Violent protests occurred in Europe, mostly in Central European countries, as some nations went back into full lockdown to try to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the approach to Christmas. Numbers of daily new cases had already risen to record levels throughout Europe before the lockdowns were ordered.

In Belgium, the Netherlands and Austria, protesters erected street barriers and set fires, clashing with police in multiple cities. Other countries, such as Italy, Croatia and Germany...

A suicide bomber detonated his bomb in a taxi outside of a hospital in Liverpool, England, on Nov. 14, killing only himself and injuring the taxi driver, who was an innocent victim. After the bombing, the UK government raised their terrorism alert level to “severe.”

The bomber was identified as an asylum seeker from Iraq who was not on any watch lists, though he had been held for a mental-health check in the past. Though the incident is being called an act of terrorism,...

Mt. Semeru, on the island of Java, Indonesia, erupted on Dec. 5, blanketing nearby villages in ash and causing lahars, deadly flows of mud and ash. At least 22 people were killed and more than 50 were injured, with dozens of people still missing at press time. Many villages were completely buried with ash up to the roofs of homes.

Semeru is in a nearly constant state of activity, regularly producing magma and sending ash clouds into the air. However, this eruption was particularly...