From climate to conflict, 2023 was a year of extremes

Two Vatican officials are seen preparing the casket of the late Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. On January 5, tens of thousands of mourners gathered in St. Peter's Square to see off the Bavarian-born former pontiff. Citing health concerns, Benedict stunned the Catholic Church in 2013 by becoming the first pontiff in six centuries to resign. Most papacies endure until the incumbent dies in office.

On January 8, hundreds of supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro stormed Brazil's National Congress, causing considerable property damage. The attack came days after Bolsonaro's successor, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, assumed office. Like Trump before him in 2021, Bolsonaro had not conceded his competitor's victory, and was later accused of inciting his supporters to violence.

On January 11, police began clearing Lützerath in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The village was to be razed to make way for lignite coal mining. Climate activists occupied empty homes and built treehouses to stop the bulldozers. They rallied tens of thousands of supporters, who arrived to huge protests that included climate star Greta Thunberg. Five days later, Lützerath was no more.

Mesut Hancer holds the hand of his 15-year-old daughter, Irmak, who died in the magnitude 7.8 earthquake that shook parts of Turkey and Syria on February 6. About 125,000 people were injured, and more than 59,000 died as rescue operations struggled to reach victims trapped in the debris. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan later faced accusations of state failure.

After over 70 years of being heir to the throne, his big day finally arrived. On May 6, Britain's King Charles III celebrated his coronation. His mother, Queen Elizabeth II, died in September 2022, ending her 70-year reign. Hers was the second-longest royal reign in history after French King Louis XIV's 72 years. Outside the UK, King Charles rules 14 other Commonwealth countries.

In early June, New York was covered in a thick yellow haze, as smoke from Canada's massive forest fires blew down the eastern coast of the US. On June 6, New York topped the list of the world's most polluted major cities. In Canada, the fires raged across the country until November, consuming over 185,000 square kilometers (71,400 square miles) of land — unprecedented in Canada's recorded history.

As its military struggled against Russia's aggression in the summer, Ukraine also had to face a devastating flood. On June 6, explosions caused the Kakhovka Dam to collapse, submerging 900 square kilometers (about 350 square miles) downstream. As Russia and Ukraine pointed fingers at each other, investigators indicated that it was highly probable that Russia had deliberately sabotaged the dam.

Their fate kept the world breathless. On June 14, four men and one adolescent boarded the Titan submersible run by the tour firm OceanGate. The trip was supposed to take them to the ocean floor to view the Titanic wreck. Not even two hours into the dive, all contact was lost. After four days of frantic searching, operators discovered the vessel had imploded on descent, killing all occupants.

Shortly before the Titan disappeared, this fishing trawler capsized in the Mediterranean. Refugee organizations noted that this disaster did not receive nearly the same amount of attention as the Titan submersible, nor were comparable rescue operations undertaken. More than 2,500 refugees were recorded as drowned in the Mediterranean in 2023.

In June, fighters from the Wagner Group private army left Ukraine and began marching on Moscow. On June 24, they captured Rostov-on-Don without a struggle. This image shows tanks on the Russian city's streets. The following day, Wagner head Yevgeny Prigozhin cut his uprising short as part of a deal to avoid "bloodshed," the Kremlin said. He died in a mysterious plane crash two months later.

In July, tourists were evacuated from the Greek island of Rhodes after forest fires began encroaching on settlements. In total, about one-tenth of the popular tourist destination went up in flames. The summer saw the largest forest fires in Greece in the history of the European Union. Other Mediterranean countries also suffered from extreme heat in drought as 2023 shattered global heat records.

On September 10, Storm Daniel made landfall on Libya's coast after previously having wreaked havoc on Greece's shores. As a result, two dams near the coastal city of Derna burst, washing away entire districts. The UN estimated that some 11,300 people died in the tragedy, and 35,000 lost their homes.

In late September, Azerbaijan took over the self-proclaimed breakaway state of Artsakh in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region. The territory, mainly home to ethnic Armenians, was formally part of Azerbaijan's territory. Over 100,000 people fled the enclave after its capture.

On October 7, militants from the Hamas organization launched multifront terror attacks on Israel. Firing rockets and attacking civilians and military bases, they killed about 1,200 Israelis that day and took some 240 hostages into Gaza. Intelligence suggests that Israel's administration knew of the impending attack.

Israel launched a massive military campaign against Gaza, besieging and heavily bombarding the strip. Within two months, the Gaza Health Ministry, which is governed by Hamas, had reported more than 15,000 Palestinians killed. Worldwide, people have taken to the streets demanding an end to Israel's aggression — many calling it genocide. Antisemitic and Islamophobic attacks have been on the rise.

This art installation in Tel Aviv called attention to the hostages kidnapped by Hamas on October 7. In November, Israel came to an agreement with Hamas to exchange hostages and prisoners. The cease-fire deal lasted for one week and saw 105 hostages released. Israel has since stepped up its military campaign, with about 130 hostages remaining in Gaza.

2023 also had its silver linings. In late November, this newborn Sumatran rhinoceros took his first steps in Indonesia's Way Kambas National Park. The healthy baby male is a welcome addition to the critically endangered population of fewer than 50. Worldwide, an estimated 1 million plant and animal species are threatened with extinction.