The year 2017 in 17 pictures

The dangerous journey across the Gulf of Bengal is behind her. This woman has escaped violence and oppression in her majority Buddhist homeland Myanmar. Like more than 600,000 other Muslim Rohingya, she fled to neighboring Bangladesh. The United Nations have spoken of their plight as "ethnic cleansing."

In the Iraqi city of Mosul, this father and his daughter are running from terror and violence. For more than three years, the so-called "Islamic State" had controlled their city, as well as of other areas in Iraq and Syria. In the following months, however, "Islamic State" lost ground and Iraqi government forces regained control of Mosul in July.

Despite continued international condemnations and sanctions, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un continued to develop the country's missile capabilities in 2017. Pyongyang also launched its sixth and hitherto most powerful nuclear weapons test. Tensions between the US and North Korea intensified after a test showed that North Korean missiles could possibly reach the US mainland.

The end of an era: In November, Robert Mugabe, 93, was forced to resign as President of Zimbabwe under pressure from the military as well as his party. Many MPs cheered his demise. The former national hero’s 37-year reign of brutality and autocratic control crumbled within days of a military takeover. Mugabe had ruled Zimbabwe since 1980.

It's known as the worst war crime since World War II: In Srebrenica, Ratko Mladic and his soldiers murdered 8,000 Bosniaks, including the husbands and sons of the women pictured above. The women cheered when he was convicted. After hiding from the authorities for sixteen years, the International Criminal Court sentenced the former general to life in prison.

Venezuela's Socialist President Nicolas Maduro ordered the use of water cannons and violence to control the thousands of protesters who fought his authoritarian government in 2017. Venezuela is embroiled in a deep political and economic crisis. To consolidate his power, Maduro went as far as stripping the opposition-controlled National Assembly of its authority by creating a rival assembly.

The Russian opposition is back. Organized by opposition leader Alexei Navalny, tens of thousands of people took to the streets in various Russian cities to protest alleged corruption under President Vladimir Putin. The Russian police forcefully removed and arrested hundreds of protesters, such as in this photo taken in Moscow in March.

Actress Rose McGowan was among the first to publicly accuse Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein of sexual assault. The Weinstein scandal unleashed a wave of indignation and dismissals. Thousands of women and men across the world used the hashtag #MeToo to tell their stories of sexual harassment and abuse on social media.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer accused journalists of "deliberate false reporting" on the number of visitors at President Donald Trump's inauguration ceremony in January — despite these photos, which suggest that considerably more people attended Barack Obama's inauguration in 2009. This set off the first of many controversies of Trump's presidency in 2017.

It all started with American football player Colin Kaepernick and has turned into a movement: Like many others, the New England Patriots are taking a knee during the national anthem to protest police brutality and racism in the US. Many think the move was unpatriotic and an act of resistance against US President Donald Trump — who reacted with outraged tweets and threats.

A white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, escalates when a car driver plows into a crowd of counter protesters, killing one person. President Donald Trump reacts by talking about "violence on both sides" without specifically condemning the right-wing protesters. Immense public pressure and outrage forced him to backpedal on the statement.

British activist Saffiyah Khan left an impression on many when she stared down English Defence League (EDL) protester Ian Crossland. At a rally in Birmingham in the UK, Khan came to the aid of a woman wearing a headscarf who had been threatened by the right-wing demonstrators. The EDL is one of many anti-Muslim, right-wing organizations in Europe.

Pro-unity protesters march through Barcelona in response to the illegal and controversial referendum on Catalan independence on October 1. Days before, the Spanish authorities had tried to stop the referendum, including through the use of police force. Again and again, thousands of pro and anti-independence protesters have flooded the streets.

The icebergs that pass through the "Iceberg Alley" in Canada are a tourist attraction — and a sign of how climate change is progressing. Even though they glide past Newfoundland's coast every year in spring, the icebergs are getting bigger, more numerous and arrive earlier in the year — trends that worry climate researchers.

It was the highlight of this year’s documenta 14 art festival in the central German town of Kassel: The "Parthenon of Books" by Argentinian artist Marta Minujin. The facade consisted of 67,000 books that were or are still banned somewhere in the world. The books were then distributed to the visitors. For the first time, documenta was held in Kassel and Athens simultaneously.

It is the highest price ever paid for a painting — Leonardo Da Vinci's "Salvator Mundi" was auctioned off for $450 million in New York. The painting is one of fewer than 20 known paintings by the artist. According to Christie’s auction house, the Ministry of Culture in Abu Dhabi was the buyer. "Salvator Mundi" will be exhibited in the new Louvre in Abu Dhabi.

After winning the 100-meter final at the IAAF Championship in London, Justin Gatlin kneels in front of Jamaican star runner Usain Bolt, who ended his career in 2017 having won nine Olympic gold medals. Bolt is the only person to have run 100 meters in under 9.6 seconds. The Man United fan now fancies a career in soccer. He says some clubs have contacted him already — among them Borussia Dortmund.