February 26 - An American businessman was admitted to the Vietnam France Hospital in Hanoi, Vietnam. WHO doctor Carlo Urbani report the unusual highly contagious disease to WHO. Both the businessman and Carlo Urbani die of SAS in March.
March 5 - The U.S. Supreme Court by a 5-4 margin upholds California's "three strikes and you're out" law.
March 6 - U.S. President George W. Bush holds a live, televised press conference on the latest developments in the War on Terrorism, the situation with North Korea and the disarmament standoff with Iraq.
March 11 - Iraq disarmament crisis: Iraqi fighters threaten two U.S. U-2 surveillance planes, flying missions for U.N. weapons inspectors, forcing them to abort their mission and return to base. Iraqi officials described the incident as a "technical mistake" by the U.N. inspectors. Ewen Buchanan, spokesman for UNMOVIC, said that Iraqi officials had been notified about the flight beforehand.
March 11 - Iraq disarmament crisis: According to Arab media, Saddam Hussein opens terrorist training camps in Iraq for Arab volunteers willing to carry out suicide bombings against U.S. forces, if a U.S. led attack takes place.
March 12 - Iraq disarmament crisis: British prime minister Tony Blair proposes an amendment to the possible 18th U.N. resolution, which would call for Iraq to meet certain benchmarks to prove that it was disarming. The amendment is immediately rejected by France, who promises to veto any new resolution.
March 14 - U.S. Rep. James P. Moran Jr.[?] stepped down as a regional Whip for the House Democrats for making what he called "insensitive" remarks about Jews pushing the nation into war with Iraq. At a March 3 anti-war rally in Reston, Virginia, Moran said, "If it were not for the strong support of the Jewish community for this war with Iraq, we would not be doing this."
March 16 - Iraq disarmament crisis: The leaders of the United States, Britain, Portugal and Spain meet at a summit in the Azores Islands. U.S. President Bush calls Monday, March 17th, the "moment of Truth", meaning that the "coalition of the willing" would make its final effort to extract a resolution from the U.N. Security Council that would give Iraq an ultimatum to disarm immediately or to be disarmed by force.
March 17 - U.S. President George W. Bush gives ultimatum to Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein and his sons to either leave Iraq or face military action.
March 19 - Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W. Va.) gives a speech in the Senate, saying "I weep for my country" as America discards its image of a strong, benevolent peacekeeper.
March 20 - 2003 Iraq war: Land troops from United States and 3 other countries invade Iraq, preceded by a surgical air strike on the suspected bunker of Saddam Hussein in Baghdad.
