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September 2003

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2003 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December

A timeline of events in the news for September, 2003.

See Also:

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September 30, 2003

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September 29, 2003

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September 28, 2003

  • Nuclear Weapons : Iran remains defiant about nuclear program. Iran states it will not give up its nuclear program (including uranium enrichment). The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have given Iran until October 31 to prove it has no secret nuclear arms program and told it to halt enrichment activities. Iran states international pressure will not deter its nuclear plans. [24] (http://asia.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=3519377) [25] (http://www.voanews.com/article.cfm?objectID=7B14F972-545E-42D3-B641EE69657BFE6C)
  • Blackout: In Italy and a small part of Switzerland 57 million people were without power from late Saturday night until Sunday noon. The power outage was more extensive than the North American blackout in August. [26] (http://www.spiegel.de/panorama/0,1518,267558,00.html) [27] (http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-3202370,00.html)
  • Terrorism: Ukraine warns United States of nuclear terror threat. Officials in Kiev have formed a joint task force to examine purchase of nuclear materials by U.S.-based terrorists. Officials investigate radioactive package addressed to America seized in Kiev's airport. Ukraine Ministry of Emergencies official states the package was emitting radiation "higher than the acceptable norm". [28] (http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=34818)
  • Natural disaster: Hurricane Juan is expected to make landfall near Halifax, Nova Scotia.
  • Space: Europe has launched its first mission to the moon, using SMART-1, an unmanned probe. [29] (http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20030928/wl_nm/space_europe_dc_6)
  • Pope John Paul II names 30 new cardinals, including Marc Ouellet, Archbishop of Quebec and Primate of Canada. The Pope also created a 31st Cardinal in pectore, which means his identity is kept secret and he will not be made a Cardinal if the Pope dies before revealing his name. [30] (http://www.iht.com/articles/111686.html)
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September 27, 2003

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September 26, 2003

  • Medicine: An experimental treatment given to a British man has halted the progress of brain damage caused by Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. [34] (http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=571&ncid=751&e=2&u=/nm/20030926/hl_nm/health_britain_cjd_dc)
  • SCO vs IBM: International Business Machines Corp. files new counterclaims against SCO Group Inc. involving the Linux operating system according to a memo sent to the IBM sales force. [35] (http://biz.yahoo.com/djus/030926/1148000629_1.html)
  • Israeli-Palestinian conflict: A Palestinian gunman enters a home in Negohot (an Israeli settlement in the West Bank, near Hebron), murders 7-month-old Shaked Avraham and 27-year-old Eyal Yeberbaum, and injures both of the baby girl's parents as they were celebrating the Jewish New Year. The shooter was later killed by Israeli security forces. The Palestinian Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the attack.[36] (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,98437,00.html)
  • Road map for peace: 'Quartet' urges Israel and Palestinians to do more to revive Middle East peace plan. Voicing "great concern" at recent Israeli and Palestinian attacks that have stalled the Middle East peace process, a high-level meeting of the diplomatic Quartet of the United Nations, United States, Russian Federation and European Union call on both sides to take immediate action to revive the Road map for peace. [37] (http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2003-09/27/content_1102107.htm) [38] (http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=8380&Cr=middle&Cr1=east)
  • Iraq - Constitution: Secretary of State Colin Powell, responding to a rapid timetable self-rule demands from France (and others), states the United States would set a deadline of six months for Iraqi leaders working under the coalition occupation to produce a new constitution. The constitution would clear the way for elections and the installation of a new leadership next year. [39] (http://www.iht.com/articles/111463.html) [40] (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/3141490.stm)
  • Iraq - Terrorism: Mortar rounds hit killing at least seven civilian Iraqis in the town square of Baquba. At least 20 civilian were wounded. Also, Akila al-Hashemi, a member of Iraq's Governing Council, was buried in Najaf a day after she died from wounds inflicted by an unidentified gunmen. [41] (http://www.iht.com/articles/111548.html)
  • Media: The two leading cable news networks, Fox News and CNN, have engaged in a public battle over phone numbers. Fox publicizes CNN commentator's home number after talk host gives out FNC's phone. [42] (http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=34789)
  • Entertainment: Movie trailer of The Matrix Revolutions is released. [43] (http://whatisthematrix.warnerbros.com/rv_cmp/trailers_rev_frames.html) [44] (http://slashdot.org/articles/03/09/26/0514248.shtml?tid=186&tid=188&tid=200&tid=214&tid=97)
  • International relations: Brazilian president Lula da Silva makes his first official visit to Cuba. In meetings with president Fidel Castro, he plans to affirm the friendship between the two countries and to increase bilateral ties. Reporters Without Borders had previously called on the Brazilian president to intercede on behalf of 30 journalists currently imprisoned on Cuba. [45] (http://www.granma.cu/ingles/2003/septiembre03/vier26/39llegada-i.html), [46] (http://www.brazzil.com/2003/html/news/articles/sep03/p139sep03.htm)
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September 25, 2003

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September 24, 2003

  • Terrorism: United States taking measures to deprive dollars from Hamas' hands. [57] (http://www.voanews.com/article.cfm?objectID=5BEC1582-93EB-4D55-BA6CC13DDBA13855)
  • Swedish police arrests a new suspect in the murder of Anna Lindh. Per-Olof Svensson is no longer a suspect and has been released.
  • Belgium's highest court, Cour de Cassation, throws out case against Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Israeli General Amos Yaron. Also, a case against former U.S. President George H. W. Bush (for war crimes in Iraq) and Secretary of State Colin Powell is dismissed. [58] (http://reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=3498968) [59] (http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/343928.html)
  • Israeli-Palestinian conflict: A protest letter by a group of 27 Israeli pilots to the Israeli air force is publicized. In the letter, the pilots announce their refusal to fly further missions to bomb leaders of Palestinian terrorist groups in civilian areas. The pilots' letter calls the attacks "illegal and immoral". It draws quick condemnation from commentators, from politicians and from military leaders, with calls for severe punishment including jail, although a dismissal is considered the most likely result. The pilots' protest is a reaction to attacks like the one on Hamas leader Salah Shehade in July 2002, which killed Shehade, his bodyguard and 15 civilians, among them nine children. [60] (http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/09/25/1064083125257.html), [61] (http://asia.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=3509703), [62] (http://www.msnbc.com/news/971397.asp?cp1=1)
  • Computer and Communications Industry Association report, written by a handful of security experts, Microsoft's dominance in key technologies poses security risk and threatens the national infrastructure. Computer and Communications Industry Association states reliance on a single technology, such as the Windows operating system, threatens economic security and critical infrastructure. The paper warns that many security improvements planned by Microsoft are likely designed to deter customers from switching to another operating system. [63] (http://news.com.com/2100-1029_3-5081214.html)
  • After several postponements the European Parliament finally passes a directive concerning the "patentability of computer-implemented inventions". The final text differs substantially from the original proposal and is seen as going a long way in addressing the concerns that it would legalize patents on software and business methods. The directive should now be under review by the Council of the European Union. [64] (http://news.zdnet.co.uk/business/legal/0,39020651,39116642,00.htm) [65] (http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/4/33016.html)
  • A federal judge ruled that the national "do-not-call" list against telemarketers is illegal. [66] (http://www.mediainfo.com/editorandpublisher/headlines/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1985553)
  • Islam in France: Two French muslim girls are excluded from school today over the wearing of the Islamic veil in schools. [67] (http://www.lemonde.fr/article/0,5987,3226--335303-,00.html) [68] (http://www.guardian.co.uk/france/story/0,11882,1049070,00.html)
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September 23, 2003

  • California recall: A federal appeals court overturns a three-judge panel's ruling and reinstates the original date for the recall election, October 7, 2003. The ACLU, whose suit was responsible for the original decision, will not appeal to the United States Supreme Court. [69] (http://www.usatoday.com/news/politicselections/state/2003-09-23-court-rules_x.htm)
  • United Nations: World Heads of State and Government convened at United Nations Headquarters in New York City for the start of the General Assembly's annual high-level debate. President of the United States George W. Bush urges the international community to help Iraq rebuild itself into a democracy with the "great power to inspire the Middle East." President Bush states a transformed Middle East would also benefit the entire world "by undermining the ideologies that export violence to other lands." President Bush also calls on the Security Council to adopt new anti-proliferation resolution "calling on all members of the UN to criminalize the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction," enacting strict export controls, and securing all sensitive material. [70] (http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=8329&Cr=iraq&Cr1=)
  • Iraq: A new Gallup poll shows majority of Iraqis expect better life in 5 years. After foreign military occupation and the removal of Saddam Hussein, around two-thirds of Baghdad residents state the Iraqi dictator removal was worth the hardships they've been forced to endure. [71] (http://www.iht.com/articles/110955.html)
  • Iraq: A US-led coalition backed Iraqi Governing Council member, Iyad Allawi, announces restrictions of the operations of TV networks al-Jazeera and al-Arabiya. The networks are barred from reporting on official activities and news conferences and from entering ministries and office buildings for the next two weeks. The council claims they incited anti-occupation violence (by airing statements from resistance leaders; specifically broadcasting a video of "terrorists terrorizing Iraqis"), increased ethnic and sectarian tensions and were supportive of the lawless resistance. Allawi hopes the ban sends a "very clear message" to other stations. Al-Jazeera responds that it is trying to give a balanced view of the current situation in Iraq and that it considers its ethical standards to be similar to western ones. The Coalition Provisional Authority has not responded to inquiries about the announcement. [72] (http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/meast/09/23/sprj.nitop.iraq.networks/), [73] (http://english.aljazeera.net/Articles/News/ArabWorld/US-backed+council+bans+Arab+TV+stations.htm), [74] (http://www.upi.com/view.cfm?StoryID=20030923-111537-1915r), [75] (http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,3604,1047728,00.html)
  • The Methuselah Foundation launches the Methuselah mouse contest, offering a prize to the team which can extend mouse lifespan the longest. The aim is to promote research which can offer insights into human longevity.
  • Blackout: A power shortcut lays the southern part of Sweden and the eastern part of Denmark dead from midday, leaving traffic chaos and other disruptions throughout the area. About 2-3 million people are affected. From 4 PM Copenhagen has power again. A Swedish nuclear power plant abruptly stopped producing power.
  • Space Shuttle program : Entire NASA flight safety panel resigns. All nine members of a panel formed to advise on space flight safety resigned. [76] (http://washingtontimes.com/upi-breaking/20030923-090200-9118r.htm)
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September 22, 2003

  • Terrorism - Iraq: An attacker killed an Iraqi policeman and himself outside the United Nations headquarters in Baghdad, also injured 19 people, including two Iraqi U.N. workers. This occurred a month after a previous deadly bombing there. The bombing comes as the United Nations considers expanding its role in Iraq. [77] (http://www.iht.com/articles/110767.html) UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan states that personnel are assessing the situation following the attack. [78] (http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=8316&Cr=iraq&Cr1=)
  • 90% of the delegates elected to the November 15 convention of the Liberal Party of Canada support Paul Martin Jr., thereby assuring that he will win the leadership of the party and thereby become Prime Minister of Canada after Jean Chrétien retires in February 2004.
  • Anthropology: The jawbone of a cave-man found in Romania is confirmed as the oldest fossil from an early modern human. The bone, found in 2002, was carbon dated to between 34,000 and 36,000 years ago. [79] (http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20030922/sc_nm/science_humans_dc_1)
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September 21, 2003

  • Galileo probe: After 14 years of flight time and 8 years of service in the Jovian system, Galileo's mission was terminated by sending the probe into Jupiter's crushing atmosphere at a speed of nearly 50 kilometres per second to avoid any chance of it contaminating local moons.
  • Espionage: The Washington Times reveals the arrest of U.S. Army Captain James Yee, an Islamic chaplain at the Guantanamo Bay naval base, for espionage. Law enforcement officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, state that FBI agents discovered classified documents carried by Yee and were questioning him before handing him over to the military. [80] (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,97859,00.html) [81] (http://www.washtimes.com/national/20030919-105619-9614r.htm)
  • Terrorism - 9/11: Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, mastermind of the September 11 attacks, tells interrogators he first discussed the plot with Osama bin Laden in 1996. The original plan, and its evolution, are told to an interrogator, along with the answers to several questions over the attacks. [82] (http://www.redding.com/news/aptop/stories/20030921aptop109.shtml) [83] (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,97888,00.html)
  • United Nations: Leaders of the United Nations are concerned if change can give it the freedom it needs to survive. Kofi Annan will outline plans for reform at the United Nations General Assembly next week. Annan states that only "radical" revisions will likely preserve it. [84] (http://www.iht.com/articles/110667.html)
  • Iraq: To open up its economy, the Iraq leadership council unveils sweeping free market reforms permitting foreign investment and imposes income taxes - but keeps oil under government control. [85] (http://dailytelegraph.news.com.au/story.jsp?sectionid=1274&storyid=226337)
  • Embargo: China voices opposition to United States sanctions over the alleged sale of advanced missile technology to an unnamed country. [86] (http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/s950443.htm)
  • Germany: State elections in the state of Bavaria show a great success for the governing CSU of Edmund Stoiber, scoring over 60%. The nationally governing SPD is down to 19%, a historic low point.
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September 20, 2003

  • Israeli-Palestinian conflict: Israel says that the United Nations resolution on Yasser Arafat (passed 133-4 with 15 abstentions) "is meaningless. It is only a declaration and not legally binding." Yasser Arafat states it's of the "utmost importance" as a sign of international support for the Palestinians. Israel states Palestinians should focus their energy on fighting terrorism. Israel also insists that a new government being formed by incoming Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia cut links to Arafat. Israel says Arafat is tainted by terrorism. Qureia's criticism of United States policy is the strongest sign yet he does not plan to challenge Arafat. [87] (http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2003-09-20-mideast-un-resolution_x.htm) [88] (http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_383121,001300380000.htm) [89] (http://www4.arabnews.com/?page=4&section=0&article=32340&d=21&m=9&y=2003) [90] (http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2003/09/21/2003068648)
  • War on Terrorism: 17 people are killed by United States airstrikes in southeast Afghanistan's Zabul province (in particular the Shinkay district). Eight nomad women and children, two Taliban fighters, several collaborating nomads, and a Taliban commander (Mohammad Gul Niazai) are among the dead. [91] (http://asia.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=3477793) [92] (http://www.arabtimesonline.com/arabtimes/breakingnews/view.asp?msgID=2870)
  • Occupation of Iraq: Two American soldiers are killed and 13 wounded in a mortar attack in Abu Ghraib, and another soldier dies in a roadside attack in Ramadi, bringing the number of U.S. deaths since the war began to 304, of which 165 occurred after President Bush's "mission accomplished" statement of May 1. [93] (http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/21/international/middleeast/21CND-IRAQ.html?ex=1064808000&en=a6d794bc32612759&ei=5062&partner=GOOGLE) A member of the Governing Council, Dr. Aquila al-Hashimi, is shot in an assassination attempt (she dies five days later). United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan strongly condemns the attack and warns that it only undermines the country's political progress. [94] (http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=8308&Cr=Iraq&Cr1=)
  • European Union enlargement: Latvians vote overwhelmingly in favor of the Baltic country joining the European Union. [95] (http://www.rferl.org/nca/features/2003/09/21092003021526.asp)
  • Canadian Liberal Leadership Race: Early numbers from delegate-selection elections within the Liberal Party confirm Paul Martin will win an automatic first-round victory at the forthcoming leadership convention. Barring unforseen circumstances, Martin can now be expected to become Canada's 21st Prime Minister in February 2004. [96] (http://www.cbc.ca/stories/2003/09/20/liberals030920)
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September 19, 2003

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September 18, 2003

  • International Atomic Energy Agency: Iranian officials gave signals that they do not intend to comply with a resolution passed by the United Nations's nuclear watchdog giving Tehran until the end of next month to come clean on its atomic programme. Parliamenetary speaker Mehdi Karrubi, a close ally of President Mohammad Khatami, said the IAEA resolution was "political" and that "the Iranian people will not accept giving in to the logic of force." [103] (http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_18-9-2003_pg7_47)
  • Hurricane Isabel makes landfall on the east coast of the United States near Kill Devil Hill, North Carolina.
  • Canadian gay couple's marriage is not recognized in border crossing: Kevin Bourassa and Joe Varnell, two men married in Ontario, are prevented from using a family customs declaration form when attempting to board a plane at Pearson International Airport. The two gay men, on their way to a human rights conference in Georgia, abandoned their trip rather than use two separate forms for unmarried people. It is one of the first cases of practical discord between the same-sex marriage laws in Canada and the lack of same in the United States, and possibilities for legal or diplomatic action are being examined. [104] (http://www.globeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20030918.wgayy0918/BNStory/National/) (See gay rights, same-sex marriage).
  • A passenger aboard a South African Airways jet tries to break into the cockpit during a flight from Cape Town to Atlanta. The passenger, James Drake, is arrested upon arrival. He had also been arrested in 1987 after trying to break into another airplane's cockpit.
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September 17, 2003

  • NASA has said capsules similar to those used in the Apollo program are among the options considered as replacements to the Space Shuttle. [105] (http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=570&ncid=753&e=1&u=/nm/20030917/sc_nm/space_capsules_dc)
  • A gunman, claiming to be a member of al Qaida (although authorities discount that) has taken a classroom of junior college students hostage in a college in Dyersburg, Tennessee. [106] (http://www.canada.com/news/world/story.asp?id=EC43ADCC-D899-496C-AABD-95CB61B6F6B1)
  • Richard Grasso, chairman of the New York Stock Exchange, resigns amidst criticism of his $140 million compensation package and the fact that the compensation was approved without input from the exchange's board of directors. [107] (http://www.globeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20030917.wgras1809/BNStory/Business/)
  • Retired General Wesley Clark formally announces that he is seeking the nomination of the Democratic Party for the 2004 U.S. presidential election. This makes him the 10th Democratic contender for the presidency. Howard Dean had earlier expressed hopes that Clark would join him as a running mate for the vice presidency.
  • The Arab League submits a draft resolution to the annual General Conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency which calls on Israel to sign the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and to open up its nuclear program to inspections by the United Nations. Israel is believed by some to be in possession of 100 to 200 nuclear warheads, but officially maintains a policy of "nuclear ambiguity" with support from the United States. The move by Arab nations comes in response to a Friday IAEA resolution submitted by Australia, Canada and Japan and lobbied for by the United States which asked Iran for "accelerated cooperation" and set an October 31 deadline for the country to disclose any attempts to acquire nuclear weapons. [108] (http://english.aljazeera.net/Articles/News/GlobalNews/IAEA+told+to+get+tough+with+Israel.htm)
  • Gay rights: The Canadian House of Commons passes a private member's bill brought by NDP MP Svend Robinson, including protection for sexual orientation in the existing law on hate propaganda. [109] (http://www.globeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20030917.whate0917_2/BNStory/Front/)
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September 16, 2003

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September 15, 2003

  • China formally acknowledges that it has transferred guard duties along the Korean border from the police to the army. They did not formally report the number of troops deployed, which independent media estimate have placed at 150,000.
  • VeriSign Inc introduces a wildcard DNS entry for all non-existent .net and .com domain names which redirect users to a VeriSign website with information about VeriSign products and purchases links to "partner" sites.
  • 2003 California recall: The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco rules unanimously that the California recall election be postponed because several large counties, including Los Angeles County, have not upgraded their voting machines to replace the punch card ballot systems which have consistently resulted in a significant number of uncountable votes (and thus unrepresented citizens).[112] (http://www.bayarea.com/mld/mercurynews/news/politics/6779647.htm)
  • Weather: Hurricane Isabel is now predicted to hit the Mid-Eastern U.S. Coast with winds up to 110mph. [113] (http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2003/09/0915_030915_hurricaneisabel.html) [114] (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,97381,00.html)
  • Iraq: Shiite cleric's killer held. A former Baath Party official arrested in connection with the killing of Ayatollah Mohammad Baqir al-Hakim last month has confessed to planning the operation that killed the senior Shiite cleric. [115] (http://www.upi.com/view.cfm?StoryID=20030915-104723-8758r)
  • Terrorism: German neo-Nazi threat 'rising'. Interior Minister Otto Schily has warned a new quality and new level of neo-Nazi terror has emerged. The discovery of a suspected plot to bomb a Munich Jewish centre during a visit by the German president has "dramatically confirmed" the danger to society. [116] (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3109966.stm)
  • Terrorism: A powerful truck bomb has exploded near the local headquarters of Russia's Federal Security Service in Ingushetia, which borders separatist Chechnya. Reports say three people were killed and more than 20 injured. [117] (http://www.voanews.com/article.cfm?objectID=933D95CE-43DD-4108-9F391348CC679ACE)
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September 14, 2003

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September 13, 2003

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September 12, 2003

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September 11, 2003