From Russia's invasion of Ukraine, to the death of Queen Elizabeth II, 2022 was full of big stories. After two years dominated by COVID-19, these headlines took attention away from a pandemic that stubbornly rages on. We've compiled a list of your 15 most-read for the year. After almost a decade in the political wilderness, Australian voters returned Labor to office in 2022, led by Anthony Albanese. While self-described "bulldozer" Scott Morrison had made a last-ditch pitch to voters to keep him in power, his unpopularity would play a key role in a raft of Coalition seat losses. Former treasurer Josh Frydenberg was just one of those high-profile candidates sent packing, amidst a so-called "teal" (independent) wave.
Confusion reigned in January when nine-time Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic was granted an exemption to travel to Australia without being vaccinated against COVID-19. With Melburnians having spent more than 260 days in lockdown, there was also a fair share of public anger at the seeming double standard. The federal government subsequently stepped in, announcing that it would deport the 34-year-old, with Djokovic spending the night in immigration detention as his lawyers appealed. The fiasco made headlines around the world, with the world number one eventually deported on the eve of the tournament.News first broke in February that Russian President Vladimir Putin had authorised a military operation in the Eastern European country. As of December, war still rages in Ukraine, with scores of civilians dead and millions displaced. A recent UN report, released on December 4, estimated that 6,702 civilians had died, with Russian forces killing at least 441 in the first weeks of the invasion. All is not going to plan for Putin, however, with discussion recently turning to the possibility of Ukraine recapturing all of its southern territory — even liberating Crimea.
