Wed, December 31, 2008
Eerie calm:
A survivor looks on in Bogalay 10 days after Cyclone Nargison hit Myanmar on May 2. The United Nations warned on May 13 that Myanmar faced a "second catastrophe" after its devastating cyclone, unless the junta immediately allowed massive air and sea deliveries of aid. [Agencies]
Test of a nation:
Rescuers carry Gao Ying from a collapsed building at Juyuan Middle School in Dujiangyan, Sichuan province, on May 13. A total of 69,225 people were confirmed dead, 17,939 missing and 374,640 injured from the May 12 Sichuan quake. [China Daily]
Coming-out party:
Fireworks light the night sky above the National Stadium or "Bird's Nest" during the Closing Ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games on Aug 24. London will host the 2012 Games. [Agencies]
On the high seas:
A handout photo provided by the US Navy shows Somali pirates in small boats on Sept 25 hijacking the MV Faina, a Belize-flagged cargo ship owned and operated by "Kaalbye Shipping Ukraine". Ukraine again insisted on Sept 30 that a cargo of 33 tanks on a freight ship hijacked last week was destined for Kenya, and not Sudan as the pirates holding the ship and the US navy have said. "The client for the military material is the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Kenya," said a statement from the Ukrspetsexport, the state company that handles the country's arms sales. [Agencies]
Taking stock:
German trader Michael Pansegrau makes a phone call at the stock exchange in Frankfurt on Oct 16, as the DAX index of 30 leading German shares plunged in early trading following a brutal sell-off on Wall Street. [Agencies]
Promise of change:
Then Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama addresses supporters during his election night victory rally at Grant Park on Nov 4 in Chicago, Illinois. Americans emphatically elected Obama as their first African-American president in a transformational election expected to reshape US politics and the country's role on the world stage. [Agencies]
Day of darkness:
Flames gush out of The Taj Mahal Hotel in Mumbai on Nov 27, one of the sites of attacks by alleged militant gunmen. Up to 100 people were killed and about 100 more wounded in coordinated attacks in India's commercial capital, Indian media reported, with two five-star hotels among the targets of gunmen armed with powerful assault rifles and grenades. [Agencies]
At a standstill:
Anti-government protesters celebrate a court decision against the ruling party during a demonstration at the besieged Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok on Dec 2. A Thai court had dissolved the ruling party and banned the premier from politics, plunging the kingdom into further uncertainty. [Agencies]
Holiday fill:
An attendant wearing a Santa Claus cap fills a motorcycle at a service station in Manila on Dec 19. Fuel prices in the Philippines have seen a series of rollbacks, giving Filipinos a holiday reprieve from the global financial crisis as world oil traded above $36 a barrel on Dec 19, its lowest level in more than four years. [Agencies]
Hit hard:
A location in the Gaza Strip is blasted in Israeli air strikes on Dec 29. Israel bombed Hamas targets in Gaza on Dec 27, killing more than 300. The attack is ongoing. [Agencies]
