December 7, 2002 (Saturday)
- Two paintings by Vincent van Gogh were stolen from the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam overnight. Coming shortly after a large diamond theft from an exhibition at the Museon in The Hague, it casts doubt on the high-tech security systems.
- Miss Turkey, Azra Akın from Almelo, won the Miss World competition which had been moved from Nigeria to London because of religious violence.
- A massive fire in Edinburgh's Old Town destroys part of the pioneering Informatics department of the University, as well as a major venue for the Edinburgh Fringe.