March 2001 News and Events

Updated July 10, 2020 | Infoplease Staff

World

Suicide Bomber Kills Three Israelis (March 4): Attack in Netanya, town north of Tel Aviv, follows slaying by Israelis of six Palestinians. Tension builds in area.
Israel Restores Parliamentary System (March 7): Legislature votes overwhelmingly to abandon direct election of prime minister and have legislators make choice.
Bomb Kills Six in Kuwait (March 12): Five Americans die when the U.S. Navy, in a training drill, drops a 500-pound missile and hits observation post filled with military personnel. A New Zealander also dies.
Russia to Resume Arms Sales to Iran (March 12): President Putin agrees to provide conventional weapons after five-year interval.
Albanian Rebels Fight in Macedonia (March 15): Battle police in Tetovo. Some civilian casualties.
OPEC to Cut Oil Output (March 17): Members of Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries agree to trim production by 4 percent to stem falling prices.
Russia Convicts Six in Bombing (March 19): Islamic extremists sentenced for 1999 blast in Dagestan region that killed 68 and sparked popular support for war in Chechnya.
Bush Meets with Israeli Prime Minister (March 20): Discussion with Ariel Sharon appears to indicate desire to shun peace talks while violence continues.
Russian Diplomats Expelled from U.S. (March 21): Move follows arrest of FBI agent Robert Hanssen, who allegedly spied for Moscow for 15 years.
British Livestock Epidemic Spreads (March 23): Foot-and-mouth disease reaches crisis levels and government intensifies efforts to eradicate it.
Bush Abandons Global-Warming Treaty (March 30): International session in Montreal breaks up after Bush balks at Kyoto Protocol, which calls on industrialized nations to reduce emissions of heat-trapping gases. (March 31): European leaders angered by Bush's decision to abandon international treaty.

Nation

Census Bureau Rejects Tally Revision (March 1): Urges commerce secretary not to adjust 2000 population figures to make up for persons not counted.
Pentagon Reveals a New Weapon (March 1): Military officials say device uses electronic magnetic waves to disperse crowds without injury.
Aides Say Clinton Rejected Pardon Advice (March 1): Three senior advisers tell House panel that president overruled them and granted a pardon to Marc Rich on last day in office.
Cheney Hospitalized (March 5): Doctors clear an obstructed artery. Second angioplasty in four months.
Congress Repeals Clinton Work Rules (March 6): Senate votes, 56–44, to rescind new regulations designed to reduce injuries, especially those from repetitive stress. (March 7): House by narrow margin, 223–206, also votes for repeal.
Increase in U.S. Hispanic Population (March 7): Census Bureau reports Hispanic population grew by more than 60 percent over last decade.
Bush Bars Talks with North Korea (March 7): Tells South Korean president Kim Dae Jung that he will not discuss missile negotiations any time soon, shelving Clinton effort toward normal relations.
Senate Toughens Bankruptcy Rules (March 15): Votes, 83–15, to make debt reduction more difficult.
Rule on Arsenic in Water to End (March 20): EPA plans to rescind Clinton administration order to reduce arsenic level in drinking water.
ABA Role on Judgeships to End (March 22): White House tells bar association it will no longer seek its evaluation of nominees for federal bench.
Senate Blocks Campaign Finance Reform Foes (March 27): Defeats, 60–40, proposal that would have limited but not banned unregulated donations to parties.

Business/Science/Society

Ruling Expands Reach of Cable Companies (March 2): Appeals court strikes down federal regulations that prevent big organizations from expanding and broadcasting more of their own shows.
Crash of Guard Plane Kills 21 (March 3): C-23 Sherpa plunges to ground in heavy rain in Georgia.
Student Kills Two Others in California (March 5): Charles Andrew Williams, 15, also wounds 13 others at high school in Santee. Incident called worst episode of school violence since Columbine in 1999.
U.S. Bans Meat from Europe (March 13): Blocks imports of animals and animal products after foot-and-mouth disease spreads from Britain to France.
Four Blasts Kill 108 in China (March 16): Coordinated explosions shake Shijiazhuang. Dozens reported injured. Investigation focuses on a resident of one of bombed buildings who is also wanted for murder.
Federal Reserve Acts to Bolster Markets (March 20): Lowers interest rates half a percentage point to stimulate economy after sharp plunges in stock market and Nasdaq technology index.
Rolling Blackouts in California (March 20): Hundreds of thousands lose power as industry managers move to counter energy production crisis.
Study Links Estrogen to Cancer (March 21): Researchers find that risk of ovarian cancer is greater among those who took hormone for ten or more years.
Defects Result in Cloning Animals (March 24): Scientists report mounting evidence of random genetic errors that threaten similar efforts to duplicate humans.
Fire Kills 58 Youths in Kenya (March 26): Sleeping students perish in dormitory blaze.
Suspect in Anti-Abortion Killing Seized (March 29): French police arrest James Charles Kopp, activist charged in 1998 sniper shooting in Amherst, N.Y.
Stem Cells Thought to Yield Benefits (March 30): Scientists see use in repairing damaged heart tissue.