Short answers, pulled from the story.
A Soviet decree authorized the design of the Mir space station on the 17th of February 1976. The first launch attempt failed on the 16th of February 1986, but the second attempt succeeded on the 19th of February 1986 at 21:28:23 UTC.
The Mir space station consisted of a core module plus four additional modules that launched independently and docked automatically to the forward port. A Lyappa arm lifted each module from the forward node and rotated it 90 degrees to a radial port for final docking.
Interkosmos allowed allied nations including Syria and Afghanistan to participate in crewed missions starting in 1987. European astronauts from France, Germany, Austria, and Britain also flew on programs like Aragatz, Project Juno, Euromir, and Cassiopée between 1987 and 1997.
A malfunctioning Vika oxygen generator caused a fire on the 23rd of June 1997 which led to total loss of station electrical power. The Progress M-34 spacecraft collided with solar arrays on the Spektr module on the 25th of June 1997 causing depressurization that dropped pressure in Spektr to vacuum levels.
Atmospheric drag reduced the altitude of the Mir space station to an average of 168 kilometers before controlled burns began on the 23rd of March 2001. Reentry started at 05:44 UTC near Nadi Fiji with major destruction beginning around 05:52 UTC and most unburned fragments fell into the South Pacific Ocean around 06:00 UTC.