Restored archive. The original History Commons is no longer online; this is a read-only edition of its timelines. Content is licensed CC BY-NC-SA.

Events Leading Up to the 2003 Invasion of Iraq

2476 events in this timeline

Open-Content investigative project managed by Derek, KJF, blackmax

This is the home page for the Events Leading Up to the 2003 Invasion of Iraq investigative project, one of several grassroots investigations being hosted on the History Commons website. The data published as part of this investigation has been collected, organized, and published by members of the public who are registered users of this website.

Showing 2001–2050 of 2476

  1. Early October, 2003: Plame Wilson Interviewed by Senate Staffers
  2. Early 1920: British Battle Fierce Insurgency in Iraq
  3. Early 2002 and Beyond: Pentagon Uses Military Analysts to Shape Opinions of Upcoming Iraq War
  4. Early 2002: Top US Officials Want to Invade Iraq to Set Example for Countries Defying US Domination
  5. Early 2003: US Unable to Strike Al-Qaeda Target in Yemen because Resources Are Being Used for Iraq War
  6. Early 2004: Bin Laden and Al-Zarqawi Begin Exploring Idea of Allying Their Forces
  7. Early 1990s: Iraqi Opposition Leader Chalabi Deepens Ties with Iran
  8. Early Summer 2001: Italian Intelligence Agency Gives US Forged Nigerien Documents
  9. Fall 2002: Bush Lowering Standards for Pre-Emptive War in Order to Overthrow Hussein, According to Press Official
  10. Fall 2002: CIA Analysts Resent Pressure from Vice President Cheney and His Staff
  11. Fall 2002: Cheney, Staffers Give INC Intelligence More Credence than CIA’s, Attempt to Inject INC Intel into CIA Analyses
  12. Fall 2002: White House Press Secretary: Overthrowing Hussein Will Begin a ‘Positive Domino Effect’ of Democracy throughout Middle East
  13. Summer and Fall 2002: White House Engaged in ‘Orchestrated Campaign’ to ‘Manipulate’ Public Opinion on Iraq Invasion, Media Complicit in Effort, according to Deputy Press Secretary
  14. Fall 2002: MSNBC Restricts Anti-War Voices on ‘Countdown: Iraq’ Program
  15. Fall 2002: Joint Chiefs Advance Alternative Plan for Governing Post-Saddam Iraq; Rumsfeld Responds by Placing Feith in Charge
  16. Fall 2003: Reports: Bush Aware of Rove’s Role in Plame Wilson Leak
  17. Fall 2003: New York Times Reporter Lies to Boss about Her Knowledge of Plame Wilson’s Identity
  18. Fall 1985: Valerie Plame Joins CIA, Receives Elite Training
  19. Fall 1989: Plame Assigned to Athens for CIA Recruiting Duty
  20. Fall 1992 - 1996: Plame Becomes CIA ‘NOC’
  21. Autumn 1992: UN Inspectors Discover Advanced Nuclear Weapons Program in Iraq
  22. Fall 1999: Former Ambassador Visits Niger at CIA’s Behest, Perhaps to Find Information about Iraq-Niger Uranium Deals
  23. Fall and Winter 2002: Pentagon Sends Analysts to Networks, Press with Talking Points about Iraq War
  24. Late February, 2003: Pentagon Gives Prayer Booklets to Marines; Soldiers Expected to Pray for Bush
  25. Late 2002-Early 2003: More Talented US Personnel Redeployed from Afghanistan to Iraq
  26. Late May 2001: Pentagon PR Chief Forms ‘Rumsfeld Group’ to Manage Public Relations for War on Terror
  27. Late May 2003: 45-Minute Claim Sourced by ‘Unreliable’ Iraqi Defector, Britain Admits
  28. Late June 2003: Conservative Columnist Schedules Interview with Deputy Secretary of State
  29. Late July 2003: Former Bush Official Warns Nigerien President to Keep Quiet about Forged Uranium Documents
  30. Late July, 2004: Italian Information Peddler Confirms He Passed Forged Iraq-Niger Documents to Intelligence Contacts
  31. Late July-Early August, 1990: Arab Neighbors Urge Caution in Negotiating with Iraq
  32. Late August-Early September, 2006: Conservative Pundits, Mainstream Editorials Claim Armitage Revelation Proves No Conspiracy in CIA Agent Leak
  33. Late August, 1990: Iraq Presents CIA-Kuwait Memo as Proof of Plot to Destabilize Iraq
  34. Late September 2004: CBS Refuses to Air ‘60 Minutes’ Investigation of Iraq-Niger Uranium Claims
  35. Late September or Early October, 2003: Libby Tells Cheney that He Learned Identity of Plame Wilson from Him
  36. Late October or Early November, 2003: White House Press Secretary Questioned a Second Time by FBI in Plame Wilson Leak Investigation
  37. Late November, 1990: Algerian Foreign Minister Recommends that Iraq Release American Hostages
  38. Late 2000: Book Favored by Prominent Neoconservatives Argues that Hussein Was Behind 1993 WTC Bombing
  39. Late 2001 and After: CNN Limits Critical Reporting of Bush Administration Due to Pressure and Patriotic Fervor
  40. Late 2001: US Already Preparing for War in Iraq
  41. Late 2002: Soldiers’ Gas Masks, Chem/Bio Protective Gear Defective
  42. Late 1990s-2001 and Possibly After: Plame-Wilson Uses Brewster Jennings as CIA Cover
  43. June 2004: New Iraqi Oil Minister Appointed
  44. Mid-July, 2004: CIA Officer Writes Memo Confirming He, Not Plame Wilson, Suggested Joseph Wilson Go to Niger
  45. Mid-July, 2006: Wilsons Audited by IRS; ‘Political Payback’ Suspected
  46. Mid-July, 2006: Wilsons Represented by Watchdog Organization in Lawsuit against White House
  47. Mid-August, 2003: CIA Supervisor Tells Plame Wilson She Acted Correctly in Asking Husband to Meet with CIA Officials over Iraq-Niger Allegations
  48. Mid-August, 2004: Wilson: Why Does No One Know ‘Who Put a Lie in the President’s Mouth,’ but Everyone Knows His Wife Is a Covert CIA Officer?
  49. Mid-September-October 2001: Neoconservatives Attempt to Link Iraqi Government to 9/11 and Anthrax Attacks
  50. Mid-October 2003: White House Press Secretary Questioned by FBI in Plame Wilson Leak Investigation