TOP 10 INTERNATIONAL NEWS OF 2017
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1. Trump’s ‘America first’
On Jan. 20, billionaire Donald Trump was inaugurated as U.S. President, vowing to follow a policy based on ”America first.” He pulled out of several international agreements ― on climate, free trade, immigration and UNESCO ― unpicking the achievements of his predecessor, Barack Obama.
2. Xi’s grip on power
Already seen as China’s most powerful leader since Mao Zedong. President Xi Jinping stamped his authority over the nation’s economy at a major meeting, which called for reasonable credit expansion, increased imports and more open markets. The clear expansion of his portfolio into economics is the latest sign of his ever-growing power.
3. Global terrorist attacks
Around the world this year, vehicles were made into weapons, with trucks, cars and vans plowing down people on Westminster and London bridges in Britain; in Times Square and on a Manhattan bike path; and on a major shopping street in Stockholm. Terrorism and other violence struck so regularly that many accepted it as a fact of life.
4. Islamic State falls
Islamic State lost its caliphate. After months of block-by-block fighting, U.S.-backed Iraqi forces reclaimed Iraq’s second-largest city, Mosul, in July. In October, U.S.-backed forces in Syria wrested control of the group’s capital, Raqqa. After those defeats, the Islamist extremists were left with very little territory.
5. Rohingya crisis
More than 640,000 Rohingya people have fled Myanmar’s northern Rakhine State since August. Myanmar’s soldiers and police burned hundreds of Rohingya villages to the ground, and they are also accused of gang-raping women and children, as well as slaughtering civilians indiscriminately. Western countries have condemned the violence as ethnic cleansing.
6. MeToo campaign
Since the Harvey Weinstein story broke in Hollywood, a conversation about sexual harassment and assault, and the #MeToo campaign it inspired, became global. Allegations of sexual misconduct have since been levelled at a long list of personalities around the world. According to data by UN Women, 35 percent of women around the world have experienced physical or sexual violence.
7. Natural disasters
Fierce hurricanes, heat waves, floods and wildfires ravaged the planet in 2017, as scientists said the role of climate change in causing or worsening certain natural disasters has grown increasingly clear. It was also the year the United States turned its back on the 196-nation Paris climate deal.
8. Killing of Kim Jong-nam
The killing of the North Korean leader’s half brother Kim Jong-nam in Kuala Lumpur airport spawned a massive police investigation and a diplomatic row involving a large cast of characters. Once tipped to be the next leader of North Korea, he fell out of favor in the early 2000s and soon left the country.
9. Jerusalem: boiling point
Trump upended decades of U.S. policy with his Dec. 6 announcement that he was recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. Palestinians saw the move as siding with Israel on the most sensitive issue in the Israel-Palestinian conflict. Trump’s announcement created shockwaves around the world, setting off weeks of clashes.
10. Mugabe ousted
On Nov. 21, Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe, 93, resigned following a 37-year rule, after being abandoned by the military and his own party. He was driven out following a military takeover, over his sacking of Emmerson Mnangagwa as vice president, who went on to succeed him.