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.
Blair: I was ready to quit over 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.
Oxfam airlifts aid to Iraq

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.

The Pentagon's top budget officer says that the Iraq war has cost the US at least £12bn and will probably consume that much or more in the next five months.

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.
Bush: UN must lift Iraq sanctions

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.
Chaos mars talks on Iraqi self-rule

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.
The toppling of Saddam - an end to 30 years of brutal rule
Hour-by-hour: day 21 of the war

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.
'A picture of killing inflicted on a sprawling city - and it grew more unbearable by the minute'
Hour-by-hour: day 20 of the war

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.
At ease in Saddam's palace
Hour-by-hour: day 19 of the war

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.
They had cannon, rockets and faith. But next time the US tanks come it won't be enough
Hour-by-hour: day 18 of the war

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.
Baghdad on brink
Hour-by-hour: day 17 of the war

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.
Amid the casualties and chaos, a sudden appearance by Saddam
Hour-by-hour: day 16 of the war

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.
Lights go out in Baghdad as US sends in special forces
Hour by hour Day 15 of the war

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.
The battle for Baghdad looms
Hour-by-hour timeline: day 14 of war

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