<Li> January 21--In one of the largest drug busts in American history, the United States Coast Guard intercepts a ship with over 9,500 pounds (4.75 tons) of cocaine aboard headed for Houston . </Li> <Li> January 25--The 6.2 M Armenia, Colombia earthquake hits western Colombia, killing at least 1,000 . </Li> <Li> January 31--Family Guy debuts on Fox . </Li> <Ul> <Li> February 4--Unarmed Guinean immigrant Amadou Diallo is shot dead by New York City police officers on an unrelated stake - out, inflaming race relations in the city . </Li> <Li> February 7--King Hussein of Jordan dies from cancer, and his son Abdullah II inherits the throne . </Li> <Li> February 11--Pluto moves along its eccentric orbit further from the Sun than Neptune . It had been nearer than Neptune since 1979, and will become again in 2231 . </Li> <Li> February 12--U.S. President Bill Clinton is acquitted in impeachment proceedings in the United States Senate . </Li> <Li> February 16 <Ul> <Li> In Uzbekistan, an apparent assassination attempt against President Islam Karimov takes place at government headquarters . </Li> <Li> Across Europe, Kurdish rebels take over embassies and hold hostages after Turkey arrests one of their rebel leaders . </Li> </Ul> </Li> <Li> February 21--Sanna Sillanpää shoots 4 men, killing 3 at a shooting range in Finland . </Li> <Li> February 22--Moderate Iraqi Shiite cleric Mohammad Mohammad Sadeq al - Sadr is assassinated . </Li> <Li> February 23 <Ul> <Li> Kurdish rebel leader Abdullah Öcalan is charged with treason in Ankara, Turkey . </Li> <Li> White supremacist John William King is found guilty of kidnapping and killing African American James Byrd Jr. by dragging him behind a truck for 2 miles (3 km). </Li> <Li> An avalanche destroys the village of Galtür, Austria, killing 31 . </Li> </Ul> </Li> <Li> February 24--LaGrand case: The State of Arizona executes Karl LaGrand, a German national involved in an armed robbery in 1982 that led to a death . Karl's brother Walter is executed a week later, in spite of Germany's legal action in the International Court of Justice to attempt to save him . </Li> <Li> February 27--While trying to circumnavigate the world in a hot air balloon, Colin Prescot and Andy Elson set a new endurance record after being aloft for 233 hours and 55 minutes . </Li> </Ul>

What was happening in the world in 1999