2021 in Pictures: 18 of the most iconic images from key events of the past year

It’s been a year.

It started with huge riots in Washington and ended with chaos over alleged Christmas parties in London. And what happened in between.

We’ve had sporting events and political scandals. We have seen tragic high profile deaths and huge vaccination programs. We even saw a ship in the Suez Canal.

Here are 18 pictures that tell the story of the past 365 days.

Trump supporters storm the Capitol

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(Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

To overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, and in some ways spurred on by Donald Trump, a huge mob stormed the United States Capitol on January 6th. Five people were reportedly killed in the mess and many more were injured.

As the year progresses, more and more people are arrested for their involvement.

The third national lockdown continues in the UK as the rest of the world faces tough Covid restrictions

(PA)

In January, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a third national lockdown amid the surge in Covid cases in the UK while other countries around the world faced similar restrictions.

To defeat the virus and reduce the need for restrictions, countries began introducing vaccines among adult populations, and as the year went on, more and more groups became eligible for vaccination.

As things stand, the UK government is massively expanding a third booster jab rollout to all over 18s in the ambitious hope of injecting a million people a day by the end of the year.

Ship gets stuck in the Suez Canal

(PA wire)

In a moment of lightness in March, the world was captivated when one of the largest container ships in the world – Ever Given – got stuck in the Suez Canal for about a week.

People made memes about it and became completely obsessed with the ship before it was freed.

Patsy Stevenson arrested by Sarah Everard at the vigil

(Reuters)

Elsewhere in March, police were criticized for their clumsy reaction to women attending a vigil in Clapham Common, London, to mark the tragic murder of Sarah Everard. At the time, gatherings were banned due to the Covid rules and the police flooded the bandstand in the park, encouraging people to disperse.

No picture told the story more than this picture of one of the participants in the vigil, Patsy Stevenson, who was nailed down by police and fined £ 200. She takes legal action against the arrest and the fine.

An independent investigation into the force’s decisions on the evening of the vigil, commissioned by Interior Minister Priti Patel, said the police had “acted appropriately,” but a parliamentary investigation later in the year said the police had given “fundamental rights” to the vigil. hurt.

“Kill the Bill” protests turn violent

(AFP / Getty)

Also in March and April, people gathered to protest the police, crime, conviction and court laws. The bill, which is still in parliament, is controversial as it will allow the police to make peaceful protests more conditional and many public figures have condemned it.

A peaceful protest turned violent in Bristol, in which 20 police officers were injured.

The Queen sits alone at Prince Philip’s funeral

The Queen sits alone during Prince Philip’s funeral

(Getty Images)

Prince Philip died in April at the age of 99. A photo of the Queen sitting alone at his funeral – due to the coronavirus restrictions in force at the time – drew the hearts of nations as we were reminded of all the people who were late or virtual funerals for their loved ones due to the Pandemic.

Dominic Cummings devastates the UK government as he testifies about its handling of the coronavirus pandemic

(EPA)

In May, former adviser Dominic Cummings revealed he was completely done with his former best friend (the government) when he provided seven hours of evidence detailing various issues in responding to the coronavirus.

He gutted then Health Secretary Matt Hancock and Johnson, saying the couple were “hopeless”.

Hancock then denied many of Cummings’ allegations when making his own testimony.

CCTV footage of Matt Hancock kissing his advisor triggers his resignation

But it’s safe to say that things got worse for Hancock when the sun posted pictures and then CCTV footage of him kissing his assistant Gina Colandelago in May, at a time when social distancing measures were in place .

He resigned and has since appeared occasionally to embarrass himself by starring on TikTok videos, not getting jobs at the UN, and posting creepy social media videos.

Euro 2020 tournament unites the nation

(PA)

In July, the world was sitting in pubs and on their televisions, eagerly awaiting the EM 2020.

It was a tournament that inspired memes, a ridiculous debate about kneeling, and unfortunately it resulted in English players being racially abused after losing in the final.

But it also brought people together who were previously less interested in football, and images of people partying and partying in the streets of London and elsewhere are certainly eye-catching.

Let’s just not mention this photo of Boris Johnson in the English shirt.

Mutaz Barshim and Gianmarco Tamberi both win gold in the men’s high jump at the Tokyo Olympics

(AFP via Getty Images)

Mutaz Barshim from Qatar and Gianmarco Tamberi from Italy gracefully shared a gold medal after both jumping 2.37 meters at the Tokyo Olympics that summer.

The summer games were planned for 2020 but were postponed because … you know what.

Overall, the United States led the number of medals in both gold (39) and overall medals (113), with China finishing second on both points (38 and 88). Hosts Japan finished third, setting a record, at 27 and 58, for the most gold and overall medals their country has ever won at the Olympics. Great Britain finished fourth with a total of 22 gold and 65 medals.

People flee Kabul when Afghanistan falls to the Taliban

(public domain)

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani fled Afghanistan in August after the Taliban stormed the capital Kabul and captured his palace. The Taliban took control of Jalalabad and captured every city in the country, fueling fear of the type of regimes they would implement.

Images of people fleeing airports went viral on social media as the world witnessed people’s desperation.

Emma Raducanu makes history when she wins the US Open

(PA media)

In September, Emma Raducanu made history by winning the US Open and becoming Britain’s first female Grand Slam champion in nearly half a century.

The 18-year-old defeated Leylah Fernandez, a 19-year-old Canadian, in straight sets (6: 4, 6: 3) at the women’s final in New York and was congratulated by almost everyone – including the Queen.

What a moment for British sport.

“Isolate” protests in Great Britain disrupt major cities

(PA wire)

While Raducanu crushed it at tennis, protests began in London, Manchester and Birmingham by a group called Insulate Britain calling for the government to isolate 29 million homes

The group sat in the streets and refused to move to get their message across, but the controversial tactics did not win hearts and minds as they prevented people from getting to work, school, and even ambulances .

Regardless, the demonstrators said they would act for the common good.

Richard Ratcliffe goes on a 21-day hunger strike to rescue his wife Nazanin

Richard Ratcliffe, husband of Iranian prisoners Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe (Aaron Chown / PA)

(PA wire)

In October Richard Ratcliffe, husband of the imprisoned British-Iranian Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, went on a 21-day hunger strike outside the Federal Foreign Office to pressure the government to release his wife.

In 2016, Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was imprisoned in Iran for five years on charges of overthrowing the government when she traveled to the country with her daughter Gabriella to visit her family.

She was sentenced to an additional year after her release earlier this year for “spreading anti-regime propaganda” and although she is on parole at her parents’ home in Tehran, there are concerns that she may be sentenced as a result of this latest conviction.

Ratcliffe’s strike attracted the support of politicians, but ended for fear for his health.

Politicians pay their respects at David Amess’ funeral

(PA)

In November, people attended the funeral of MP David Amess after he was killed on October 15 in his constituency operation in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex.

It was reported that a man entered the room and stabbed him several times. A week later, Ali Harbi Ali, 25, was charged with the murder under an investigation by the Scotland Yard Anti-Terrorism Command. He’s going to be tried next year.

MPs and other public figures paid their respects to the politician during his funeral.

The heads of state and government of the world meet in Glasgow for the Cop26 climate summit

(PA wire)

In November, world leaders attended Cop26 to see global progress in the fight against climate change.

While they were making some important agreements, the conference was overshadowed by images of heads of state and government seeming to fall asleep, gruesome speeches, and geographic mishaps.

Anyway, Cop27 is always there.

People die crossing the canal

(REUTERS)

In November, 27 people died from drowning after a small boat capsized in the English Channel en route to the UK.

Two people were rescued from the water and the French authorities arrested five suspected traffickers in connection with the incident, while regional prosecutors opened a criminal investigation into the murder.

The incident sparked debates about Britain’s strict immigration system and the role of people smugglers in making the dangerous crossings possible.

Images of Boris Johnson holding a quiz while the country faced Covid restrictions emerge

In December, the Mirror revealed that Boris Johnson himself was attending a – virtual – hostess amid allegations that Downing Street hosted a series of parties the previous year while the country was under tough Covid restrictions, leading to the former’s resignation Prime Minister’s spokeswoman Allegra Stratton conducted a quiz in which some colleagues took part in person.

Numerous people have called for the prime minister’s resignation and the Tory Party, and his personal assessments are falling in the polls, despite he insisting not to break any rules. Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Police said they would not investigate the matter due to “lack of evidence” and a policy preventing them from investigating past events.

The aftermath of the incident continues to rumble.