2009 (
MMIX) is a
common year starting on
Thursday, in accordance with the
Gregorian calendar. It is the 2009th year
of the
Common Era, or of
Anno Domini; the 9th year of the
3rd millennium and of the
21st century; and the 10th and last of the
2000s decade. It is also the current
year.
2009 has been designated as the:
Events
January
- January 1 – Austria
, Japan
, Mexico
, Turkey
, and
Uganda assume their
seats on the United
Nations Security Council.
- January 1 – The
Czech
Republic
takes over
the presidency
of the Council of the
European Union from France
.
- January 1 – Asunción
, the capital of Paraguay
, becomes the
American Capital of
Culture and Vilnius
and Linz
become the
European Capitals of
Culture.
- January 1 – Slovakia
adopts the Euro as its national
currency, replacing the Slovak
koruna.
- January 3 – Israel
launches a
ground invasion of the Gaza
Strip
as the Gaza War enters its
second week.
- January 7 – Russia
shuts off
all gas supplies to Europe through Ukraine
.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin publicly endorses the move and
urges greater international involvement in the energy dispute.
- January 13 –
Ethiopian
military forces begin pulling out of Somalia
, where they
have tried to maintain order for nearly two years.
- January 15 –
US Airways
Flight 1549
lands in the Hudson River six minutes after
departure from LaGuardia Airport. Canadian Geese struck both
engines and lost thrust in both engines. All 155 passengers onboard
survive.
- January 17 – Israel announces a
unilateral ceasefire in the Gaza War.
It comes into effect the following day, on which Hamas declares a ceasefire of its own.
- January 20 – Barack Obama is inaugurated as the 44th, and
first African American, President of the United
States.
- January 21 – Israel completes its
withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. Intermittent air strikes by both
sides of the preceding war continue in the weeks to follow.
- January 22 –
President Obama signs an order to close within a year the Guantánamo Bay
detention camp
in Cuba
, where the
US had held non-citizens whom it accused of terrorism.
- January 22 –
Congo
rebel leader Laurent
Nkunda is captured by Rwandan
forces after crossing over the border into
Rwanda.
- January 26 – The first trial at the
International Criminal
Court is held. Former Union of Congolese Patriots
leader Thomas Lubanga is accused of
training child soldiers to kill,
pillage, and rape.
- January 26 – The
Icelandic
government and banking
system collapse; Prime
Minister Geir Haarde immediately
resigns.
February
- February 1 – Patriarch Kirill I of Moscow is
enthroned as the Patriarch of
the Russian Orthodox
Church.
- February 1 – Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir
is appointed as the new Prime
Minister of Iceland, becoming the world's first openly lesbian head of
government.
- February 7 – The deadliest bushfires in
Australian history begin; they kill 173,
injure 500 more, and leave 7,500 homeless. The fires come after
Melbourne
records the highest-ever
temperature (46.4°C, 115°F) of any capital city in
Australia. The majority of the fires are ignited by either
fallen or clashing power lines or deliberately lit.
- February 8 – The Taliban releases a video of Polish geologist
Piotr Stańczak, whom they had
abducted a few months earlier, being beheaded. It is the first killing of a Western
hostage in Pakistan since American journalist Daniel Pearl was executed in 2002.
- February 10 – A
Russian and an American satellite collide over Siberia
, creating a large amount of space debris.
- February 11 – Morgan Tsvangirai is sworn in as the new
Prime Minister of
Zimbabwe following the power-sharing
deal with President
Robert Mugabe signed in September, 2008.
- February 12 –
Colgan Air
Flight 3407
crashes into a home in Clarence
Center
, a suburb of Buffalo, New York
, killing 49 on the plane and one on the
ground.
- February 17 – The
JEM rebel group in
Darfur
, Sudan
sign a pact
with the Sudanese government, planning a ceasefire within the next
3 months.
- February 26 –
Former Serbian president
Milan Milutinović is
acquitted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the
former Yugoslavia
regarding war crimes
during the Kosovo War.
March
- March 2 – The
President of
Guinea-Bissau
, João Bernardo
Vieira, is assassinated during an armed attack on his residence
in Bissau
.
- March 3 – Gunmen
attack
a bus carrying Sri Lankan cricketers in
Lahore
, Pakistan
, killing eight people and injuring several
others.
- March 4 – The
International Criminal
Court (ICC) issues an arrest warrant for Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur
.
Al-Bashir is the first sitting head of
state to be indicted by the ICC since its establishment in
2002.
- March 7 – NASA
's Kepler Mission, a space photometer which will search for extrasolar planets in the Milky Way galaxy, is launched from Cape
Canaveral Air Force Station
, Florida
, USA.
- March 17 – The
President of
Madagascar
, Marc
Ravalomanana, is overthrown in a coup d'état, following a month of rallies
in Antananarivo
. The military appoints opposition leader
Andry Rajoelina as the new
president.
April
- April 1 – Albania
and Croatia
join the North
Atlantic Treaty Organization
(NATO).
- April 2 – The second
G-20 summit, involving state leaders
rather than the usual finance ministers, meets in London
. Its
main focus is an ongoing global financial
crisis.
- April 3–4 – The
21st NATO Summit is
held, 60 years after the founding of the organization. Former Danish
Prime
Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen
is appointed as the new Secretary General of
NATO.
- April 5 – North Korea
launches the Kwangmyŏngsŏng-2 rocket,
prompting an emergency meeting of—but no official reaction from—the
United Nations Security
Council.
- April 6 – A 6.3
magnitude earthquake
strikes near L'Aquila
, Italy
, killing
nearly 300 and injuring more than 1,500.
- April 7 – Former
Peruvian
President Alberto
Fujimori is sentenced to 25 years in prison for ordering
killings and kidnappings by security forces.
- April 10 – A
political crisis
begins in Fiji
when
President Josefa Iloilo suspends the nation's Constitution, dismisses all judges and
constitutional appointees and assumes all governance in the country after the Court of Appeal rules that the
government of Prime Minister
Frank Bainimarama is
illegal.
- April 11–12 – The Fourth
East Asia Summit is postponed after Thai
Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva declares a state of emergency
in Bangkok
and surrounding areas.
- April 17 –
Thirty-four heads of state and government meet in Port of Spain
, Trinidad
for the 5th
Summit of the Americas.
- April 18 – Roxana Saberi, an Iranian-American journalist, is sentenced to eight years in prison
for espionage by an Iranian court. She is
released the following month, after an appeals court reduces and
suspends her sentence.
- April 21 – UNESCO
launches The World Digital Library.
- April 24 – The
World Health Organization
expresses concern at the spread of influenza from Mexico
and the
United
States
to other countries. International cases and
resulting deaths are confirmed.
- April 29 – Amidst
Russia
's effort to
improve relations with NATO
and with
the West in general, NATO expels two
Russian diplomats from NATO headquarters in Brussels
over a spy scandal in Estonia
. Russia's Foreign
Ministry
criticises the expulsions.
May
June
A clash between pro-Zelaya protesters and the Honduran
military
- June 1 – Air France
Flight 447
, en route from Rio de Janeiro
, Brazil
to
Paris
, crashes into the Atlantic Ocean
, killing all 228 on board.
- June 11 – The outbreak of the H1N1 influenza strain,
commonly referred to as "swine flu", is deemed a global pandemic, becoming the first condition since the
Hong Kong flu of 1967–1968 to receive this
designation.
- June 12 – Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is reelected as the
president of Iran. During the
following weeks, supporters of defeated candidate Mir-Hossein Mousavi protest the results.
The
resultant violence is said to be the worst seen in Iran
since the
Iranian revolution of 1979.
- June 18 – NASA launches the Lunar Reconnaissance
Orbiter/LCROSS probes to the Moon, the
first American lunar mission since Lunar Prospector in 1998.
- June 20 – The
death of
Neda Agha-Soltan
, an Iranian student shot during a protest, is
captured on what soon becomes a viral
video that helps to turn Neda into an international symbol of
the civil unrest following the
presidential election.
- June 21 – As a step
toward total independence from the Kingdom of Denmark
, Greenland
assumes control over its law enforcement, judicial
affairs, and natural resources. Greenlandic becomes the official
language.
- June 25 – The death of American entertainer
Michael Jackson triggers an
outpouring of worldwide grief. Online, reactions to the event
cripple several major websites and services, as the abundance of
people accessing the web
addresses pushes internet
traffic to potentially unprecedented and historic levels.
- June 28 – The Supreme Court of Honduras orders
the arrest and exile
of President Manuel Zelaya, claiming
he was violating the nation's constitution by holding a referendum to stay in power. The United Nations and the Organization
of American States
condemn the coup
d'état.
- June 30 – Yemenia
Flight 626
crashes off the coast of Moroni, Comoros
, killing all but one of the 153 passengers and
crew.
July
August
September
October
November
December
Predicted and scheduled events
December
Unknown dates
Deaths
January
- January 1 – Nizar Rayan, Palestinian military and political
leader (born 1959)
- January 1 – Johannes Mario Simmel, Austrian writer
(born 1924)
- January 1 – Helen Suzman, South African activist and
politician (born 1917)
- January 12 – Claude Berri, French film director (born
1934)
- January 12 – Arne Næss, Norwegian philosopher (born
1912)
- January 13 – Patrick McGoohan, American-born British
actor (born 1928)
- January 14 – Ricardo Montalbán, Mexican-born
American actor (born 1920)
- January 15 – Said Seyam, Palestinian politician (born 1957)
- January 16 – Andrew Wyeth, American painter (born 1917)
- January 20 – Stéphanos II Ghattas, Egyptian
Patriarch of Alexandria (born 1920)
- January 25 – Mamadou Dia, 1st Prime Minister of Senegal (born
1910)
- January 27 – John Updike, American writer (born 1932)
- January 27 – R. Venkataraman, 8th President of India (born
1910)
- January 30 – Ingemar Johansson, Swedish boxer (born
1932)
February
March
- March 2 – João Bernardo Vieira, President of
Guinea-Bissau (born 1939)
- March 14 – Alain Bashung, French singer, songwriter and
actor (born 1947)
- March 15 – Ron
Silver, American actor and political activist (born 1946)
- March 18 – Natasha Richardson, English actress (born
1963)
- March 20 – Abdellatif Filali, 13th Prime Minister of
Morocco (born 1928)
- March 25 – Yukio
Endo, Japanese gymnast (born 1937)
- March 28 – Janet
Jagan, American-born President of Guyana (born 1920)
- March 29 – Maurice Jarre, French composer and conductor
(born 1924)
- March 31 – Raúl Alfonsín, 49th President of
Argentina (born 1927)
April
May
June
July
August
- August 1 – Corazon Aquino, 11th President of the
Philippines (born 1933)
- August 5 – Budd Schulberg, American screenwriter (born
1914)
- August 6 – John Hughes, American film director
and writer (born 1950)
- August 6 – Willy DeVille, American singer-songwriter
(born 1950)
- August 11 – Eunice Kennedy Shriver, American
founder of the Special Olympics (born 1921)
- August 13 – Les
Paul, American musician and inventor (born 1915)
- August 18 – Kim Dae-jung, 15th President of South Korea
(born 1925)
- August 24 – Toni Sailer, Austrian alpine ski racer (born
1935)
- August 25 – Ted
Kennedy, American politician (born 1932)
- August 26 – Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, Iraqi politician
and theologian (born 1953)
- August 27 – Sergey Mikhalkov, Soviet-Russian author
(born 1913)
September
October
November
Awards
Major religious holidays
In fiction
Computer and video games
Set in 2009:
Film
Television
- Series 3 (2007) episode Last of the Time Lords is set
mainly in a parallel year.
- Series 4 (2008) episodes Partners In Crime, The
Sontaran Strategem/The Poison Sky and The Stolen Earth/Journey's End; and Turn
Left, (which is set in a parallel universe).
Books
References
- Topolánek asks Barroso for help in visa dispute
Prague Daily Monitor
- Slovakia adopts the euro on January 1 Times
Online
- Haaretz, January 18, 2009
- CNN January 18, 2009
[1]
- BBC January 18, 2009
[2]
- Middle East | Last Israeli troops 'leave Gaza'. BBC
News (2009-01-21). Retrieved on 2009-07-07.
- At least six Gaza rockets hit southern Israel –
Haaretz – Israel News. Haaretz. Retrieved on 2009-07-07.
- Kassam rocket strikes Eshkol
Region|Israel|Jerusalem Post. Jpost.com. Retrieved on
2009-07-07.
- Congo and Rwanda forces arrest rebel leader Laurent
Nkunda The Guardian
- Congo Warlord Pleads Not Guilty at ICC’s First
Trial (Update1). Bloomberg.com (2009-01-26). Retrieved on
2009-07-07.
- Icelandic PM becomes world's first leader to step
down over banking system crisis | World news. The
Guardian. Retrieved on 2009-07-07.
- Video of Beheading of Pole Held by Taliban Is Real,
Official Says
- Crash of US, Russian Satellites a Threat in Space –
ABC News. Abcnews.go.com. Retrieved on 2009-07-07.
- Crew Saw Ice on Windshield, Wings, Before Crash –
WSJ.com. Online.wsj.com (2009-02-14). Retrieved on
2009-07-07.
- Sudan, Darfur Rebel Group Sign Peace Framework – ABC
News. Abcnews.go.com. Retrieved on 2009-07-07.
- President of Guinea-Bissau assassinated –
CNN.com. Edition.cnn.com (2009-03-02). Retrieved on
2009-07-07.
- BBC: Italian rescuers work into night
- Deadly new flu strain erupts in Mexico,
U.S.
- Mcclatchydc.com
- BBC: Self-rule introduced in Greenland
- CNN: Jackson dies, almost takes Internet with
him
- BBC: Web slows after Jackson's death
- New York Times: Medication is a focus of
Jackson inquiry
- New York Times: With Jackson entry,
Wikipedia may have set a record
- Honduran leader forced into exile
- Iceland to hand in formal EU membership application
Earth Times
- Ousted Honduran leader departs on flight for home |
U.S.. Reuters (2009-02-09). Retrieved on 2009-07-07.
- Laprensa.hn
- Allen, Nick. "Michael Jackson memorial service: the biggest
celebrity send-off of all time". The Daily
Telegraph, 7 July, 2009.
- Scott, Jeffry. "Jackson memorial second most-watched in TV
history". The Atlanta
Journal-Constitution, 8 July, 2009.
- Hinckley, David and Richard Huff. "Michael Jackson's memorial 2nd most-watched
funeral ever, after Princess Di, say Nielsen ratings".
New York Daily News, 8 July,
2009.
- Helgason, Gudjon and Meera Selva. "Iceland's parliament votes to join EU".
Yahoo!
News, 16 July, 2009.
- BBC News
- MB.com
- Roman Polanski arrested in Switzerland over 1978
warrant
- http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/8282670.stm
-
http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/europe/11/03/czech.eu.lisbon.treaty/index.html
-
http://www.consilium.europa.eu/showFocus.aspx?id=1&focusId=416&lang=en
- The Treaty of Lisbon will enter into force on 1 December 2009,
and on that date the six month rotating presidency of the European
Council, currently held by Sweden, will cease to exist (as the
provision for its existence will have been erased from the Treaties
in force) and the new office of President of the European Council
will come into being. The appointment of Herman van Rompuy as
President of the European Council will be formalized on the date of
the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, and will be effective
immediately. Also, article 6 of the Protocol on transitional
provisions annexed to the Treaty of Lisbon provides that, on
the date of the entry into force of the Treaty, the terms of office
of the current High Representative for the common foreign and
security policy and of the Deputy Secretary General of the Council
shall cease, and the Council shall then elect a Secretary General
(the current High Representative combines the role of Secretary
General of the Council, but that will no longer be the case under
the Lisbon Treaty).
http://register.consilium.europa.eu/pdf/en/08/st06/st06655.en08.pdf
- BBC News
- Burj Dubai now a record 688 meters tall and
continues to rise
- Arabianbusiness.com
- COP15, United
Nations Climate Change Conference, Copenhagen 2009. Dates put back
1 week due to previous clash with Muslim period of Ramadan
- All Laureates in Economic Sciences
- House, Michael L.. (1998-11-23) Abuse -
Overview. allgame. Retrieved on 2009-07-07.
- crude futures: Park Slope 2009 according to
Freejack (1992). Crudefutures.typepad.com (2009-06-18).
Retrieved on 2009-07-07.
- Threads of time: three original ... – Google
Books. Books.google.com (2008-06-24). Retrieved on
2009-07-07.