2001 was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, the 2001st year of the Common Era and Anno Domini designations, the 1st year of the 3rd millennium and the 21st century, and the 2nd year of the 2000s decade. The September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, generally considered to be the year’s most prominent event, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. More at Wikipedia