur set by the U.N. Security Council, but says it will implement a 90-day program agreed earlier with U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan. [3]

13^th August - The first elements of a 300-strong African Union protection force leave Kigali, Rwanda, for Sudan's troubled region of Darfur, Sudan. [3]

19^th August - It is reported that the Darfur refugee count in western Sudan has reached 1.2 million. [3]

1^st September - A U.N. report calls for a quick increase in the international monitoring force in Sudan, saying the government has not stopped attacks against civilians or disarmed marauding militias. [3]

5^th September - London's Sunday Times reports that John Knight, a millionaire British arms dealer, is reportedly fuelling the bloody civil war in Sudan by arranging to supply its government with tanks, rocket launchers and a cruise missile. [3]

15^th September - A rebel faction says peace talks with the Sudanese government and rebels from the troubled Darfur region collapsed after three weeks without an accord. [3]

18^th September - A divided UN Security Council approves a resolution threatening oil sanctions against Sudan unless the government reins in Arab militias blamed for a killing spree in Darfur and orders an investigation of whether the attacks constitute genocide. [3]

24^th September - The UN High Commissioner for Refugees proposes autonomy for the troubled Darfur region of Sudan. The government resists this but says it would be willing to discuss it anew in an effort to end the violence that has killed 50,000 people. [3]

6^th October - Sudan's U.N. ambassador challenges the US to send troops to the Darfur region if it really believes a genocide is taking place. [3]

21^st October - Negotiations between the Sudanese government and the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), an umbrella organization for opposition groups from around Sudan, open in Cairo under the auspices of Egypt. [3]

26^th October - In Nigeria a 2nd day of peace talks on the crisis in Sudan's Darfur region breaks off after rebels call for more time to prepare proposals for a long-term political resolution to the conflict. [3]

28^th October - A contingent of 50 Nigerian soldiers arrive in Darfur, Sudan, aboard a US military plane, the first of 3,000 extra African Union troops deployed to monitor a shaky cease-fire. [3]

29^th October - Sudanese rebel leaders demand that Islam be kept out of government in the war torn region of Darfur. [3]

30^th October - Rwandan troops arrive in Sudan's remote Darfur region to join Nigerian soldiers monitoring a shaky cease-fire in the country's troubled west. [3]

9^th November - Sudan's government and rebels agree to sign fresh accords meant to stop hostilities in Darfur. [3]

19^th November - Rebel officials and the Sudanese government commit themselves to ending the 21-year civil war in southern Sudan before January, signing an agreement at a special meeting of the UN Security Council in Kenya. [3]

25^th November - The UN World Food Program says it has suspended its operations in most of the Sudanese state of North Darfur and relocated its staff to the capital due to renewed clashes between rebels and government forces. [3]

29^th November - The Sudanese government declares the representatives of two British humanitarian organizations persona non-grata and gives them 48 hours to leave the country. [3]

2005:

9^th January - In Nairobi the government and rebels sign the last parts of the peace treaty for Southern Sudan. All fighting in Africa's longest civil war is expected to end in January 2005, but the peace agreement still doesn't cover the Darfur region. More than 1.5 million people lost their homes since the conflict in Darfur broke out early 2003. [2]

15^th March - United Nations Security Council agrees to send 10,000 peace keeping soldiers to Southern Sudan. Again the descision does not cover the Darfur region. [2]

Council also votes to refer those accused of war crimes in Darfur to International Criminal Court. [1]

June - Government and exiled opposition grouping - National Democratic Alliance (NDA) - sign reconciliation deal allowing NDA into power-sharing administration. [1]

President frees Islamist leader Hassan al-Turabi, who was detained in 2004 over an alleged coup plot. [1]

9^th July - Former southern rebel leader John Garang is sworn in as first vice president. A constitution which gives a large degree of autonomy to the south is signed. [1]

1^st August - Government announces death of vice president and former rebel leader John Garang in an air crash. He is succeeded by Salva Kiir. Garang's death sparks deadly clashes in the capital between southern Sudanese and northern Arabs. [1]