2015 in retrospect continued

August
* Debris found on Réunion Island is confirmed to be that of Malaysian Airlines Flight 370, missing since March 2014.
* A bombing takes place inside the Erawan Shrine at the Ratchaprasong intersection in Pathum Wan District, Bangkok, Thailand, killing 20 people and injuring 125.
* Microsoft introduces Windows 10.
* Migrant crisis of Europe.
September
* Scientists announce the discovery of Homo naledi, a previously unknown species of early human in South Africa.
* Automaker Volkswagen is alleged to have been involved in worldwide rigging of diesel emissions tests, affecting an estimated 11 million vehicles globally.
* A stampede during the Hajj pilgrimage in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, kills at least 2,200 people and injures more than 900 others, with more than 650 missing.
* NASA announces that liquid water has been found on Mars.
*Russia begins air strikes against ISIL and anti-government forces in Syria in support of the Syrian government.
* Flowing liquid water found on Mars
October
* A suicide bomb kills at least 100 people at a peace rally in Ankara, Turkey, and injures more than 400 others.
* Hurricane Patricia becomes the most intense hurricane ever recorded in the Western Hemisphere, with winds of 200 mph and a pressure of 879 mbar.
* A magnitude 7.5 earthquake strikes the Hindu Kush region and causes 398 deaths, with 279 in Pakistan, 115 in Afghanistan and 4 in India.
* Flight KGL9268, an Airbus A321 airliner en route to Saint Petersburg from Sharm el-Sheikh, crashes near Al-Hasana in Sinai, killing all 217 passengers and 7 crew members on board.
November
* Chinese and Taiwanese presidents, Xi Jinping and Ma Ying-jeou, formally meet for the first time.
* Several suicide bombings occur in Beirut, Lebanon, killing 43 and injuring 239. The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant claim responsibility.
* Multiple attacks claimed by Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in Paris, France, resulting in 130 fatalities.
* Syrian Civil War: Turkey shoots down a Russian fighter jet in the first case of a NATO member destroying a Russian aircraft since the 1950s.
* The 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 21) is held in Paris, attended by leaders from 147 nations.
* Paris terrorist attacks leaving hundreds dead.
December
* A global climate change pact is agreed at the COP 21 summit, committing all countries to reduce carbon emissions for the first time.
* SpaceX lands a Falcon 9 rocket, the first reusable rocket to successfully enter orbital space and return.
* Flood disaster in Chennai, India.

We have tried to make a brief recap for you our readers regarding all the good and bad things which made headlines since the turning of 2015. We hoped you enjoyed it. Please kindly share with others or subscribe to post comments. Wishing you the very best in 2016.

2015 in retrospect

As the year 2015 gradually comes to an end, it's appropriate for us to refresh our memories on some notable events that has transpired this year. 

Below are some of them starting from January :

January
*The creation of a political and economic Union between Russia, Belarus and Armenia called the Eurasian Economic Union
*Lithuania adopts the euro officially as its currency.
*A series of massacres in Baga, Nigeria and surrounding villages by Boko Haram kills more than 2,000 people.
*Turmoil in international financial markets caused by the abandonment of the cap on the franc's value relative to the euro.
*Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi resigns from office after rebels captured the presidential palace.
February
*Leaders from Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France reach an agreement on the conflict in eastern Ukraine that includes a ceasefire and withdrawal of heavy weapons.
*The Egyptian military begins conducting airstrikes against a branch of the Islamic militant group ISIL in Libya in retaliation for the group's beheading of over a dozen Egyptian Christians.
March
*The ancient city sites of Nimrud, Hatra and Dur-Sharrukin in Iraq are demolished by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.(ISIL)
*NASA's Dawn probe enters orbit around Ceres, becoming the first spacecraft to visit a dwarf planet.
*The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant becomes allies with fellow jihadist group Boko Haram, effectively annexing the group.
*An Airbus A320-211 operated by Germanwings crashes in the French Alps, killing all 150 on board.
*A Saudi Arabia-led coalition of Arab countries starts a military intervention in Yemen in order to uphold the Yemeni government in its fight against the Houthis' southern offensive.
April
*148 people were killed, the majority students, in a mass shooting at the Garissa University College in Kenya, perpetrated by the militant terrorist organization Al-Shabaab.
*A magnitude 7.8 earthquake strikes Nepal and causes 8,857 deaths in Nepal, 130 in India, 27 in China and 4 in Bangladesh with a total of 9,018 deaths.
*The World Health Organization (WHO) declares that rubella has been eradicated from the Americas.[30]
May
*Expo 2015 is held in Milan, Italy.
*Version O of Les Femmes d'Alger by Pablo Picasso sells for US$179.3 million at Christie's auction in New York, while the sculpture L'Homme au doigt by Alberto Giacometti sells for US$141.3 million, setting a new world record for a painting and for a sculpture, respectively.
*A second major earthquake in Nepal, measuring 7.3 on the moment magnitude scale, results in 153 deaths in Nepal, 62 in India, 1 in China and 2 in Bangladesh with a total of 218 deaths.
*Ireland votes to legalize same-sex marriage, becoming the first country to legalize same-sex marriage by popular vote.
June
*FIFA President Sepp Blatter announces his intention to resign amidst an FBI-led corruption investigation, and calls for an extraordinary congress to elect a new president as soon as possible.
*The governments of India and Bangladesh officially ratify their 1974 agreement to exchange enclaves along their border.
*The 41st G7 summit is held in Schloss Elmau, Bavaria.
*ISIL claim responsibility for three attacks around the world during the Ramadan:
Kobanî massacre: ISIL fighters detonate three car bombs, enter Kobanî, Syria, and open fire at civilians, killing more than 220.
Sousse attacks: 22-year-old Seifeddine Rezgui opens fire at at a tourist resort at Port El Kantaoui, Tunisia, killing 40 people.
Kuwait mosques attack: A suicide bomber attacks the Shia Mosque Imam killing 27 people and injuring 227 others.
*Cuba becomes the first country in the world to eradicate mother-to-child transmission of HIV and syphilis.
July
*Pluto as imaged by the New Horizons probe on 14 July making it the first spacecraft in history to visit the distant world
*Greek government-debt crisis
*Iran agrees to long-term limits of its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.
*Cuba and the United States reestablish full diplomatic relations, ending a 54-year stretch of hostility between the nations.
*Turkey begins a series of airstrikes against PKK and ISIL targets after the 2015 Suruç bombing.
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