The biggest international stories
1. Japan earthquake, tsunami
On March 11, Japan was struck by a magnitude 9 earthquake that spawned a 10-meter high tsunami. The giant waves smashed into coastal communities, devastating them and killing thousands. A radiation alert was raised after the tsunami damaged a nuclear power plant in Fukushima.
It was Japan’s worst disaster since World War II, with the death toll reaching 27,000 and the missing numbering around 17,500. The disaster prompted the resignation of Prime Minister Naoto Kan.
Long-standing regimes fell one after another in North Africa and the Middle East this year. It began in Tunisia, where a popular uprising ousted the 23-year iron-fisted rule of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. The revolutionary fever spread to Egypt, where in February protesters forced President Hosni Mubarak, who reigned for three decades, to flee his palace in Cairo.
The conflict was longer and bloodier in Libya, as its ruler Moammar Khadafy refused to give up his 42-year grip on power. After months of civil war, Khadafy was captured and was subsequently killed by anti-government forces as he tried to escape from his hometown in Sirte.
The fresh wind of change also blew into the Middle East. After eight months of widespread protest, Yemen’s strongman Ali Abdullah Saleh announced in a televised speech in October that he was stepping down.
3. The end of Osama bin Laden
Osama bin Laden, the mastermind behind the 9/11 attacks, met his death on May 1 in his hideout in Abbottabad, Pakistan, in a 40-minute battle with US Navy Seals, ending a decade-long manhunt for the world’s most wanted terrorist. In Washington and New York, hundreds took to the streets in celebration and US President Barack Obama announced that “justice has been served.”
Bin Laden’s body was later dropped into the sea from a US aircraft carrier.
4. William weds Kate
Millions all over the world watched on television and YouTube on April 29 as Prince William and Kate Middleton exchanged vows at the historic Westminster Abbey in London in the biggest royal celebration in three decades.
The wedding had all the pomp, ceremony and media attention that attended the 1981 marriage of William's parents, Prince and Lady Diana Spencer.
5. Occupy Wall Street Movement
What began as small rally in New York’s financial hub in October protesting the widening gap between the rich and the poor has grown into a worldwide phenomenon. Occupy movements have swept across America, Asia, and Europe as thousands expressed discontent at corporate greed and rising unemployment.
6. Steve Jobs, computer icon
Steven Paul Jobs, hailed as one of the geniuses of modern times, succumbed to pancreatic cancer on October 5 at the age of 56.
The former CEO of Apple, Inc. and Pixar Animation Studios was credited for developing and popularizing the iPod, iPad, iPhone, and Macintosh computer.
7. Bloodbath in Norway
On July 23, Anders Behring Breivik went on a murderous spree on the island of Utoya in Norway, gunning down 69 people, mostly teenagers. Minutes before the rampage, Breivik had detonated a bomb at the government headquarters in Oslo, the capital, killing seven.
It was Norway’s deadliest tragedy since World War II. Court-appointed psychiatrists found Breivik to be criminally insane.
8. End of Iraq war
On December 15, a flag-lowering ceremony in Baghdad marked the official end of US involvement in the Iraq War. The last American combat troops left Iraq three days later.
More than 4,000 US soldiers were killed in the war that began in March 2003. Estimates of the civilian death toll varied from 100,000 to 150,000.
9. Transition of power in North Korea
On December 17, Kim Jong Il, supreme leader of North Korea, died after a heart attack while riding a train, the state media reported.
The 69-year-old Kim ruled for 17 years, taking over from his father, Kim Il Sung. He will be succeeded by his youngest son, Kim Jong Un.
10. Earth’s 7 billionth citizen
The world’s population reached 7 billion on October 31, an event that highlighted the challenges faced by many countries that are already struggling to provide for millions of people.
Among the more serious problems are the shortage of food and water and worsening global warming.
By MANILA BULLETIN RESEARCH
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