The Washington Monument lit up on 20 January in memory of 400,000 Americans who had died of Covid (Getty Images)

Tens of thousands of words will have been written about the news this year, but a few select images really illustrate the story of 2021 in the United States.

Whether it was the sight of the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial pool lit up in tribute to 400,000 Americans who had died of Covid in January (and pictured above).

Or the scenes at Kabul’s international airport as the last evacuees fled a resurgent Taliban and the United States’s longest war in August; some pictures and the consequences, and lived experiences behind them, will remain in the memory.

After all, the last 365 days saw hundreds riot on the home of US democracy, the return of athletes competing at Tokyo 2020, and the after effects of a worldwide virus and demonstrations against systemic racism that spilled over into another twelve months of tension, tears and triumph.

Fifteen images have been chosen by The Independent from the year that was, and photographs that capture the essence of what has been for many, an unprecedented time.

The news year began on 6 January 2021 when hundreds – if not thousands – descended on Washington DC for a “Stop the Steal” rally to counter the certification ofJoe Biden’s election victory.

Hundreds of alleged Trump supporters encircled the US Capitol Building on 6 January, as police munition caused a flame – lighting up the crowd. (REUTERS)

The rally, organised by Donald Trump’s supporters and anchored by the man himself, was followed by the storming of the home of US democracy, forcing members of Congress to shelter and the certification of 2020’s election results to be suspended temporarily.

While the rioters were unable to stop Mr Biden from being confirmed the election winner, the assault on dozens of members of police and the deaths of five individuals that day continue to have repercussions for American politics.

On 20 January 2020, Joe Biden became the 46th President of the United States at a ceremony at the US Capitol. (Getty Images)

By the time Mr Biden was sworn in as US president on 20 January, the outgoing commander-in-chief had been subject to his second impeachment in the House of Representatives – and only the fourth in the history of the United States.

Mr Biden, along with his wife Jill and extended family, became president following a ceremony that was socially distanced, surrounded by security cordons and without the hundreds of cheering supporters along the National Mall that Barack Obama enjoyed.</…….

Source: https://news.yahoo.com/2021-pictures-15-photographs-biggest-163846575.html