2001-2005

2001

2001 – George W. Bush becomes the second president of the United States to be the son of a former president, when he is inaugurated on January 20, 2001.
2001 – Al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked 4 commercial airliners and crashed 3 of them into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon in the United States on September 11, killing nearly 3,000 people. The United States subsequently declared a War on Terrorism.
2001–present – The U.S. and NATO invaded Afghanistan on October 7, 2001 and overthrew the Al-Qaeda-supportive Taliban government. Troops remained to install a democratic government, fight a slowly escalating insurgency, and to hunt for Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden
2001 – Dennis Tito becomes the first space tourist by paying $19 million to board the International Space Station.
2001 19 members of al-Qaeda hijacked four commercial airliners, intentionally crashing two of them into The World Trade Centers in New York City, and one into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. The fourth plane's intended target was the White House, but passengers aboard the plane resisted the initiatives of the hijackers and crashed the plane into a field in Pennsylvania. 2,997 people from 90 different countries died. It remains one of the most striking and eventful terrorist attacks in contemporary history.
2001 Gujarat Earthquake - An earthquake in Gujarat,India on January 26, 2001 killed approximately 20,000.

2002

2002 – The International Criminal Court (ICC) was established on July 1.
2002 – A series of bombings carried out by Islamic militants killed 202 people at the resort of Kuta, Bali, Indonesia on October 12.
2002 – Mars Odyssey arrives in orbit around Mars.
2002 Bali terrorist bombings kill 202 people.

2003

2003–present – In February 2003, a conflict in Darfur, Sudan began and soon escalated into full-scale war. It is soon considered the worst humanitarian crisis in the world. By 2008 it is believed that up to 400,000 people have been killed and over 2.5 million displaced. In 2005, the ICC decided that Darfur war criminals would be tried, and on July 14, 2008, Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir was charged with 5 accounts of crimes against humaninty and 2 accounts of war crimes, although the ICC currently has no power to enforce these charges.
2003–present – The U.S.-led coalition invaded Iraq on March 20, 2003 and overthrew the government of Saddam Hussein (who was executed by the Iraqi government on December 30, 2006). Coalition troops remain in the country to install a democratic government and fight an escalating insurgency. In addition to an insurgency against the American presence, Iraq also suffered from a civil war for several years. The war was soon seen as the central front of the War on Terror by many governments, despite growing international dissatisfaction with the war. The total death toll has been estimated at near 150,000 but these estimations are highly disputed. After the U.S.-led coalition initiated a troop surge in 2007, casualty numbers have decreased significantly.
2003 – Space Shuttle Columbia disaster February 1.
2003 – The Chinese space program launches its first manned space flight, Shenzhou 5 on October 15.
2003 – Discovery of an old dwarf human species, Homo floresiensis by modern humans (published October 2004).
2003 European heat wave - Approximately 30,000 people were killed across europe in a summer long heat wave.
2003 Bam earthquake - An earthquake in Bam, Iran on December 27, 2003 killed more than 26,000.

2004

2004 – The European Union expanded by 10 countries, including 8 former communist countries, plus Malta and Cyprus.
2004 – On March 11, bombings carried out by Islamic militants killed 191 people on the commuter rail system of Madrid, Spain.
2004 – Mars Exploration Rovers land on Mars; Opportunity discovers evidence that an area of Mars was once covered in water.
2004 – The Cassini–Huygens probe arrives at Saturn.
2004 – SpaceShipOne makes the first privately funded human spaceflight, June 21.
2004 – The first ever recorded hurricane in the South Atlantic forms.
2004 terrorist attacks shake several train stations on Spain's capital Madrid, killing 191 people and injuring 1,247.
2004 Indian Ocean earthquake - On December 26, 2004, an undersea earthquake resulted in a massive tsunami striking southeast Asia killing approxomately 230,000.

2005

2005 Hurricane Jeanne - Over 3,000 people are killed by Hurricane Jeanne in Haiti in September 2004.
2005 Hurricane Katrina - The hurricane killed 1,836 in southeast Louisiana and Mississippi (mostly in New Orleans). A significant portion of the city, most of which sits below sea level, was submerged.
2005 Kashmir earthquake An earthquake in Kashmir on October 8, 2005, killed at least 74,500 in India and Pakistan
2005 Cyclone Nagris - lead to massive landslides, leading to a death toll in excess of 100,000 and making millions homeless.
2005 – Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip on September 11.
2005 – The Huygens probe lands on Titan, the largest of Saturn's moons, January 14.
2005 – The Deep Impact probe impacts Comet Tempel 1, July 4.
2005 - The Space Shuttle Discovery launches on STS-114 on July 26, the first Return to Flight mission following the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster. The mission marks the beginning of the end of the current Space Shuttle Program (shuttles Endeavour, Atlantis, and Discovery)
2005 London bombings, Suicide terrorist attacks shake London transport system killing 52 people and injuring 700.
, terrorists attack various markets in New Delhi, killing 61 people and injuring 188 more, right before the start of the festival season in India.