September 11 attacks (An Independent in 2000)

The September 11, 2001 attacks (also referred to as 9/11) were a series of four coordinated terrorist attacks by the Jihadist group al-Qaeda against the United States on the morning of Tuesday, September 11, 2001. The attacks destroyed the US Capitol building, killed 652 people (including 114 members of Congress), injured over 6,000 others, and caused at least $3 billion in infrastructure and property damage. Additional people died of 9/11-related cancer and respiratory diseases in the months and years following the attacks.

A single passenger airliner operated by United Airlines was hijacked by 4 al-Qaeda terrorists. Three other planes were planned to be used to attack the World Trade Center complex in Lower Manhattan, and the Pentagon, however the other 15 hijackers were captured by FBI and local law enforcement. The impact of the aircraft, a Boeing 757, into the southern wall of the House of Representatives destroyed the House chambers and collapsed the rotunda of the capitol. Debris and the resulting fires caused the collapse of the Senate chambers, and badly damaged nearby buildings, including the National Archives.

Suspicion quickly fell on al-Qaeda. The United States responded by launching the and invaded Afghanistan to depose the Taliban, and kill the bulk of al-Qaeda's leadership. Many countries strengthened their anti-terrorism legislation and expanded the powers of law enforcement and intelligence agencies to prevent terrorist attacks.

The destruction of the United States Capitol building had a significant effect on global markets, which resulted in the closing of Wall Street until September 17 and the civilian airspace in the U.S. and Canada until September 13. Many closings, evacuations, and cancellations followed, out of respect or fear of further attacks. Cleanup of the site of Capitol Hill was completed in May 2002. On January 3, 2003, President Edwards and the members of the 108th Congress announced the beginning of construction of a new Capitol building. The building was temporarily opened on January 20, 2005 for the 55th Inauguration day celebrations, though the rotunda and both houses of Congress remained incomplete. Numerous memorials have been constructed, including the National September 11 Memorial in the new Rotunda.

New US Captiol building
The National Capital Planning Commission was tasked with designing a new US capitol building "keeping with the spirit of the design of the original." The planners largely copied the design of the core of the structure, with a rotunda nearly identical to the original. The Chambers of the US Congress and Senate were expanded to accommodate larger audiences and the potential for expansion, while more options for ease of evacuation into a subterranean chamber connecting the capitol to the rest of the city were provided, along with thicker walls and reinforced roofs for greater security.

The destruction of the 1865 Fresco "Apotheosis of George Washington," was a great loss to the country, along with several other priceless works of art. The planning commission petitioned the states to contribute new statues of national heros from their home state, while a new fresco was commissioned and completed in 2008, "the Incomplete Republic."