Portal:Current events/December 2018
December 2018 was the twelfth and final month of that common year. The month, which began on a Saturday, ended on a Monday after 31 days.
This is an archived version of Wikipedia's Current events Portal from December 2018.
December 1, 2018 (Saturday)
Disasters and accidents
International relations
- 2018 G20 Buenos Aires summit, 2018 China–United States trade war
- The White House announces that the United States and China agree to halt new trade tariffs for 90 days to allow for talks. (BBC) (NBC News)
Politics and elections
- Presidency of Andrés Manuel López Obrador
- Andrés Manuel López Obrador is sworn in as the 58th President of Mexico. (The Guardian)
- Yellow vests movement
- Protesters clash with police in Paris. (Reuters)
- 2017–18 Spanish constitutional crisis
- Jordi Turull and Jordi Sànchez, jailed Catalan separatist leaders accused of rebellion, start a hunger strike. (The Washington Post) (The New York Times)
December 2, 2018 (Sunday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
- A senior Taliban commander, Mullah Abdul Manan Akhund, is killed in a U.S. air strike in Afghanistan. (BBC)
- Papua conflict
- At least 19 people are killed as armed group linked to West Papua Liberation Organization attacks construction workers at Trans Papua road project in Nduga Regency, Papua, Indonesia. (Radio NZ)
Politics and elections
- COP24
- The 24th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change convenes in Katowice, Poland. (BBC News)
- At least 65,000 people gather in Brussels, Belgium, in a march for more action on protecting the climate. (De Standaard)
- Elections in Spain, 2018 Andalusian regional election
- The Socialist and current regional President Susana Díaz wins the election, but loses 14 seats. (El Mundo)
- The far-right and anti-immigration Vox enters a legislative chamber after winning 12 seats, for the first time in the history of Spanish democracy. (CNN) (The New York Times)
Sport
- UEFA confirms that a new annual European football club competition called UEFA Europa League 2 will be introduced in 2021. (BBC)
December 3, 2018 (Monday)
Business and economy
- Qatar announces that it is withdrawing from OPEC in January 2019, after almost 60 years of membership, to focus on natural gas production. (The Guardian)
Law and crime
- The FBI raids the house of Atlantic City Mayor Frank Gilliam. (The New York Times)
Politics and elections
- Death and state funeral of George H. W. Bush
- The body of former President George H. W. Bush arrives on Special Air Mission from Houston to Washington, DC at the Joint Base Andrews. (NBC News) (ABC News)
- The United States Postal Service announces it will suspend regular mail deliveries, retail services and administrative office activity on December 5 as part of President Trump's declared national day of mourning. (CNN)
- 2017-18 Spanish constitutional crisis
- Jailed Catalan independentists leaders Joaquim Forn and Josep Rull joins Sànchez and Turull in the hunger strike. (Reuters)
Science and technology
- 2018 in spaceflight
- NASA's space probe OSIRIS-REx arrives at the asteroid Bennu. (The New York Times)
- Soyuz MS-11 successfully launches from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan carrying Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko, NASA astronaut Anne McClain, and CSA astronaut David Saint-Jacques for Expedition 58 to the International Space Station. (CBC)
Sport
- 2018 Ballon d'Or
- In association football, Croatian midfielder Luka Modrić wins the Ballon d'Or and becomes the first player other than Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo to win the award since Kaká in 2007. (Reuters)
- Norwegian striker Ada Hegerberg wins the inaugural Women's Ballon d'Or. (The Guardian)
December 4, 2018 (Tuesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Operation Northern Shield
- Israel announces an operation to clear Hezbollah tunnels from Lebanon-Israeli border. (The Times of Israel)
Arts and culture
- Russians vote to rename the two main airports of Moscow, Sheremetyevo and Domodedovo, after poet Alexander Pushkin and scientist Mikhail Lomonosov, respectively. (TASS)
Law and crime
- The alleged boss of the Cosa Nostra mafia clan is arrested along with 45 suspected accomplices in the province of Palermo, Italy. They are accused of aggravated extortion. (Euronews)
Politics and elections
- Yellow vests movement
- Following large protests against French President Emmanuel Macron's planned increases on fuel taxes, French Prime Minister Édouard Philippe announces that these plans will be suspended for at least six months. (Bloomberg)
- Brexit negotiations
- The Government of the United Kingdom is found to be in contempt of parliament for the first time in history. The motion, which passed by 311 to 293 votes in the House of Commons, was triggered by Theresa May's government failing to publish its legal advice on its Brexit withdrawal plan. (CNN)
- Frank Scott Jr. is elected Mayor of Little Rock, Arkansas, defeating Baker Kurrus in the runoff. Scott will become the city's first African-American mayor. (USA Today)
Sports
- NHL expansion
- In ice hockey, the National Hockey League announces that its board of governors unanimously approved a new franchise for Seattle. The new team will start play in the 2021–22 season, bringing the league's membership to 32 teams. (ESPN)
December 5, 2018 (Wednesday)
Business and economy
- The deputy governor of Sweden's central bank, the Riksbank, says that the country is likely to become a cashless society within the next three to five years. (Reuters)
Disasters and accidents
- Two people died while 18 others are injured when a tank truck caught fire and exploded in the city of Rieti, Italy. (Sky Tg24)
- Tsunami waves reportedly strike parts of New Caledonia and northern Vanuatu following a magnitude 7.5 earthquake centered near the Loyalty Islands. (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
- A search and rescue operation is underway for 7 servicemen after an incident involving a US Marine Corp F/A-18 fighter jet and a KC-130 refueling aircraft off the coast of Japan. (BBC)
Law and crime
- The chief financial officer of Huawei, Meng Wanzhou, was arrested on 1 December in Vancouver, Canada. She faces extradition to the United States. Huawei says she faces unspecified charges. (CNN)
Politics and elections
- Claudia Sheinbaum takes office as Head of Government of Mexico City, becoming the first woman and first Jewish person to serve as Mexico City's mayor. (JTA)
- Politics of Luxembourg
- Xavier Bettel is sworn in for a second term as Prime Minister. His coalition government plans to make all public transport completely free by next summer, a world's first. (The Irish Times)
- Death and state funeral of George H. W. Bush
- The casket for former U.S. President George H. W. Bush arrives at the National Cathedral. (Politico)
- U.S. President Donald Trump and former U.S. Presidents George W. Bush, Jimmy Carter, Barack Obama, and Bill Clinton attend the ceremony alongside German chancellor Angela Merkel and Britain's Prince Charles. (The Guardian)
Science and technology
- SpaceX successfully launches CRS-16 on its way to the International Space Station. The first stage crashes into the ocean near Cape Canaveral and is later recovered. (Universe Today)
December 6, 2018 (Thursday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- A car bomb explodes near a police post in Chabahar, Iran. Two police officers are pronounced dead and around 40 people were wounded in the attack. Islamic militant group Ansar Al-Furqan claims responsibility. Iran accuses the perpetrators of being "foreign-backed terrorists". (Middle East Eye)
Arts and culture
- The Game Awards 2018
- God of War is named Game of the Year at The Game Awards annual awards ceremony in Los Angeles. (The Telegraph)
Disasters and accidents
- Two U.S. Marine aircraft from Iwakuni air base crash off the coast of Shikoku, Japan, during a mid-air refueling. One serviceman is rescued by Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force, while one is found dead and five are still reported missing. (The Japan Times)
International relations
- A U.S.-sponsored resolution to condemn Hamas fails to get adopted at the United Nations General Assembly. (AP via Minneapolis Star Tribune)
Law and crime
- The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs demands that Canada and the United States clarify the reasons behind the arrest of Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou, also asking for her immediate release. (The Guardian)
- December 2018 Time Warner Center bomb threats
- CNN evacuates the Time Warner Center in New York City during CNN Tonight with Don Lemon after a bomb threat was called into the building. (CNN) (Variety)
Politics and elections
- Afghan parliamentary election, 2018
- Afghanistan’s Electoral Complaints Commission declares all votes cast in Kabul Province to be invalid due to voter fraud and other cases of mismanagement. (Reuters)
- Death and state funeral of George H. W. Bush
- Former U.S. President George H. W. Bush is laid to rest at his Presidential Library in College Station, Texas. (NBC News)
- Yellow vests movement
- The French police union Vigi calls on police officers to begin an indefinite strike on December 8 and join anti-government protesters, noting that "a majority of the French continue to back the movement". (Sputnik News)
- Major landmarks such as the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre are to shut down amid expected protests this weekend. (The Guardian)
December 7, 2018 (Friday)
International relations
- European migrant crisis
- Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) rescue vessel Aquarius 2 ends migrant rescue operations in the Mediterranean Sea, citing sustained attacks on search and rescue by European governments, particularly Italy. (BBC)
Law and crime
- Eleven people die, including five hostages, as armed police battle robbers who had tried to raid two banks in Milagres, Ceará, Brazil. (BBC)
- Mueller special counsel investigation
- American attorney Robert Mueller is set to reveal more details about the Special Counsel investigation as he faces court deadlines in the cases of two men who worked closely with Donald Trump. (Huffington Post)
- Jamaican reggae artist Buju Banton (Mark Anthony Myrie) is released from a U.S. prison and deported back to Jamaica, after serving 7 years of a 10-year drug charge conviction. (Tampa Bay Times)
- Charlottesville car attack
- A jury finds James Alex Fields guilty of the murder, in the first degree, of Heather Heyer at a 2017 white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. (Al Jazeera)
- Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou attends a bail hearing in Vancouver while she awaits extradition to the United States. She is charged by Canadian and American prosecutors with conspiracy to defraud multiple financial institutions in order to commit evasion of United States sanctions against Iran so as to conduct business with Iran. (Reuters)
Politics and elections
- Political appointments by Donald Trump
- U.S. President Donald Trump nominates William Barr to be the new United States Attorney General, a position he held under George H. W. Bush from 1991 to 1993. Heather Nauert, a former journalist and the incumbent Spokesperson for the United States Department of State, is proposed as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. (BBC) (Reuters)
- 2018 Christian Democratic Union of Germany leadership election
- Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer succeeds Angela Merkel as the new chairperson of the Christian Democratic Union, one of the major political parties in Germany. (The Guardian)
Science and technology
- Discoveries of exoplanets
- Scientists from the University of Geneva announce that a previously-known Neptune-sized exoplanet, HAT-P-11b, has a slowly-escaping helium atmosphere. (International Business Times) (Phys.org)
- Chinese Lunar Exploration Program
- The China National Space Administration successfully launches Chang'e 4 from Xichang Satellite Launch Center which will attempt the first ever robotic landing on the far side of the Moon in 2019. (BBC)
December 8, 2018 (Saturday)
Disasters and accidents
- Corinaldo stampede
- Six people are killed and dozens more injured in a human stampede as frantic concertgoers try to exit a packed Lanterna Azzurra club in Corinaldo in Ancona Province, Marche, Italy, after pepper spray is reportedly fired inside the club. (BBC)
- Two buses crash head-on on a highway in Achacachi, Bolivia, leaving at least 17 people dead and 10 injured. (New Zealand Herald)
Politics and elections
- Presidency of Donald Trump
- White House Chief of Staff John F. Kelly is set to resign by the end of the month according to U.S. President Donald Trump. (CNN)
- President Trump announces his nomination of army general Mark A. Milley to succeed marine general Joseph Dunford as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. (Reuters)
- Yellow vests movement
- 125,000 people demonstrate across France, according to the Minister of the Interior, with about 89,000 police officers on duty. 1,385 people are detained. Tear gas and pepper spray are used against the protesters and 135 people are injured. (Al Jazeera) (CBC)
- Federal Government of Belgium
- Prime Minister Charles Michel says that the New Flemish Alliance (N-VA) party quits the coalition. N-VA cites its disagreement over the signing of the United Nations Global Compact for Migration. Michel plans to continue with a minority cabinet until the next scheduled election. (Het Laatste Nieuws) (Channel NewsAsia)
Science and technology
- The ULA launch of a Delta IV Heavy rocket carrying the NROL-71 mission is called off 7 seconds before liftoff time. (NBC San Diego) (NASA Spaceflight)
Sports
- In its second season, Atlanta United FC wins the MLS Cup, defeating the Portland Timbers 2–0 in front of a record crowd of 73,019 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. (The Guardian)
December 9, 2018 (Sunday)
Disasters and accidents
- Two people die and 38 others are hospitalized after a fire erupted in a building in Reggio Emilia, Italy. (Gazzetta di Reggio)
- A helicopter crash in eastern Sudan kills Al-Qadarif state governor Mirghani Saleh and at least four other officials. (BBC)
- Severe winter storms in the southeastern United States kill three people and leave 310,000 others without power. (BBC)
Health and environment
- A beaver is seen in Northern Italy on camera, a species that has not been seen in the country since 1471. (CBC)
Law and crime
- Death of Grace Millane
- The body of missing tourist Grace Millane is found outside of Auckland, New Zealand. (BBC)
Politics and elections
- 2018 Armenian parliamentary election
- Armenian citizens vote in the country's first ever snap election and the first one since the Velvet Revolution. (VOA)
Sports
- 2018 UK Championship
- Ronnie O'Sullivan wins a record seventh UK Championship snooker title after defeating Mark Allen 10–6 in the final at the Barbican Centre, York. (BBC)
- 2018 NFL season
- In American football, Larry Fitzgerald of the Arizona Cardinals passes Jerry Rice to become the all-time receptions leader with one team. (USA Today)
- 2018 Copa Libertadores
- In international football, River Plate wins the Copa Libertadores by beating Boca Juniors 3–1 in extra-time (aggregate score 5–3). The final is played at the Bernabéu stadium in Madrid. (BBC)
- 2019 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting
- In Major League Baseball, the Hall of Fame announces the first members of its 2019 induction class, with Harold Baines and Lee Smith voted in by one of four special committees. They, along with any players elected by the Baseball Writers' Association of America in January 2019, will be formally inducted at the Hall's facility in Cooperstown, New York on July 21, 2019. (AP via ESPN)
December 10, 2018 (Monday)
Business and economy
- The Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, Urjit Patel, resigns abruptly. (Reuters)
International relations
- Brexit
- The Court of Justice of the European Union rules that an EU member state's invocation of Article 50 TEU is unilaterally revokable. (BBC)
- Prime Minister Theresa May announces the deferral of the meaningful vote on the UK's negotiated withdrawal agreement from the European Union that was scheduled for tomorrow. (BBC)
- 164 countries adopt the non-binding Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration in Marrakech, Morocco. (UPI)
Law and crime
- Death of Grace Millane
- New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern makes a public apology to the family of Grace Millane, who was murdered in Auckland on 1 or 2 December 2018, saying that "your daughter should have been safe here". (The Guardian)
- Thirty-three people are hospitalized in Pavia, Lombardy, Italy, after pepper spray was fired inside the gym of a school. This is the second pepper spray-related incident in the country in three days. On 8 December, six people died when someone fired the spray inside a nightclub, causing a stampede. (Il Messaggero)
- Russian serial killer and former policeman Mikhail Popkov is convicted of an additional 56 murders between 1992 and 2007. All of his victims were women. (Sky News)
- Russell Bishop is convicted of the murder of Karen Hadaway and Nicola Fellows. He had been tried and found not guilty of the crimes in 1987, but the acquittal was quashed as new evidence in the form of DNA was now available. Bishop had been convicted in December 1990 of the abduction, indecent assault and attempted murder of a seven-year-old girl in February of that year. (The Guardian)
- Nissan, the company's former chairman Carlos Ghosn, and an aide are indicted on charges that Ghosn underreported about ¥5 billion ($44.5 million) of his income. Ghosn's arrest warrant is renewed. (Kyodo News)
- Former Guantanamo Bay detainee Omar Khadr asks for a Canadian passport to travel to Saudi Arabia and speak with his sister Zaynab Khadr. (CBC CA) (Calgary Herald)
Politics and elections
- Yellow vests movement
- French President Emmanuel Macron addresses the country following the yellow vests protests. While refusing to reinstate a wealth tax or back down on the current reform agenda, he promises an increase to the minimum wage and to remove some taxes on low income earners. (Reuters)
- 2018 Armenian parliamentary election
- Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's My Step Alliance bloc wins 70.4% of the vote. (Armenpress) (Reuters)
Science and technology
- NASA announces that Voyager 2 entered into the interstellar medium after exiting the heliosphere on November 5. (NASA)
December 11, 2018 (Tuesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- 2018 Strasbourg attack
- A gunman kills two people and injures 14 others in a mass shooting in Strasbourg, France, during the annual Christmas market. The shooter flees the scene but is identified by police as a known extremist. The incident is being treated as an act of terrorism. (BBC) (The Daily Telegraph) (The Guardian)
Disasters and accidents
- Five U.S. Marines who were missing after two aircraft collided mid-air off the coast of Japan on December 6 are declared dead. (The Japan Times)
International relations
- Philippines–United States relations
- The Balangiga bells, stolen during the massacre in Balangiga in 1901 during the Philippine–American War, were returned to the Philippines after 117 years under the possession of the United States. (CNN Philippines)
Law and crime
- Campinas Cathedral shooting
- Cannabis in New Zealand
- New Zealand's government passes an amendment to the Misuse of Drugs Act 1975 to allow chronic and terminally ill patients to use medical cannabis without facing the possibility of prosecution. (The Guardian)
- In the United Kingdom, a man is tasered by police at the gates of the Palace of Westminster. The area is placed on lockdown. (Daily Telegraph)
- Bill Cosby sexual assault cases
- The lawyers of Bill Cosby file a list of nearly a dozen alleged trial errors as they appeal his sexual assault conviction and three-to-10-year prison term. (CBS News)
- Detention of Meng Wanzhou
- Meng Wanzhou, CFO of Huawei who was arrested in Canada for an extradition request from the United States for alleged US sanction violation against Iran, is granted bail with restrictions by a Canadian judge. (CBC)
- International Crisis Group confirm one of it's worker Michael Kovrig is detained in People's Republic of China. Kovrig is a former Canadian diplomat and his detainment come after the China warned Canada of severe consequences if Meng was not released. (reuters)
Politics and elections
- Thousands of students at the University of Tirana in Albania demonstrate against tuition fees. The government appeals for calm. (AP via U.S. News & World Report)
December 12, 2018 (Wednesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
- The Afghan National Army abandons the western Shib Koh District after the government failed to resupply troops stationed there. The district, which borders Iran, is now effectively under Taliban control. (Reuters)
- The Taliban claims responsibility for a suicide bombing that killed 12 people, including 8 civilians in Kabul. (Tolo News)
- Two police officers are injured after a man throws a grenade at them at a shopping centre in Nazran, Ingushetia, Russia. The attacker and his accomplice are later shot dead. (Xinhuanet)
Arts and culture
- Pope Francis removes Australian prelate George Pell and Chilean prelate Francisco Javier Errázuriz Ossa from the Council of Cardinal Advisers. Both are accused of covering up child sexual abuse scandals. Former Archbishop of Kinshasa Laurent Monsengwo Pasinya also leaves the Council for unrelated reasons. (BBC)
International relations
- North Korea–South Korea relations
- Soldiers from North Korea and South Korea peacefully cross the Korean Demilitarized Zone for the first time since it was created in 1953. (CBS News)
- United States–Venezuela relations
- Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro accuses United States National Security Advisor John R. Bolton of personally leading a plot to assassinate him, declining to provide evidence. (BBC)
Law and crime
- Michael Cohen, the former lawyer of U.S. President Donald Trump, is sentenced to three years in prison for making illegal hush money payments to two women with whom Trump allegedly had affairs, and a concurrent sentence of two months for making false statements to Congress about a possible Trump Tower deal in Russia. (South China Morning Post)
- Prosecutors in Goiás, Brazil request the preventive detention of medium João de Deus over more than 200 allegations of sexual abuse. João de Deus became internationally famous in 2013, when his controversial psychic healing methods were broadcast on Oprah Winfrey's show Oprah's Next Chapter. (Reuters)
Politics and elections
- Politics of the United Kingdom, Future Conservative Party leadership election
- By a vote of 200 to 117, British Prime Minister Theresa May survives a motion of no confidence within the Conservative Party. (BBC)
December 13, 2018 (Thursday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Northern Mali conflict
- Jihadists on motorcycles kill around 42 people in a series of attacks targeting Tuareg camps in Mali. (CBC News)
- Israeli–Palestinian conflict
- Two Israeli soldiers are killed and two others seriously wounded after a shooting at a bus stop in the Jewish settlement of Giv'at Asaf, West Bank. (CNN)
- A knife-wielding Palestinian assailant is shot dead in Jerusalem's Old City, after lightly injuring two police officers by stabbing them. (Al Jazeera)
- 2018 Strasbourg attack
- Chérif Chekatt, the perpetrator of an attack in Strasbourg, France, two days ago, which killed two and wounded 14, is found and killed by French police. (BBC)
- A Frenchman originally from Afghanistan who was wounded and left brain-dead from the attack dies from his injuries. (Euronews)
- Yemeni Civil War (2015–present)
- Battle of Al Hudaydah
- A UN-brokered ceasefire is agreed upon between the two warring factions in Al Hudaydah, Yemen. Troops from both sides will withdraw from the port city within three weeks to allow humanitarian aid coming into the country, which has been plagued by war and famine. (The Guardian)
- Battle of Al Hudaydah
Arts and culture
- YouTube Rewind 2018 becomes the most disliked YouTube video of all time, with well over 10 million dislikes, achieving the feat in a mere seven days. (Indystar)
Disasters and accidents
- Ankara train collision
- A high-speed train crashes at Marşandiz railway station in Ankara, Turkey, killing at least nine people and leaving dozens injured. (BBC)
- Environment Canada issues rainfall and wind warnings in Metro Vancouver after severe flash flooding caused minor damage in the area. (Daily Hive)
International relations
- Chinese state media reports a second Canadian national, Michael Spavor, has been detained on suspicion of endangering state security, while the China foreign ministry say two Canadian nationals are detained in the country. The Spavor investigation follows the detention of former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig on December 10 and Canada's December 1 arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou. (Reuters) (Reuters)
Law and crime
- Operation Car Wash
- A tribunal in Colombia disqualifies the Brazilian multinational corporation Odebrecht from operating in the country for 10 years amid ongoing investigations against the company for inciting corruption. (El Tiempo)
- Iranian political activist Vahid Sayadi Nasiri, who was jailed for his messages on social media, dies after spending 60 days on hunger strike. He was accused of insulting Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. (BBC)
- 2018 Bitcoin bomb threats
- Fake bomb threats are sent to dozens of businesses around Canada and the U.S., demanding ransoms in bitcoin. Some of the threats forced evacuations. (The Independent)
- Human rights in Venezuela
- It is reported that a German journalist was kidnapped and imprisoned by the Venezuelan government three weeks ago, with diplomats from both nations denied to see him. (BBC)
Politics and elections
- 2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis
- A seven-bench Supreme Court unanimously rules that President Sirisena's dissolution of Parliament on 9 November 2018 was unconstitutional. (BBC) (The New Indian Express)
Science and technology
- Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo successfully completes its fourth powered test flight with VSS Unity and reaches space at an altitude of 82.7 km (51.4 mi) but does not breach the 100 km (62 mi) Karman Line. (BBC)
- Chinese Lunar Exploration Program
- Chang'e 4 successfully enters orbit around the Moon ahead of a historic landing on the far side of the Moon in early 2019. (The Guardian)
December 14, 2018 (Friday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Syrian Civil War
- The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces seize control of Hajin, the last major town held by ISIL in Syria, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. (The Guardian)
- 2018 Strasbourg attack
- An Italian journalist to the European Parliament who was wounded during a terrorist attack in Strasbourg, France, dies of his injuries, raising the death toll to four. (Reuters)
- Six government officials are killed and 14 others are wounded in an attack in Balochistan, Pakistan. The BLA claims responsibility. (Al Jazeera)
Business and economy
- American conservative weekly opinion magazine The Weekly Standard announces that it will shut down this month after 23 years in print. (CNN)
Law and crime
- On the sixth anniversary of the Sandy Hook shooting, the school is evacuated due to a bomb threat. It is not believed to be connected with the 2018 Bitcoin bomb threats. (CNN)
Politics and elections
- Military of Kosovo
- The Assembly of the Republic of Kosovo votes to create a proper army out of the lightly-armed Kosovo Security Force, with eleven minority Serb deputies boycotting the vote. While the United States lauds the decision, criticism has come from both NATO and the neighbouring country of Serbia. (Reuters)
- Cabinet of Donald Trump
- President Donald Trump appoints incumbent Office of Management and Budget director Mick Mulvaney as Acting White House Chief of Staff, to replace John F. Kelly at the end of the year. (NPR)
December 15, 2018 (Saturday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Kashmir conflict
- Indian soldiers and counterinsurgency police exchange gunfire with militants in the southern district of Pulwama, resulting in the deaths of one soldier and three militants. The soldiers then opened fire on a crowd of anti-government protesters who gathered after the battle, killing seven civilians and injuring 40 others. (The Independent)
Disasters and accidents
- 20 people died and 14 others are injured when a truck carrying mourners returning from a funeral ritual plunged around 400 metres (1,300 feet) onto a river bank in central Nepal. (Times Now)
International relations
- Australia–Israel relations
- Australia formally recognizes West Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state but will not move its embassy from Tel Aviv until a peace settlement is reached with the Palestinians. (Sky News)
- 2018 United Nations Climate Change Conference
- Representatives from 196 nations agree on a rulebook to implement the Paris Agreement for climate change mitigation. (Reuters) (BBC)
- Afghanistan–Pakistan relations
- Pakistani, Afghan and Chinese officials hold talks in Kabul aimed at ending the region's conflicts. (Al Jazeera)
Politics and elections
- 2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis
- Mahinda Rajapaksa resigns as prime minister, effectively ending the constitutional crisis. (BBC)
- 2018 Moscow–Constantinople schism
- President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko declares the establishment of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, a new branch of Eastern Orthodox Christianity, separate from the Russian Orthodox Church, after Ukrainian clergy elected Metropolitan Epiphanius I as the head of the new church. (BBC) (UNIAN) (TASS)
- Cabinet of Donald Trump
- U.S. President Donald Trump tweets that Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke will quit his post at the end of the year. (Reuters)
December 16, 2018 (Sunday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- 2018 Strasbourg attack
- A Polish national who was wounded during a terrorist attack in Strasbourg, France, dies of his injuries, raising the death toll to five. (BBC)
- Tulare County shootings
- A gunman kills two people and wounds seven others in a shooting spree across Tulare County, California. The gunman is identified as an undocumented immigrant. (The Washington Post)
Disasters and accidents
- A gas blast in a restaurant in Sapporo, Japan, injures 42 people. (BBC)
- A bus crash in Zurich, Switzerland, kills one person and injures 44 others. (Tgcom24)
Politics and elections
- 2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis
- Ranil Wickremesinghe is sworn in as Prime Minister of Sri Lanka. (Reuters)
- Georgian presidential election, 2018
- Salome Zurabishvili takes office as President of Georgia. Zurabishvili is the first woman in office and the last president to be elected by popular vote. (Deutsche Welle)
Sports
- 2018 Men's Hockey World Cup
- In field hockey, Belgium wins the title, defeating the Netherlands 3–2 in a sudden death shootout. After regular playing time, the score was 0–0. (Times of India)
December 17, 2018 (Monday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Somali Civil War (2009–present)
- Six U.S. air strikes over the weekend kill at least 62 Al-Shabaab militants in Somalia, according to The Pentagon. (BBC)
- Two Scandinavian women on a backpacking holiday were found dead in Morocco with cuts to their necks. The bodies were found in an isolated area in the Atlas Mountains, near the tourist village of Imlil, Marrakesh-Safi. 13 men are arrested with links to a Jihadist group. (The Guardian)
Arts and culture
- Miss Universe 2018
- Catriona Gray from the Philippines is crowned Miss Universe at the IMPACT Arena in Thailand. (CNN)
Business and economy
- Tolls are scrapped for the Severn crossing bridges connecting England and South Wales, making travel across the River Severn free for all commuters for the first time in 800 years. (BBC)
Politics and elections
- Politics of Poland
- Polish President Andrzej Duda signs into law the bill, passed by the Parliament of Poland three weeks ago, reinstating the Supreme Court judges who had been forced out of their jobs when legislation to lower the judges's mandatory retirement age was enacted in July. This addresses one of the issues that has been in dispute with the European Union. (The New York Times)
Science and technology
- 160 million-year-old fossil anurognathid pterosaurs are discovered that show feathery coverings, suggesting either deep common ancestry with theropod dinosaurs or independent coevolution. (BBC) (Nature)
- Astronomers announce the discovery of trans-Neptunian object 2018 VG18, the most distant object in the Solar System ever observed at a distance of ~120 AU. (Space.com)
December 18, 2018 (Tuesday)
Disasters and accidents
- Russian cargo vessel MV Kuzma Minin runs aground and then is refloated off Gyllyngvase, Cornwall, and taken to anchor in Falmouth Bay for inspection, according to the Maritime and Coastguard Agency. (BBC)
- A powerful tornado touches down near Port Orchard, Washington. Several structures are severely damaged or destroyed. (Global News)
Law and crime
- Personal and business legal affairs of Donald Trump
- The Donald J. Trump Foundation agrees to dissolve under judicial supervision while a lawsuit in the state of New York is ongoing. (CNN) (The Daily Beast)
- Gun law in the United States
- The U.S. Department of Justice issues a final regulation banning the use of bump stocks, which allow semi-automatic rifles to be fired at a rate similar to that of automatic weapons and became infamous following the 2017 Las Vegas shooting. It is scheduled to go into effect on March 21, 2019. (The New York Times)
Politics and elections
- Space policy of the Donald Trump administration
- U.S. President Donald Trump signs an executive memorandum to re-establish the United States Space Command. (CNN)
- Politics of Belgium
- Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel submits the resignation of his cabinet to King Philippe, after the biggest party in his coalition, the New Flemish Alliance, formally quit on 9 December over the government's support for the Global Compact for Migration. The King is withholding his decision. (ABC News (Australia))
Science and technology
- Transportation in Los Angeles
- Elon Musk opens the 1.6km-long Boring Test Tunnel in Hawthorne, California, which is designed to demonstrate technology that will transport cars at high speeds below the city. (BBC)
- Kamchatka meteor
- A meteor, which measured several metres in size, exploded 26km over the Bering Sea, near the Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia. (BBC News)
December 19, 2018 (Wednesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- American intervention in Syria, Syrian Civil War
- The Pentagon reports it has begun withdrawing U.S. troops from Syria, with a spokesperson saying that the coalition has liberated ISIL-held territory but also that the campaign is not over. (Reuters)
Disasters and accidents
- 2018 Kivu Ebola outbreak
- Over 300 people have died of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the World Health Organization is concerned the outbreak is not being contained. (CNN)
Law and crime
- Nisour Square massacre
- In a third trial, former Blackwater private military contractor Nicholas Slatten is convicted on one count of first-degree murder over the 2007 mass shooting. (NBC News)
Politics and elections
- 2017–18 Spanish constitutional crisis
- Carles Puigdemont calls on Jordi Sànchez and Jordi Turull to end the hunger strike they started on 1 December. (eldiario.es)
Science and technology
- EnviroBuild, a sustainable building materials company, pays $US 25,000 to name a newly discovered limbless amphibian Dermophis donaldtrumpi, after U.S President Donald Trump, in disagreement with his environmental policy. (HuffPost) (Business Insider)
December 20, 2018 (Thursday)
Arts and culture
- Parts of the Ventura Freeway in Southern California is renamed as “President Barack H. Obama Highway” in honor of former President Barack Obama. (Pasadena Star News) (ABC News)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- International military intervention against ISIL, Syrian Civil War
- Reacting to yesterday's announcement by the United States on the withdrawal of their forces from Syria, France's Defense Minister Florence Parly says on Twitter that ISIL has not yet been driven out of Syria. (Reuters)
- Northern Rakhine State clashes
- Myanmar's military announces it will resume "clearance operations" in Rakhine State after a recent spike in attacks by unidentified assailants. In the past week, two Rakhine fishermen and a teenager were found murdered after they were reported missing, while two Maramagyi villagers were kidnapped and stabbed but managed to escape their abductors. (AFP via South China Morning Post) (Radio Free Asia)
Business and economy
- Gatwick Airport drone incident
- Gatwick Airport in West Sussex, England, is shut down intermittently since Wednesday night, after drones are seen flying over the airfield. Police believe it is "a deliberate act to disrupt the airport". Hundreds of thousands of passengers are affected. (The Argus) (CNN)
Disasters and incidents
- The annual Thomson Reuters poll among aid agencies shows that the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with its war, hunger and Ebola outbreak, is perceived as the most neglected crisis of 2018. The Central African Republic, with its civil war, is a close second. (South China Morning Post)
- December 2018 British Columbia storms
- Severe windstorms in Vancouver and Vancouver Island damage houses, damage roads, and destroy a 100 year old pier in White Rock, British Columbia. One person stranded on the pier is rescued by helicopter. Several highways were closed due to trees falling. (Surrey Now)
- The Mayor of Skagway, Alaska, Monica Carlson, as well as her mother, are killed after being struck by a tour bus in Washington, D.C. while preparing to visit the White House. (WTOP)
Law and crime
- Ten years after the collapse of Belgian financial group Fortis in the financial crisis of 2007–2008, the prosecutor in Brussels decides to drop the case against seven former directors. The prosecution argues that it found insufficient evidence that they knowingly misled shareholders with over-optimistic company information. (Reuters)
- Denmark passes a law that requires new citizens to shake hands with a Danish official at their naturalization ceremony. It is widely believed that the law was made to spite potential Muslim immigrants, who usually refuse to shake hands with people of the opposite gender. Several Danish municipalities are openly looking for loopholes in the law. (The New York Times)
- Protests break out across Sudan over rising prices of bread and fuel, resulting in at least eight deaths. (Al-Jazeera)
- Abortion in the Republic of Ireland
- Irish President Michael D. Higgins signs a bill making abortion legal in the Republic of Ireland for the first time. (Irish Times)
Politics and elections
- Cabinet of Donald Trump
- U.S. Secretary of Defence Jim Mattis announces his resignation at the end of February 2019. Mattis says that his views are not well "aligned" with those of the President. (Reuters) (CNN)
- 2018 Democratic Republic of the Congo general election
- The CENI electoral commission delays the election to 30 December after 80% of the voting machines in the capital were destroyed in a suspected arson last week. (NPR)
Science and technology
- Soyuz MS-09 lands safely on the steppe in Kazakhstan. (NASASpaceFlight.com)
- U.S. researchers say that the Marburg virus has been found for the first time in West African bats, notably in Egyptian rousette fruit bats in Sierra Leone. Marburg is a "cousin" of the Ebola virus disease, which too may be spread by bats. (NBC News)
Sports
- Cuba's baseball federation and Major League Baseball reach a deal that will allow Cuban players to compete in the USA without defecting. (BBC)
December 21, 2018 (Friday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Colombian conflict
- Ecuadorian drug trafficker and FARC dissident Walter Arizala is killed in a joint police and military operation near Tumaco. Arízala was wanted for the murder of two Ecuadorian journalists earlier in the year. (BBC)
Business and economy
- Gatwick Airport drone incident
- Two people are arrested by Sussex Police and charged with "criminal use of drones". (The Guardian)
Disasters and accidents
- At least 23 people are killed and 14 injured in Dang Deukhuri District, Nepal, when a bus carrying students and their teachers returning from a botanical trip runs off a road and plunges 700 meters into a ravine. (BBC)
- At least 13 miners, eleven Poles and two Czechs, are killed and 10 injured in a methane explosion in a coal mine in Karvina, Czech Republic. (BBC)
- Five people are killed and dozens injured when a train slams into a bus carrying school students in Niš, Serbia. (BBC)
Law and crime
- Criminal justice reform in the United States
- U.S. President Donald Trump signs the First Step Act, a bipartisan prison and sentencing reform bill, into law. (The Guardian)
- Carlos Ghosn, formerly the chairman of Nissan, is arrested again on suspicion of shifting personal losses to the company. (Wall Street Journal)
- A Canadian judge denies former Guantanamo Bay detainee Omar Khadr's request for relaxed bail conditions and a Canadian passport. (Seattle Times) (CBC)
Politics and elections
- 2019 United States federal budget
- The U.S. Congress adjourns for the night before reaching a new budget agreement, starting a partial federal government shutdown that began the next day at 12:00 a.m. EST (05:00 UTC). (NBC News)
- A motion of no confidence is passed by the National Assembly of Guyana with a vote of 33–32, triggering early elections scheduled for 2019. (St. Lucia News Online)
Science and technology
- Largest known prime number
- The Great Internet Mersenne Prime Search announces the discovery of a new Mersenne prime, 282,589,933-1. It has 24,862,048 decimal digits, which surpasses the previous record by over 1.5 million digits. (NPR)
December 22, 2018 (Saturday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Somali Civil War
- A car bomb near the presidential palace in Mogadishu kills at least 16 people and injures more than 20 others. (The Guardian)
Arts and culture
- Simcha Rotem, the last surviving fighter of the 1943 Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, also a participant in the 1944 Warsaw Uprising, dies at the age of 94. (Deutsche Welle)
Disasters and accidents
Politics and elections
- The draft of a new constitution is approved by the parliament of Cuba. It will be put up for referendum on February 24, 2019. (Reuters)
- The United States Department of State confirms Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIL Brett McGurk's resignation, effective December 31. President Trump describes the resignation as a "nothing event". (Associated Press) (BBC)
December 23, 2018 (Sunday)
Law and crime
- Gatwick Airport drone incident
- The two people arrested by police two days earlier are released without charges. (Reuters)
Politics and elections
- Politics of Italy, Italian government debt
- The Senate of Italy passes the 2019 budget by 167 votes to 78 and three abstentions, following the agreement on December 19 with the European Commission on the size of the structural deficit. (Channel NewsAsia)
December 24, 2018 (Monday)
Business and economy
- The Dow Jones Industrial Average drops 2.9%, its worst performance ever on Christmas Eve. (NPR)
Disasters and accidents
- 2018 Sunda Strait tsunami
- The death toll following the tsunami caused by the Anak Krakatau volcano has risen to at least 429, according to Indonesia's disaster mitigation agency. Also, 1,459 people are injured, while 150 are still missing. (BBC)
- 2018 Puebla helicopter crash
- Governor of Puebla Martha Erika Alonso and Senator Rafael Moreno Valle Rosas are among several fatalities in a helicopter crash near Puebla, Mexico. (New York Times via Reuters)
- Mount Etna erupts, causing the closure of Catania–Fontanarossa Airport in Sicily, Italy. (BBC) (China Economic Net)
Law and crime
- Corruption in Pakistan
- Former Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is sentenced to seven years in prison after being found guilty of corruption. (CNN)
Politics and elections
- Chairman of Iran's Expediency Discernment Council and former Chief Justice Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi dies at the age of 70. (Euronews)
- The coalition government of Benjamin Netanyahu dissolves the Knesset and sets early elections for April. The coalition has been struggling after failing to pass a new bill that would extend the military draft to ultra-Orthodox Jews and the resignation of Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman, leader of one of the parties in the coalition. (CNN)
- Burundi moves its capital from Bujumbura to Gitega. (QZ)
December 25, 2018 (Tuesday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
- The Afghan health ministry says that yesterday's attack by a suicide bomber and three gunmen on a government building in Kabul killed at least 43 people. No group has claimed responsibility. (CBS News) (Daily Sabah)
- Second Libyan Civil War
- Three people are left dead in an attack against Libya's Foreign Affairs ministry in Tripoli. (Reuters) (Al Jazeera)
Business and economy
- The Nikkei index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange drops 5% to below 20,000, its lowest level since September 2017. (Bloomberg)
International relations
- North Korea–South Korea relations
- North Korea and South Korea hold a ceremony for a project to reconnect rail and road links, although construction cannot start while sanctions over North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs remain in place. (Gulf Today) (Sun Herald)
Law and crime
- A man stabs a local government official and a police officer to death in the streets of Longyan, China, then hijacks a bus and drove it into pedestrians, killing eight people and wounding 22 others. Authorities said the perpetrator "took revenge on society" after a dispute with local officials about his father's veteran benefits. (CNN)
- Cannabis in Thailand
- Thailand approves marijuana for medical use and research. The country voted to amend the Narcotic Act of 1979 prior to the New Year’s holiday. (BBC) (CNBC)
December 26, 2018 (Wednesday)
Arts and culture
- U.S. President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump make an unannounced post-Christmas visit to troops at the Al Asad Airbase in Iraq, their first visit to a combat zone since taking office. (BBC) (The Washington Post)
- After a 53-day trek, American professional endurance athlete Colin O'Brady allegedly becomes the first person to cross Antarctica alone and unaided; his claim of being unaided has been disputed, and the first person to really cross Antarctica alone and unaided was Børge Ousland in 1996 and 1997. (BBC)
Business and economy
- Japan announces its intention to resume commercial whaling in July 2019 after withdrawing from the International Whaling Commission. (NBC News)
Politics and elections
- Martial law in Ukraine ends a month after an attack on three Ukrainian Navy vessels near the Kerch Strait. (NBC News)
December 27, 2018 (Thursday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Street battles between anti-government protesters and riot police in Sudan leave at least 19 people dead, including two policemen, as well as hundreds injured. Amnesty International puts the death toll at 37. (Al Jazeera)
Arts and culture
- Richard Arvin Overton, the oldest U.S. veteran from World War II, as well as the oldest American man, dies at age 112. (Newsweek), (CNN)
- Argentina lifts a travel ban on Canadian singer Justin Bieber, who had been previously banned from the country for his role in the beating of a photographer in November 2013. A Document of Resolution was signed last week, officially ending Bieber's ban, so Bieber may now freely return to the country. (Daily Mail)
Disasters and accidents
- The New York City sky lights up in blue after a transformer in Astoria, Queens, explodes. (The Guardian), (NBC New York)
International relations
- Iraq–United States relations
- Iraqi politicians from both parliamentary blocs in the Council of Representatives of Iraq demand the withdrawal of U.S. forces from the country, following U.S. President Donald Trump's unannounced visit to troops stationed at Al Asad Airbase. An extraordinary session to debate the matter is planned. (The Guardian)
- Foreign relations of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
- The DRC government gives the European Union 48 hours to recall its envoy in the country after the EU imposed sanctions on 14 Congolese officials. (Vanguard News Nigeria)
Law and crime
- Five Christian monks are tied up and then left injured, one of them seriously, after a robbery at a church in Vienna, Austria. (The Guardian)
Science and technology
- The Chaos Computer Club holds their 35th Chaos Communication Congress, a hacker convention, in Leipzig, Germany. (Handelsblatt)
December 28, 2018 (Friday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Syrian Civil War
- An explosion caused by a roadside bomb hits a tourist bus in Cairo, Egypt, near the Giza pyramid complex. Three Vietnamese tourists and an Egyptian tour guide are killed, while 12 others are injured. (BBC)
Arts and culture
- After a 56-day trek, British Army captain Lou Rudd becomes the second person to cross Antarctica alone and unaided, over two decades after the first solo crossing by Norwegian Børge Ousland. (BBC)
International relations
Law and crime
- 2018 Leicester explosion
- The three men suspected of causing an explosion at a shop in Leicester in February are convicted of murder. The explosion destroyed the shop and the flat above it, killing five people. The three men were also convicted of conspiracy with one of the victims to commit insurance fraud. (The Guardian)
December 29, 2018 (Saturday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- In response to a roadside bombing that killed three Vietnamese tourists and an Egyptian tour guide the previous day, Egyptian police kill 40 suspected militants. (The New York Times)
- Yemeni Civil War
- Yemen's Shiite rebels say they have given control of the port of Hodeida to the coast guard and local administrators. The Yemeni government disputes this claim. (AP via Seattle Times)
Disasters and accidents
- An equipment failure causes a jet bridge at the Baltimore–Washington International Airport to collapse, injuring seven people. (The Baltimore Sun)
Law and crime
- A cyberattack disrupts distribution of newspapers published by Tribune Publishing. (Reuters)
- Four people are killed in a shooting in St. Charles, Missouri, United States. Another person was stabbed but survived. A suspect was arrested soon after. (Associated Press), (The Daily Beast)
Politics and elections
- United States federal government shutdown of 2018–2019
- U.S. President Donald Trump issues an executive order freezing federal workers' pay raise in 2019, excluding that of military personnel. (CNN)
December 30, 2018 (Sunday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- War in Afghanistan
- The Taliban reject peace talks with the Afghan government. (Reuters)
Disasters and accidents
- A rescue helicopter crashes near the world's longest zipline in the United Arab Emirates, killing four people. (BBC)
Law and crime
- A French man is detained in Barcelona, Spain, upon entering the Sagrada Familia with a suitcase containing ammunition. The Catalan police do not consider it an act of terrorism. (Mirror)
Politics and elections
- 2018 Bangladeshi general election
- Voters in Bangladesh head to the polls to elect 299 representatives to parliament. Seventeen people were killed in deadly clashes between supporters and opponents of the country's ruling party. (BBC)
- The Awami League led by Sheikh Hasina is declared as the winner of the election with Hasina to serve her third consecutive term as Prime Minister of Bangladesh. (BBC)
- 2018 Democratic Republic of the Congo general election
- Voters in the Democratic Republic of the Congo head to the polls to determine a successor to incumbent President Joseph Kabila. Elections are also held for the National Assembly and local councils. (BBC News) (The Telegraph)
December 31, 2018 (Monday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- A bomb explosion outside a busy shopping mall in the city of Cotabato, Philippines, kills 2 people and injures 34 others. (CNN)
- Manchester Victoria stabbing attack
- Three people are injured after being stabbed in an attack at Manchester Victoria station. The attacker shouted "Allah" during the attack. The attack is being treated as a terror-related incident, police have confirmed, and due to concerns over his mental health, the suspect is being held under the Mental Health Act. (BBC)
Disasters and accidents
- 2018 Pacific typhoon season
- At least 69 people are reported dead from flooding caused by Tropical Depression Usman in the Philippines. (Stuff.co.nz) (The Guardian)
- 2018 Magnitogorsk building collapse
- An explosion caused by a gas leak devastated a block of flats in Magnitogorsk, Russia, killing 14 people while 27 others are missing. (BBC)
International relations
- Russia's FSB state security agency says it has arrested a U.S. citizen "caught spying" in Moscow. According to former CIA officials the arrest was done as a retaliation for the arrest of alleged Russian spy Maria Butina. (BBC) (Daily Beast)
Politics and elections
- 2020 United States presidential election, 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries
- Joining several other Democrats in the race, Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts announces the formation of a presidential exploratory committee for running in the 2020 presidential election. (CNN)
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| 1 | ||||||
| 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
| 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 |
| 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 |
| 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 |
| 30 | 31 |
Ongoing events
Business
Disasters
Politics
- Brexit negotiations
- European migrant crisis (timeline)
- Gilets jaunes protests
- Iranian protests
- Iraqi protests
- Nicaraguan protests
- Qatar diplomatic crisis
- Rohingya persecution in Myanmar
- Spanish constitutional crisis
- Trump administration family separation policy
- Turkish purges
- U.S. Special Counsel investigation (timeline)
Religion
Sports
More details – ongoing conflicts
Elections and referendums
Recent
Upcoming
- February
- 3: El Salvador, President
- 16: Nigeria, President and Parliament
- 24: Cuba, Constitutional referendum
- 24: Moldova, Parliament
Recently concluded
- Australia: George Pell
- Bahrain: Ali Salman
- Guatemala: Roxana Baldetti
- India: Sajjan Kumar
- Philippines: Imelda Marcos
- United States: Patrick Ho
Ongoing
- Guatemala: Otto Pérez Molina, Roxana Baldetti, Juan Carlos Monzón and others
- Israel: Faina Kirschenbaum
- Malaysia: Siti Aisyah and Đoàn Thị Hương
- Philippines: Leila de Lima
- Spain: Bárcenas affair
- United States: Fat Leonard scandal, Joaquín Guzmán
- International
Upcoming
- Egypt: Mohamed Morsi
- Guatemala: Alvaro Colom, Manuel Baldizón, Juan Alberto Fuentes
- Iran: Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe
- Philippines: Andal Ampatuan Jr.
- South Africa: Jacob Zuma
- Spain: Jordi Pujol
- Ukraine: Roman Nasirov
- United Kingdom: Football sex abuse scandal
- United States: 6ix9ine, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, NXIVM, Elizabeth Holmes, Chris Collins, Duncan D. Hunter
- Zimbabwe: Ignatius Chombo
- Association football
- Women's association football
- American football
- Basketball
- Golf
- Ice hockey
- Rugby sevens
- Rugby union
- Other sports seasons
More details – current sports events
December 2018
- 31: Ray Sawyer
- 30: Mrinal Sen
- 29: Ringo Lam
- 28: Amos Oz
- 28: Shehu Shagari
- 28: June Whitfield
- 27: Richard Arvin Overton
- 26: Nancy G. Roman
- 26: Wendy Beckett
- 26: Roy J. Glauber
- 26: Sono Osato
- 24: Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi
- 22: Simcha Rotem
- 22: Paddy Ashdown
- 22: Talal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud
- 20: Donald Moffat
- 19: Peter Masterson
- 17: Penny Marshall
- 15: Girma Wolde-Giorgis
- 14: Bill Fralic
- 14: Jean-Pierre Van Rossem
- 13: Noah Klieger
- 13: Nancy Wilson
- 12: Pavle Strugar
- 9: Robert Bergland
- 9: William Blum
- 9: Riccardo Giacconi
- 8: Lyudmila Alexeyeva
- 8: Evelyn Berezin
- 7: Belisario Betancur
- 6: Larry Hennig
- 6: Isiah Robertson
- 6: Pete Shelley
- 5: Dynamite Kid
- 3: Philip Bosco
- 3: Josep Lluís Núñez
- 3: Albert Frère
- 3: Geoff Murphy
- 1: Ken Berry
- 1: Scott Stearney
- 1: Jody Williams
Africa
- Algeria, Libya and Tunisia
- Cameroon
- Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria
- Central African Republic
- Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Ethiopia
- Libya
- Mali
- Nigeria
- Somalia
- South Sudan
- Sudan
Americas
- Colombia
- Mexico
- Peru
Asia
- Afghanistan
- China
- India
- India and Pakistan
- Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines
- Indonesia and Papua New Guinea
- Myanmar
- Pakistan
- Philippines
- Thailand
Europe
- Armenia and Azerbaijan
- Georgia
- Russia
- Ukraine
Middle East
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