Editing 2008 (section)

== Events ==

===January===
* [[January 1]] – [[Cyprus]] and [[Malta]] adopt the [[euro]] currency.<ref name="vgEan" /><ref name="qxkbC" />
* [[January 14]] – At 19:04:39 [[Coordinated Universal Time|UTC]], the uncrewed [[MESSENGER]] [[space probe]] is at its closest approach during its first flyby of the planet [[Mercury (planet)|Mercury]].<ref name="45JNK" />
* [[January 21]]
**Stock markets around the world plunge amid growing fears of a [[Great Recession in the United States|U.S. Great Recession]], fueled by the 2007 [[subprime mortgage crisis]].<ref name="UdyTv" />
**[[Online activist]] group [[Anonymous (hacker group)|Anonymous]] initiates [[Project Chanology]], after a [[News leak|leaked interview]] of [[Tom Cruise]] by the [[Church of Scientology]] is published on [[YouTube]], and the Church of Scientology issued a [[DMCA takedown|"copyright infringement" claim]]. In response, Anonymous sympathizers took to the streets to [[protest]] outside the church (after February 10), while the church's websites and centres were getting [[Denial-of-service attack|DoS attacks]], [[Prank call|phone line nukes]], and [[black fax]]es.<ref name="sx8F7" /><ref name="vOwe0" /><ref name="phLJJ" /><ref name="waVoL" /><ref name="muTyR" /><ref name="LwGGz" /><ref name="LqoSy" /><ref name="yECdo" />{{Excessive citations inline|date=December 2022}}
<!-- Heath Ledger is already listed under *DEATHS* for this date, do not double list him here under *EVENTS* -->
* [[January 24]] – A peace deal is signed in [[Goma]], [[Democratic Republic of the Congo]], ending the [[Kivu conflict]].<ref name="cAfgG" />

===February===
* [[February 4]] – Civic mobilizations in [[Colombia]] against [[Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia|FARC]], under the name ''[[One million voices against FARC]]''.<ref name=tiempo>{{cite web |url=https://www.eltiempo.com/archivo/documento/CMS-3945957 |title=Marcha contra las Farc, mayor movilización en la historia del país |access-date=March 22, 2023 |last= |first= |date=February 4, 2008 |work=El Tiempo |publisher=Casa Editorial El Tiempo |location=Bogotá |language=Spanish |quote= |archive-date=March 22, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230322193642/https://www.eltiempo.com/archivo/documento/CMS-3945957 |url-status=live }}</ref>
* [[February 14]] –  A [[Belavia]] CRJ-100 [[Belavia Flight 1834|crash lands]] at [[Zvartnots International Airport]] in Yerevan, Armenia. 7 people are injured.
* [[February 17]] – [[Kosovo]] formally [[2008 Kosovo declaration of independence|declares independence]] from [[Serbia]], to a mixed response from the international community.<ref name="4ZgIr" /><ref name="bKUR8" />
*[[February 18]] – [[WikiLeaks]] releases [[allegation]]s of [[Tax evasion|illegal activities]] carried out by the [[Cayman Islands]] branch of [[Swiss banking]] corporation [[Julius Baer Group|Julius Baer]]; a subsequent [[Bank Julius Baer v. WikiLeaks|lawsuit against WikiLeaks]] prompts a [[Web domain|temporary suspension]] of the website, but uproar about violations of [[First Amendment to the United States Constitution|freedom of speech]] causes WikiLeaks to be brought back online.<ref name="UHHp2" /><ref name="L7ZF1" />

===March===
* [[March 2]] – [[Venezuela]] and [[Ecuador]] [[2008 Andean diplomatic crisis|move troops to the Colombian border]], following a Colombian raid against [[FARC]] guerrillas inside Ecuadorian territory, in which senior commander [[Raúl Reyes]] is killed.<ref name="2V4dj" /><ref name="WUuhE" />
* [[March 8]] – [[Barisan Nasional]] loses [[Supermajority|two-thirds majority]], for the first time since [[1969 Malaysian general election|1969]], to opposition during the [[2008 Malaysian general election]] but still retains control of government. The coalition also loses [[State legislative assemblies of Malaysia|majority control]] of five states to the opposition.<ref name="setback">{{cite news |date=2008-03-08 |title=Election setback for Malaysia PM |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7284682.stm |access-date=2024-06-05 |work=[[BBC News]]}}</ref>
* [[March 9]] – The first [[European Space Agency]] [[Automated Transfer Vehicle]], a cargo spacecraft for the [[International Space Station]], launches from [[Guiana Space Centre]] in [[French Guiana]].<ref name="zmjBL" />
*[[19 March|March 19]] – An [[Energy]] release of a [[Gamma-ray burst]] called the [[GRB 080319B]] is the [[Brightness|brightest]] event ever recorded in the [[Universe]].<ref name="09YRh" />
* [[March 24]] – [[Bhutan]] holds its [[2008 Bhutanese National Assembly election|first-ever general elections]] following the adoption of a new [[Constitution of Bhutan|Constitution]] which changed the country from an [[absolute monarchy]] to a multiparty democracy.<ref name="a339d" />
* [[March 25]] – [[African Union]] and [[Comoros]] forces [[2008 invasion of Anjouan|invade]] the rebel-held island of [[Anjouan]], returning the island to Comorian control.<ref name="zp1Ze" />

===April===
* [[April 29]] – ''[[Grand Theft Auto IV]]'' is released worldwide, selling over 3.6 million units and earning $310 million during the first day, becoming not only the highest grossing video game release of all-time, but also the highest grossing entertainment product release ever.<ref>{{Cite web |author=I. G. N. Staff |date=2008-05-13 |title=Grand Theft Auto IV Breaks Guinness World Records with Biggest Entertainment Release of All-Time |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2008/05/13/grand-theft-auto-iv-breaks-guinness-world-records-with-biggest-entertainment-release-of-all-time |access-date=2024-01-29 |website=IGN |language=en}}</ref>

===May===
* [[May 2]] – ''[[Iron Man (2008 film)|Iron Man]]'' is released in theaters, starting the [[Marvel Cinematic Universe]].
* [[May 3]] – [[Cyclone Nargis]] passes through [[Myanmar]], killing more than 138,000 people.<ref name="n1gHV" />
* [[May 12]] – An earthquake measuring 7.9 on the [[moment magnitude scale]] [[2008 Sichuan earthquake|strikes Sichuan, China]], killing an estimated 87,000 people.<ref name="qTiUB" />
* [[May 20]]–[[May 24|24]] – The [[Eurovision Song Contest 2008]] takes place in [[Belgrade]], [[Serbia]], and is won by [[Russia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008|Russian]] entrant [[Dima Bilan]] with the song "[[Believe (Dima Bilan song)|Believe]]".
* [[May 21]]
** [[Manchester United F.C.|Manchester United]] wins their third [[UEFA European Cup|European Cup]] and second [[UEFA Champions League|Champions League]] after they beat [[Chelsea F.C.|Chelsea]] in the first all-English final in the history of the competition. Manchester United won the match 6–5 on penalties, following a 1–1 draw after extra time.
** The [[Union of South American Nations]], an intergovernmental organization between states in [[South America]], is founded.<ref name="ammdU" />
** The [[International Court of Justice]] awards [[Middle Rocks]] to [[Malaysia]] and [[Pedra Branca, Singapore|Pedra Branca]] to [[Singapore]], ending a 29-year [[Pedra Branca dispute|territorial dispute]] between the two countries.<ref name="xu7ho" />
* [[May 25]] – [[NASA]]'s uncrewed [[Phoenix (spacecraft)|''Phoenix'']] spacecraft becomes the first to land on the northern polar region of [[Mars]].<ref name="Gltzt" />
* [[May 28]] – The [[2008 Nepalese Constituent Assembly election|Legislature Parliament of Nepal]] votes overwhelmingly in favor of abolishing the country's [[King of Nepal|240-year-old monarchy]], turning the country into a republic.<ref name="VCANV" />
* [[May 30]] – International [[Convention on Cluster Munitions]] is adopted in Dublin.<ref name="cluster" />

===June===
* [[June 7]]–[[June 29|29]] – [[Austria]] and [[Switzerland]] jointly host the [[UEFA Euro 2008]] football tournament, which is won by [[Spain national football team|Spain]].
* [[June 11]]
** The [[Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope]] is launched.<ref name="PDVLU" />
** Canadian Prime Minister [[Stephen Harper]] formally apologizes, on behalf of the Canadian government, to the country's [[First Nations in Canada|First Nations]] for the [[Canadian Indian residential school system]].<ref name="oFlGQ" />
* [[June 14]] – [[Expo 2008]] opens in [[Zaragoza]], Spain, lasting to September 14, with the topic "Water and sustainable development".<ref name="jPCeD" />
* [[June 14]] – A [[2008 Iwate–Miyagi Nairiku earthquake|6.9 magnitude earthquake]] in [[Iwate Prefecture]], [[Japan]], kills 12 and injures more than 400.<ref name="USGS">{{cite news |date=2008-06-14 |title=Magnitude 6.9 - EASTERN HONSHU, JAPAN |url=https://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/eqinthenews/2008/us2008tfdp/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080922141641/http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/eqinthenews/2008/us2008tfdp/ |archive-date=2008-09-22 |access-date=2024-06-05 |publisher=U.S. Geological Survey |language=en}}</ref>

===July===
* [[July 1]] – [[2008 riot in Mongolia|Riots erupt in Mongolia]] in response to allegations of fraud surrounding the 2008 legislative elections.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2008-07-03 |title=Mongolia Enforces Martial Law in Capital Amid Political Unrest |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/03/world/asia/03mongolia.html |access-date=2022-09-10 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
* [[July 2]] – [[Íngrid Betancourt]] and 14 other hostages are [[Operation Jaque|rescued]] from [[Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia|FARC]] rebels by [[Colombia]]n security forces.<ref name="rQFjN" />
* [[July 10]] – [[Apple Inc.]] launches the [[App Store (Apple)|App Store]] with 500 apps available at launch.<ref>{{cite web |title=Apple's App Store launches with more than 500 apps |url=http://appleinsider.com/articles/08/07/10/apples_app_store_launches_with_more_than_500_apps |website=AppleInsider |date=July 10, 2008 |access-date=March 31, 2017 |archive-date=April 1, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170401055207/http://appleinsider.com/articles/08/07/10/apples_app_store_launches_with_more_than_500_apps |url-status=live }}</ref>
* [[July 11]] – [[South Korea]] suspends all trips to [[North Korea]]'s [[Mount Kumgang]] after a 53-year-old South Korean tourist is shot and killed by a North Korean sentry.<ref name="bbc march 2010" />
* [[July 21]] – [[Radovan Karadžić]], the first president of the [[Republika Srpska]], is arrested in [[Belgrade]], [[Serbia]], on allegations of war crimes, following a 12-year-long [[Manhunt (law enforcement)|manhunt]].<ref name="7KMHp" />

===August===
*[[August 1]]
** India and United States sign the historic [[India–United States Civil Nuclear Agreement|Civil Nuclear deal]].
** Eleven mountaineers from international expeditions die on [[K2]], the second-highest mountain on Earth, in the [[2008 K2 disaster|worst single accident]] in the history of K2 mountaineering.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bowley |first=Graham |date=2010-11-13 |title=K2 tragedy: 'We had no body, no funeral, no farewell ...' |url=https://theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2010/nov/13/k2-accident-himalayas-climbers-families |access-date=2024-06-05 |website=[[The Guardian]]}}</ref>
* [[August 6]] – President [[Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi]] of [[Mauritania]] is deposed in a [[2008 Mauritanian coup d'état|military coup d'état]].<ref name="nuVDF" />
* [[August 7]] – [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]] intervenes against Russian-backed separatists in its [[South Ossetia|South-Ossetia]] and [[Abkhazia]] regions, causing [[Russia]] to invade Georgia and spark the [[Russo-Georgian War|Russo-Georgian war]], the first major European land war of the 21st century.
* [[August 8]]–[[August 24|24]] – The [[2008 Summer Olympics]] take place in [[Beijing]], China.<ref name="zc8qK" />
* [[August 20]] – [[Spanair Flight 5022]] crashes at [[Madrid–Barajas Airport]], killing 154 people on board.

===September===
* [[September 5]] – [[Quentin Bryce]] becomes the first female [[Governor-General of Australia]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.gg.gov.au/biography-honourable-dame-quentin-bryce-ad-cvo| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210819144932/https://www.gg.gov.au/biography-honourable-dame-quentin-bryce-ad-cvo| archive-date=2021-08-19|title=Biography – The Honourable Dame Quentin Bryce AD CVO|website=The Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia|access-date=August 19, 2021}}</ref>
* [[September 10]] – The [[proton beam]] is circulated for the first time in the [[Large Hadron Collider]], the [[List of accelerators in particle physics#Hadron colliders|world's largest and highest-energy]] [[particle accelerator]], located at [[CERN]], near [[Geneva]], under the Franco-Swiss border.<ref name="JdQh8" /><ref name="1tfei" />
* [[September 13]] –  [[Hurricane Ike]] makes landfall as a category 2 hurricane in [[Texas]], killing 113 and causing over $30 billion in damages.
* [[September 15]] – Stocks fall sharply Monday on a triptych of Wall Street woe: [[Lehman Brothers]]' bankruptcy filing, [[Merrill Lynch]]'s acquisition by [[Bank of America]], and [[American International Group|AIG]]'s unprecedented request for short-term financing from the [[Federal Reserve]].<ref name="VxePx" />
* [[September 20]] – A [[Islamabad Marriott Hotel bombing|suicide truck bomb explosion]] destroys the [[Marriott International|Marriott Hotel]] in [[Islamabad]], [[Pakistan]], killing at least 54 and injuring 266.<ref name="mk4OZ" /><ref name="XWUWx" /><ref name="3fIg2" /> 
* [[September 23]] – [[HTC Dream]], the first smartphone powered by [[Android (operating system)|Android]], was launched.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cheng |first=Jacqui |date=2008-09-23 |title=T-Mobile, Google finally unveil the first Android phone |url=https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2008/09/t-mobile-google-finally-unveil-the-first-android-phone/ |access-date=2024-11-30 |website=Ars Technica |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Sholtz |first=Matthew |date=2024-09-23 |title=This day in tech: The HTC Dream was revealed as the first Android phone |url=https://www.androidpolice.com/thread/this-day-in-tech-htc-dream-revealed-to-the-masses/ |access-date=2024-11-30 |website=Android Police |language=en}}</ref>
* [[September 28]] – [[SpaceX]] [[Falcon 1]] becomes the world's first privately developed [[Launch vehicle|space launch vehicle]] to successfully [[Falcon 1 Flight 4|make orbit]].<ref name="bUbIg" /><ref name="mJgTp" />

===October===
* [[October 3]] – [[2008 financial crisis]]: [[President of the United States|U.S. President]] [[George W. Bush]] signs the revised [[Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008|Emergency Economic Stabilization Act]] into law, creating a [[Troubled Asset Relief Program|700 billion dollar Treasury fund]] to purchase failing bank [[asset]]s.<ref name="Associated Press-Raum-2008-10-03" />
*[[October 6]] – A controversial [[Peruvian]] tape regarding a [[Norway|Norwegian]] [[oil company]] causes the [[2008 Peru oil scandal]], sparking [[protest]]s which cause [[Jorge del Castillo|Jorge de Castillo]] to [[Resignation|resign from office]].<ref name="s5fxV" /><ref name="4KSLa" /><ref name="1X31j" /><ref name="1xnhk" />
* [[October 21]] – The [[Large Hadron Collider]] (LHC) is officially [[Inauguration|inaugurated]] at [[Geneva]].<ref name="lgOCn" /><ref name="exux6" /><ref name="j2gWy" /><ref name="tnapI" />
* [[October 22]] – The [[ISRO|Indian Space Research Organisation]] successfully launches the [[Chandrayaan-1]] spacecraft on a [[Exploration of the Moon|lunar exploration]] mission.<ref name="1wmbS" /><ref name="hLQzh" />
* [[October 30]] – [[2008 Vietnam floods|Floods]] affected in [[Northern Vietnam]] and [[Central Vietnam]] and lasted 5 days causing flooding in many [[Provinces of Vietnam|provinces]] and [[Municipalities of Vietnam|cities]].
* October
** The [[Easyswap]] on-line local exchange trading system (LETS) website is officially launched in Switzerland.<ref>{{cite news|last=Monnier|first=Philippe D.|title=Le troc remis au goût du jour|url=http://www.pme.ch/de/artikelanzeige/artikelanzeige.asp?pkBerichtNr=177504|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120906050925/http://www.pme.ch/de/artikelanzeige/artikelanzeige.asp?pkBerichtNr=177504|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 6, 2012|accessdate=17 January 2012|newspaper=PME Magazine|date=February 27, 2009}}</ref>

===November===
*[[November 1]] – [[Satoshi Nakamoto]] publishes "[[Bitcoin]]: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System".<ref name="uHmQu" />
*[[November 2]] – In a race won by [[Brazil]]ian driver [[Felipe Massa]], [[United Kingdom|British driver]] [[Lewis Hamilton]] ends in 5th place in [[2008 Brazilian Grand Prix]] and becomes the first [[Black people|black]] driver to win the [[Formula One]] World Championship, and the second youngest driver to achieve the feat at the age of 23.
*[[November 4]] – [[2008 United States presidential election]]: [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] U.S. Senator [[Barack Obama]] defeats [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] candidate [[John McCain]] and is elected the 44th [[President of the United States]], making him the first [[African Americans|African-American]] to be elected to the office.<ref name="4bO8c" /><ref name="ES3XU" /><ref name="os5oq" />
*[[November 19]] – Claudia Castillo of Spain becomes the first person to have a successful [[trachea]] [[Organ transplant|transplant]] using a [[Tissue engineering|tissue-engineered]] [[Organ (anatomy)|organ]].<ref name="aVL5l" />
* [[November 20]] – The [[Buzzard Coulee meteorite]] falls in [[Saskatchewan]]. Reported to be 5 times brighter than the full moon and is seen in Alberta, Manitoba, and even North Dakota.
* [[November 26]]–[[November 29|29]] – Ten terrorists of the [[Lashkar-e-Taiba]], a Pakistan based terror group, carry out four days of coordinated bombing and shooting [[2008 Mumbai attacks|attacks]] across [[Mumbai]], killing 166 people. One terrorist, [[Ajmal Kasab]], was captured alive and executed in 2012.<ref name="Mumbai" />
* [[November 27]] – [[XL Airways Germany Flight 888T]]. An [[Airbus A320 family|Airbus A320]] due to be redelivered to [[Air New Zealand]] stalls and crashes over [[Mediterranean Sea]]  resulting the deaths of 7

===December===
*[[December 10]] – The [[Channel Islands|Channel Island]] of [[Sark]], a British [[Crown Dependencies|Crown dependency]], holds its [[2008 Sark general election|first fully democratic elections]] under a new constitutional arrangement, becoming the last European territory to abolish [[feudalism]].<ref name="jGiwP" />
*[[December 11]] – [[Bernie Madoff|Bernard Madoff]] is arrested for [[securities fraud]] after he was turned in by his sons for operating the largest [[Ponzi scheme]] in history, later known as the [[Madoff investment scandal]].
*[[December 18]] –  The [[International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda]] finds [[Théoneste Bagosora]] and two other senior Rwandan army officers guilty of [[genocide]], [[crimes against humanity]] and [[war crime]]s and sentences them to [[life imprisonment]] for their role in the [[Rwandan genocide]].<ref name="o0EEh" />
* [[December 22]] – An ash dike [[Kingston Fossil Plant coal fly ash slurry spill|ruptured]] at a solid waste containment area for a [[Tennessee Valley Authority]] [[Kingston Fossil Plant|coal-fired power plant]] in [[Roane County, Tennessee]], releasing {{convert|1.1|e9USgal|e6m3|order=flip|abbr=unit}} of [[coal fly ash]] [[slurry]] in the largest industrial spill in U.S. history.<ref name=natgeo19>{{cite news |last=Bourne |first=Joel K. |date=February 19, 2019 |title=Coal's other dark side: Toxic ash that can poison water, destroy life and toxify people |url=https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/02/coal-other-dark-side-toxic-ash |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190219140212/https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/02/coal-other-dark-side-toxic-ash/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 19, 2019 |work=National Geographic |access-date=2020-05-22}}</ref>
*[[December 23]] – A [[2008 Guinean coup d'état|military coup d'état]] deposes the government of [[Guinea]] shortly after the death of longtime [[List of presidents of Guinea|President]] [[Lansana Conté]].<ref name="S5uh2" />
*[[December 27]] – Israel [[Gaza War (2008–2009)|invades]] the [[Gaza Strip]], in response to rockets being fired into Israeli territory by [[Hamas]], and due to weapons being smuggled into the area.<ref name="47sj5" /><ref name="xKVxz" /><ref name="guardian.co.uk" />
*[[December 31]] – An extra [[leap second]] (23:59:60) is added to end of the year. The last time this occurred was in [[2005]].

=== Date unknown ===
*[[European Certification and Qualification Association]] is founded.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Messnarz |first=Richard |last2=and |first2=others |title=The Architecture of the ECQA – European Certification and Qualification Association |url=https://www.etcaats.eu/resources/2_chapter1-part2-eu-certificates-architecture-v3a.pdf?i=etcaats |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220524160301/https://www.etcaats.eu/resources/2_chapter1-part2-eu-certificates-architecture-v3a.pdf?i=etcaats |archive-date=May 24, 2022 |access-date=22 July 2022 |website=ETCAATS}}</ref>
*[[National Disaster Recovery Fund]], a disaster management fund is established by the [[Government of Jamaica]].<ref name="Diaspora">{{cite web |url= http://jamaicandiaspora.gov.jm/diaspora/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=14&Itemid=28&limit=5&limitstart=5 |title= US-Based Jamaicans Urged to Support National Disaster Recovery Fund |publisher= The Jamaican Diaspora |date= September 2008 |accessdate= April 17, 2009 |url-status= dead |archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20110722070709/http://jamaicandiaspora.gov.jm/diaspora/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=14&Itemid=28&limit=5&limitstart=5 |archivedate= July 22, 2011 }}</ref>