JANUARY

January 1: Qatar withdraws from OPEC.

January 3: India's Kerala paralysed amid protests over temple entry by two women.

January 3: Chinese probe Chang'e 4 becomes the first human-made object to land on the far side of the Moon.

January 14: Pawel Adamowicz, a Polish mayor, was pronounced dead after being stabbed in the heart while on stage.

January 27: Two bombs went off in a church in the Philippines.

FEBRUARY

February 3: Pope Francis arrives in Abu Dhabi, UAE, becoming the first pope to visit the Arabian Peninsula.

February 25: Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran’s foreign minister, resigned via an Instagram post.

February 26: The Indian Air Force launches airstrikes on purported militant camps in Balakot, Pakistan.

February 27: Pakistan reciprocated the Indian airstrike by shooting down two Indian fighter jets and captured one Indian pilot.

MARCH

March 1: Pakistan repatriated Indian pilot Abhinandan Varthaman to India.

March 1: People flooded the streets of Algeria in protest of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika’s announcement that he will run for a fifth term.

March 2: It was announced that South Korea and the US will end large-scale war games.

March 13: Two gunmen entered a Sao Paulo school and began shooting teachers and students.

March 15: 51 people are killed and 50 others injured in terrorist attacks on two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand.

APRIL

April 10: In a 119-1 vote, New Zealand’s parliament voted to ban military-style semi-automatic weapons.

April 10: 29-year-old computer scientist, Katie Bouman captured the first-ever black hole picture.

April 11: Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, was arrested in London.

April 11: 59 Ethiopian officials were arrested for corruption and economic sabotage.

April 15: The famed Notre Dame Cathedral caught fire in Paris.

April 16: Egypt passed constitutional changes that could allow current President Sisi to rule until 2030.

April 21: Easter Sunday, about 290 people died and hundreds more were injured in an explosion at churches in Sri Lanka.

April 22: Final results revealed that comedian Volodymyr Zelenskiy won the Ukrainian election.

April 30: Emperor Akihito of Japan abdicates from his throne, the first abdication by a Japanese monarch in almost two centuries.

MAY

May 1: King Vajiralongkorn of Thailand marries his personal bodyguard Suthida Tidjai – a commoner – in a surprise ceremony, making her queen consort of Thailand.

May 4: Coronation of King Vajiralongkorn of Thailand.

May 8: Millions of South Africans headed to the polls to vote after over two decades of democracy.

May 17: Taiwan's parliament becomes the first in Asia to legalise same-sex marriage.

May 23: 2019 Indian general election – Narendra Modi secures a landslide win, with his party BJP alone gaining 303 of the 543 seats in parliament, and his political alliance winning 353 seats of the 543.

May 24: British Prime Minister Theresa May announces her resignation as Conservative leader.

May 30: South Africa made history after it was revealed that more than half its cabinet members are women.

JUNE

June 2: Nearly five years after abdication, King Juan Carlos I of Spain retires from public life.

June 2: 2019 San Marino referendum – Sammarinese voters vote to end discrimination based on sexual orientation and initiate a popular legislative initiative for the reform of the electoral system.

June 5: The 2019 Danish general election takes place, for all 179 seats in the Folketing.

June 6: Following results from the 2019 Finnish parliamentary election, a new government is formed consisting of 58 per cent women.

June 7: British Prime Minister Theresa May resigns as leader of the Conservative Party.

June 7– July 7: The 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup is held in France and is won by the United States.

June 10: More than one million protesters took to the streets in Hong Kong. The group is protesting an extradition bill that allows China to extradite fugitives.

June 11: Botswana decriminalises homosexuality.

June 15: Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam suspended the extradition bill, but the protests continued.

June 17: A triple suicide blast kills 30 and injures 40 in Borno, Nigeria, at a hall where people were watching a football match.

June 30: During a trilateral gathering at the Panmunjom Truce Village between South Korean President Moon Jae-in, North Korean Leader Kim Jong-un and United States President Donald Trump, Trump becomes the first sitting US president to cross the Korean Demilitarised Zone and enter North Korea.

JULY

July 13: Hurricane Barry strikes the Gulf Coast, killing one and causing over $500 million (2019 USD) in damages.

July 18: In Japan’s worst mass killing in 20 years, a man torched Kyoto Animation. The fire left at least 33 people dead and another 35 injured.

July 19: A British-flagged oil tanker went AWOL and was seen heading towards Iran. Officials believe the vessel has been captured by Iranians.

July 24: The Queen of England promoted Boris Johnson to be Prime Minister. May has one more speech to give before officially announcing her resignation to the queen.

July 26: The 2019 Pan American Games opened in Lima, Peru.

July 30: India bans triple talaq.

AUGUST

August 2: Japan announces the removal of South Korea from its list of most trusted trading partners.

August 3: A mass shooting at a Walmart store in El Paso, Texas, United States, leaves 22 people dead and 24 others injured.

August 5: Revocation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir – India revokes the part of its constitution that gives Indian-administered Kashmir special status in an unprecedented move.

August 12: South Korea announces the removal of Japan from its list of most trusted trading partners, effective on September 18

August 24: President Bolsonaro of Brazil sent the army to go fight the fire that has taken hold of the Amazon.

SEPTEMBER

September 1: Hurricane Dorian makes landfall on The Bahamas, with sustained wind speeds of 185 mph.

September 4: The leader of Hong Kong announced that she would withdraw the extradition bill.

September 17: Spain’s Prime Minister announced that he did not get enough support from parliament and Spain will have its fourth election in four years.

September 20: Climate protests – Marches worldwide against global warming

September 23: One of the largest and oldest travel firms, Thomas Cook, goes bankrupt as last-minute rescue negotiations fail, stranding 600,000 tourists worldwide.

September 30: The Republic of Ireland promises to plant 440 million trees in 20 years to combat climate change.

OCTOBER

October 1: 70th anniversary of the People's Republic of China.

October 11: Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Ahmed has helped end his country’s 20 year war with Eritrea.

October 18: NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Christina Koch conduct the first all-female spacewalk outside of the International Space Station.

October 26: It was announced that ISIS leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi was killed in a raid by US troops.

October 28: Alberto Fernandez announced his victory in Argentina’s elections.

October 30: Social media website Twitter bans all political advertising worldwide.

October 31: A train called Tezgam catches fire near Rahim Yar Khan in Pakistan. The blaze, sparked by gas used by passengers cooking on board, kills at least 74 people.

NOVEMBER

November 3: The German city of Dresden declared a “Nazi Emergency” after years of extreme right activity and hate crimes.

November 11: After nearly a month of protests, President Evo Morales resigned after his 14-year reign.

November 14: Italy declares a state of emergency in Venice following record flooding.

November 20: Iran faces internet blackout. The blackout comes after protests on raising fuel prices. This has caused international concern.

November 23: The last known Sumatran rhinoceros in Malaysia dies.

November 30: The 2019 Southeast Asian Games opened in the Philippines.

DECEMBER

December 2: Typhoon Kammuri hits the Philippines, causing the evacuation of 200,000 people, but without reports of injuries or serious damage.

December 4: A fire triggered an explosion at a Sudan factory, killing at least 23 people and wounding another 130.

December 8: A factory building in Delhi caught fire, killing 43 workers. Over 100 people were sleeping in the factory when it caught fire.

December 10: Sanna Marin, at only 34, becomes the world's youngest serving prime minister, after being selected to lead Finland's Social Democratic Party.

December 11: India became one step closer to passing a bill that gives citizenship to immigrants from three neighbouring countries, but not if they are Muslim. The bill has sparked protests.

December 11: Lawyers attacked Lahore's Punjab Institute of Cardiology over a furious dispute with doctors.

December 12: The 2019 United Kingdom general election take place, for all 650 seats in the House of Commons. Conservatives win 365 seats.

Deaths in 2019

January 4: Syed Zulfiqar Ali Bokhari, a Pakistani diplomat and administrator who was also the Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board between 1995 and 1998, passed away.

January 20: Masazo Nonaka, a 113-year-old Japanese man recognised in April as the world's oldest man, passed away.

January 25: Veteran actor, Roohi Bano died of kidney failure at 67 years of age.

March 23: Shehnaz Rehmatullah, Bangladeshi singer of the famous song Jevay Jevay Pakistan died due to heart attack.

April 30: Peter Mayhew, the actor who originally brought the iconic Star Wars character Chewbacca to life, died on April 30. He was 74.

July 9: Pakistani veteran actor, Zaheen Tahira, passes away due to cardiac arrest.

July 9: The legendary actor, Rip Torn known for his roles in Men in Black and Hercules, died at the age of 88.

July 10: Actress Denise Nickerson, best known for her role as chatty gum-chewer Violet Beauregard in 1971's Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, died at 62.

July 26: Russi Taylor, the voice of Minnie Mouse for more than three decades, passed away. She was 75.

August 16: Richard Williams, the animator known for his work on Who Framed Roger Rabbit and two Pink Panther films, passed away at 86 years of age.

August 27: Pakistani entertainment and lifestyle journalist Nadia Faisal died after a year-long battle with cancer.

September 5: Abid Ali, Pakistani actor, director and producer, passed away due to liver failure at the age of 67.

September 6: Former Pakistani cricketer, Abdul Qadir Khan, passed away at the age of 63.

October 11: Oscar-nominated actor Robert Forster died October 11 after a battle with brain cancer. He was 78.

November 3: Robert Norris, the rancher and philanthropist best known for playing the original "Marlboro Man," passed away. He was 90.

November 22: Shaukat Azmi, Indian theater and film actress died at the age of 93 due to prolonged illness.

December 8: Caroll Spinney, the puppeteer for Sesame Street's Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch, passes away.

December 9: Roxette singer, Marie Fredriksson died after a 17-year battle with cancer.