EDITION THREE

This past year has been rough, something for the books. It started as a year like any other, then 47 million acres of Australia burned. Which then spiraled into a global pandemic and an international movement for racial justice. We had the worst hurricane season the continent of North America had seen for years; California was ravaged by the most significant wildfires we've seen for the past century. Through all this chaos and disarray, many news stories and events around the world have gone unnoticed. Here are some of the biggest stories you may have missed.

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The Armenian and Azerbaijan war 

 

In late September of 2020, war erupted between Azerbaijan and Armenia over a disputed region named "Nagorno-Karabakh." It was the worst scale of conflict seen in the areas since the cease-fire of 1994. Tensions have been high in the region for decades, but once Karabakh's self-declared government held elections in the spring, Azerbaijan was very displeased. At least a hundred thousand people were killed in border disputes, prompting massive demonstrations through the Azerbaijan capital of Baku calling for war. Russia brokered a deal between the two countries ending the war on November 9th, 2020. Azerbaijan was allowed to maintain control of the land, while Armenia withdrew from the disputed territory. As part of the deal, the Russian government will maintain peacekeepers throughout the disputed region.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

Turkey's Neo-Ottoman  Ambitions

 

While most countries focused on the economic/healthcare crisis at home Turkey's President pursued and doubled down on his Neo-Ottoman agenda to spread Turkish power and influence across the Middle East and the Eastern Mediterranean. In January, the president of Turkey deployed troops to Libya over the next few months. Tension continues to flare up. In the Eastern Mediterranean, Turkey pushed for energy exploration leading to the European Union planning to impose sanctions on several Turkish officials and industries involved in drilling. Days later, the former Trump administration then issued sanctions on Turkey for its purchase of a Russian defense system. 
 

Protests in Belarus

 

Belarus is a country in eastern Europe, often described as Europe's last dictatorship due to its predictable elections. However, in 2020 teacher- turned opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya had grown as a formidable opponent to long-time president Aleksandr Lukashenko in the elections. As expected, Lukashenko was declared the winner of the election, which was widely believed to be rigged. Several weeks after the vote, hundreds of thousands of Belarusians took to the streets in protest. Over 30,000 people have been arrested since the election, and human rights activists have documented horrible reports of police brutality and torture in prisons. Lukashenko has clung on to power. In contrast, opposition leader Tikhanovskya has established a "government-in-exile" in Lithuania, meeting with other foreign heads of states.

 

Africa Declared Polio-free

 

On a positive note, in 2020, the continent of Africa was declared free from wild-type polio by the IARCC (Independent Africa Regional Certification Commission) after a years-long battle to eradicate the virus, which once paralyzed upwards of 75,000 children in Africa annually. The director  in general of the WHO (World Health Organization) described this event as "one of the greatest public health achievements of our time."

 

Explosion in Lebanon

 

Lebanon, a country in the middle east, was already facing many economic and political crises. However, the straw that broke the camel's back was August 4th, 2020, an explosion in Beirut, the countries' capital. The blast killed around 200 people as well as leaving thousands injured. Athourtates state that tons of explosive ammonium nitrate and 15 tons of oil jugs, kerosene, and fireworks all ignited in a warehouse by the post, causing the explosion. The government labeled the blast an accident. While to this day, no one has taken responsibility for such a large amount of explosive goods to be stored in a warehouse.

 

Gas Leak in South India

 

In early May of 2020, Residents of the South Indian city of Visakhapatnam woke up to a cloud of thick white smog. This smog caused difficulties breathing, a burning sensation to the eyes and skin, and caused people to faint. This haze was caused by a gas leak from a chemical powerplant near the outskirts of the city. The factory, currently owned by South Korean company LG-Chem produced polystyrene and co-polymer products. The plant stores 2,000 metric tons of styrene witch evaporated and leaked into the air. Authorities believed at first, a computer glitch prompted the temperature to exceed acceptable safety measures, causing vaporization. The gas spread over a 3km radius affecting two residential neighborhoods and three villages, upwards of nine hundred families. The leak caused up to 13 deaths and upwards of thousands in critical condition. The gas leak prompted an investigation on the factory and LG-Chem. It was found that the company had committed numerous health/environmental code violations and had been operating the factory since 2006 without federal clearance. This caused residents and activists to protest the factory and had taken petitions to the National Green Tribunal (NGT), AKA the Indian environmental court. The NGT then launched a full investigation on the causes of the leak and stated factory workers and the overall company were inexperienced in storing tanks of such dangerous chemicals. The report blamed the incident on "gross human failure" and a lack of basic safety norms.

 

Water was Discovered on the Moon

 

In late October, NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) had discovered water on the moon's surface, which led experts to realize that water may be distributed across the entire lunar surface. SOFIA detected water molecules in Calvius Crater, one of the largest lunar craters visible from the earth. Data from this location reveal water in concentrations of 100 to 412 parts per million. As a comparison, the Sahara desert has 100 times the amount of water than what SOFIA detected in the lunar soil. Despite the small amounts, the discovery raises new questions about how water is created and how it persists on the harsh, airless lunar surface.