"MMIV" redirects here. For the Modest Mouse album with these characters on its cover see Baron von Bullshit Rides Again. This article is about the year 2004. Millennium: 3rd millennium Centuries: 20th century 21st century 22nd century Decades: 1970s  1980s  1990s  2000s  2010s  2020s  2030s Years: 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2004 by topic: News by month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Arts Architecture Art Comics Film Home video Literature (Poetry) Music (Country Metal UK) Radio Television Video gaming Politics Elections Int'l leaders Politics State leaders Sovereign states Science and technology Archaeology Aviation Birding/Ornithology Meteorology Palaeontology Rail transport Science Spaceflight Sports Sport Athletics (Track and Field) Australian Football League Baseball Football (soccer) Cricket Ice Hockey Motorsport Tennis Rugby league By place Algeria Argentina Australia Brazil Canada People's Republic of China Denmark El Salvador Egypt European Union France Germany Ghana India Iraq Iran Ireland Israel Italy Japan Kenya Lithuania Luxembourg Malaysia Mexico New Zealand Norway Pakistan Palestinian territories Philippines Russia Singapore South Africa South Korea Spain Sri Lanka United Arab Emirates United Kingdom United States Zimbabwe Other topics Awards Games Law Religious leaders Video gaming Birth and death categories Births Deaths Establishments and disestablishments categories Establishments Disestablishments Works and introductions categories Works Introductions v d e 2004 in other calendars Gregorian calendar 2004 MMIV Ab urbe condita 2757 Armenian calendar 1453 Bah' calendar 160 161 Bengali calendar 1411 Berber calendar 2954 British Regnal year 52 Eliz. 2  53 Eliz. 2 Buddhist calendar 2548 Burmese calendar 1366 Byzantine calendar 7512 7513 Chinese calendar (4640/4700-12-10) to (4641/4701-11-20) Coptic calendar 1720 1721 Ethiopian calendar 1996 1997 Hebrew calendar 5764 5765 Hindu calendars  - Bikram Samwat 2060 2061  - Shaka Samvat 1926 1927  - Kali Yuga 5105 5106 Holocene calendar 12004 Iranian calendar 1382 1383 Islamic calendar 1424 1425 Japanese calendar Heisei 16 (16) Korean calendar 4337 Thai solar calendar 2547 Unix time 1072915200 1104537599 v d e Wikimedia Commons has media related to: 2004

2004 (MMIV) was a leap year that started on a Thursday. In the Gregorian calendar the year 2004 was the 2004th year in the Anno Domini or Common Era the 4th year in the 3rd millennium and of the 21st century and the 5th in the 2000s decade.

The year 2004 was designated the: International Year of Rice (by the United Nations) International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO) 2004 World Health Day topic was Road Safety (by World Health Organization) Events January January 1 Pervez Musharraf wins a vote of confidence from an electoral college consisting of Parliament and the provincial assemblies confirming him as President of Pakistan and de facto dictator until 2007. January 3 Flash Airlines Flight 604 crashes into the Red Sea off the coast of Egypt killing all 148 aboard. January 4 Mikhail Saakashvili wins the presidential elections in Georgia. NASA's MER-A (Spirit) lands on Mars at 04:35 UTC. January 8 Queen Elizabeth II christens the RMS Queen Mary 2 cruise liner the largest passenger ship afloat. The ship sets sail on her maiden voyage four days later. January 13 Serial killer Harold Shipman is found hanged in his cell at Wakefield Prison four years after being convicted of murdering 15 patients in Cheshire England. January 24 NASA's MER-B (Opportunity) lands on Mars at 05:05 UTC. January 26 A whale explodes in Tainan City Taiwan while being transported through the town to a university for a necropsy.1 January 28 The findings of the Hutton Inquiry are published in London. The British Government is found not to have falsified information in the "sexed up dossier." The report criticizes the BBC's role in the death of David Kelly a weapons expert on Iraq. February February 1 A hajj stampede in Mina Saudi Arabia kills 251 pilgrims. The New England Patriots win Super Bowl XXXVIII. February 2 An 11-story apartment building collapses in Konya Turkey killing more than 90 residents. February 3 The CIA admits that there was no imminent threat from weapons of mass destruction before the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Jannes Eidesgaard becomes prime minister of the Faroe Islands. February 4 Facebook was founded at Cambridge Massachusetts. February 6 A suicide bomber kills 41 people on a metro car in Moscow. February 7 Several leaders of Abnaa el-Balad are arrested in Israel. February 10 At least 50 people are killed in a car bomb attack on a police recruitment centre south of Baghdad. The French National Assembly votes to pass a law banning religious items and clothing from schools. February 12 San Francisco California begins issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples in an act of civil disobedience. February 13 Athens gets hit by a major blizzard which blankets the entire city for days causing widespread havoc. Scientists in South Korea announce the cloning of 30 human embryos. February 14 Riots break out between New South Wales Police and Aboriginal residents of Redfern New South Wales a suburb of Sydney Australia. The roof of the Transvaal water park in Moscow collapses killing 25 and injuring more than 100. February 17February 20 A nor'easter blizzard devastates Atlantic Canada dumping more than 37.4 in. (95 cm.) on some areas. February 18 A train carrying a convoy of petrol fertiliser and sulfur derails and explodes in Iran killing 320 people. February 20 Conservatives win a majority in the Iranian parliament election. February 24 A 6.5 Richter scale earthquake in Northern Morocco hits in the Rif mountains near the city of Al Hoceima killing 400. Ait Kamara is destroyed; 517 are killed. February 26 The United States lifts a 23-year travel ban against Libya. Macedonian President Boris Trajkovski is killed in a plane crash near Mostar Bosnia and Herzegovina. February 27 2004 SuperFerry 14 bombing: The Abu Sayyaf guerrilla group is blamed for the deadliest terrorist attack at sea in world history which kills 116 in the Philippines. February 28 Over 1 million Taiwanese participating in the 228 Hand-in-Hand Rally form a 500-kilometre (300-mile) long human chain to commemorate the 228 Incident in 1947. February 29 2004 Haiti rebellion: Jean-Bertrand Aristide resigns as president of Haiti. The chief justice of the Haitian Supreme Court Boniface Alexandre is sworn in as interim president. March Cyclone Gafilo March 2 NASA announces that the Mars rover MER-B (Opportunity) has confirmed that its landing area was once drenched in water. March 10 Five British men are released from detention at Camp Delta Guantanamo Bay. After they land at RAF Brize Norton 4 of them are immediately arrested for questioning. March 11 Terrorists execute simultaneous attacks with bombs in 4 rush-hour trains in Madrid killing 191 people. March 12 Following the terrorist attacks in Madrid the previous day millions of protesters against terrorism take to the streets of Spanish cities. March 14 Two suicide bombers kill 11 Israeli civilians in Ashdod Israel. Spanish legislative election 2004: The incumbent government led by Jos Mara Aznar is defeated by the Socialist Jos Luis Rodrguez Zapatero. Russian presidential election 2004: Vladimir Putin easily wins a second term. March 15 The new Spanish Government announces that it will withdraw Spain's 1300 troops in Iraq. March 17 A pogrom-like organized violence breaks out over 2 days in Kosovo; 19 people are killed 8000 Serbian homes burned schools and businesses vandalized and over 300 Orthodox monasteries and churches burned and destroyed. March 19 The United Nations launches a political corruption investigation due to the scandal over its Iraqi Oil for Food program. March 20 President Chen Shui-bian wins the Taiwanese presidential election by 0.2% of the vote. The day before he and Vice President Annette Lu were shot. Lien Chan refuses to concede and demands a recount. A controversial peace referendum opposed by the People's Republic of China is invalidated. March 22 Palestinians protest in the streets after an Israeli helicopter gunship fires a missile at the entourage of Sheikh Ahmed Yassin in Gaza City killing him and 7 others. March 25 British prime minister Tony Blair visits Libyan leader Colonel Muammar al-Gaddafi in return for the dismantling of Libya's Weapons of mass destruction programme in December 2003 (the first time a major western leader had visited the nation in several decades). March 28 In France the government of prime minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin suffers a stunning and unprecedented defeat in regional elections. The first ever reported South Atlantic hurricane makes landfall in South Brazil in the state of Santa Catarina the hurricane is dubbed Hurricane Catarina. March 29 The Republic of Ireland bans smoking in all enclosed work places including restaurants pubs and bars. The largest expansion of NATO to date takes place allowing Bulgaria Estonia Latvia Lithuania Romania Slovakia and Slovenia into the organization. March 31 Four American private military contractors working for Blackwater USA are killed and their bodies mutilated after being ambushed in Fallujah Iraq. April April 5 Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom begins a state visit to France to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Entente Cordiale. April 8 Darfur conflict: The Humanitarian Ceasefire Agreement is signed by the Sudanese government and 2 rebel groups. April 17 Israeli helicopters fire missiles at a convoy of vehicles in the Gaza Strip killing the Gaza leader of Hamas Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi. April 20 In Iraq 12 mortars are fired on Abu Ghraib Prison by insurgents; 22 detainees are killed and 92 wounded. 1 April 21 Mordechai Vanunu who revealed an Israeli nuclear weapons program in the 1980s is released from prison in Israel after serving 18 years for treason. April 22 Ryongchon disaster: Two trains carrying explosives and fuel collide in Ryongchon North Korea killing 161 people injuring 1300 and destroying thousands of homes. The last coal mine in France closes ending nearly 300 years of coal mining. April 24 Referendums on the Annan Plan for Cyprus which proposes to re-unite the island take place in both the Greek-controlled and the Turkish-controlled parts. Although the Turkish Cypriots vote in favour the Greek Cypriots reject the proposal. April 28 Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse in Iraq is revealed on the television show 60 Minutes II. April 29 The last Oldsmobile rolls off of the assembly line. May European Union flag May 1 The largest expansion to date of the European Union takes place extending the Union by 10 member-states: Poland Lithuania Latvia Estonia the Czech Republic Slovakia Slovenia Hungary Malta and Cyprus. May 8 Would-be "Saudi Princess" "Antoinette Millard" surfaces in New York City claiming that muggers had stolen jewels worth of $262000 from her (she later proves to be an impostor). May 9 Chechen president Akhmad Kadyrov is killed by a landmine placed under a VIP stage during a World War II memorial parade in Grozny. May 12 An American civilian contractor in Iraq Nick Berg is shown being decapitated by a group allegedly linked to al-Qaida on a web-distributed video. May 14 Frederik Crown Prince of Denmark marries Australian Mary Donaldson in Copenhagen. May 15 South Africa is awarded the 2010 FIFA World Cup. May 16 A coup d'tat in Chad against President Idriss Dby fails. May 17 Ezzedine Salim holder of the rotating leadership of the Iraq Interim Governing Council is killed in a bomb blast in Baghdad. Massachusetts legalizes same-sex marriage in compliance with a ruling from the state's Supreme Judicial Court (Goodridge v. Department of Public Health). May 19 Jeremy Sivits pleads guilty in a court-martial in connection with alleged abuse of Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad. May 22 Dr. Manmohan Singh assumes office as the 17th and first Sikh Prime Minister of the Republic Of India. May 23 A section of the ceiling in Terminal 2E at Paris's Charles de Gaulle International Airport collapses claiming at least 6 lives. Japanese prime minister Junichiro Koizumi visits North Korea to secure the release of the families of the 9 abducted Japanese citizens returned earlier. May 24 North Korea bans mobile phones (see Communications in North Korea). May 26 Terry Nichols is convicted by an Oklahoma state court on murder charges stemming from the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. F.C. Porto wins the European Champion Clubs Cup defeating A.S. Monaco 30. May 29 The National World War II Memorial is dedicated in Washington DC. May 30 Thousands of people in Hong Kong take to the streets to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre. June June 1 Sasebo slashing: Satomi Mitarai a 12-year-old Japanese schoolgirl attending Okubo Elementary School in Sasebo Japan is murdered. Her killer is an 11-year-old classmate identified by Japanese authorities as "Girl A". June 3 All outgoing flights from the UK are temporarily grounded following an air traffic control computer failure. BBC NEWS Central Intelligence Agency director George Tenet tenders his resignation citing "personal reasons". John E. McLaughlin CIA Deputy Director becomes the acting Director until a permanent Director is chosen and confirmed by Congress. June 4 Marvin Heemeyer destroys many local buildings with a home-made tank in Granby Colorado. June 8 The first transit of Venus since 1882 occurs; the next one will occur in 2012. The 30th G8 summit takes place over the next 2 days on Sea Island in Georgia USA. The pickled heart of Louis XVII of France is buried in the royal crypt at Saint-Denis. June 11 Terry Nichols is spared the death penalty by an Oklahoma state court on murder charges stemming from the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. The decision comes on the third anniversary of the execution of his co-defendant Timothy McVeigh in Terre Haute Indiana. June 12 A 1.3 kg chondrite type meteorite strikes a house in Ellerslie New Zealand causing serious damage but no injuries. June 16 The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (or "9/11 Commission") issues an initial report of its findings. June 21 In Mojave California SpaceShipOne becomes the first privately funded spaceplane to achieve spaceflight. June 28June 29 The 2004 Istanbul Summit is held. June 28 Union Pacific and Burlington Northern Santa Fe trains collide in a rural area outside of San Antonio Texas; 40 cars are derailed including one chlorine car. Three people die another 50 people are hospitalized because of exposure to the gas. The U.S.-led coalition occupying Iraq transfers sovereignty to an Iraqi Interim Government. Canadian federal election 2004: The Liberal Party led by Paul Martin is reduced to a minority government after holding a majority since November 1993. June 30 Preliminary hearings begin in Iraq in the trial of former president Saddam Hussein for war crimes and crimes against humanity. July July 1 The Cassini-Huygens spacecraft arrives at Saturn. The Vatican gains full membership rights in the United Nations except voting. July 4 Groundbreaking for the Freedom Tower begins at Ground Zero in New York City. July 22 The Old Bridge of Mostar in Bosnia and Herzegovina is reconstructed and reopened after being destroyed by Bosnian Croat forces on November 9 1993. July 25 Over 100000 opponents of Israel's unilateral disengagement plan of 2004 participate in a human chain from Gush Katif to the Western Wall Jerusalem (90 kilometers). Lance Armstrong of Austin Texas wins an unprecedented 6th consecutive Tour de France cycling title. August August 1 A supermarket fire in Asuncin Paraguay kills about 400 and leaves over 100 missing. A bomb attack occurs in front of Prague's Casino Royal. August 2 Monday demonstrations against social cutbacks began in Germany. August 3 The Statue of Liberty reopens after security improvements. NASA's MESSENGER is launched (it will be captured into Mercury's orbit on March 18 2011). August 6 A United Nations report blaming the government of Sudan for crimes against humanity in Darfur is released. August 9 At the Mihama Nuclear Power Plant a pipe leaking hot water and steam kills 5 and injures 6 others in the 2nd worst nuclear disaster in Japan. August 12 Singapore's prime minister Goh Chok Tong hands over his position to Lee Hsien Loong. New Jersey Governor James McGreevey announces that he is "a gay American" and will resign effective November 15 2004. August 13August 29 The 2004 Summer Olympics are held in Athens. The Olympic Flame during the Opening Ceremony of the 2004 Summer Olympics held in Athens. August 13 Hurricane Charley kills 27 people in Florida after killing 4 in Cuba and 1 in Jamaica. Charley makes landfall near Cayo Costa FL as a Category 4 hurricane. Charley is the most intense hurricane to strike the United States since Hurricane Andrew in 1992. August 16 Severe flooding occurs in the village of Boscastle in Cornwall. August 18 In Dublin Ireland the Dublin Port Tunnel excavation works are completed and the final tunnel boring machine breakthrough ceremony takes place. August 20 Elbegdorj Tsakhia the peaceful democratic revolutionary leader of Mongolia becomes Prime Minister of Mongolia for the second time. August 21 A series of blasts rocks an opposition party rally in Dhaka Bangladesh killing at least 13 people. August 22 Armed robbers steal Edvard Munch's The Scream Madonna and other paintings from the Munch Museum in Oslo Norway. August 24 Two airliners in Russia carrying a total of 89 passengers crash within minutes of each other after flying out of Domodedovo International Airport leaving no survivors. Authorities suspect suicide attacks by rebels from Chechnya to be the cause of the crashes. August 29 Around 200000 protesters demonstrate in New York City against U.S. President George W. Bush and his government ahead of the 2004 Republican National Convention. August 30September 2 U.S. President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney are renominated at the Republican National Convention in New York City. August 31 Two suicide attacks on buses in Beer Sheva Israel kill at least 16 people and injure at least 60. Hamas claims responsibility for the attacks. A woman commits a suicide attack near a subway station in northern Moscow Russia killing at least 10 people and injuring at least 50. Authorities hold Chechen rebels responsible. September September The Great Laxey Mine Railway of the Isle of Man is re-opened. September 1 Chechen terrorists take between 1000 and 1500 people hostage mostly children in a school in the Beslan school hostage crisis. The hostage-takers demand the release of Chechen rebels imprisoned in neighbouring Ingushetia and the independence of Chechnya from Russia. September 2 The United Nations Security Council adopts Resolution 1559 calling for the removal of all foreign troops from Lebanon. This measure is largely aimed at Syrian troops. Hurricane Ivan forms. September 3 Russian forces end the siege at a school in Beslan Northern Ossetia. At least 335 people (among which are 32 of the approximately 40 hostage-takers) are killed and at least 700 people injured. Hurricane Frances makes landfall in Florida. After killing 2 people in the Bahamas Hurricane Frances kills 10 people in Florida 2 in Georgia and 1 in South Carolina. September 7 Hurricane Ivan passes directly over Grenada killing 37 people. It passes over other Caribbean islands over the next 2 days killing 5 people in Venezuela 4 in the Dominican Republic 1 in Tobago and 20 in Jamaica. September 8 In the "Rathergate" affair the first Internet posts appear pointing out that documents claimed by CBS News to be typewritten memos from the early 1970s appear instead to have been produced using modern word processing systems. September 9 A bomb blast outside the Australian embassy in Jakarta Indonesia kills 11 and injures up to 100 people. Typhoon Songda hits western Japan killing 45 and injuring another 1352. September 13 The U.S. Assault Weapons Ban expires. September 15 Dav Oddsson Prime Minister of Iceland steps down after serving as prime minister since April 30 1991. Oddson trades posts with his foreign minister Halldr sgrmsson who then becomes Prime Minister. Security at the Palace of Westminster is compromised when the House of Commons is stormed by a small group of protestors during a debate about fox hunting. "Girl A" who committed the Sasebo slashing is sentenced to be institutionalized. September 16 Hurricane Ivan strikes Gulf Shores Alabama as a Category 3 storm killing 25 in Alabama and Florida becoming the 3rd costliest hurricane in American history (currently the 4th following the destruction of 2005's Hurricane Katrina). September 17 Hurricane Jeanne causes mudslides in Haiti killing 3006. The 2004 Summer Paralympics commences in Athens Greece. Mexico and Japan finish 2-year-long negotiations and sign a Free Trade Agreement in Mexico City. September 21 Construction of the Burj Khalifa begins. September 22 The TV series Lost airs its pilot. September 23 Mount St. Helens becomes active again. Tropical Storm Ivan having come around and reformed in the Gulf of Mexico makes its final landfall near Cameron Louisiana to little effect. In total the storm kills 92 people. September 24 Major League Baseball announces that the Montreal Expos will move to Washington D.C. in 2005. September 25 Port Adelaide Power wins their first premiership against the Brisbane Lions in the AFL Grand Final. Hurricane Jeanne makes landfall near Port Saint Lucie Florida near the location Hurricane Frances hit 2 weeks earlier. Jeanne kills over 3030 mostly in Haiti. September 29 In Mojave California the first Ansari X-Prize flight takes place of SpaceShipOne which is competing with a number of spacecraft (including Canada's Da Vinci Project claimed to be its closest rival) and goes on to win the prize on October 4. October October 4 Two car bombs kill at least 16 people and injure dozens more in Baghdad. October 5 A fire breaks out on the Canadian submarine HMCS Chicoutimi leaving it stranded without power in the North Atlantic ocean off the north coast of Ireland; 1 crewmember is killed. West Sulawesi officially becomes a province in Indonesia after the expansion of South Sulawesi. October 8 Suicide bombers detonate 2 bombs at the Red Sea resort of Taba Egypt killing 34 people mainly Israeli tourists and Egyptian workers. October 9 Direct elections for president are held for the first time in Afghanistan. Interim president Hamid Karzai is eventually declared the winner. October 10 Abdullahi Yusuf is chosen as the new transitional president of Somalia. October 14 Prince Norodom Sihamoni is chosen as the new king of Cambodia. October 16 The New York Yankees defeat the Boston Red Sox 198 in Game 3 of Major League Baseball's American League Championship Series. The game which pushes the Yankees to a 3 games to 0 series lead sets a record for longest 9 inning baseball game. Arsenal loses for the first time in 49 league games a national record going down 20 to Manchester United at Old Trafford. October 17 A referendum in Belarus approves the lifting of constitutional term limits for the presidency. October 19 General Khin Nyunt is replaced by Lieutenant-General Soe Win as Prime Minister of Myanmar. A team of explorers reaches the bottom of the world's deepest cave located in Krubera. The depth reached is 2080 meters (6824 feet) setting a world record. (National Geographic) October 20 The Ubuntu operating system is first released. Corporate Airlines Flight 5966 crashes in Missouri killing 13 people and injuring 2. October 21 The Ministry of Defence approves the deployment of the Black Watch regiment of the British Army to Baghdad Iraq after a request for assistance by the U.S. government. Typhoon Tokage kill 98 injured 552 in western Japan. October 23 A Magnitude 6.7 earthquake and aftershocks of similar scale occur in the Tokamachi area. A huge landslide occurs on the outskirts of Nagaoka. According to Japanese officials 68 people are killed 4085 are injured and 103000 are rendered homeless. October 24 Brazil successfully launches its first rocket into space. Michael Schumacher wins his 7th Formula One World Drivers Championship (5th consecutive) making him the most successful driver in the history of Formula One. October 25 Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King receive the Congressional Gold Medal. Titan shown in ultraviolet and infrared wavelengths. Photo captured by the Cassini spacecraft October 26 The Cassini probe passes within 1200 km of Titan. October 27 The Boston Red Sox win the World Series for the first time since 1918 breaking the Curse of the Bambino. Details of the discovery of a new recent species of fossil hominid Homo floresiensis from the island of Flores Indonesia are published. October 29 European heads of state sign in Rome the Treaty and Final Act establishing the first European Constitution. October 30 A 163-metre-high radio mast in Peterborough UK collapses at a fire. November November 2 Eleven American states ban gay marriage. Dutch film maker Theo van Gogh is assassinated in Amsterdam Netherlands by Mohammed Bouyeri. November 6 The Ufton Nervet rail crash in Berkshire England kills 7 people. In Cte d'Ivoire National Army bombings kill 9 people including French UN soldiers. French UN forces retaliate by destroying the National Army's air force. November 7 U.S. forces launch a major assault on the Iraqi town of Fallujah in an effort to rid the area of insurgents before the Iraqi elections in January. November 8 The Irish High Court rules that Katherine Zappone and Ann Louise Gilligan can sue the Revenue Commissioner to have their Vancouver British Columbia Same-sex marriage recognized for tax purposes. November 13 After six days of intense battles the Iraqi town of Fallujah is fully occupied by U.S. forces. November 14 United States Secretary of State Colin Powell submits his resignation. He is replaced by Condoleezza Rice after her confirmation by the United States Congress. November 16 The European Space Agency probe Smart 1 passes from Earth orbit into the orbit of the Moon. A train crash near Bundaberg Queensland Australia injures 150 people. The People's Republic of China agrees to invest $20 billion dollars in Argentina a deal signed days before the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum to be held in Santiago Chile. NASA's hypersonic Scramjet breaks a record by reaching a velocity of about 7000 mph in an unmanned experimental flight. It obtains a speed of Mach 9.6 almost 10 times the speed of sound. November 17November 21 The APEC Summit is held in Santiago Chile. November 19 The NBA's Indiana Pacers and Detroit Pistons engage in a brawl that involves fans and players. The incident gets (then) Pacer Ron Artest suspended for the remainder of the season. November 21 Ukrainian presidential election 2004: Viktor Yanukovych is declared the winner in the final round. International election observers express severe criticism and large crowds gather in a protest rally in Kiev; 12 days later the Supreme Court annuls the result and a new poll is scheduled. November 25 The Indian political party Congress Jananayaka Peravai merges into the Indian National Congress. November 26 A group of Iraqi political leaders primarily from Sunni and Kurdish parties advocate a 6-month delay in popular elections scheduled for January 2005. November 28 An coal mine explosion in China kills over 150. Ricardo Lagos President of Chile promises economic compensation to 28000 torture victims of Augusto Pinochet's military dictatorship. A male Po'o-uli dies of avian malaria at the Maui Bird Conservation Center in Olinda before it can breed making the species in all probability extinct. December December 3 The Colombian government extradites Gilberto Rodrguez Orejuela one of the most powerful drug dealers in the world arrested in 1995 and 2003 to the United States. December 6 Terrorists attack the U.S. Consulate in Jeddah Saudi Arabia killing several people. December 8 The biggest Chinese PC producer Lenovo announces its plan to purchase IBM's global PC business making it the third largest world PC maker after Dell and Hewlett-Packard. December 10 New Zealand bans smoking in all public places including bars. December 11 Tests show that Ukrainian opposition presidential candidate Viktor Yushchenko was poisoned with a large dose of dioxin. December 13 Software giants Oracle Corporation and PeopleSoft agree to merge in a $10.3 billion deal creating the second largest maker of business applications software. December 14 The world's tallest bridge the Millau bridge over the River Tarn in the Massif Central mountains France is opened by President Jacques Chirac. December 15 Albanian terrorists take a bus and its passengers hostage in Athens Greece and demand 1 million euros in ransom money. December 16 The House of Lords rules that the British Government breaches human rights legislation by detaining without trial foreign nationals suspected of being terrorists. IT security company Symantec Corp signs a definitive agreement to merge with Veritas Software Corp valued at $13.5 billion in an all-stock transaction. The South Korean high-speed rail system Korea Train Express opens between Seoul and Busan. December 21 Iraqi insurgents attack a U.S. military base in the city of Mosul killing 22 people. December 22 Armed robbers in Northern Ireland steal over 22 million from the headquarters of the Northern Bank. Unionist politicians and the Police Service of Northern Ireland blame the Provisional Irish Republican Army and stall the peace process. The tsunami caused by the December 26 2004 earthquake strikes Ao Nang Thailand. December 26 One of the worst natural disasters in recorded history hits Southeast Asia when the strongest earthquake in 40 years hits the entire Indian Ocean region. The massive 9.3 magnitude earthquake epicentered just off the west coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra generates enormous tsunami waves that crash into the coastal areas of a number of nations including Thailand India Sri Lanka the Maldives Malaysia Myanmar Bangladesh and Indonesia. The official death toll in the affected countries stands at 186983 while more than 40000 people are still missing. The re-run of the second round of the Ukrainian presidential election takes place. Opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko is declared the winner. December 27 Astrophysicists from the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics in Garching near Munich measure the strongest burst from a magnetar. At 21:30:26 UT the earth is hit by a huge wave front of gamma and X-rays. It is the strongest flux of high-energetic gamma radiation measured so far. December 28 The Ukrainian transport minister Heorhiy Kirpa is found shot dead in a suspected suicide. December 30 A fire in a Buenos Aires night club (Repblica Cromagnon) kills 194 people during a rock concert. December 31 Taipei 101 at the time tallest skyscraper in the world standing at a height of 1670 feet (509 metres ) officially opens. Simn Trinidad high-profile FARC leader is extradited to the United States following the second extradition of a high drug dealer in a month and in 2004. Ukrainian Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych resigns. Births January 21 Princess Ingrid Alexandra of Norway Deaths Main article: Deaths in 2004 January January 2 Paul Hopkins American baseball player (b. 1904) Etta Moten Barnett American actress (b. 1901) Lynn Cartwright American actress (b. 1927) January 4 Joan Aiken English author (b. 1924) January 6 Tug McGraw American baseball player (b. 1944) Pierre Charles Prime Minister of Dominica (b. 1954) January 7 Ingrid Thulin Swedish actress (b. 1926) January 9 Norberto Bobbio Italian philosopher (b. 1909) Yinka Dare Nigerian Professional Basketball Player (b. 1972) January 11 Mairtn Crawford Irish poet (b. 1967) January 12 Zeno Vendler American philosopher of language (b. 1921) January 14 Terje "Valfar" Bakken Norwegian musician (b. 1978) Uta Hagen German actress (b. 1919) January 22 Ann Miller American dancer and actress (b. 1923) Jack Tunney Canadian wrestling promoter (b. 1935) January 25 Miklos Feher Hungarian footballer (b. 1979) January 27 Jack Paar American television show host (b. 1918) January 29 M. M. Kaye British writer (b. 1908) January 31 Eleanor Holm American swimmer (b. 1913) February February 14 Marco Pantani Italian cyclist (b. 1970) February 17 Jos Lpez Portillo President of Mexico (b. 1920) February 19 Archibald Paton Thornton British historian (b. 1921) February 21 John Charles Welsh footballer (b. 1931) Nestor de Villa Filipino actor (b. 1928) February 24 John Randolph American actor (b. 1915) February 26 Boris Trajkovski President of the Republic of Macedonia (b. 1956) Adolf Ehrnrooth Finnish general (b. 1905) February 27 Paul Sweezy American economist and editor (b. 1910) Yoshihiko Amino Japanese historian (b. 1928) February 28 Daniel J. Boorstin American historian and Librarian of Congress (b. 1914) March March 2 Mercedes McCambridge American actress (b. 1918) Marge Schott American baseball team owner (b. 1928) March 4 Claude Nougaro French singer (b. 1929) Stephen Sprouse American fashion designer artist and photographer (b. 1953) March 5 Priscilla Paris American singer (b. 1953) March 7 Paul Winfield American actor (b. 1941) March 8 Abu Abbas founder of the Palestine Liberation Front (b. 1948) Tichi Wilkerson Kassel American film personality and publisher (b. 1926) March 15 John Pople English chemist Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1925) March 20 Juliana Queen of the Netherlands (b. 1909) March 22 Ahmed Yassin Palestinian co-founder of Hamas (b. 1937) March 26 Jan Sterling American actress (b. 1921) March 29 Peter Ustinov English actor and director (b. 1921) March 30 Alistair Cooke English-born journalist (b. 1908) April April 1 Carrie Snodgress American actress (b. 1946) April 17 Edmond Pidoux Swiss writer (b. 1908) April 18 Kamisese Mara first Prime Minister of Fiji and President of Fiji (b. 1920) April 19 Norris McWhirter Scottish co-founder of the Guinness Book of Records (b. 1925) John Maynard Smith English biologist (b. 1920) April 22 Pat Tillman American football player and U.S. Army Ranger (b. 1976) April 24 Este Lauder American cosmetics entrepreneur (b. 1906) April 25 Thom Gunn British poet (b. 1929) April 26 Hubert Selby Jr. American writer (b. 1928) May Tony Randall May 7 Nicholas Berg American businessman (b. 1978) May 9 Tommy Farrell American supporting actor and comedian (b. 1921) Alan King American actor (b. 1927) Olive Osmond Osmond family matriarch (b. 1925) May 14 Anna Lee British actress (b. 1913) May 17 Tony Randall American actor (b. 1920) Ezzedine Salim President of the Iraqi Governing Council (b. 1943) May 22 Richard Biggs American actor (b. 1960) Ronald Smith British pianist and musicologist (b. 1922) Mikhail Voronin Russian gymnast (b. 1945) May 25 Roger W. Straus Jr. American publisher (b. 1917) May 28 Umberto Agnelli Swiss-born automobile executive (b. 1934) May 29 Archibald Cox American Watergate special prosecutor (b. 1912) Jack Rosenthal English playwright (b. 1931) Samuel Dash American Congressional counsel (b. 1925) June Ronald Reagan June 2 Loyd Sigmon American amateur ("ham") radio broadcastor (b. 1909) June 5 Ronald Reagan American politician and actor 40th President of the United States (b. 1911) Iona Brown British violinist and conductor (b. 1941) June 7 Quorthon Swedish musician (b. 1966) June 10 Ray Charles American singer and musician (b. 1930) June 11 Egon von Furstenberg Swiss fashion designer (b. 1946) Xenophon Zolotas Greek economist interim 177th Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1904) June 13 Dick Durrance American skier (b. 1914) June 16 Thanom Kittikachorn Thai military dictator 10th Prime Minister of Thailand (b. 1912) June 20 Jim Bacon Australian politician 41st Premier of Tasmania (b. 1950) June 21 Ron Ashman former footballer and football manager (b. 1926) June 26 Naomi Shemer Israeli songwriter (b. 1931) June 27 George Patton IV American general (b. 1923) June 30 Jamal Abro Sindhi writer (b. 1924) July Marlon Brando July 1 Peter Barnes English writer (b. 1931) Marlon Brando American actor (b. 1924) Todor Skalovski Macedonian composer (b. 1909) July 2 John Cullen Murphy American comic strip artist (b. 1919) July 3 Percy Wickman Canadian politician (b. 1941) July 4 Jean-Marie Auberson Swiss conductor (b. 1920) July 5 Hugh Shearer Jamaican politician 3rd Prime Minister of Jamaica (b. 1923) Rodger Ward American race car driver (b. 1921) July 6 Thomas Klestil Austrian politician and diplomat 10th President of Austria (b. 1932) Syreeta WrightAmerican singersongwriter (b.1946) July 9 Isabel Sanford American actress (b. 1917) July 12 Betty Oliphant co-founder of National Ballet of Canada (b. 1918) July 13 Carlos Kleiber Austrian conductor (b. 1930) July 16 Pat Roach British wrestler and actor (b. 1937) July 19 Zenko Suzuki Japanese politician 70th Prime Minister of Japan (b. 1911) July 21 Edward B. Lewis American geneticist recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1918) Jerry Goldsmith American composer (b. 1929) July 22 Sacha Distel French singer (b. 1933) July 28 Francis Crick English molecular biologist recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1916) Sam Edwards American actor (b. 1915) August August 1 Philip Abelson American physicist Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1913) August 3 Henri Cartier-Bresson French photographer (b. 1908) August 6 Rick James American musician (b. 1948) August 8 Fay Wray Canadian actress (b. 1907) August 12 Godfrey Hounsfield English electrical engineer and inventor recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1919) August 13 Julia Child American chef (b. 1912) August 14 Czesaw Miosz Polish-born writer Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1911) August 15 Sune Bergstrm Swedish biochemist recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1916) August 17 Thea Astley Australian writer (b. 1925) Grard Souzay French baritone (b. 1918) August 18 Elmer Bernstein American composer (b. 1922) August 24 Elisabeth Kbler-Ross Swiss-born psychiatrist (b. 1926) August 26 Laura Branigan American singer (b. 1957) August 30 Fred Lawrence Whipple American astronomer (b. 1906) September Johnny Ramone September 1 Ahmed Kuftaro Grand Mufti of Syria (b. 1915) September 8 Frank Thomas American animator (b. 1912) September 10 Brock Adams American politician (b. 1927) September 11 Patriarch Peter VII of Alexandria (b. 1949) September 13 Luis E. Miramontes Mexican chemist (b. 1925) September 14 Ove Sproge Danish actor (b. 1919) September 15 Johnny Ramone American guitarist (The Ramones) (b. 1948) September 18 Norman Cantor Canadian historian (b. 1929) Russ Meyer American director and photographer (b. 1922) September 19 rpd Bogsch Hungarian-born civil servant (b. 1919) September 20 Brian Clough British football manager of Nottingham Forest and Derby County (b. 1935) September 22 Ray Traylor American professional wrestler (b. 1962) September 24 Franoise Sagan French writer (b. 1935) October Janet Leigh Christopher Reeve October 1 Richard Avedon American photographer (b. 1923) October 3 John Cerutti American baseball player and announcer (b. 1960) Janet Leigh American actress (b. 1927) October 4 Gordon Cooper American astronaut (b. 1927) October 5 Rodney Dangerfield American comedian and actor (b. 1921) Maurice Wilkins New Zealand-born physicist recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1916) October 8 Jacques Derida Algerian-born French literary critic (b. 1930) James Chace American historian (b. 1931) October 10 Christopher Reeve American actor and activist (b. 1952) October 13 Enrique Fernando Chief Justice of the Philippine Supreme Court (b. 1915) October 16 Pierre Salinger U.S. President John F. Kennedy's White House Press Secretary (b. 1925) October 20 Anthony Hecht American poet (b. 1923) October 23 Bill Nicholson British footballer (b. 1919) Robert Merrill American baritone (b. 1919) October 25 John Peel British radio disc jockey (b. 1939) October 28 Jimmy McLarnin Irish-born boxer (b. 1907) October 29 Edward Oliver LeBlanc Dominican politician (b. 1923) Peter Twinn English mathematician and World War II code-breaker (b. 1916) October 30 Peggy Ryan American actress (b. 1924) November Yasser Arafat November 1 Mac Dre American rapper (b. 1970) November 2 Theo van Gogh Dutch film director (b. 1957) Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan ruler of Abu Dhabi and President of the United Arab Emirates (b. 1918) November 3 Sergei Zholtok Latvian hockey player (b. 1972) November 7 Howard Keel American singer and actor (b. 1919) Eddie Charlton Australian snooker player (b. 1929) November 9 Emlyn Hughes English footballer (b. 1947) November 10 Katy de la Cruz Filipino singer (b. 1907) November 11 Yasser Arafat Palestinian leader recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1929) November 13 Ol' Dirty Bastard American rapper (b. 1968) November 14 Margaret Hassan Irish-born aid worker (b. 1945) November 15 John Morgan British-born comedian (b. 1930) November 19 John Robert Vane British pharmacologist recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1927) November 23 Rafael Eitan Israeli politician (b. 1929) November 29 John Drew Barrymore American actor (b. 1932) Bernard Robinson English footballer (b. 1911) December Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld Grard Debreu December 1 Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld German born Prince Consort of the Netherlands (b. 1911) December 2 Alicia Markova English ballerina (b. 1910) Mona Van Duyn American poet (b. 1921) December 5 Seymour Ginsburg American computer scientist (b. 1928) December 7 Frederick Fennell American conductor (b. 1914) December 8 Dimebag Darrell American guitarist (b. 1966) December 12 Kathryn Eames American actress (b. 1908) December 14 Fernando Poe Jr. Filipino actor and 2004 presidential candidate (b. 1935) December 15 Vassal Gadoengin Nauruan politician (b. 1943) December 18 Anthony Sampson British journalist and biographer (b. 1926) December 19 Herbert C. Brown English-born chemist Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1912) Renata Tebaldi Italian soprano (b. 1922) December 23 P. V. Narasimha Rao Indian politician 10th Prime Minister of India (b. 1921) December 24 Johnny Oates American baseball player and manager (b. 1926) December 26 Reggie White American football player (b. 1961) December 27 Hank Garland American guitarist (b. 1930) December 28 Jerry Orbach American actor (b. 1935) Susan Sontag American writer and activist (b. 1933) December 30 Artie Shaw American musician (b. 1910) December 31 Grard Debreu French-born economist Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1921) Nobel Prizes Physics David J. Gross H. David Politzer Frank Wilczek Chemistry Aaron Ciechanover Avram Hershko Irwin Rose Physiology or Medicine Linda B. Buck Richard Axel Literature Elfriede Jelinek Peace Wangari Maathai Bank of Sweden Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel Finn E. Kydland Edward C. 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