2025 facts for kids

From left to right, top to bottom:

• Madrid during a power outage;
• Robert Prevost became Pope Leo XIV;
• Prime minister of India Narendra Modi at the site of the Air India Flight 171 crash;
• Young people protesting in Nepal;
• A store in Ontario with products from other countries due to new trade rules;
• An attack on a TV studio in Tehran during a conflict;
• Damage after a big earthquake in Myanmar;
• Hostages Square in Tel Aviv after news of people being released.

2025 (MMXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 2025th year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 25th year of the 3rd millennium, the 25th year of the 21st century, and the 6th year of the 2020s decade. The year 2025 was a time of many important events around the world. There were ongoing conflicts, like the one in Gaza, where people faced many difficulties and needed help. Efforts were made to find peace in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, with leaders like Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump involved in discussions. There were also challenges in Sudan.

Many countries, including Armenia, Bangladesh, Bulgaria, and South Korea, experienced political changes and challenges within their governments. For example, in South Korea, President Yoon Suk Yeol left office after a special process.

Young people from Generation Z led many protests around the world, especially in Nepal and Madagascar, which sometimes led to changes in government. There were also disagreements between countries like India and Pakistan, Iran and Israel, and Cambodia and Thailand. In Thailand, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra was removed from office after a phone call became public.

In the world of business, Donald Trump became the President of the United States again. His government introduced new rules about buying and selling goods with other countries, which changed global trade. In technology, a new Chinese chatbot called DeepSeek was released, competing with other popular AI programs like ChatGPT.

There were some airplane accidents, including a collision near Washington National Airport and the crash of Air India Flight 171 in Ahmedabad, India. However, space exploration also saw exciting progress, with the first crewed flight to orbit the Earth over its poles and the first successful Moon landing by a private company.

Events

January

Collapsed house in Tibet after the Tibet earthquake on January 7

Aerial view of homes devastated by the Palisades Fire in the early evening hours of January 15 as part of the Southern California wildfires

Recovery of the wreck of Bombardier CRJ700 involved in a mid-air collision over the Potomac River on January 29

• January 1
  • Poland took over the leadership of the Council of the European Union.
  • Bulgaria and Romania joined the Schengen Area, making travel easier between these countries.
  • Liechtenstein became the 37th country to allow same-sex marriage.
  • Ukraine stopped transporting some Russian gas supplies after a deal ended.
  • A violent incident in New Orleans, United States, resulted in 15 deaths and 57 injuries.
• January 6 – Indonesia became the tenth country to join BRICS, a group of major emerging economies.
• January 7
  • A strong 7.1 magnitude earthquake hit Tibet, China, leading to at least 126 deaths and 338 injuries.
  • Major wildfires in Greater Los Angeles, United States, destroyed over 13,000 buildings and caused at least 29 deaths. About 180,000 people had to leave their homes.
• January 9 – Joseph Aoun was elected the 14th president of Lebanon, ending a long period without a leader.
• January 10 – Scientists reported that 2024 was the hottest year on record globally.
• January 15
  • In the Gaza conflict, Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire. This agreement aimed to stop the fighting, exchange people held captive, and allow help to reach those in need. The ceasefire began on January 19.
  • Scientists created the world's first artificial womb for marsupials, working towards bringing back the thylacine.
• January 16 – Blue Origin successfully launched its large New Glenn rocket for the first time.
• January 18
  • A fuel tanker explosion near Suleja, Nigeria, killed 98 people.
  • A violent incident at the Supreme Court of Iran in Tehran resulted in the deaths of two judges and the attacker, with two others injured.
• January 23 – Thailand became the 38th country and the first in Southeast Asia to allow same-sex marriage.
• January 24 – Storm Éowyn brought record high winds to Ireland and the United Kingdom, leaving over a million homes without power.
• January 27 – Global technology shares fell sharply after DeepSeek released its new chatbot, a competitor to ChatGPT.
• January 29 – A mid-air collision over the Potomac River in Washington, D.C., United States, involved a U.S. Army helicopter and a passenger plane. Sadly, there were no survivors from the 67 people on board both aircraft.

February

Members of the Guatemalan Army and National Civil Police participating in the search-and-rescue efforts following the Guatemala City bus crash on February 10

Student–led anti-government protests erupted across Indonesia on February 17 following new laws about military involvement in government

The meeting between Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Donald Trump, and JD Vance in the Oval Office on February 28, where they discussed support for Ukraine

• February 4
  • China announced new trade rules and tariffs on American goods, in response to similar actions by Donald Trump.
  • Donald Trump announced that the United States would help with the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip.
• February 9 – The Baltic states connected their power grids with Europe, disconnecting from Russia's grid.
• February 12 – Klaus Iohannis resigned as President of Romania, a first for the country since its revolution.
• February 17 – Student-led protests took place across Indonesia against new laws that increased military involvement in government.
• February 18
  • Nicaragua became a diarchy, with spouses Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo serving as co-presidents.
  • Vladimir Putin announced that Russia and the United States officially agreed to restore diplomatic relations.
  • The tomb of Thutmose II, an ancient Egyptian pharaoh, was discovered in Egypt, the first royal tomb found since 1922.
• February 25 – An Antonov An-26 plane of the Sudanese Air Force crashed in a residential area, killing all 17 people on board and 29 on the ground.
• February 28 – A meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy took place at the White House, where support for Ukraine was discussed.

March

A rendering of Blue Ghost Mission 1 which landed on March 2

Anti-government protests broke out across Turkey following the arrest of Istanbul mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu on March 19

Rescue efforts at the collapsed building in Thailand caused by the Myanmar earthquake on March 28

• March 2 – Firefly Aerospace became the first private company to successfully land on the Moon without technical issues.
• March 3 – The Trump administration paused military aid to Ukraine.
• March 4 – Scientists created "woolly mice" as part of efforts to bring back the woolly mammoth.
• March 5 – Sudan filed a case against the United Arab Emirates at the International Court of Justice, alleging support for groups causing violence in Darfur.
• March 11
  • Former President of the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte, was arrested after an international warrant.
  • Militants in Balochistan blew up railway tracks and took 450 people hostage on a train.
• March 18
  • Israel launched widespread attacks on the Gaza Strip, killing at least 591 people.
  • The President of Somalia, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, survived an attack on his convoy, which killed at least 10 people.
• March 19 – Protests erupted across Turkey following the arrest of the mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem İmamoğlu.
• March 20 – Kirsty Coventry was elected as the first female and African President of the International Olympic Committee.
• March 21
  • A major power outage caused Heathrow Airport in London to shut down, affecting thousands of flights.
  • South Korea experienced one of its worst wildfires in modern history, destroying over 87,000 hectares and killing at least 32 people.
• March 28 – A 7.7-magnitude earthquake occurred in Myanmar, resulting in 5,413 killed and 11,402 injured.

April

Possible biosignatures were discovered in the atmosphere of exoplanet K2-18b (artistic impression of planet)

U.S President Donald Trump holding a chart detailing tariffs levied against the United States on his Liberation Day speech on April 2

Rescue of victims following the Jet Set nightclub roof collapse on April 8

Smoke billowing after the Port of Shahid Rajaee explosion on April 26

Metro station closed in Madrid during the Iberian Peninsula blackout on April 28

• April 1 – Fram2 launched, becoming the first crewed spaceflight to orbit Earth over its poles.
• April 2 – U.S. President Donald Trump issued new trade tariffs on many countries.
• April 3 – Hungary withdrew from the International Criminal Court.
• April 4 – The Constitutional Court of Korea officially removed President Yoon Suk Yeol from office.
• April 7 – Scientists showcased three grey wolves genetically modified to resemble the dire wolf.
• April 17 – Scientists found signs of compounds that might be produced by life in the atmosphere of exoplanet K2-18b.
• April 21 – Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic Church, passed away at the age of 88.
• April 26
  • The funeral of Pope Francis was attended by delegations from 164 countries.
• April 28
  • Mark Carney became the Prime Minister of Canada after Justin Trudeau's resignation.
  • A widespread power outage affected Spain and Portugal for hours.

May

Robert Francis Prevost was elected as Pope Leo XIV in the papal conclave on May 8, becoming the first American citizen, Peruvian citizen, North American and Augustinian pope in the history of the Catholic Church

• May 3
  • The Australian Labor Party won reelection, increasing their majority.
  • The People's Action Party in Singapore won reelection in a landslide.
  • Demonstrators gathered in Bamako, Mali, to protest government changes.
• May 7–8 – Robert Francis Prevost was elected as Pope Leo XIV, becoming the first pope from North America.
• May 7 – India launched several missiles into Pakistani territory in response to an attack two weeks prior.
• May 12 – The Kurdistan Workers' Party announced its dissolution after a ceasefire with Turkey.
• May 13–17 – The Eurovision Song Contest 2025 was held in Basel, Switzerland, and was won by Austrian contestant JJ.
• May 28 – More than 500 people were killed and hundreds more went missing after flooding in Mokwa, Nigeria.

June

A Tu-95 on fire at the Olenya airbase after being struck by drones on June 1

California National Guard and protestors during the Los Angeles protests on June 9

The wreckage of Air India Flight 171's tail section wedged into the B. J. Medical College, Ahmedabad on June 13

Explosions in Tehran during the Israeli strikes on Iran on June 13

• June 1 – Ukraine launched a large drone attack on Russian military bases, damaging over 40 aircraft.
• June 3 – Lee Jae Myung won the South Korean presidential election.
• June 6 – Protests erupted in Los Angeles in response to immigration arrests and deportations.
• June 12 – Air India Flight 171, a London-bound Boeing 787, crashed in Ahmedabad, India, killing 229 passengers, 12 crew, and 19 people on the ground. One passenger survived.
• June 13 – Israel conducted air strikes against Iran's nuclear facilities, and Iran retaliated.
• June 14 – Protests against Donald Trump took place in many cities across the U.S., Canada, Europe, Japan, and Mexico.
• June 20 – An EF5 tornado struck southeast of Enderlin, North Dakota, the first such powerful tornado globally since 2013.
• June 22 – The United States carried out airstrikes on three Iranian nuclear sites.
• June 23 – Iran launched missiles at US bases in Qatar and Iraq in response to the previous day's strikes.
• June 27 – The U.S. helped broker a peace treaty between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda, ending their conflict.

July

Aerial photo of the Central Texas floods near Hunt on July 5

• July 1 – The Constitutional Court of Thailand suspended Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra from duty.
• July 4–7 – At least 135 people were killed and over a hundred went missing during a flood in Central Texas, United States.
• July 16 – Israeli airstrikes hit the Syrian Presidential Palace and military headquarters in Damascus.
• July 21
  • A training aircraft of the Bangladesh Air Force crashed into Milestone College in Dhaka, killing 31 people including the pilot.
  • Twenty-eight countries called for an immediate end to the Gaza conflict due to civilian suffering.
• July 23 – The International Court of Justice ruled that countries can sue each other over historical greenhouse gas emissions and climate change effects.
• July 24
  • Angara Airlines Flight 2311, an Antonov An-24 aircraft, crashed in Eastern Siberia, Russia, killing all 48 people on board.
  • Armed conflicts broke out between Cambodia and Thailand over a border dispute,displacing over 100,000.
• July 30 – A powerful 8.8 earthquake struck off the coast of Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula, triggering tsunami warnings.

August

Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump arriving in Anchorage, Alaska, for the Russia–United States Summit on August 15

A magnitude-6.0 earthquake struck eastern Afghanistan on August 31, killing over 2,200 people and injuring 3,500 more

• August 7 – OpenAI released its new model, GPT-5.
• August 8 – Armenia and Azerbaijan signed a peace deal to end 37 years of disagreements over the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
• August 15 – U.S. President Donald Trump met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Anchorage, Alaska, to discuss a plan for resolving the conflict in Ukraine.
• August 22 – Famine was confirmed in Gaza City, with over 500,000 people facing extreme hunger.
• August 30 – The Constitutional Court of Thailand removed Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra from office for ethical misconduct.
• August 31
  • An earthquake in eastern Afghanistan killed over 2,200 people and injured 3,500.
  • A landslide caused by heavy rain buried the village of Tarasin in Central Darfur, killing between 370 and 1,000 people.

September

Immediate aftermath of the Ascensor da Glória derailment on September 3, as seen from Restauradores Square, with a dark yellow derailed car toppled into a building on the right

The Philippine Army and the Bureau of Fire Protection joined rescue efforts for buildings collapsed due to the Cebu earthquake

• September 8 – Mass anti-government protests erupted in Nepal, leading to at least 22 deaths and hundreds injured. Prime Minister K. P. Sharma Oli resigned the next day.
• September 9
  • The 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly opened in New York City.
  • Israel attacked the Hamas leadership in Doha, Qatar.
  • Russian drones breached Polish airspace during an attack on Ukraine, prompting Poland to invoke Article 4 of NATO.
• September 10 – Charlie Kirk, an American right-wing activist, died in a violent incident at a campus event in Utah.
• September 11 – Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro was sentenced to 27 years in prison for his involvement in a 2022 coup plot.
• September 12 – Former chief justice Sushila Karki became the interim prime minister of Nepal.
• September 16 – A United Nations commission found that Israel had committed serious harm against Palestinians in Gaza.
• September 19 – Estonian airspace was violated by three Russian MiG-31 jets, leading Estonia to invoke Article 4 of NATO.
• September 21 – The United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia formally recognized Palestine as a sovereign state, with France following suit.
• September 30 – A 6.9 earthquake shook the island of Cebu in the Philippines, leaving 71 people dead and 559 injured.

October

Journalists reporting pieces of the French Crown Jewels were stolen during the Louvre robbery on October 19

Protest in Antananarivo, Madagascar after the coup on October 22

Refugees setting up shelter in Tawila, fleeing El Fasher before massacre on October 26

Inside the eye of Hurricane Melissa, one day before peak intensity and landfall in Jamaica on October 28

Police officers during Operation Containment on October 28, the deadliest police operation in Brazilian history

• October 1 – Israel intercepted a fleet carrying humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip in international waters, arresting 443 activists.
• October 3 – Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg, stepped down from the throne in favor of his son Guillaume.
• October 9
  • Israel and Hamas agreed to the first phase of a peace deal for Gaza, almost two years after the conflict began.
  • Pakistan reportedly carried out airstrikes in Afghanistan, targeting a designated terrorist.
• October 10 – Dina Boluarte, the President of Peru, was removed from office by the Congress.
• October 12 – Following protests, President Andry Rajoelina was removed from office, and military officer Michael Randrianirina became President.
• October 13 – Hamas released the last 20 people held captive in Gaza, in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and detainees from Israel.
• October 19 – Pieces of the French Crown Jewels were stolen during a robbery from the Louvre museum in Paris.
• October 21 – Sanae Takaichi became the first female Prime Minister of Japan.
• October 26
  • Timor-Leste became the 11th member state of ASEAN, a group of Southeast Asian nations.
• October 28
  • Hurricane Melissa made landfall in Jamaica as a powerful Category 5 hurricane.

November

Damage to homes in Samangan Province, Afghanistan, following the Balkh earthquake on November 3

Effects of Typhoon Kalmaegi in Cebu City, Philippines, on November 4

COP30 summit was held in Belém, Brazil, from November 10–21

A bridge in Padang Panjang, Indonesia, destroyed by flash floods during Cyclone Senyar on November 27

• November 3 – A powerful 6.3 earthquake shook Balkh and Samangan in Afghanistan, causing 31 deaths and 956 injuries.
• November 4
  • Typhoon Kalmaegi caused more than 288 deaths in the Philippines, Vietnam, and Thailand.
  • UPS Airlines Flight 2976 crashed near Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport, Kentucky, killing all three crew members and 11 people on the ground.
• November 6 – Khaled El-Enany was elected the new Director-General of UNESCO.
• November 10–21 – The COP30 summit was held in Belém, Brazil, focusing on the Amazon rainforest.
• November 13 – The New Glenn rocket booster landed successfully for the first time.
• November 17 – Former prime minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of serious wrongdoings and sentenced to death in her absence.
• November 22–23 – The G20 Johannesburg summit was held in South Africa, the first time a G20 summit took place in Africa.
• November 23 – A change in government occurred in Guinea-Bissau a day before election results were released.
• November 25 – A new UN report showed that Jakarta, Indonesia, surpassed Tokyo as the world's largest city.
• November 26
  • Cyclone Senyar caused at least 1,390 deaths and left 186 missing in Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia.
• November 27–30 – An important meeting of Christian churches was held at Nicaea to mark the 1,700th anniversary of the First Council of Nicaea.
• November 28 – Flooding and landslides caused by Cyclone Ditwah left at least 647 dead and 183 missing across Sri Lanka and South India.

December

Largo, Sofia, during the Bulgarian protests on December 1

• December 2 – The Southern Transitional Council launched a large military offensive across Southern Yemen, changing the ongoing civil war.
• December 4 – Police in Ireland began an investigation into drone sightings over Dublin during a visit by Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
• December 8 – A 7.6 earthquake occurred in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Aomori Prefecture in Japan, triggering a tsunami.
• December 11 – The government in Bulgaria resigned following major protests.
• December 14 – At least 16 people were killed and 43 injured in a violent attack by two gunmen at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, during a celebration.
• December 19 – EU leaders approved a €90bn loan for Ukraine for the next two years.
• December 20 – German engineer Michaela Benthaus became the first wheelchair user to travel into space.
• December 25 – The United States, with the Nigerian government, initiated airstrikes targeting militants in Sokoto State, Nigeria.
• December 26 – Israel became the first country to recognize Somaliland.
• December 28 – Major protests emerged in Iran following an inflation spike and demands for changes in the government.

Nobel Prizes

• Chemistry – Susumu Kitagawa, Richard Robson, and Omar M. Yaghi for their work on metal-organic frameworks.
• Economics – Joel Mokyr, Peter Howitt, and Philippe Aghion for their ideas on how technology helps economies grow and change.
• Literature – László Krasznahorkai for his powerful and imaginative writing.
• Peace – María Corina Machado for her efforts to promote democratic rights and a peaceful transition in Venezuela.
• Physics – John Clarke, Michel H. Devoret, and John M. Martinis for their discoveries about quantum mechanics in electric circuits.
• Physiology or Medicine – Mary E. Brunkow, Fred Ramsdell, and Shimon Sakaguchi for their discoveries about how the body's immune system works.

See also

In Spanish: 2025 para niños

• List of elections in 2025