2016 in pictures
By CFP, Published: 2016-12-29 23:49:10
January: Gleyse Kelly da Silva bathes her daughter Maria Giovanna, who has microcephaly, at home in Recife, Brazil, on January 30. Microcephaly has been linked to the spread of the mosquito-borne Zika virus. Photo:CFP
Editor's Note:
Many think that 2016 saw more than its share of tragedies, as conflicts dragged on and economic shockwaves caused by the rise of populist polictics rippled across the globe. But it was also a time for reconciliation and a summer of sport that saw the world come together in Rio de Janeiro to celebrate the Olympics. Here are the events that shaped 2016.
February: Pope Francis (left) and Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill meet in Havana, Cuba on February 12. The meeting came 1,000 years after Eastern Orthodoxy split with Rome, marking the first encounter in history between a pope and a Russian Orthodox patriarch. Photo:CFP 
March: Cuban President Raul Castro (right) raises US President Barack Obama’s hand during a meeting at the Revolution Palace in Havana on March 21, as diplomatic ties between the two countries resumed for the first time since the Cold War. Photo:CFP 
April: Syrians evacuate an injured man amid the rubble of destroyed buildings following an airstrike on a rebel-held neighborhood in Aleppo, on April 29. By the end of the year, most civilians had fled, and the government said it has taken control of the city. Photo:CFP 
May: Suspended Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff attends a news conference with foreign media in Brasilia, Brazil, on May 13, one day after the Senate of Brazil temporarily suspended her powers and duties. On August 31, the Senate voted 61–20 in favor of impeachment, finding Rousseff guilty of breaking budgetary laws and removing her from office. Photo:CFP 
June: The Union Jack (bottom) and the European Union flag are seen flying at the border of Gibraltar with Spain on June 27. Following a referendum held on June 23 in the UK, in which 52% of votes were cast in favor of leaving the EU, the Brexit vote has continued to cast shockwaves throughout the UK and the EU. Photo:CFP 
July: The Ankara police headquarters is seen through a car’s broken window caused by fighting during a coup attempt in Ankara, Turkey on July 19. During the unsucessful coup, over 300 people were killed and more than 2,100 were injured. Photo:CFP 
August: People watch fireworks exploding over the Maracana stadium, from a terrace in Mangueira Favela, during the opening ceremony of the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro on August 5. The buildup to the Olympics in Rio was troubled by the concerns over late infrastructure construction and the Zika virus. Photo:CFP 
September: Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos (center left) and the head of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrilla Timoleon Jimenez, aka Timochenko, shake hands during the signing of the historic peace agreement between the Colombian government and FARC, in Cartagena, Colombia, on September 26. The peace deal brings the country’s more-than-50-year-long civil war to an end, which has cost the lives of at least 220,000 Colombians. Photo:CFP 
October: South Korean President Park Geun-hye, who is currently suspended from office amid impeachment proceedings following a scandal in which her friend Choi Soon-sil allegedly masterminded governmental policy and decision-making during Park’s administration, bows after releasing a statement of apology to the public during a news conference at the Presidential Blue House in Seoul, South Korea, on October 25. Photo:CFP 
November: US President-elect Donald Trump waves to the media from the steps of the clubhouse of Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey on November 20. Trump won the US general election on November 8, and he is scheduled to take office as the 45th President on January 20, 2017. Photo:CFP 
December: Russian Ambassador to Turkey Andrei Karlov lies on the ground after he was shot while making a speech at an art gallery in Ankara on December 19. The assassin, Mevlüt Mert Altinta, an off-duty Turkish policeman, was also killed at the scene. Photo: CFP