istoryworld
Events relating to asia
An earthquake kills more than 70,000 people in inaccessible regions near Muzaffarabad in the Pakistan part of Kashmir
Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad causes international outrage by describing Israel as a blot that should be 'wiped off the map'
The Israeli prime minister, Ariel Sharon, resigns from his party (Likud) with the intention of forming a new one (Kadima)
The first general election is held in Iraq, for 275 members of a permanent Iraqi General Assembly
Aung San Suu Kyi remains under house arrest nearly 20 years after winning Burma' only free election
Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon suffers a massive stroke which leaves him in a coma
Hamas, defined in many countries as a terrorist organization, wins the majority of seats in elections to the Palestinian Legislative Council
Kadima, the party founded by Ariel Sharon, wins the most seats in the Israeli elections
Ehud Olmert, Sharon's successor as leader of Kadima, becomes Israel's prime minister at the head of a coalition government
Structural work is completed on China's Three Gorges Dam, by far the largest hydroelectric dam in the world
Hamas militants take hostage an Israeli corporal, provoking a new Israeli military campaign against Gaza
North Korea test-fires seven missiles, of varying ranges and with varying success
A series of coordinated terrorist bombs explode on trains during the crowded evening rush hour in Mumbai (Bombay)
Hezbollah takes two Israeli soldiers hostage, provoking the renewal of air and rocket warfare on the Israel-Lebanon border
A UN-sponsored cease-fire comes into effect in the conflict between Israeli and Hezbollah forces in south Lebanon
A military coup in Thailand removes the prime minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, from office
North Korea announces that it has tested a nuclear weapon
An Iraqi court sentences former dictator Saddam Hussein and two of his senior colleagues to death by hanging
Former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein is hanged in Baghdad, a month after being convicted of a few of his crimes
In Bhutan's first general election, the Peace and Prosperity Party wins 45 of the 47 seats in the National Assemby
The Taliban fail in an assassination attempt on Afghan president Hamid Karzai
Cyclone Nargis kills at least 130,000 people and possibly many more in Burma (the number is uncertain due to government efforts to downplay the disaster)
Nepal becomes a republic after the Assembly votes by a large majority to abolish the monarchy
In the Beijing Olympics swimmer Michael Phelps wins 8 gold medals, beating Mark Spitz's record of 7 in the 1972 games
Nine years after seizing power in a coup, Pervez Musharraf resigns as president of Pakistan under threat of impeachment
