TIMELINE: Political impasse in Lebanon

(Reuters) - Rival Lebanese leaders reached a deal on Wednesday to end 18 months of political conflict that had pushed their country to the brink of a new civil war.

Here is a chronology of Lebanon in the last 18 months.

November 11, 2006 - Five pro-Syrian Shi'ite Muslim ministers from Hezbollah and its ally, the Amal movement, resign after the collapse of talks on giving their camp more say in government.

November 21 - Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel is killed.

December 1 - Hezbollah, Amal and supporters of Christian leader Michel Aoun camp outside Prime Minister Fouad Siniora's office in Beirut in open-ended campaign to topple the government.

June 13, 2007 - Anti-Syrian parliamentarian Walid Eido and five other people killed by a car bomb near a Beirut beach club.

September 2 - Lebanese troops seize complete control of Nahr al-Bared camp after months of fighting with Fatah al-Islam militants which kills over 420 people, including 168 soldiers.

September 19 - Car bomb in Beirut kills anti-Syrian Christian lawmaker Antoine Ghanem and six other people.

November 23 - Lahoud leaves presidential palace at end of his term, no successor has been elected. Next day Siniora says his cabinet is assuming executive powers.

December 5 - Speaker Berri says rival Lebanese leaders have agreed on General Michel Suleiman as president.

December 12 - Car bomb kills Brigadier General Francois al-Hajj, the army's head of operations, and a bodyguard in a Christian town east of Beirut.

January 15, 2008 - Car bomb in Christian area of Beirut kills at least 3 people and wounds 16, damages a U.S. embassy car and destroys others.

January 25 - Wisam Eid, a captain in a Lebanese police intelligence unit, is killed by a bomb blast in mainly Christian east Beirut. At least five other people are killed.

February 11 - Three army officers and 16 soldiers are charged over the killing of seven opposition protesters on January 27.

February 14 - Lebanon's Hezbollah holds mass funeral for its assassinated commander Imad Moughniyah, in Beirut. He was killed in a bomb blast in Syria the day before.

May 6 - Hezbollah infuriated by government allegations it spied on Beirut airport and by cabinet's decision to fire the head of airport security who is close to the opposition.