Our 2019 expectations

Protesters in Sudan take to the streets of the capital Khartoum and elsewhere in the country, demanding justice for victims of a 2019 crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators. Also, France says it will suspend joint military operations in Mali after the country's second coup in nine months. And tensions remain high between Chad and Central African Republic after six Chadian soldiers were shot dead at a border post on Sunday.

Protesters in Sudan take to the streets of the capital Khartoum and elsewhere in the country, demanding justice for victims of a 2019 crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators. Also, France says it will suspend joint military operations in Mali after the country's second coup in nine months. And tensions remain high between Chad and Central African Republic after six Chadian soldiers were shot dead at a border post on Sunday.

New air quality guidelines from the WHO could have saved the lives of almost 180,000 people in 2019, the European Environment Agency has revealed.

People gathered to hear the sounds of London's Big Ben ring in the New Year for the first time since 2017 on Friday evening, despite the a surge in cases of the Omicron coronavirus variant. Big Ben, housed within the Elizabeth Tower that adjoins the Houses of Parliament, has been subject to restoration work for over three years.

On May 15, parliamentary elections will take place nationwide in Lebanon. The Lebanese diaspora, estimated to be double the size of the domestic population, already cast their ballots last week. Around 60 percent of people across 58 countries turned out, slightly more than in 2018. We bring you a special edition of Middle East Matters on Lebanon's first elections since the mass protests of 2019.

People in Germany will be allowed to legally purchase fireworks to celebrate New Year's Eve. They had been banned for the past two years to avoid injuries that could overburden hospitals during the COVID pandemic.

Welcome to 2023! Happy New Year!

Fireworks countdown from the Burj Khalifa, the tallest tower in the world in Dubai, on Jan 1, 2023.

Nine suffocate to death in Ugandan New Year firework crush - police

In Ukraine the start of the year was as dramatic as most days of 2022 with large scale attacks of missiles and drones on the capital. At the same time, in Kyiv’s hospitals, new lives were born. Solomya and Lev are two of the babies.

Internet sleuths are setting social media alight with claims that the Russian President used "paid extras" in his New Years Eve address, after finding previous official photographs alongside a blonde woman with a striking resemblance - and these claims have hit media headlines across the globe. We take a look in this edition of Truth or Fake with Vedika Bahl.

New Year's Eve violence and attacks on emergency services in Berlin have prompted calls for a national ban on fireworks, with viral online videos accusing "migrant gangs" of being behind the riots that left scores injured and arrested. In this edition of Truth or Fake with Vedika Bahl, we tell you where the videos really come from.