Associated Press

  Recent events in Haitian history:

  Dec. 16, 1990 - Jean-Bertrand Aristide becomes Haiti's first democratically elected president after nearly 30 years of dictatorship under the Duvalier family.

  Sept. 30, 1991 - The army overthrows Aristide's government, forcing the president into exile in the United States.

  Sept. 19, 1994 - U.S. troops intervene to restore Aristide to power.

  Feb. 6, 1995 - Aristide disbands the Haitian army and replaces it with a civilian police force.

  Dec. 23, 1995 - Rene Preval, Aristide's protege, elected president. Term limit prohibits Aristide from running.

  May 21, 2000 - Aristide's Lavalas Family party sweeps legislative elections that observers say were flawed. The international community puts millions in foreign aid on hold until results are revised.

  Nov. 26, 2000 - Aristide wins a second term as president in elections boycotted by major opposition parties who claimed fraud in the legislative elections.

  Dec. 17, 2001 - Gunmen raid the national palace in what the government calls a coup attempt. Opponents say the government staged the attack to distract attention from its shortcomings.

  Oct. 29, 2002 - More than 200 illegal Haitian migrants jump overboard and rush onto a major Miami highway, bringing attention to the plight of a people desperate to escape the unending violence created by Haiti's politics and poverty.

  September 2003 - A wave of protests begin against Aristide, spreading across the country. Dozens are killed and injured in clashes between police and government opponents.

  Feb. 5, 2004 - Armed rebels seize control of Gonaives, Haiti's fourth-largest city, starting a popular uprising that threatens Aristide's presidency.

  Feb. 16, 2004 - Ex-soldiers returned from exile in the Dominican Republic seize the strategically located central town of Hinche. They announce their next target is Haiti's second-largest city, Cap-Haitien. Among them is a former death squad leader and the former Cap-Haitien police chief.