Top News Stories of the Decade

When considering the top news stories of the decade, who can forget the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, in which almost 3,000 people lost their lives in separate attacks on the twin towers of World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and a plane that was flown into the ground in Pennsylvania? Different Internet sources may list different items as top stories, but how could any list be complete without including that attack? Some of the top stories, in no particular order, are listed in this article.

Almost every American, and many people around the world, can still remember where he was and what he was doing when he first heard about the two planes that flew into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York. It was a little later we all heard about the other plane that flew into the Pentagon and the other plane that crashed in Pennsylvania. As the worst terrorist attack in United States history, it is small wonder such an act would be one of the top news stories of the decade. Now al-Qaida and Osama bin Laden, the leaders and planners of the attack are household names, even if infamous names, around the world.

Another one of the top news stories of the decade was a direct result of the terrorist attacks--the American war in Iraq. United States intelligence that the terrorist attacks were the result of al-Qaida, and Iraq President Saddam Hussein's allowing the terrorist organization in his country and allowing the organization to train there led to the March 2003 United States invasion of the country. Hussein, who many called a brutal dictator, had been in power since 1979.

As a result of the war, Hussein was ousted from his position. His sons, Uday and Qusay were killed during fighting against coalition troops. Saddam Hussein himself was found hiding in a hole, tried for crimes against humanity, and hanged December 30, 2006.

Another of the top news stories of the decade was the Boxing Day tsunami on December 26, 2004, which swept across Asian beaches. More than 30,000 people were killed in just a few minutes in Sri Lanka alone. About 1.5 million people became homeless. Many became refugees. A tsunami is a destructive sea wave caused by an earthquake or volcanic eruption. This tsunami was caused by the second largest earthquake in world history, a quake measured at least at a 9.1 magnitude.

International aid workers moved to the island to help. Large amounts of money were donated worldwide to help. Nearly 230,000 people were killed from the wave in the region. More than $7 billion was given to affected regions.

The global recession that some say was the worst economic disaster since the Great Depression and that many economists say began in December 2007, was another of the top news stories of the decade.

Numerous countries, including the United States were affected by bank foreclosures, high unemployment, and bank bailouts.

World leaders grappled with ways to help solve the situation. Major new initiatives were instituted to help solve the crisis by both former President George W. Bush and President Barack Obama. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown was not successful in pushing his "global new deal" program.

A conflict in Darfur, with rebel groups fighting the government, led to mass killings of civilians and mass displacements, and the conflict was another top story. Celebrities such as George Clooney attempted to publicize the situation to try to help bring about a solution. President George W. Bush declared the conflict genocide. More than 300,000 people were killed from 2003-2005. Two million people were displaced from their homes.

A total of 1,836 people were killed in Louisiana and Mississippi during Hurricane Katrina, another top story. The Category 3 Storm on August 9, 2005, covered 80 percent of the city of New Orleans in water for weeks. Destruction spread from Florida to Texas. A total of 705 people were classified as missing.

The United States War on Terror, which has included battles in Afghanistan in Iraq, was another top story of the decade. Besides those battles, there have been those arrested in the United States for planning terrorist attacks, for attempting to use a shoe bomb to blow up a plane, and for attempting to blow up a plane on Christmas Day. America has also attempted to obtain the money of those attempting to plan attacks in the United States and elsewhere and has worked with other governments in the War on Terror.

Another top story has been whether Iran has a nuclear program for peaceful purposes, as it maintains, or for other reasons, as the United States, Israel, and others maintain. How to deal with the country in the United Nations has been a hotly debated topic and may continue to be so for some time. Some have discussed military action against Iran. Many maintain that if Iran is attempting to build a nuclear bomb Israel and the United states would be at danger.

According to Internet sources, other top news stories of the decade include the election of Barack Obama as the first African American man to be elected United States President, the rise of China as an economic and military superpower (some sources list this as the top story), the War in Afghanistan, the Beijing Olympics, and the fact that so far Osama bin Laden has eluded capture by the United States.

Citations: Top 10 News Stories of the Decade, by Bridget Johnson, WorldNews.about.com

Top News Stories of the Decade, no author listed, languagemonitor.com