Princess Latifa bint Mohammed Al Maktoum, a UAE princess, escaped Dubai with a group of other people. She was arrested by Indian and UAE authorities, a few kilometers off the coast of India. She was then taken back to the UAE.[36]
March 14 – In response to gun violence in the United States, and particularly triggered by the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida, thousands of high school students across the country participate in an organized protest they called the National School Walkout.[42]
2018 Kemerovo fire: At least 60 people are killed and 79 others injured in a fire at the Winter Cherry shopping mall and entertainment complex in Kemerovo, Russia.[50]
North Korean supreme leader Kim Jong Unmeets Chinese paramount leader Xi Jinping, leaving the country for the first time since assuming office in 2011.[52]
In Nicaragua, protests begin against announced reforms of Social Security which would decrease retirement pension benefits. An estimated number of 34 protesters are killed by police.[70]
Cinemas open in Saudi Arabia for the first time since 1983 with the American film Black Panther chosen as the first to be screened.[71]
A constitutional referendum on whether to repeal the ban on abortion in Ireland takes place,[102] with a landslide win of 66.4% to 33.6% for the repeal side.[103]
May 31 – The U.S. announces that it will extend its tariffs on imported steel (25%) and aluminium (10%) to include the EU, Mexico and Canada, starting at midnight.[108]
June
Leaders of North Korea and the United States met for the first time at the Singapore Summit
At least 109 people are killed and hundreds wounded by the eruption of Volcán de Fuego, Guatemala's deadliest volcanic eruption in over a century.[110]
Canada becomes the first major industrialised country to legalise cannabis for recreational use. The Bill which legalises cannabis took effect on October 17.[124]
June 20 – After widespread criticism, US President Donald Trump signs an executive order suspending his zero-tolerance family separation policies, though thousands of undocumented children were never reunited with their families even after the policy was suspended.
U.S. tariffs on US$ 34billion of Chinese goods come into effect, as President Trump suggests the final total could reach $550bn. China accuses the U.S. of starting the "largest trade war in economic history" and announces immediate retaliatory tariffs.[135][136]
July 10 – Twelve boys and their football coach are successfully rescued from the flooded Tham Luang Nang Non cave in Thailand, following a 17-day ordeal that gained worldwide attention. One person, a law enforcement officer is killed.[140][141]
July 23 – The Saddle Dam D in Paksong, Laos collapses leaving up to 1,100 people missing.[145]
July 25 – Scientists report the presence of a subglacial lake on Mars, 1.5km (0.93mi) below the southern polar ice cap and extending sideways about 20km (12mi), the first known body of water on the planet.[146][147]
The share price of Facebook drops by almost 20 percent after the company warns investors that user growth has slowed following the data leak scandal. Over $109billion is wiped from its market value, the largest single day loss in corporate history.[150]
July 27 – The longest total lunar eclipse of the 21st century occurs, lasting 102 minutes and 57.3 seconds, but the longest total lunar eclipse of the 3rd millennium will occur on May 12, 2264, lasting 106 minutes and 13.2 seconds, over 3 minutes longer than this eclipse.[151] It was the 38th eclipse of Lunar Saros 129, with an umbral eclipse magnitude of 1.60868. The total lunar eclipse with the greatest magnitude in the 21st century will occur on June 26, 2029, with an umbral eclipse magnitude of 1.84362.
Mars makes its closest approach to Earth since 2003, four days after reaching opposition.[152]
Aeroméxico Connect Flight 2431 crashed on takeoff from Durango International Airport. Shortly after becoming airborne, the plane encountered sudden wind shear caused by a microburst. The plane rapidly lost speed and altitude and impacted the runway, detaching the engines and skidding to a halt about 1,000 feet (300 m) beyond the runway. The plane caught fire and was destroyed. All 103 people on board survived, but 39 passengers and crew members were injured.[153]
August 10 – Protests against the government of Romania, prime-minister Viorica Dăncilă and PSD leader and corrupt businessman Liviu Dragnea take place in Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca and other major Romanian cities. In Bucharest, the protests take a violent shape and, in the course of a few hours, over 400 people are injured, including civilians not taking part in the protests and police units, and more than a thousand people suffer effects from tear gas and hand grenades thrown by the Romanian Jandarmerie units deployed and backed by the PSD-ruled government.
September 14 – Hurricane Florence makes landfall in North Carolina as a category 1 hurricane, causing record-breaking flooding, which would result in 54 fatalities and $24.2 billion (2018 USD) in damages.[176]
September 17 – Syrian Civil War: While the Israeli Air Force conduct missile strikes that hit targets in western Syria, a Russian Il-20 reconnaissance plane is shot down by a Syrian surface-to-air missile, killing all 15 Russian servicemen on board. Russia blamed Israel's military for the accident because the Israeli jets that conducted the strikes allegedly used the Russian plane as cover to allow them to approach their targets without being hit by Syrian fire.[182]
October 10 – Hurricane Michael makes landfall at Mexico Beach, Florida as a Category5 hurricane with winds of 160mph (260km/h) and a minimum pressure of 919mb (27.1inHg). It is the most intense hurricane to hit the mainland United States since Camille in 1969.[194]
October 16 – Canada legalises the sale and use of cannabis, becoming the second country in the world to do so, after Uruguay in 2013.[195]
October 26 – Red Dead Redemption II is released on PS4 and Xbox One. It would become the 8th best selling video game of all-time with 50,000,000+ copies sold.
November 28 – Chinese scientist He Jiankui, at a public conference in Hong Kong, announces that he has altered the DNA of twin human girls born earlier in the month to try to make them resistant to infection with the HIV virus; he also reveals the possible second pregnancy of another gene-modified baby.[218]
December 1–8 – France experiences its worst civil unrest since the protests of 1968 due to the yellow vests movement. Protests in Paris morph into riots, with hundreds of people injured and thousands arrested; over 100 cars are burned, the Arc de Triomphe is vandalized and numerous other tourist sites are closed, both in the capital and elsewhere in the country.[219]
The United States government enters a second government shutdown, arising over a dispute over funding for the U.S.–Mexico border wall. The shutdown, which lasted until January 25, 2019, is the longest government shutdown in U.S. history.
毛思倩 (September 16, 2018). 韩家慧; 聂晨静 (eds.). "强台风"山竹"登陆广东". Xinhuanet (in Simplified Chinese). Archived from the original on September 16, 2018. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
