Timeline: Niger

A chronology of key events:

1890 - French occupy Niger.

1958 - Niger becomes autonomous republic of the French Community.

Ibrahim Mainassara seized power in 1996, was assassinated in 1999 On This Day 1999: President of Niger 'killed in ambush'

1960 - Niger becomes independent; parliament elects Diori Haman president.

1968-73 - Severe drought devastates Niger's livestock and crop production.

1974 - Diori Herman overthrown in military coup led by Lt-Col Seyni Kountche.

1987 - Ali Seybou, the armed forces chief of staff, succeeds Kountche who dies of a brain tumour.

1989 - A new constitution brings Niger back to civilian rule, but under a one-party system; Seybou re-elected president.

Ban on parties lifted

1990 - Seybou legalizes opposition parties following a wave of strikes and demonstrations.

Maj Daoude Wanke ruled for eight months after 1999 coup His transitional government handed over power to Mamadou Tandja Died in September 2004 1999: Military controls Niger

1990 - Rebellion by Tuareg people in the north begins.

1991 July - Constitutional conference strips Seybou of his powers and sets up a transitional government under Andre Salifou.

1992 - New constitution allowing multiparty elections ratified.

1993 - Mahamane Ousmane elected president and his coalition, the Alliance of the Forces of Change wins a majority of seats in parliament.

1995 - Ceasefire between the government and the Tuareg's Revolutionary Armed Forces of the Sahara comes into effect.

More coups

1996 January - Ousmane ousted in a coup led by Colonel Ibrahim Mainassara, who bans all political parties.

1996 May - New constitution giving the president increased powers approved in a referendum; ban on political parties lifted.

1996 July - Mainassara wins presidential election.

1999 poll marked return to democracy after military rule 1999: Military rule ends in Niger

1997 - The Democratic Renewal Front, a hard-line Tuareg group, signs peace accord with government.

1999 April - Major Daouda Wanke assumes power following the assassination of Mainassara by his bodyguards.

1999 August - New constitution restoring the balance between the legislative and executive branches of power approved in a referendum.

1999 October and November - Mamadou Tandja elected president and his party, the National Movement for the Society in Development, wins majority of seats in parliament.

2001 January - Niger bans hunting in an effort to save its wildlife population, which includes the lion, the giraffe and the hippopotamus.

2002 August - Soldiers mutiny in the east and in the capital and demand the payment of wage arrears and better conditions. The rebellions are put down.

Uranium claim

2003 January - US President George W Bush claims Iraq tried to acquire uranium from Niger for its nuclear programme. Claim also made in UK's September 2002 dossier on Iraq.

US withdrew charge that Iraq tried to buy uranium from Niger 2004: Ex-Niger premier denies Iraq link

2003 March - Nuclear watchdog tells UN that documents relating to Iraq-Niger uranium claim are forged, concludes specific allegations are unfounded.

2004 July - First-ever local elections. Parties backing the president win most of the seats.

2004 December - President Mamadou Tandja wins a second term in office with 65.5% of the vote in a second-round ballot.

2005 March - A planned ceremony at which some 7,000 slaves were to be freed is cancelled after the government claims that slavery does not exist in Niger.

Widespread protests over tax increases of up to 20% on basic goods.

2005 July - UN warns that millions of people face severe malnutrition because of food shortages caused by drought and locust infestations.

Seasonal food shortages hit many thousands of people 2005: Food crisis or famine?

International Court of Justice awards Niger most of the river islands along its disputed border with Benin.

2006 June - Unions call a national strike to protest against the high cost of living.

Health and educations ministers are sacked following pressure from donors who allege corruption.

2006 July - Aid agencies warn of dwindling supplies of food. The World Food Programme says it is already feeding 1.5 million people.

2006 October - Government starts expelling Mahamid Arabs to Chad, but shortly afterwards reverses the policy. Many of of the Mahamid crossed into Niger more than 30 years ago to escape drought, famine and fighting.

Tuareg rebellion

2007 August - Government declares alert in the north, giving the army greater powers to fight Tuareg rebels who have staged deadly attacks over the past six months.

Tuareg rebels seek more autonomy and a greater share of mining profits

2007 December - Two French journalists working for the French-German TV station, Arte, arrested for interviewing Tuareg rebels.

2008 February - The 110 million-year-old fossils of two previously unknown species of flesh-eating dinosaurs are discovered in Niger's desert area.

2008 June - Police arrest former PM Hama Amadou on charges of embezzling state funds.

Constitutional 'coup'

2008 July - Government orders the charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) to halt all operations, reportedly over suspicions of links to Tuareg rebels.

2009 April - Government and Tuareg rebels of the Movement of Niger People for Justice (MNJ) agree to end hostilities after talks in Libyan capital Tripoli.

2009 May-June - President Mamadou Tandja suspends constitution and assumes emergency powers after Constitutional Court rules against his plans for a referendum on whether to allow him to seek a third term.

2009 August - Much-criticized referendum endorses new constitution which allows President Tandja to rule for three more years and gives him broader powers.

2009 October - Opposition boycotts election to replace parliament that President Tandja dissolved to stop it blocking his constitutional changes. Mr Tandja's supporters win overwhelming victory over independent candidates.

West African regional grouping ECOWAS suspends Niger for having failed to postpone the elections.