The 1990s

1999

The German Bundestag returns to Berlin

The Bundestag is the federal parliament of Germany. It is the only constitutional body in the country directly elected by the German people. The Bundestag was established by Title …

The German Bundestag returns to Berlin

1999

Panamanian general election: Mireya Moscoso becomes the first woman to be elected President of Panama

General elections were held in Panama on 2 May 1999, electing both a new President of the Republic and a new Legislative Assembly.

Panamanian general election: Mireya Moscoso becomes the first woman to be elected President of Panama

1999

The first elections to the devolved Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly are held

Devolution is the statutory delegation of powers from the central government of a sovereign state to govern at a subnational level, such as a regional or local level. It is a form …

The first elections to the devolved Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly are held

1999

In Guinea-Bissau, President João Bernardo Vieira is ousted in a military coup

Guinea-Bissau, officially the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, is a country in West Africa that covers 36,125 square kilometres (13,948 sq mi) with an estimated population of 2,080,000. …

In Guinea-Bissau, President João Bernardo Vieira is ousted in a military coup

1999

53 people are killed in a stampede at the Nyamiha metro station in Minsk, Belarus

A stampede at the Nyamiha metro station in Minsk, Belarus, on 30 May 1999, killed 53 people, mostly young women.

53 people are killed in a stampede at the Nyamiha metro station in Minsk, Belarus

1999

BMW win 1999 24 Hours of Le Mans

Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft, trading as BMW Group, is a German multinational conglomerate manufacturer of luxury vehicles and motorcycles headquartered in Munich, G…

BMW win 1999 24 Hours of Le Mans

1999

Days of student protests begin after Iranian police and hardliners attack a student dormitory at the University of…

The Iranian student protests of July 1999 were student protests which were violently repressed by the Basij and Ansar-e Hezbollah. Before the 2009 Iranian election protests, they w…

Days of student protests begin after Iranian police and hardliners attack a student dormitory at the University of…

1999

Columbine High School massacre: Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold kill 14 people and injure 23 others before committing suic

On April 20, 1999, twelfth-grade students Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold murdered 13 students and 1 teacher in a school shooting and attempted bombing at Columbine High School in Co…

Columbine High School massacre: Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold kill 14 people and injure 23 others before committing suic

1999

John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife, Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy, and her sister, Lauren Bessette, die when the aircraft he is…

John Fitzgerald Kennedy Jr., also referred to as JFK Jr., was an American businessman, attorney, magazine publisher, and journalist. He was the son of the 35th U.S. president John …

John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife, Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy, and her sister, Lauren Bessette, die when the aircraft he is…

1999

China Airlines Flight 642 crashes at Hong Kong International Airport, killing three people and injuring 208 more.

China Airlines Flight 642 was a scheduled flight that crashed at Hong Kong International Airport on 22 August 1999. It was operating from Bangkok to Taipei with a stopover in Hong …

China Airlines Flight 642 crashes at Hong Kong International Airport, killing three people and injuring 208 more.

1999

Russia begins the Second Chechen War in response to the Invasion of Dagestan by the Islamic International Peacekeeping…

The Second Chechen War took place in Chechnya and the border regions of the North Caucasus between the Russian Federation and the breakaway Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, from Augus…

Russia begins the Second Chechen War in response to the Invasion of Dagestan by the Islamic International Peacekeeping…

1999

NATO bombs the headquarters of Radio Television of Serbia, as part of their aerial campaign against the Federal Republic

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is an intergovernmental military alliance between 32 member states—30 in Europe and two in North America. Founded in the aftermath of …

NATO bombs the headquarters of Radio Television of Serbia, as part of their aerial campaign against the Federal Republic

1999

Outbreak of CIH computer virus

CIH, also known as the Chernobyl virus, is a computer virus that targets computers running the Windows 9x family of operating systems. There are several variants, with different tr…

Outbreak of CIH computer virus

1999

Neo-Nazi David Copeland carries out the last of his three nail bombings in London at the Admiral Duncan gay pub, killing

The 1999 London nail bombings were a series of bomb explosions in London, England. Over three successive weekends between 17 and 30 April 1999, homemade nail bombs were detonated i…

Neo-Nazi David Copeland carries out the last of his three nail bombings in London at the Admiral Duncan gay pub, killing

1999

The body of British climber George Mallory is found on Mount Everest, 75 years after his disappearance in 1924

George Herbert Leigh-Mallory was an English mountaineer who participated in the first three British Mount Everest expeditions from the early to mid-1920s. He and his climbing partn…

The body of British climber George Mallory is found on Mount Everest, 75 years after his disappearance in 1924

1999

The southwestern portion of Oklahoma City is devastated by an F5 tornado, killing forty-five people, injuring 665, and c

Oklahoma City, often shortened to OKC, is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. It is the 20th-most populous U.S. city and 8th largest in the Southern U…

The southwestern portion of Oklahoma City is devastated by an F5 tornado, killing forty-five people, injuring 665, and c

1999

The 7.7-magnitude Chi-Chi earthquake strikes central Taiwan, killing 2,400 people.

The Chi-Chi earthquake, was a 7.3 ML or 7.7 Mw earthquake which occurred in Jiji (Chi-Chi), Nantou County, Taiwan on September 21, 1999, at 01:47:12 local time. 2,415 people were k…

The 7.7-magnitude Chi-Chi earthquake strikes central Taiwan, killing 2,400 people.

1999

The Ladbroke Grove rail crash in West London kills 31 people.

The Ladbroke Grove rail crash occurred on 5 October 1999 at Ladbroke Grove in London, England, when a Thames Trains passenger train passed a signal at danger, colliding almost head…

The Ladbroke Grove rail crash in West London kills 31 people.

1999

Infiltration of Pakistani soldiers on Indian side results in the Kargil War

The Kargil War, also known as the Kargil conflict, was fought between India and Pakistan from May to July 1999 in the Kargil district of Ladakh, then part of the Indian-administere…

Infiltration of Pakistani soldiers on Indian side results in the Kargil War

1999

Pope John Paul II travels to Romania, becoming the first pope to visit a predominantly Eastern Orthodox country since th

Pope John Paul II was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death in 2005. He was the first non-Italian pope since Adrian VI in t…

Pope John Paul II travels to Romania, becoming the first pope to visit a predominantly Eastern Orthodox country since th

1999

Kosovo War: Three Chinese citizens are killed and 20 wounded when a NATO aircraft inadvertently bombs the Chinese embass

The Kosovo War was an armed conflict in Kosovo that lasted from 28 February 1998 until 11 June 1999. It was fought between the forces of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY), w…

Kosovo War: Three Chinese citizens are killed and 20 wounded when a NATO aircraft inadvertently bombs the Chinese embass

1999

Kosovo War: NATO bombs the village of Koriša, killing at least 87 people

The Kosovo War was an armed conflict in Kosovo that lasted from 28 February 1998 until 11 June 1999. It was fought between the forces of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY), w…

Kosovo War: NATO bombs the village of Koriša, killing at least 87 people

1999

The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague, Netherlands indicts Slobodan Milošević and f

The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) was an ad hoc court of the United Nations that was established to prosecute the war crimes that had been commit…

The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague, Netherlands indicts Slobodan Milošević and f

1999

The United States House of Representatives releases the Cox Report which details China's nuclear espionage against the U

The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the Ho…

The United States House of Representatives releases the Cox Report which details China's nuclear espionage against the U