The biggest events of 2018 — in pictures

FOR YEAR IN PIX ONLY epa06797185 A handout photo made available by the German Government (Bundesregierung) on 09 June 2018 shows French President Emmanuel Macron (3-L, partially hidden), German Chancellor Angela Merkel (C-L) and Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (C-R) speaking to US Presidend Donald J. Trump (R, seated) during the second day of the G7 meeting in Charlevoix, Canada, 09 June 2018. Looking on is US National Security Advisor John R. Bolton (R, standing); others are not identified. EPA/JESCO DENZE HANDOUT HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES — © Jesco Denze/EPA

A year of crises — political, humanitarian and environmental — began with the continued devastation in Syria, drawing the conflict into its seventh year.

TOPSHOT - CORRECTION - EDITORS NOTE: Graphic content / Two Syrian sisters run across the rubble to embrace after finding each other alive following an air strike on Hamouria, in the besieged rebel-held Eastern Ghouta area near Damascus, on January 9, 2018. Air strikes and artillery fire killed dozens of civilians in the besieged rebel enclave near Damascus targeted by near-daily regime bombardment, a war monitor said. / AFP PHOTO / ABDULMONAM EASSA / The erroneous mention[s] appearing in the metadata of this photo by ABDULMONAM EASSA has been modified in AFP systems in the following manner: [Hamouria] instead of [Saqba]. Please immediately remove the erroneous mention[s] from all your online services and delete it (them) from your servers. If you have been authorized by AFP to distribute it (them) to third parties, please ensure that the same actions are carried out by them. Failure to promptly comply with these instructions will entail liability on your part for any continued or post notification usage. Therefore we thank you very much for all your attention and prompt action. We are sorry for the inconvenience this notification may cause and remain at your disposal for any further information you may require.ABDULMONAM EASSA/AFP/Getty Images — © Abdulmonam Eassa/AFP/Getty

January 9 Two Syrian sisters embrace after finding each other alive following an air strike on Hamouria, in the besieged rebel-held Eastern Ghouta area near Damascus

Read more: Threat of Syrian home demolitions sparks anger over redevelopment

Journalists watch as Russian President Vladimir Putin gives his annual state of the nation address in Manezh in Moscow, Russia, on March 1, 2018. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko) — © Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP

March 1 Journalists watch as Russian president Vladimir Putin gives his annual state of the nation address in Moscow

Read more: Russian sanctions: why ‘isolation is impossible’

Members of the emergency services in green biohazard suits afix the tent over the bench where a man and a woman were found on March 4 in critical condition at The Maltings shopping centre in Salisbury, southern England, on March 8, 2018 after the tent became detached. British detectives on March 8 scrambled to find the source of the nerve agent used in the "brazen and reckless" attempted murder of a Russian former double-agent and his daughter. Sergei Skripal, 66, who moved to Britain in a 2010 spy swap, is unconscious in a critical but stable condition in hospital along with his daughter Yulia after they collapsed on a bench outside a shopping centre on Sunday. / AFP PHOTO / Ben STANSALLBEN STANSALL/AFP/Getty Images — © Ben Stansall/AFP/Getty

March 8 Members of the emergency services in biohazard suits put up a tent over the bench where Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia were found on March 4 in critical condition at The Maltings shopping centre in Salisbury, England

Read more: Novichok attack sheds light on Putin’s feared military agency

epa06619010 French President Emmanuel Macron (R) has dinner with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte (L) at the Bistrot Deux La Place restaurant during his visit in The Hague, The Netherlands, 21 March 2018. EPA/BART MAAT — © Bart Maat/EPA

March 21 French president Emmanuel Macron, right, and Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte have dinner at the Bistrot deux la Place during Mr Macron’s visit to The Hague, the Netherlands

Read more: Dutch take on Macron with ‘red lines’ over eurozone integration

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg arrives to testify before a joint hearing of the Commerce and Judiciary Committees on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, April 10, 2018, about the use of Facebook data to target American voters in the 2016 election. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais) — © Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP

April 10 Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg is about to testify before a joint hearing of the commerce and judiciary committees on Capitol Hill about the use of Facebook data in targeting American voters in the 2016 election

Read more: Mark Zuckerberg pulls off acrobatics at congressional circus

epa06737537 Palestinian protesters run for cover from Israeli tear-gas during clashes near the border with Israel in the east of Gaza Strip, 14 May 2018 (issued 15 May 2018). More protests are expected in the Palestinian territories on 15 May. At least 58 Palestinian protesters were killed and more than 2,000 others were injured at the Gaza-Israeli border during clashes against the US embassy move to Jerusalem as well as marking the Nakba Day. Palestinians are marking the Nakba Day, or the day of the disaster, when more than 700 thousand Palestinians were forcefully expelled from their villages during the war that led to the creation of the state of Israel on 15 May 1948. Protesters call for the right of Palestinians to return to their homeland. EPA/MOHAMMED SABER — © Mohammed Saber/EPA

May 14 Palestinian protesters run for cover from tear gas during clashes near the border with Israeli forces in the east of Gaza Strip. Dozens of people were killed and more than 2,000 others were injured during protests against the US embassy’s move to Jerusalem as well as marking the Nakba day

Read more: At least 52 Palestinians killed in Gaza protests

WINDSOR, UNITED KINGDOM - MAY 19: Ms. Meghan Markle walks down the aisle at the start of her wedding to Prince Harry in St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle on May 19, 2018 in Windsor, England.. (Photo by Danny Lawson - WPA Pool/Getty Images) — © Danny Lawson/WPA Pool/Getty

May 19 Meghan Markle marries Prince Harry in St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle in England

Read more: Meghan Markle, Prince Harry and the making of the royal mystique

DUBLIN, IRELAND - MAY 26: Supporters celebrate at Dublin Castle following the result Irish referendum result on the 8th amendment, concerning the country's abortion laws, on May 26, 2018 in Dublin, Ireland. Ireland has voted in favour of overturning the abortion ban by 66.4% to 33.6%, which is a "resounding" victory for the yes campaign. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images) — © Jeff J Mitchell/Getty

May 26 Supporters celebrate at Dublin Castle following the referendum result on the 8th amendment on Ireland’s abortion laws. Ireland voted in favour of overturning the abortion ban by 66.4 per cent to 33.6 per cent

Read more: Ireland’s abortion battle — ‘We’ve had a lot of silence about this for a long time’

TOPSHOT - Photo released on Twitter by the German Governments spokesman Steffen Seibert on June 9, 2018 and taken by the German government's photographer Jesco Denzel shows US President Donald Trump (R) talking with German Chancellor Angela Merkel (C) and surrounded by other G7 leaders during a meeting of the G7 Summit in La Malbaie, Quebec, Canada. The photo went viral, popping up all over social media, sometimes in its original form sometimes altered for humorous or satirical ends. / AFP PHOTO / Bundesregierung / Jesco DENZEL / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO / BUNDESREGIERUNG / JESCO DENZEL - NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS JESCO DENZEL/AFP/Getty Images — © Jesco Denzel/AFP/Getty

June 9 US president Donald Trump, seated, is surrounded by world leaders, including French president Emmanuel Macron, German chancellor Angela Merkel and Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe

Read more: FT View: Trump goes rogue at the G7

MCALLEN, TX - JUNE 12: A two-year-old Honduran asylum seeker cries as her mother is searched and detained near the U.S.-Mexico border on June 12, 2018 in McAllen, Texas. The asylum seekers had rafted across the Rio Grande from Mexico and were detained by U.S. Border Patrol agents before being sent to a processing center for possible separation. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is executing the Trump administration's "zero tolerance" policy towards undocumented immigrants. U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions also said that domestic and gang violence in immigrants' country of origin would no longer qualify them for political asylum status. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images) — © John Moore/Getty

June 12 A two-year-old Honduran asylum seeker cries as her mother is searched and detained near the US-Mexico border in McAllen, Texas. The asylum seekers had rafted across the Rio Grande from Mexico and were detained by US Border Patrol agents before being sent to a processing centre

Read more: Mexico under pressure not to bow to US over immigrants

TOPSHOT - This handout photo taken on June 12, 2018 and released by The Straits Times shows US President Donald Trump (R) and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un (L) leaving after a signing ceremony during their historic US-North Korea summit, at the Capella Hotel on Sentosa island in Singapore. Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un became on June 12 the first sitting US and North Korean leaders to meet, shake hands and negotiate to end a decades-old nuclear stand-off. / AFP PHOTO / THE STRAITS TIMES / Kevin LIM / - Singapore OUT / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO / The Straits Times / Kevin LIM" - NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS - NO ARCHIVESKEVIN LIM/AFP/Getty Images — © Kevin Lim/AFP/Getty

June 12 US president Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un after a signing ceremony during their historic summit in Singapore. They agreed to negotiate to end a decades-old nuclear stand-off

Read more: In quotes — Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un

Soccer Football - World Cup - Round of 16 - Spain vs Russia - Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow, Russia - July 1, 2018 Russia players celebrate winning the penalty shootout REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY — © Maxim Shemetov/Reuters

July 1 Russia’s football players celebrate after winning a penalty shootout against Spain in the knockout stage of the World Cup at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow

Read more: Russia’s economy scores as World Cup fans splash out $1.5bn

Protesters gather around a giant balloon depicting US President Donald Trump as an orange baby during a demonstration against Trump's visit to the UK in Parliament Square in London on July 13, 2018. - US President Donald Trump launched an extraordinary attack on Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit strategy, plunging the transatlantic "special relationship" to a new low as they prepared to meet Friday on the second day of his tumultuous trip to Britain. (Photo by Tolga AKMEN / AFP) (Photo credit should read TOLGA AKMEN/AFP/Getty Images) — © Tolga Akmen/AFP/Getty

July 13 Protesters in Parliament Square, London, gather around a giant balloon depicting US president Donald Trump as an orange baby during a demonstration against his visit to the UK

Read more: Verdi and disco join in harmony against Trump

TOPSHOT - A wounded man reacts at the sight of soldiers while taking shelter in a stall at a market in Harare, on August 1, 2018. Protests in Zimbabwe's historic elections turned bloody on August 1 as a man was shot dead during demonstrations over alleged vote fraud and President Emmerson Mnangagwa appealed for calm. / AFP PHOTO / MARCO LONGARIMARCO LONGARI/AFP/Getty Images — © Marco Longar/AFP/Getty

August 1 People, including a wounded man, take shelter in a stall at a market in Harare after a protest against the results of Zimbabwe’s elections turned bloody

Read more: Zimbabwe election — what the strongman left behind

Brazilian presidential candidate Jair Bolsonaro reacts after being stabbed during a rally in Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais state, Brazil, September 6, 2018. REUTERS/Raysa Campos Leite SEARCH "POY GLOBAL" FOR FOR THIS STORY. SEARCH "REUTERS POY" FOR ALL BEST OF 2018 PACKAGES. TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY. — © Raysa Campos Leite/Reuters

September 6 Presidential candidate Jair Bolsonaro grimaces after he was stabbed during a rally in Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais, Brazil

Read more: Who is Jair Bolsonaro? Five facts about Brazil’s president-elect

Serena Williams of the United States yells at chair umpire Carlos Ramos in the women's final against Naomi Osaka of Japan on day thirteen of the 2018 U.S. Open tennis tournament at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York, U.S., September 8, 2018. Mandatory Credit: Danielle Parhizkaran-USA TODAY SPORTS SEARCH "POY GLOBAL" FOR FOR THIS STORY. SEARCH "REUTERS POY" FOR ALL BEST OF 2018 PACKAGES. TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY. — © Danielle Parhizkaran/USA Today Sports

September 8 Tennis star Serena Williams yells at umpire Carlos Ramos during the US Open women’s final

Read more: Naomi Osaka upsets Serena Williams in US Open final

Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrives for a family photo during the European Union leaders informal summit in Salzburg, Austria, September 20, 2018. REUTERS/Lisi Niesner — © Lisi Niesner/Reuters

September 20 UK prime minister Theresa May arrives for a photo with other EU leaders during a summit in Salzburg, Austria

Read more: Salzburg revisited: scale of May’s defeat in Brussels was impossible for her aides to disguise (December 14 2018)

U.S. Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh testifies before a Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing for Kavanaugh on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., September 27, 2018. REUTERS/Jim Bourg — © Jim Bourg/Reuters

September 27 US Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh testifies during his confirmation hearing before a Senate committee

Read more: Kavanaugh and the sorry state of US democracy

TOPSHOT - A displaced Yemeni girl looks on September 30, 2018 out of the window of a damaged house where she and her family have been living since they sought refuge earlier this year in the southwestern Yemeni city of Taez. - The conflict has triggered what the UN describes as the world's worst humanitarian crisis, with three-quarters of the population, or 22 million people in need of humanitarian aid. (Photo by Ahmad AL-BASHA / AFP) (Photo credit should read AHMAD AL-BASHA/AFP/Getty Images) — © Ahmad al-Basha/AFP/Getty

September 30 A displaced Yemeni girl looks out of the window of a damaged house where she and her family have been living since they sought refuge earlier this year in the south-western Yemeni city of Taez

Read more: FT View: Riyadh must be pressed to end its war in Yemen

In this photo released by Saudi Press Agency, SPA, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, right, shakes hands with Salah Khashoggi, a son, of Jamal Khashoggi, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2018. Saudi Arabia, which for weeks maintained that Jamal Khashoggi had left the Istanbul consulate, on Saturday acknowledged he was killed there in a "fistfight." (Saudi Press Agency via AP) — © AP

October 23 This photo, released by the Saudi Press Agency, shows Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, right, shaking hands with Salah Khashoggi, a son of Jamal Khashoggi, the journalist who was killed in the Saudi consulate in Turkey

Read more: The Khashoggi affair could disrupt the Saudi succession

Trader Gregory Rowe works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2018. Stocks are opening sharply lower on Wall Street following big drops in Asia and Europe. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) — © Richard Drew/AP

October 23 A trader on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Stocks opened sharply lower on Wall Street following big drops in Asia and Europe

Read more: Charts of the Year: US market volatility likely to persist

Democratic congressional candidate Ilhan Omar is greeted by her husband’s mother after appearing at her midterm election night party in Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S. November 6, 2018. REUTERS/Eric Miller TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY — © Eric Miller/Reuters

November 6 Democratic congressional candidate Ilhan Omar, a Somali-American, at her election night party in Minneapolis, Minnesota

Read more: In charts: what we learnt from the midterm elections

FILE PHOTO: A migrant family, part of a caravan of thousands traveling from Central America en route to the United States, run away from tear gas in front of the border wall between the U.S and Mexico in Tijuana, Mexico November 25, 2018. Reuters photographer Kim Kyung-Hoon: REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon/File Photo — © Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters

November 25 A migrant from Honduras, part of a caravan of thousands from Central America trying to reach the US, runs away from tear gas with her children in front of the border wall between the US and Mexico, in Tijuana

Read more: Tensions rise as migrants rush US-Mexico border fence