The year 2014 has been a good one yet it was also a bad one on many accounts, especially because a lot of tragedy happened during the year.
Surely, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of shocking events which happened not just in the US but in other parts of the world as well.
However, we are listing here some of the top shockers the world has seen.
10 – The Crimean Crisis
The world has seen a lot of violence in 2014.
The dispute involving Ukraine and Russia over the Crimean Peninsula has escalated to something that sparked an international crisis.
Although the crisis has been ‘resolved’ with the fleeing of President Viktor Yanukovych in February, the crisis’ roots are much deeper and did not end with Yanukovych’s ouster as president and Oleksandr Turchynov’s taking over of the position.
9 – Boko Haram Kidnappings
In Nigeria, some 276 girls were kidnapped by Islamic Jihadist and terrorist organization Boko Haram. Aside from the kidnapping, the group was also responsible for the deaths of thousands of people – civilians, not soldiers!
This is not the first time Boko Haram raised terror in the area, with the group already terrorizing schools as early as 2010.
What’s quite alarming is that the kidnapped girls are forced to become sex slaves and ‘wives’ of the terrorists.
8 – School Shooting Incidents
A spate of school shooting incidents also happened across the US; though there were also reports of such terror attacks in countries like Nigeria and Pakistan.
In fact, in Pakistan over 130 children were killed in an unprovoked Taliban attack which the extremist group claims is just retaliation for the attacks done by the government against their group.
In the US, various shooting incidents happened, sparking debates about gun control and raising speculations that Islamic terror groups are gaining influence in the minds of America’s youth.
7 – Israel-Gaza War
Conflict in Israel and neighboring areas date back to thousands of years ago, yet the recent conflict at the Gaza strip gripped the hearts of many people across the world.
What makes the recent war more profound is that the advanced weapons being used in the attacks are causing severe damage to the area, leaving many civilians homeless or trapped amid the rubble of their broken cities.
The war lasted for some 50 days, with both sides claiming they won afterwards. However, despite the apparent truce, it is clear that the area is not peacefully yet – and probably won’t find peace in the next few years.
6 – Ferguson Riots
In Ferguson, Missouri, people supposedly protesting the fatal shooting of Michael Brown [by a police officer] became violent, turning the protest action into riots which caused heavy damage to property.
The protesters or rioters smashed shop windows and looted the stores.
They hits cars with crowbars and started fires which severely damaged vehicles, homes, gas stations, and shops.
When the grand jury did not indict Brown’s shooter, more riots broke out.
5 – Suicide of Robin Williams
The world was shocked after hearing news of the suicide of Robin Williams, one of the world’s most brilliant comedians.
His death made headlines across the world and was revealed to be Google’s most searched topic of the year.
4 – ISIS Terror Attacks and Beheadings
The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) [now simply calling itself as Islamic State (IS)] has been one of the craziest terrorist groups of the year.
They released several beheading videos, including shocking footage which included journalists, women, and children!
They also kidnapped hundreds of women they turned into sex slaves; some they killed just for fun.
3 – Ebola Virus
Some sectors are debating whether it is possible that the Ebola virus was created and released as part of biowarfare tactics or not.
One thing is for sure though: it is deadly and must be stopped from spreading. News of the Ebola virus quickly spread across the world, especially after the death of the doctor who was working hard to combat the disease and stop more deaths.
Countries prepared for the possible entry of the virus through travelers from Ebola-stricken areas while Ebola scares happened in many areas.
2 – MH370
On March 8, 2014, Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 disappeared without trace.
To date, the whereabouts of the flight are still unknown; though there were hundreds of theories about where it went and who was responsible for its disappearance.
Various conspiracy theories also surfaced but even when millions of dollars have been spent for extensive search efforts, no one has found even one piece of evidence directly connected to the flight’s disappearance which could lead to the plane’s whereabouts.
1 – MH17
As if Malaysia Airlines was not battered enough by the MH370 problem, another flight was doomed.
On July 17, 2014, MH17 was shot down by suspected terror groups after traveling over restricted Ukrainian airspace.
There were no survivors in the flight which had a total of 298 people on board.
Pro-Russian rebels in Ukraine quickly bragged about shooting down a plane but later retracted their statement after discovering the shot-down plane was actually a civilian flight.
