
Thailand’s Year of Contrasts as 2024 Beckons
Voice of America
Fireworks explode over the Grand Palace during the New Year celebrations, in Bangkok, Thailand, Jan. 1, 2024.
Thailand has seen an eventful year filled with twists and turns that has reshaped the country’s political and societal landscape.

Municipal employees place caution tape to restrict access for tourists due to recent seismic activities in Oia village on the Greek island of Santorini, Feb. 5, 2025. Fire service rescuers arrive at the airport of the earthquake-hit island of Santorini, Greece, Feb. 5, 2025. A passenger sits on the dock while waiting for a ferry bound for the Greek mainland, in the earthquake-struck island of Santorini, Greece, Feb. 4, 2025.

A man sits beside the wreckage of burnt military supply vehicles used by suspected Islamic State fighters in the Cal Miskaad mountain range in Bari, east of the Gulf of Aden in the city of Bosaso, Puntland region, Somalia, Jan. 25, 2025. Puntland Security Forces parade newly trained soldiers and equipment to combat Islamic State in Somalia's Puntland region, Jan. 30, 2025. Puntland security forces patrol after capturing Islamic State bases in the Cal Miskaad mountain range in Bari, east of the Gulf of Aden in the city of Bosaso, Puntland region, Somalia, Jan. 25, 2025.

Guards stand in a corridor Syrian Democratic Forces-run Gweiran Prison, now called Panorama, which houses men accused of being Islamic State fighters in Hassakeh, northeastern Syria, Jan. 31, 2025. An inmate accused of being an Islamic State fighter stands inside a cell at the Syrian Democratic Forces-run Gweiran Prison, now called Panorama, in Hassakeh, northeastern Syria, Jan. 31, 2025.