2012: The Year in Photos, Part 1 of 3

2012 was an eventful year, from big events like the London Summer Olympics and the U.S. presidential race, to regional conflicts in the Middle East and Africa, to smaller issues closer to home. Reverberations from last year's transformative Arab Spring still heavily affect Syria and Egypt; and the slow recovery from the recent global economic crisis brought bitter austerity measures to parts of Europe, leading to widespread protests. Collected here is Part 1 of a three-part photo summary of the last year, covering its first four months. Be sure to see Part 2 and Part 3. The series totals 135 images in all.

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  • Lindsay DeDario / Reuters

    Why You Shouldn't Park Your Car Beside Lake Erie in the Winter

    The owner of this Mitsubushi Lancer left it parked overnight outside a restaurant in Hamburg, New York, beside Lake Erie, on a cold and windy night. By the next day, spray blown from Lake Erie had encased it in ice.

  • Adnan Abidi / Reuters

    Tattooing the Name of God on Your Body as an Act of Faith and Defiance

    For decades, low-caste Hindus in Chhattisgarh, India, tattoo the name of the Hindu god Ram on their bodies—acts of faith and defiance, saying “God is everywhere."

  • Hani Ali / Xinhua Press / Corbis

    Yemen's Unending Chaos

    For nearly a year now, Yemen has been torn by a ferocious war pitting rebels against the government, militias against each other, Al Qaeda and ISIS against everybody, a Saudi-led coalition against Iranian-backed forces, and a desperate civilian populace caught in the middle.

  • Edward DeWitt

    Another Appalachia

    A photographer's war on the “War on Poverty”

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