The year 2023 witnessed numerous events that shook the world, but some had a level of shock that resonated globally. Here are the top 5 days when we woke up to extraordinary breaking news according to MTV.
**Turkey Earthquake**
On February 6, 2023, the world awakened in the early hours after midnight to a true disaster, as a devastating earthquake measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale struck the Kahramanmaraş region in southern Turkey. Its impact extended to Syria due to its proximity to the Turkish-Syrian border. Residents in Lebanon, Palestine, and even Egypt felt the tremors, experiencing real moments of terror, with streets filled with people fearing building collapses. Approximately nine hours later, another earthquake of 7.5 magnitude occurred in the Ekinözü area near Kahramanmaraş. The toll of these two earthquakes in Turkey and Syria exceeded 50,000 fatalities and 120,000 injuries, causing significant material damage in both countries.
**Coup Against Putin**
On June 23, 2023, Russia experienced a military rebellion, as Wagner forces under their commander Yevgeny Prigozhin announced a coup against Russian President Vladimir Putin. This followed Prigozhin's claims that Russian Defense Ministry troops attacked positions of his group. In response, Prigozhin vowed revenge on the Defense Ministry leadership, which he held responsible for what befell his forces. Wagner succeeded in taking control of the city of Rostov-on-Don and fully seized the headquarters of the Southern Military District in the city, then began its advance towards Voronezh, which it also captured, continuing its march towards the capital, Moscow. The rebellion came to a halt on the eve of June 24 after mediation by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, who convinced Prigozhin to cease his advance towards the capital and withdraw his forces from all cities they entered in exchange for security guarantees. Two months after the rebellion, Russian authorities reported that a plane crashed near Moscow, killing all ten people on board, including Wagner leader Prigozhin and his right-hand man Dmitry Utkin.
**Hurricane Daniel**
On September 4, 2023, the world awoke to a storm that was one of the deadliest and most costly Mediterranean tropical-like hurricanes in recorded history, marking the most lethal weather event of the year. The storm affected Greece, Bulgaria, and Turkey, causing widespread flooding. Named Daniel, it quickly acquired near-tropical characteristics and moved towards the coast of Libya, where it caused catastrophic flooding before dissipating. In Greece, the heavy rains led to floods that inflicted damages exceeding two billion euros, making it the most expensive storm recorded in the country. Libya was the hardest hit, with heavy rains causing the collapse of two dams near the city of Derna, resulting in a flood that claimed over 4,000 lives, with more than 10,000 people reported missing.
**Moroccan Earthquake**
On September 8, 2023, a devastating earthquake with a magnitude of 6.8 struck the Al Haouz region near Marrakech, Morocco. The earthquake resulted in over 2,900 deaths and 5,500 injuries, with buildings and historical landmarks in Marrakech, Taroudant, Agadir, and Ouarzazate suffering damage. The tremors were felt by residents in numerous Moroccan cities, including Agadir, Casablanca, and Rabat, and reached neighboring countries like Spain, Portugal, and Algeria. This earthquake was considered the strongest and deadliest in modern Moroccan history since at least 1960, and it was the second deadliest earthquake globally in 2023 after the Turkey-Syria earthquake. The World Health Organization estimated that around 300,000 people in Marrakech and the surrounding areas were affected by the disaster.
**October 7**
Saturday morning, October 7, was not ordinary, as the world witnessed an unprecedented military operation launched by Hamas from the Gaza Strip through its military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades. The commander of the brigades, Muhammad Deif, announced the start of the operation in response to "Israeli violations in the Al-Aqsa Mosque courtyards and Israeli settlers' assaults on Palestinian citizens in Jerusalem, the West Bank, and within the occupied territories." The operation "Flood of Al-Aqsa" began with a massive rocket attack, directing thousands of rockets towards various Israeli settlements from Dimona in the south to Hod Hasharon in the north and Jerusalem in the east. Simultaneously, ground incursions by Hamas members occurred via four-wheel-drive vehicles, motorcycles, and paragliders into neighboring towns, known as the Gaza envelope, where they took control of several military sites, particularly in Sderot, reached Ofakim, stormed Netivot, and engaged in fierce clashes in the three settlements and others, capturing several soldiers and taking them to Gaza along with capturing a number of Israeli military vehicles. The world continues to witness the repercussions of this operation after Israel launched its war in the Gaza Strip and southern Lebanon, and undoubtedly, life after this day will not be the same.
