WORLD FOCUS: The year in pictures

Grief, loss & resilience

Record-breaking hurricanes brought death and destruction to the Caribbean and the US, while North Korea-US tensions soared. ISIS suffered military defeat but inspired terror attacks across the globe. Zimbabwe's president Robert Mugabe was brought down, while hundreds of thousands of Thais finally laid a beloved king to rest. Here is a wrap of some of the year's major events.

THE FALL OF MOSUL: Running through rubble in just his socks, his daughter in his arms, a resident of Mosul cries out as he flees an ISIS-controlled part of the city towards Iraqi special forces during a battle on March 4. Mosul, the group's de facto capital in Iraq, fell in July after a gruelling nine-month campaign backed by a US-led coalition that saw much of the northern Iraqi city destroyed. Thousands of people died in the battle and nearly a million were displaced. On Dec 9, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi declared final victory over ISIS after Iraqi forces drove its last remnants from the country, three years after the militant group captured about a third of Iraq's territory.PHOTO: REUTERS

NATURE'S WRATH: Residents wading through flood waters from Tropical Storm Harvey in Houston, Texas, on Aug 28. Harvey which caused catastrophic flooding in the US state where it killed 80 people, was followed by hurricanes Irma, which struck Cuba and Florida, and Maria, which devastated Puerto Rico. All told, this year's US Atlantic hurricane season is the most expensive ever, racking up US$202.6 billion (S$273 billion) in damages, Bloomberg reported. PHOTO: REUTERS

NORTH KOREA: Leader Kim Jong Un watching the launch of a Hwasong-12 missile in a photo from the Korean Central News Agency on Sept 16. North Korea has rattled the international community with a flurry of missile launches and its largest nuclear test in a bid to develop a warhead capable of striking the United States. On Nov 29, it launched its Hwasong-15 missile, which it said could deliver a "heavy warhead" anywhere on the US mainland. PHOTO: REUTERS

FALL OF MUGABE: Zimbabweans celebrating in Harare after President Robert Mugabe resigned on Nov 21. The 93-year-old, who ruled the southern African nation for 37 years, quit after the army and his ruling Zanu-PF party turned against him as it became clear that his wife, Grace, 52, was being groomed as his successor. Mr Mugabe was granted immunity from prosecution, a move which frustrated many Zimbabweans who accuse him of looting state coffers. PHOTO: REUTERS

GRENFELL TOWER FIRE: Flames and smoke engulfing the Grenfell Tower apartment block in West London on June 14. The inferno spread rapidly through the 24-storey building, killing 71 people. Investigators believe flammable cladding on its exterior allowed the fire to spread so quickly. The disaster triggered investigations into the cladding used on many buildings worldwide. In Britain alone, dozens of buildings were found to have the same type of cladding. PHOTO: REUTERS

THE SIEGE OF MARAWI: Shattered remains of houses, buildings and a mosque in Marawi city in the southern Philippines on Oct 25. The five-month assault to recapture Marawi from ISIS-affiliated militants was the Philippines' biggest security crisis in decades, killing more than 1,100 people - mostly militants - and displacing more than 400,000 residents. Lawmakers this month approved President Rodrigo Duterte's plan to extend martial law next year in Mindanao. PHOTO: REUTERS

ROHINGYA CRISIS: Rohingya refugees making their way to a camp after crossing the Bangladesh-Myanmar border in Palong Khali, near Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, on Nov 3. Nearly 650,000 Rohingya have fled Myanmar and at least 6,700 have been killed since a military crackdown on Aug 25 in Rakhine state. The crackdown was triggered by an attack on over 30 police posts by Rohingya Arsa militants. Myanmar's military has faced widespread allegations of murder, rape, arson and wholesale ethnic cleansing of Muslim Rohingya which it denies. PHOTO: REUTERS

FAREWELL TO A BELOVED KING: Mourners waiting in line to enter the area around the Sanam Luang in Bangkok on Oct 25 to witness the royal funeral procession for the late Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej. Tens of thousands of Thais, many camping out on the streets for several days, bid a final farewell to the king, who died in October last year. The five-day cremation ceremony came at the end of a year-long mourning period. ST PHOTO: MARK CHEONG

TERROR IN BRITAIN: A wounded woman receiving aid outside Manchester Arena on May 22. Salman Abedi killed 22 people when he set off a suicide bomb after a concert by Ariana Grande. Two weeks later, seven people were killed after three men mowed down pedestrians on London Bridge before going on a stabbing spree. And in March, Briton Khalid Masood drove a car into pedestrians on London's Westminster bridge, then stabbed a police officer to death. PHOTO: JOEL GOODMAN/LNP

AWKWARD: US President Donald Trump caught in an awkward moment as Asean leaders link hands for the traditional Asean Handshake at the opening of the group's summit in Manila on Nov 13. He had grasped the hand of Vietnam Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (left) but failed to take that of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte. Mr Trump has a reputation for giving awkward handshakes.PHOTO: REUTERS

Published

17 min ago

WORLD FOCUS: The year in pictures

Grief, loss & resilience

Record-breaking hurricanes brought death and destruction to the Caribbean and the US, while North Korea-US tensions soared. ISIS suffered military defeat but inspired terror attacks across the globe. Zimbabwe's president Robert Mugabe was brought down, while hundreds of thousands of Thais finally laid a beloved king to rest. Here is a wrap of some of the year's major events.

Published

17 min ago

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