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

Striking images from around the world

Choristers at St Paul's Cathedral in London prepare for Advent and Christmas services, at which they have sung throughout December. PA

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Christmas market at Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai. The National

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

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

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