21 Photos That Defined 2021

IMAGE: Supporters of then United States president Donald J Trump riot at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on January 6, 2021.
Trump supporters attacked the US Capitol, disrupting certification of the 2020 presidential election and forcing Congress to evacuate.
Five people died during the riot, including a police officer. Photograph: Leah Millis/Reuters

IMAGE: A nurse administers Bharat Biotech's Covaxin at a vaccination centre in Tonk, Rajasthan.
Mass vaccination against COVID-19 began in India on January 16, 2021.
By October 21, over a billion doses were administered in the country. Photograph: Rebecca Conway/Getty Images

IMAGE: A man brings Valentine's Day gifts to the grave of his wife who died of COVID-19 at a cemetery in Santa Teresa, New Mexico, US.
In February 2021, the United States became the first country to surpass 500,000 deaths from the disease. Photograph: Jose Luis Gonzalez/Reuters

IMAGE: Security officers drag an injured protester during an anti-coup protest in Tamwe, Yangon, Myanmar.
A coup in February 2021 removed Aung San Suu Kyi from power and restored military rule in Myanmar, leading to widespread protests across the country.
The army cracked down hard on the protesters and many of them were killed. Photograph: Reuters

IMAGE: A building is illuminated with a picture of Pope Francis with Iraq's top Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, in Baghdad.
In the first ever meeting between a pope and a grand ayatollah, Pope Francis met with Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani in Najaf, Iraq, in March 2021. Photograph: Khalid al-Mousily/Reuters

IMAGE: A view of the stranded Ever Given, one of the world's largest container ships, after it ran aground, in the Suez Canal in March 2021.
The stranded container ship obstructed the Suez Canal, disrupting global trade. It was finally freed on March 29. Photograph: Mohamed Abd El Ghany/Reuters

IMAGE: People wait to cremate victims who died due to COVID-19 at a crematorium in New Delhi in April 2021.
The second wave of COVID-19 wreaked havoc in India in the months of March to June.
On April 30, India became the first country to report over 400,000 new cases in a 24-hour period.
The devastating second wave completely overwhelmed the healthcare system of the country and there was enormous shortage of hospital beds, oxygen cylinders and other medical supplies. Photograph: The Late Danish Siddiqui/Reuters

IMAGE: A Naga sadhu wears a mask before the procession for taking a dip in the Ganga during the Shahi Snan at the Kumbh Mela, in Haridwar in April.
The Kumbh was organised amidst the second wave of COVID-19 and was termed a 'superspreader event'. Photograph: The Late Danish Siddiqui/Reuters

IMAGE: The full moon, known as the 'Super Pink Moon', rises behind the Eiffel Tower during a nationwide curfew due to tighter measures against the spread of COVID-19 in Paris, April 27. Photograph: Christian Hartmann/Reuters

IMAGE: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee throws a soccer ball during an election campaign rally in support of candidates of her party, the Trinamool Congress, during the assembly polls, in Kolkata in April.
Belying predictions, Banerjee's party won a bigger mandate than it won last time, giving her a third term as the chief minister of the state.
However, she lost her own seat in Nandigram and had to contest a bypoll later to retain her position. Photograph: Swapan Mahapatra/PTI Photo

IMAGE: Palestinian Hamas supporters attend an anti-Israel rally in the northern Gaza Strip, May 30, 2021. Fighting between Israeli forces and Palestinian militants escalated in May, with over 150 deaths reported. Mohammed Salem/Reuters

IMAGE: Chinese astronauts before the launch of the Long March-2F Y12 rocket, carrying the Shenzhou-12 spacecraft and the three astronauts, from the Jiuquan satellite launch centre for China's first manned mission to build its space station, June 17, 2021.
The China national space administration sent its first three astronauts to occupy the Tiangong space station, the country's first space station, in June. Photograph: Carlos Garcia Rawlins/Reuters

IMAGE: A view of a flooded cemetery following heavy rainfall in Erftstadt-Blessem, Germany, July 17.
Heavy rains caused flooding in the border region of Germany and Belgium, resulting in 229 deaths, including 184 in Germany, 42 in Belgium and two in Romania. Photograph: Thilo Schmuelgen/Reuters

IMAGE: Police uses water cannons to disperse Congress workers protesting against the Pegasus snooping in New Delhi.
An international investigation revealed in August that the spyware sold by Israel's NSO Group to different governments was being used to snoop upon heads of State, thousands of activists, journalists and dissidents around the world. Photograph: Anushree Fadnavis/Reuters

IMAGE: Afghan children and others protest outside the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees office in New Delhi to urge the international community to help Afghan refugees, August 27, 2021.
The Taliban captured Kabul on August 15, 2021 after then Afghan president Ashraf Ghani fled the country and his government collapsed. Photograph: Anushree Fadnavis/Reuters

IMAGE: A US marine and an Afghan child spray water at each other during an evacuation at the Hamid Karzai international airport in Kabul, August 2021.
At least 182 people were killed, including 13 US soldiers, in a suicide bomb attack at Kabul airport on August 26. Photograph: Sergeant Samuel Ruiz/US Marine Corps via Getty Images

IMAGE: Bollywood superstar's fans Shah Rukh Khan outside his home, Mannat, after his eldest son Aryan Khan was granted bail by the Bombay high court more than three weeks after he was arrested in a drugs case, October 28, 2021. Photograph: Francis Mascarenhas/Reuters

IMAGE: Indian-origin NASA astronaut US air force Colonel Raja Chari gestures to his family before being driven to the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Crew Dragon spacecraft at the Kennedy space centre in Cape Canaveral, Florida, November 11, 2021. Photograph: Joe Raedle/Getty Images

IMAGE: A woman worships the sun god as she stands amidst the foam covering the polluted Yamuna river during Chhath Puja in New Delhi, November 10, 2021. Photograph: Adnan Abidi/Reuters

IMAGE: A mother and child await a Covid test at the George Bush intercontinental airport in Houston, Texas.
Many countries tightened travel restrictions in November after a new COVID-19 variant, Omicron, was discovered.
The World Health Organisation designated it as a 'Variant of Concern' on November 26, 2021. Photograph: Brandon Bell/Getty Images

IMAGE: A Nihang rides a horse as farmers vacate the protest site at the Singhu border near New Delhi after the government agreed to their demands, December 11, 2021. Photograph: Anushree Fadnavis/Reuters