Summer is in its twilight days and autumn is on the way. September is no busier or quieter than any other month in the year. 2013 was no exception and there were some big stories ‘ some deaths, some political turmoil and some joyful changes. Here is a list of some of the top stories from around the world in September of 2013.

1. Westgate Shopping Centre, Nairobi

The horrendous attack by Islamist militants on a shopping centre in Nairobi, Kenya was the news story of the month. A group of unidentified gunmen attack an exclusive shopping centre and killed 72 people. It was reported that victims had to ‘prove’ their Muslim status by reciting excerpts from the Koran. Islamist group al-Shabaab claimed responsibility as a revenge attack for the deployment of Kenyan troops in Somalia. The gunmen were later killed in a fire fight with the military.

2. Death of Tommy Morrison

The troubled former world champion boxer who shot to fame starring as Tommy ‘The Machine’ Gunn in Rocky 5 soon entered into a proper boxing career. Testing HIV positive in 1996, his license was suspended pending a second test ‘ which also came back positive. Curiously, he later claimed that these were both false positives. Later tests came up negative and despite doubts that the samples were his blood he was permitted to box again. His career ended in 2008 and he died on the 1st September, possibly due to AIDS related illnesses.

3. Pakistan Earthquake

Tragically, over 400 people lost their lives in two earthquakes during the month of September. Power and communications were cut off for weeks in the provinces of Balochistan (measuring 6.8 on the Richter scale) and Arawan (a 7.2 aftershock). People were trapped under debris in the remote village of Nokjo. When the second tremor hit, people who had been in a hospital seeking medical help following the first quake, fled in terror. The fierce nature of the first quake led to the creation of a new island off the coast of the country.

4. Past Times Goes Bust

Once the staple of Christmas shopping in the UK, the high street retailer of memorabilia, decorations, ornaments and other home ware of ‘yesteryear’ finally went bust in September 2013. Hoping to have made it through the Christmas season and enjoy some of the retail sales that would have given them, sadly it wasn’t to be. The interest in the Edwardian period with TV shows such as Downton Abbey did not help their survival in the long run.

5. Clashes in Greece

Following the death of an anti-racist musician in the capital, Athens, protest began against the far right group Golden Dawn. The fight began when the victim got into an argument with a group of right wingers following a football match. He was stabbed and later died. The peaceful protests that followed in the wake spread across the country and in some cases became violent. Golden Dawn members went on to attack a group of Communist Party members and other groups demanded that the government outlaw Golden Dawn

6. Angela Merkel

The Chancellor who has taken a hard-line against the spiralling debt of the EU (and has been critical of Greece in particular) was expected to retain her role at the head of the German government. However, she expected to win by a narrow margin and it came as a surprise that her victory was so large ‘ even though she stopped short of an absolute majority. She is now in her third term as Chancellor, the only European leader to have done so since the 2008 financial crisis.

7. Syria

After the USA said it would bomb chemical weapons facilities in Syria, her British allies surprisingly decided to stay out of it. Prime Minister David Cameron’s intentions were clear: America was going to go it alone. After attempting to persuade Russia and China that there was no other way, opposition to military intervention and a surprising agreement by the Syrian regime to destroy its chemical weapon facilities meant that during the month, America backed down. Efforts to destroy the missiles are on-going.

8. Amanda Knox Retrial

The controversial murder case of an American girl accused of killing a former roommate Meredith Kercher saw the beginning of a new trial in September. The previous trial, in which Knox was found guilty, was eventually thrown out in favour of a retrial (ordered by Italy’s Supreme Court). Knox is now back home in the USA and if convicted a second time, Italy will seek to have her extradited. Knox and her ex-boyfriend always maintained their innocence. A third man was convicted and is serving a 16 year sentence.

9. Not Just Any Phone Call

Any other phone call between two world leaders would be so common that they would not be worth a mention. President Barack Obama probably has regular contact between his Canadian, British and German counterparts. What was historic though was a conversation between the President and his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani. President Obama later went on to say that the conversation had a ‘basis for resolution over the Iranian nuclear programme’. Rouhani had already extended the olive branch in a visit to the UN headquarters in New York, promising to do his best to diffuse tension. In another landmark, he referred to the holocaust as ‘morally reprehensible’.

10. Muslim Brotherhood Banned in Egypt

Amid on-going protests and frustration at the lack of movement from the government, fresh demonstrations in Tahrir Square, Cairo led to the overthrow of Mohammed Morsi in July. Yet following more violence, the group were banned in September, its assets seized and bank accounts frozen in a move that forced the Brotherhood back to a place that had become so familiar to them. Though some hope this will be the end following the arrest or deaths of its leadership, others are hailing a new beginning.

Conclusion

Some of the above stories represent the beginning of something new and other stories the end of something else, some are on-going and others are stand-alone issues. What is clear as we head towards the end of the year is that September 2013 had its fair share of the ground breaking and the mundane.