From Russia-Ukraine war to Iran protests: Here's a list of top news in 2022

The number of those infected with the Coronavirus pandemic crossed 300 million on January 7. The fist 100 million deaths globally were recorded in over a year, while the next 100 million came in about the half the time. The fast-spreading Omicron variant and the reason that a major chunk of the populalation remained unvaccinated, led to the next 100 million figure coming in just about five months. 

This month saw the biggest military intervention by a country since World War II when Russia invaded Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree which declared Luhansk People's Republic and Donetsk People's Republic as independent from Ukraine, ultimately leading to an invasion on February 26. He even went on to order the country's nuclear deterrent forces to be on "special alert".

On March 4, the Islamic State – Khorasan Province carried out a suicide attack at a Shia mosque at Qissa Khwani Bazaar in Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. An Afghan man, who had been living in Pakistan for a long time, killed at least 63 people and injured another 196.
 

The political scene in the South Asian nation of Pakistan underwent another change when Imran Khan was removed as Prime Minister following a no-confidence motion against him. Leader of the opposition, Shehbaz Sharif, was elected as the new Prime Minister. 
 

While the world slowly started to bring life back to normal following the Covid-19 outbreak, a viral disease, Monkeypox, started to raise its head. The disease was confirmed in May 2022 with the initial cluster of cases found in the United Kingdom. The first case was detected in London on May 6, 2022 in a patient with a recent travel history from Nigeria. Notably, the disease is endemic in Nigeria. 
 

On June 22, a massive earthquake measuring 6.2 struck southeastern Afghanistan. The quake, with just a depth of four kilometres, also affected parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, and was felt over 500 km away by at least 119 million people. It was the deadliest earthquake for Afghanistan since 1998. At least 1,163 people died and over 6,000 others were injured throughout eastern Afghanistan and western Pakistan.

Shinzo Abe, the former prime minister of Japan, was assassinated on July 8, while he was speaking at a public event. He was taken to Nara Medical University Hospital where he was pronounced dead. His funeral was held on September 27. The suspect, 41-year-old Tetsuya Yamagami, told the police that he was furious over Abe's relation with the Unification Church (UC) since the body had left his mother bankrupt in 2002.

Tensions between the US and China touched an all-time high when US House Speaker visited Taiwan on August 2. China recognizes Taiwan as its territory and wasn't happy with the visit. China conducted its largest ever military exercise around Taiwan in response to the visit. Upon reaching Taiwan, Pelosi said her visit was a sign of the United States' "unwavering commitment to supporting Taiwan's vibrant democracy".

Queen Elizabeth II passed away on September 8 at the  Balmoral Castle, bringing to an end a historic  70-year reign. Her son, Charles, immediately succeeded her as the new monarch. Her state funeral was held in Westminster Abbey, London on September 19. Her coffin was carried to Windsor Castle in a procession and she was buried with her husband, parents and sister in the King George VI Memorial Chapel. The funeral was reportedly the most watched television event in world history.

The month brought with it a couple of tragedies. On October 1, a fatal human crush at the Kanjuruhan Stadium in Malang Regency, East Java, Indonesia, killed 131 people and injured more than 500. Another deadly crowd crush occurred during Halloween festivities in Seoul, South Korea on October 29 in which 158 people died. On the same day, a double car bombing by al-Shabaab in Mogadishu, Somalia killed at least 100 people. On the last day of the month, a 19th-century suspension bridge collapsed in Morbi, Gujarat, India, leaving at least 141 dead.

World population reached the milestone of eight billion on November 15 at 1:30 pm IST. The UN had declared the day as the Day of Eight Billion. UN Secretary-General António Guterres described the milestone as an occasion to "celebrate our diversity, recognize our common humanity, and marvel at advancements in health" while considering "our shared responsibility to care for our planet and … one another".
 

The Iran protests that began as a consequence of the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini following her arrest by the moral police on September 16, witnessed a grim moment when Iran’s Revolutionary Court carried out its first execution in the protests  on December 8. Mohsen Shekari was found guilty of "waging war against God" and was accused of blocking a street and attacking a security forces member with a machete. The second execution happened less than a week later when Majidreza Rahnavard was publicly hanged on December 12.