Timeline August 1998

Events in August 1998 7

• 1933 – 1998 Shari Lewis (1933-1998) Died 2 August 1998, aged 65 Shari Lewis, the American puppeteer and ventriloquist best known for her sock puppet character Lamb Chop, died of pneumonia while being treated for cancer on 2 August 1998. Her children's television programs spanned five decades.
• 1998 US Open 1998 Men: Patrick Rafter · Women: Lindsay Davenport
• 1998 Second Congo War begins Conflict draws in nine African nations Fighting broke out on 2 August 1998 when rebel forces backed by Rwanda and Uganda rose against Congolese President Laurent-Desire Kabila, whom they had earlier helped bring to power. The war eventually drew in nine African countries and numerous armed groups, becoming the deadliest conflict since World War II.
• 1998 United States embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania Al-Qaeda truck bombs kill over 220 On 7 August 1998, near-simultaneous truck bombs detonated outside US embassies in Nairobi, Kenya, and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, killing over 220 people and injuring thousands, mostly local civilians. Al-Qaeda claimed responsibility, and the attacks marked the group's emergence as a major international threat, prompting US cruise missile strikes on targets in Sudan and Afghanistan later that month.
• 1998 Apple launches the iMac Translucent all-in-one computer revives Apple's fortunes Apple released the original iMac G3 on 15 August 1998, an all-in-one computer with a distinctive translucent, colourful design designed under Jonathan Ive. It sold strongly and is widely credited with beginning Apple's turnaround under the returning Steve Jobs.
• 1998 Omagh bombing Real IRA car bomb kills 29 in County Tyrone A car bomb planted by the Real IRA, a splinter group opposed to the Good Friday Agreement, exploded in the centre of Omagh, Northern Ireland, on 15 August 1998. Twenty-nine people, including a woman pregnant with twins, were killed and hundreds injured. It remains the deadliest single attack of the Troubles era.
• 1998 Russian financial crisis Rouble collapses and Russia defaults on domestic debt On 17 August 1998, Russia devalued the rouble and defaulted on its domestic debt, triggering a banking collapse and a sharp economic contraction. The crisis wiped out savings for many Russians and contributed to the collapse of the US hedge fund Long-Term Capital Management weeks later.