Editing 2008 (section)

===December===
*[[December 10]] – The [[Channel Islands|Channel Island]] of [[Sark]], a British [[Crown Dependencies|Crown dependency]], holds its [[2008 Sark general election|first fully democratic elections]] under a new constitutional arrangement, becoming the last European territory to abolish [[feudalism]].<ref name="jGiwP" />
*[[December 11]] – [[Bernie Madoff|Bernard Madoff]] is arrested for [[securities fraud]] after he was turned in by his sons for operating the largest [[Ponzi scheme]] in history, later known as the [[Madoff investment scandal]].
*[[December 18]] –  The [[International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda]] finds [[Théoneste Bagosora]] and two other senior Rwandan army officers guilty of [[genocide]], [[crimes against humanity]] and [[war crime]]s and sentences them to [[life imprisonment]] for their role in the [[Rwandan genocide]].<ref name="o0EEh" />
* [[December 22]] – An ash dike [[Kingston Fossil Plant coal fly ash slurry spill|ruptured]] at a solid waste containment area for a [[Tennessee Valley Authority]] [[Kingston Fossil Plant|coal-fired power plant]] in [[Roane County, Tennessee]], releasing {{convert|1.1|e9USgal|e6m3|order=flip|abbr=unit}} of [[coal fly ash]] [[slurry]] in the largest industrial spill in U.S. history.<ref name=natgeo19>{{cite news |last=Bourne |first=Joel K. |date=February 19, 2019 |title=Coal's other dark side: Toxic ash that can poison water, destroy life and toxify people |url=https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/02/coal-other-dark-side-toxic-ash |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190219140212/https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/02/coal-other-dark-side-toxic-ash/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 19, 2019 |work=National Geographic |access-date=2020-05-22}}</ref>
*[[December 23]] – A [[2008 Guinean coup d'état|military coup d'état]] deposes the government of [[Guinea]] shortly after the death of longtime [[List of presidents of Guinea|President]] [[Lansana Conté]].<ref name="S5uh2" />
*[[December 27]] – Israel [[Gaza War (2008–2009)|invades]] the [[Gaza Strip]], in response to rockets being fired into Israeli territory by [[Hamas]], and due to weapons being smuggled into the area.<ref name="47sj5" /><ref name="xKVxz" /><ref name="guardian.co.uk" />
*[[December 31]] – An extra [[leap second]] (23:59:60) is added to end of the year. The last time this occurred was in [[2005]].