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2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, Russia launched a large-scale military invasion of Ukraine, one of its neighbours to the southwest, marking a major escalation to a conflict that began in 2014. Following Ukraine's Revolution of Dignity in 2014, Russia had annexed Crimea and Russian-backed separatist forces had seized part of the Donbas in eastern Ukraine, leading to an eight-year war in the region.
Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy (Ukrainian: Володимир Олександрович Зеленський, pronounced [woloˈdɪmɪr olekˈsɑndrowɪdʒ zeˈlɛnʲsʲkɪj]; born 25 January 1978) is a Ukrainian statesman, former actor and comedian who is the sixth and current president of Ukraine. Zelenskyy grew up in Kryvyi Rih, a major city in the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast of central Ukraine.
The Russo-Ukrainian War is an ongoing war primarily involving Russia, pro-Russian forces, and Belarus on one side, and Ukraine on the other. Conflict began in February 2014 following the Revolution of Dignity, and focused on the status of Crimea and parts of the Donbas, internationally recognised as part of Ukraine.
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; French: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 28 European countries and 2 North American countries. Established in the aftermath of World War II, the organization implements the North Atlantic Treaty which was signed on 4 April 1949.
A thermobaric weapon, aerosol bomb, fuel air explosive (FAE), or vacuum bomb is a type of explosive that uses oxygen from the surrounding air to generate a high-temperature explosion. In practice, the blast wave typically produced by these weapons lasts significantly longer than that of a conventional condensed explosive. This can be launched as a rocket or dropped from an airplane as a bomb.
Anna Sorokin (Russian: Анна Сорокина; born 23 January 1991) is a Russian-German convicted con artist and fraudster. Between 2013 and 2017, Sorokin pretended to be a wealthy German heiress under the name Anna Delvey. In 2017, she was arrested after defrauding or intentionally deceiving major financial institutions, banks, hotels, and acquaintances in the United States for a total of $275,000.
Russia (Russian: Россия, tr. Rossiya, pronounced [rɐˈsʲijə]), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world by area, covering over 17,125,191 square kilometres (6,612,073 sq mi), and encompassing one-eighth of Earth's inhabitable landmass.
Cleopatra VII Philopator (Greek: Κλεοπάτρα Φιλοπάτωρ; 69 BC – 10 August 30 BC) was queen of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt from 51 to 30 BC, and its last active ruler. A member of the Ptolemaic dynasty, she was a descendant of its founder Ptolemy I Soter, a Macedonian Greek general and companion of Alexander the Great.
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. ( BY-dən; born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who is the 46th and current president of the United States. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice president from 2009 to 2017 under Barack Obama and represented Delaware in the United States Senate from 1973 to 2009.
Azov Special Operations Detachment (Ukrainian: Окремий загін спеціального призначення «Азов», romanized: Okremyi zahin spetsialnoho pryznachennia "Azov"), often known as Azov Detachment, Azov Regiment (Ukrainian: Полк Азов, romanized: Polk Azov), or Azov Battalion (until September 2014), is a right-wing extremist and neo-Nazi unit of the National Guard of Ukraine, based in Mariupol, in the Azov Sea coastal region.
The Soviet Union, officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), was a socialist state that spanned Eurasia during its existence from 1922 to 1991. It was nominally a federal union of multiple national republics; in practice its government and economy were highly centralized until its final years.
List of states with nuclear weapons
Eight sovereign states have publicly announced successful detonation of nuclear weapons. Five are considered to be nuclear-weapon states (NWS) under the terms of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). In order of acquisition of nuclear weapons these are the United States, Russia (former Soviet Union), the United Kingdom, France, and China.
The following notable deaths occurred in 2022. Names are reported under the date of death, in alphabetical order. A typical entry reports information in the following sequence: Name, age, country of citizenship at birth, subsequent nationality (if applicable), what subject was noted for, cause of death (if known), and reference.
Euphoria is an American teen drama television series created and written by Sam Levinson for HBO. It is based on the Israeli television miniseries of the same name created by Ron Leshem and Daphna Levin. The series follows a group of high school students through their experiences of identity, trauma, drugs, family, friendships, love, and sex.
Nancy Patricia Pelosi (; née D'Alesandro; born March 26, 1940) is an American politician serving as speaker of the United States House of Representatives since 2019, and previously from 2007 to 2011. She has served as a U.S. representative from California since 1987. A member of the Democratic Party, Pelosi is the only woman in U.S. history to serve as speaker of the House.
Viktor Fedorovych Yanukovych (Ukrainian: Віктор Федорович Янукович, pronounced [ˈwiktor ˈfɛdorowɪtʃ jɐnʊˈkɔwɪtʃ] (listen); Russian: Виктор Фёдорович Янукович; born 9 July 1950) is a Ukrainian politician who served as the fourth president of Ukraine from 2010 until he was removed from office in the 2014 Ukrainian Revolution.
Lyudmila Aleksandrovna Ocheretnaya (Russian: Людмила Александровна Очеретная, formerly Putina, Путина, pronounced [lʲʊdˈmʲiɫə ɐlʲɪkˈsandrəvnə ˈputʲɪnə], née Shkrebneva, Шкребнева; born 6 January 1958) is the former wife of Vladimir Putin, who is the current President and former Prime Minister of Russia.
Elden Ring is an action role-playing game developed by FromSoftware and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment. The game was made in collaboration with fantasy novelist George R. R. Martin, who provided material for the game's setting. It was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on February 25, 2022.
The Bible (from Koine Greek τὰ βιβλία, tà biblía, 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other faiths. It appears in the form of an anthology, a compilation of texts of a variety of forms, originally written in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Koine Greek.
Babi Yar or Babyn Yar (Ukrainian: Бабин Яр) is a ravine in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv and a site of massacres carried out by Nazi Germany's forces during its campaign against the Soviet Union in World War II. The first and best documented of the massacres took place on 29–30 September 1941, killing approximately 33,771 Jews.
The Ghost of Kyiv (Ukrainian: Привид Києва, romanized: Pryvyd Kyieva) is the nickname given to a disputed and unconfirmed MiG-29 Fulcrum flying ace credited with shooting down six Russian planes in the Kyiv offensive on 24 February 2022. According to the Security Service of Ukraine, he has shot down 10 Russian jets as of 27 February.
Moldova ( (listen), sometimes UK: ; Romanian pronunciation: [molˈdova]), officially the Republic of Moldova (Romanian: Republica Moldova), is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. Additionally, the unrecognised state of Transnistria lies across the Dniester on the country's eastern border with Ukraine.
Russia and Ukraine have had no formal diplomatic relations since 24 February 2022. The Russian Federation and Ukraine are currently in a state of war: the Russo-Ukrainian War began in 2014 following the Russian annexation of Crimea from Ukraine. In February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine across a broad front.
Eritrea ( (listen)), officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa, with its capital (and largest city) at Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia in the south, Sudan in the west, and Djibouti in the southeast. The northeastern and eastern parts of Eritrea have an extensive coastline along the Red Sea.
Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, and historically Byelorussia, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Covering an area of 207,600 square kilometres (80,200 sq mi) and with a population of 9.
Gangubai Kathiawadi is a 2022 Indian Hindi-language biographical crime drama film directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali and produced by Jayantilal Gada and Bhansali. The film stars Alia Bhatt as the titular character while Shantanu Maheshwari, Vijay Raaz, Indira Tiwari and Seema Pahwa play pivotal roles with Ajay Devgn featuring in an extended cameo appearance.
Casualties of the Russo-Ukrainian War
Casualties in the Russo-Ukrainian War included six deaths during the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, and thousands of deaths of civilians and military forces during the war in Donbas and the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The Bayraktar TB2 is a medium-altitude long-endurance (MALE) unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) capable of remotely controlled or autonomous flight operations. It is manufactured by the Turkish company Baykar Defence, primarily for the Turkish Armed Forces. The aircraft are monitored and controlled by an aircrew in a Ground Control Station, including weapons employment.
Olena Volodymyrivna Zelenska (née Kiyashko; Ukrainian: Олена Володимирівна Зеленська (Кіяшко); born 6 February 1978) is a Ukrainian screenwriter who is the current First Lady of Ukraine as the wife of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. In December 2019, Zelenska was included in the list of the 100 most influential Ukrainians by Focus magazine, taking 30th place.
Kyiv ( KEEV, KEE-yiv) or Kiev ( KEE-ev; Ukrainian: Київ, romanized: Kyiv, pronounced [ˈkɪjiu̯] (listen)) is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the seventh-most populous city in Europe.
Microsoft Office, or simply Office, is a family of client software, server software, and services developed by Microsoft. It was first announced by Bill Gates on August 1, 1988, at COMDEX in Las Vegas. Initially a marketing term for an office suite (bundled set of productivity applications), the first version of Office contained Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, and Microsoft PowerPoint.
The war in Donbas, or the Donbas War, is an armed conflict in the Donbas region of Ukraine, part of the broader Russo-Ukrainian War. In March 2014, immediately following the Euromaidan movement and subsequent Revolution of Dignity, protests by pro-Russian, anti-government separatist groups took place in the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts of Ukraine, collectively called the Donbas.
Ramzan Akhmadovich Kadyrov (Russian: Рамзан Ахматович Кадыров; Chechen: Къадар Ахьмат-кӏант Рамзан (Q̇adar Aẋmat-khant Ramzan), [qʼɑːdɑːr ɑːʜmɑːt k’ɑːnt rɑːmzɑːn]; born 5 October 1976) is a Russian and Chechen politician currently serving as the Head of the Chechen Republic. He was formerly a member of the Chechen independence movement.
Hansjörg Wyss (born 19 September 1935) is a Swiss billionaire businessman and donor to politically liberal and environmental causes in the United States. He is the founder and the former president and chairman of Synthes Holding AG, a medical device manufacturer. His Wyss Foundation has more than $2 billion in assets.
Joseph Robinette "Beau" Biden III (February 3, 1969 – May 30, 2015) was an American politician, lawyer, and officer in the Army Judge Advocate General's Corps from Wilmington, Delaware. He also served as the 44th attorney general of Delaware and was a major in the Delaware Army National Guard. Biden was the oldest child of current U.S. president Joe Biden and his first wife, Neilia Hunter Biden.
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territories, 326 Indian reservations, and nine minor outlying islands. At nearly 3. 8 million square miles (9.
Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation
In February and March 2014, Russia invaded and subsequently annexed the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine. This event took place in the aftermath of the Revolution of Dignity and is part of the wider Russo-Ukrainian War.
Vikings: Valhalla is a historical drama streaming television series created by Jeb Stuart for Netflix. It is a sequel to the History's Vikings, filmed in County Wicklow, Ireland. Set one hundred years after the events of Vikings, the series chronicles the beginning of the end of the Viking Age, marked by the Battle of Stamford Bridge in 1066.
Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev (Russian: Дмитрий Анатольевич Медведев, IPA: [ˈdmʲitrʲɪj ɐnɐˈtolʲjɪvʲɪtɕ mʲɪdˈvʲedʲɪf]; born 14 September 1965) is a Russian politician serving as deputy chairman of the Security Council of Russia since 2020. Medvedev served as president from 2008 to 2012 and as prime minister from 2012 to 2020. Medvedev was elected president in the 2008 election.
Stephen Gerald Breyer ( BRY-ər; born August 15, 1938) is an American lawyer and jurist who has served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States since 1994. He was nominated by President Bill Clinton, and replaced retiring justice Harry Blackmun. Breyer is generally associated with the liberal wing of the Court.
Fasting and abstinence in the Catholic Church
The Catholic Church historically observes the disciplines of fasting and abstinence at various times each year. For Catholics, fasting is the reduction of one's intake of food, while abstinence refers to refraining from something that is good, and not inherently sinful, such as meat.
Inventing Anna is an American drama streaming television miniseries created and produced by Shonda Rhimes, inspired by the story of Anna Sorokin and the article in New York titled "How Anna Delvey Tricked New York's Party People" by Jessica Pressler. The series was released on Netflix on February 11, 2022. Julia Garner stars as Anna Sorokin, the title character.
Leif Erikson, Leiv Eiriksson or Leif Ericson, also known as Leif the Lucky (Old Norse Leifr hinn Heppni) (c. 970 – c. 1020), was a Norse explorer who is thought to have been the first European to have set foot on continental North America, approximately half a millennium before Christopher Columbus.
The Revolution of Dignity (Ukrainian: Революція гідності, romanized: Revoliutsiia hidnosti), also known as the Maidan Revolution, took place in Ukraine in February 2014 at the end of the Euromaidan protests, when a series of violent events involving protesters, riot police, and unknown shooters in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv culminated in the ousting of elected President Viktor Yanukovych and the overthrow of the Ukrainian government.
Ye ( YAY; born Kanye Omari West; June 8, 1977), commonly known as Kanye West ( KAHN-yay), is an American rapper, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the early 2000s, producing singles for several artists and developing the "chipmunk soul" sampling style.
Kamala Devi Harris ( (listen) KAH-mə-lə DAY-vee; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who is the 49th and current vice president of the United States. She is the first female vice president and the highest-ranking female official in U.S. history, as well as the first African American and first Asian American vice president.
Alexander Grigoryevich Lukashenko (also transliterated as Alyaksand(a)r Ryhoravich Lukashenka; born 31 August 1954) is a Belarusian politician who has been serving as the president of Belarus since the establishment of the office on 20 July 1994, making him the longest serving and longest current serving European president.
The Second Chechen War (Russian: Втора́я чече́нская война́, Chechen: ШолгIа оьрсийн-нохчийн тIом, lit. 'Second Russian-Chechen War') was an armed conflict in Chechnya and the border regions of the North Caucasus between the Russian Federation and the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, fought from August 1999 to April 2000.
Petro Oleksiyovych Poroshenko (Ukrainian: Петро́ Олексі́йович Пороше́нко, pronounced [peˈtrɔ olekˈs⁽ʲ⁾ijowɪtʃ poroˈʃɛnko]; born 26 September 1965) is a Ukrainian businessman and politician who served as the fifth president of Ukraine from 2014 to 2019. Poroshenko served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2009 to 2010, and as the Minister of Trade and Economic Development in 2012.
The T-72 is a family of Soviet/Russian main battle tanks that entered production in 1969. The T-72 was a development of the T-64, which was troubled by high costs and its reliance on immature developmental technology. About 25,000 T-72 tanks have been built, and refurbishment has enabled many to remain in service for decades.
Hunter Schafer (born December 31, 1998) is an American fashion model, actress, and LGBTQ rights activist. For her activism against the North Carolina Public Facilities Privacy & Security Act, Teen Vogue listed Schafer on its "21 Under 21" list in 2017. In 2019 she made her acting debut, starring as transgender high school student Jules Vaughn in the HBO series Euphoria.
Kharkiv (Ukrainian: Ха́рків, IPA: [ˈxɑrkiu̯] (listen)), also known as Kharkov (Russian: Харькoв, IPA: [ˈxarʲkəf]), is the second-largest city and municipality in Ukraine. Located in the northeast of the country, it is the largest city of the historic Slobozhanshchyna region. Kharkiv is the administrative centre of Kharkiv Oblast and of the surrounding Kharkiv Raion.
Lent (Latin: Quadragesima, 'Fortieth') is a solemn religious observance in the Christian liturgical calendar commemorating the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert, according to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, before beginning his public ministry, during which he endured temptation by Satan.
Georgia (საქართველო, Sakartvelo; IPA: [sɑkʰɑrtʰvɛlɔ] (listen)), officially the Republic of Georgia from 1990 to 1995, is a transcontinental country located in the Caucasus, at the intersection of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north and east by Russia, to the south by Turkey and Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan.
2021–2022 Russo-Ukrainian crisis
In March and April 2021, Russian president Vladimir Putin ordered the Russian military to begin massing thousands of personnel and equipment near its border with Ukraine and in Crimea, representing the largest mobilization since the annexation of Crimea in 2014. This precipitated an international crisis due to concerns over a potential invasion.
Zendaya Maree Stoermer Coleman ( zən-DAY-ə; born September 1, 1996), known mononymously as Zendaya, is an American actress and singer. She has received various accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award, a Satellite Award, and a Saturn Award. Zendaya began her career as a child model and backup dancer.
Pamela Denise Anderson (born July 1, 1967) is a Canadian-American actress, model and activist. She is known for her numerous appearances in Playboy magazine and for her work on the television series Home Improvement (1991–1993, 1997), Baywatch (1992–1997) and V.I.P. (1998–2002). Anderson came to public prominence after being selected as the February 1990 Playmate of the Month for Playboy magazine.
List of military engagements during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
This is a list of military engagements during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine encompassing land, naval, and air engagements as well as campaigns, operations, defensive lines and sieges. Campaigns generally refer to broader strategic operations conducted over a large territory and over a long period.
The Russo-Georgian War was a war between Georgia, Russia and the Russian-backed self-proclaimed republics of South Ossetia and Abkhazia. The war took place in August 2008 following a period of worsening relations between Russia and Georgia, both formerly constituent republics of the Soviet Union. The fighting took place in the strategically important Transcaucasia region.
Vitali Volodymyrovych Klitschko (; Ukrainian: Віта́лій Володи́мирович Кличко́ [wiˈtɑl⁽ʲ⁾ij woloˈdɪmɪrowɪtʃ klɪtʃˈkɔ]; born 19 July 1971) is a Ukrainian politician and retired professional boxer. He serves as mayor of Kyiv and head of the Kyiv City State Administration, having held both offices since June 2014.
World War I, often abbreviated as WWI or WW1, also known as the First World War or the Great War, was an international conflict that began on 28 July 1914 and ended on 11 November 1918. It involved much of Europe, as well as Russia, the United States and Turkey, and was also fought in the Middle East, Africa and parts of Asia.
World War III or the Third World War, often abbreviated as WWIII or WW3, are names given to a hypothetical third worldwide large-scale military conflict after World War I and World War II. The term has been in use since at least as early as 1941. Some apply it loosely to limited or more minor conflicts such as the Cold War or the War on Terror.
The Antonov An-225 Mriya (Ukrainian: Антонов Ан-225 Мрія, lit. ''dream' or 'inspiration''; NATO reporting name: Cossack) was a strategic airlift cargo aircraft designed in the 1980s by the Antonov Design Bureau in Soviet Ukraine. It was originally developed as an enlargement of the Antonov An-124 to transport Buran-class orbiters, and only one example was ever completed.