Pictures of the week: From Christmas services to 2004 tsunami commemorations

Striking images from around the world

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  Choristers of St Paul's Cathedral choir in London during their preparations for Advent and Christmas services, where they will perform throughout December. Picture date: Monday December 23, 2024. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Lucy North/PA Wire

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  Hindu priests perform morning prayers on the banks of the Ganges in Varanasi, India. AFP

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  A building that fell off the wharf floats in the mouth of the San Lorenzo river in Santa Cruz, California. AP

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  Shopfronts illuminated by Christmas lighting in Leavenworth in the US state of Washington. AP

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  Fireworks explode over Sednaya Convent on the outskirts of Damascus. AP

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  People attend a tour of Bunker-703, a recently declassified nuclear-resistant bomb shelter built in 1961 in Moscow. AP

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  Emergency services attend a bushfire in the Grampians National Park in Australia's Victoria state. AFP

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  A person dressed as Santa Claus jumps into the sea during the Copa Nadal (Christmas Cup) swimming race in Barcelona, Spain. Reuters

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  Firefighters attend the crash site of an Azerbaijan Airlines passenger jet near the western Kazakh city of Aktau. AFP

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  Work in progress at the 37th Sun Island International Snow Sculpture Expo in Harbin, Heilongjiang province, north-eastern China. EPA

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  The Italian Frecce Tricolori aerobatic team performs before the first run of the Men's Giant Slalom race at the FIS Alpine Skiing World Cup event in Alta Badia, Italy. EPA

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  A coastguard ship that was carried about five kilometres inland to the city centre of Banda Aceh during the Indian Ocean tsunami, Indonesia. Reuters

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  Thousands protest over the collapse of a train station roof that killed 15 people last month in Belgrade. AFP

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  An anti-terror policeman conducts a security check near a life-size cutout of Pope Francis at the Jakarta Cathedral on Christmas Eve in Jakarta. AFP

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  Parked trolley buses during heavy snowfall in Sarajevo, Bosnia. AP

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  Storm-damaged shelters and houses in the town of Vahibe, on the French Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte, on Christmas Eve, a week after Cyclone Chido hit the archipelago. AFP

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  A surfer dressed as Santa Claus participates in the annual Surfing Santas event on Christmas Eve at Cocoa Beach, Florida. AFP

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  Prayers at Christmas Mass in St Mary's Church in Dubai. Antonie Robertson/The National

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  St Peter's Basilica during the Christmas Eve Mass in Vatican City. AFP

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  Posters of the missing on a monument in Marjeh Square, Damascus, Syria. AFP

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  Christians hold candles on Christmas Eve at Indonesia Arena in Jakarta. AFP

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  Preparations under way for the International Hot-Air Balloon Festival in Pokhara, Nepal. AFP

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  A butcher throws a cut of meat to a bidder during the traditional Christmas Eve meat auction at Smithfield Market in the City of London. AFP

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  A house with inflatable Christmas decorations in Havana, Cuba, draws admirers. AFP

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  Muay Thai fighters during the Kibra Youth Initiative boxing exhibition at Kibera Fort Jesus grounds in Nairobi, Kenya. AFP

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  Afghan workers on a break at a shop in Herat citadel, also known the Citadel of Alexander and locally known as Qala Iktyaruddin, in Herat, western Afghanistan. AFP

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  Christmas market at Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai. The National

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  Ballet dancers perform Swan Lake, by Russian composer Pyotr Tchaikovsky, at Donbass Opera in Donetsk, Russian-controlled Ukraine. AFP

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  Flowers are laid outside Johannis Church near the Christmas Market in Magdeburg, Germany. AP

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  Women throw flowers into the sea in remembrance of the 2004 tsunami victims, marking the 20th anniversary of the tragedy, in Chennai, India. AP