Major events that left their mark on 2018 (4)

ANKARA (AA) - Here are the main developments of the year day by day, and month by month:

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April 1

- Syria's Baby Karim safe in Turkey

Syrian baby Karim, who became a symbol of the plight of civilian victims of Assad-regime attacks reaches safety in Hatay, southern Turkey along with his family.

- Hundreds of Iraqis stage an open sit-in to protest the collapse of services in the eastern part of the capital.

- The U.S. deploys military reinforcements to Manbij, west of Euphrates River in Syria.

- Security forces arrest 245 Daesh suspects across Turkey and thwart several terror attacks in March.

April 2

- The U.S. declines calls from the UN Security Council for an investigation into violence on the Israeli-Gaza border that has left 18 Palestinians dead, says a UN official.

April 3

- Erdogan, Putin break ground for Turkey's first nuke plant

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin attend the groundbreaking ceremony of Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant via a video conference call from the presidential complex in the capital Ankara, Turkey.

- Israel martyrs 18 Palestinians protesting land grab

Palestinian youth Ahmed Omar Arafa, 25, is among 18 shot dead by the Israeli army since March 30 in mass rallies near the Gaza Strip’s eastern border with Israel.

- Ankara and Moscow agree on the early delivery of Russian S-400 air defense systems to Turkey.

April 4

- Turkey, Iran, Russia vow to fight separatism in Syria

In a joint declaration after a tripartite summit on Syria in capital Ankara, the Turkish, Russian and Iranian presidents stressed their joint resolve to oppose separatism as well as the use of terrorism as an excuse for changing Syria.

- Hundreds of Jewish settlers force their way into East Jerusalem’s flashpoint Al-Aqsa mosque compound.

April 5

- Hundreds of Jewish settlers stormed East Jerusalem’s flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound amid Jewish Passover holiday.

- Supporters of the PYD/PKK terrorist organization attack the Council of Europe’s Agora building in Strasbourg, France.

April 7

- Tanker crashes in a historic mansion on Bosphorus Strait

The Malta-flagged Vitaspirit tanker hits the shore under the Second Bosphorus Bridge, near Anatolian Fortress, in Istanbul's Asian part, reportedly damaging a restaurant.

April 8

- Yulia Skripal, the daughter of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal, is discharged from a hospital after more than a month, following a nerve agent attack in the southern English city of Salisbury.

- Enver Gurhan Kilinc, Turkish researcher at the University of Toronto, designs a diagnostic microchip to swiftly determine antibiotic-resistant bacteria and what particular viruses will destroy them.

April 11

- 257 dead in Algerian plane crash

At least 257 people are killed when an Algerian military aircraft crashes near the capital Algiers, with most of the victims are military personnel and some of their families.

- Ilham Aliyev is reelected as Azerbaijani president with 86.09 percent of the parliamentary vote.

- The independent scientists from the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons confirms that the nerve agent Novichok was used in Salisbury, England on March 4 in a chemical attack on Skripal, former Russian spy, and his daughter.

April 13

- ‘Postmodern’ coup plotters sentenced to life

A Turkish court sentences 21 people, including former military chief Ismail Hakki Karadayi and his deputy Cevik Bir, over 1997 “postmodern” coup in the country.

- US, France and UK strike Syrian chemical targets

The U.S., the U.K., and France launch strikes targeting the Assad regime's chemical weapons capabilities in Syria, including a chemical weapons research center in Damascus, chemical weapons depots in Homs.

April 16

- NATO backs Turkey's 'transparency' on Syria operation

NATO welcomes Turkey's "transparency" in its ongoing counter-terror Operation Olive Branch in Afrin, Syria, says alliance chief Jens Stoltenberg.

- Pentagon seeks to continue arming its Syria 'partners'

The Pentagon seeks to arm up to 65,000 members of a "U.S.-partnered force" in Syria, including the terror group PYD/PKK, according to its 2019 fiscal year budget proposal.

April 17

- Turkey: Opposition leader calls for early elections

Turkey's opposition Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahceli calls for early elections -- presidential and parliamentary -- on Aug. 26.

- Three bear cubs who have lost their mother are given shelter in Turkey's northwestern Bursa province.

- Scientists discover an enzyme that can degrade some of the most common plastics on earth.

- Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu expresses support for a call on snap elections in Turkey.

- A bank in Kosovo suspends some private bank accounts linked to FETO, the terror group behind the defeated 2016 coup attempt in Turkey.

- UN agency sees 'huge impact' of EU-Turkey refugee deal

The EU-Turkey deal has made a “huge impact” on the arrival of refugees via the Mediterranean to Greece, decreasing their numbers from nearly a million in 2015 to under 30,000 in 2017, according to a UN agency. The figure has been about 7,000 so far in 2018.

- MHP leader Bahceli says his party will support President Erdogan in Turkey's planned early presidential election in June.

- Cuba's first non-Castro President in 60 years takes power

The Cuban National Assembly elects former Vice-President Miguel Diaz-Canel as the new president of the country, the first person outside the Castro family to rule the country in almost 60 years.

- One of France's main unions initiates mass marches across the country -- on top of strikes already ongoing in several sectors -- to protest a number of reforms suggested by French President Emmanuel Macron and his government.

April 20

- North and South Korea connect a first-ever hotline between their respective leaders, exactly a week before a much anticipated inter-Korean summit.

- American actress Natalie Portman turns down an invitation to attend a festival in Israel -- where she was slated to receive an award -- to protest ongoing Israeli violence against Palestinians.

April 21

'Greece safe haven for criminals'

In a letter to his Greek counterpart Stavros Kontonis, Turkish Justice Minister Abdulhamit Gul criticizes a Greek court order releasing one of eight fugitive ex-soldiers accused of involvement in the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, saying Greece became a safe haven for criminals.

April 22

- Turks and Australians in Melbourne gather to remember the fallen Anzac troops of the Gallipoli campaign of 1915 at a memorial service.

April 23

- Egyptian photojournalist Mahmoud Abu Zeid, better known as Shawkan, is awarded the 2018 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano Press Freedom Prize.

- Armenian Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan announces his resignation after days of protests in the country.

April 25

- Gazan awarded by Erdogan amputated by Israeli shooting

In 2016, Alaa al-Dali, a Palestinian youth in the Gaza Strip, was awarded a bicycle by Turkish President Erdogan. Two years later, the 21-year-old man loses his leg after being shot by Israeli soldiers stationed on the border of the Gaza Strip during protests against the decades-long Israeli occupation.

- Turkey’s first aviation expo kicks off

Turkey’s first aeronautical expo kicks off bringing major players of the global aerospace industry together. A total of 73 planes are displayed and around 320 companies showcase their products at the event.

April 26

- Former CIA Director Mike Pompeo easily receives Senate confirmation to helm the State Department.

April 27

- Historic inter-Korean summit

The leaders of North and South Korea agree to “complete denuclearization” and lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula.

- At least three Palestinians are martyred by the Israeli army -- and 350 others injured -- amid ongoing rallies along the Gaza Strip’s eastern border.

April 29

- Barcelona wins this season's Spanish La Liga title after beating Deportivo La Coruna 4-2.

April 30

- The U.S.-led joint forces command in Baghdad declares the end of major combat operation against Daesh terrorist organization in Iraq, shutting down its land command headquarters.