Best photos of March 23: Protests in Istanbul to Earth Hour in Rio de Janeiro

The National picks the most striking images from around the world

TOPSHOT - Turkish riot police spray tear gas onto a protester during a demonstration outside Istanbul's city hall to support Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu following his arrest in connection with two probes, one for "aiding a terrorist organisation" and a second for graft, in Istanbul, on March 22, 2025. Imamoglu, who is the chief rival of Turkey's President, was arrested on March 19, 2025, days before he was to be formally named the main opposition CHP's candidate for the 2028 presidential race. Riot police have since then clashed repeatedly with the protesters, deploying tear gas, rubber bullets and water cannon against them in Istanbul, the capital Ankara and the western coastal city of Izmir. (Photo by KEMAL ASLAN / AFP)

A whirling dervish spins at a restaurant ahead of iftar, the evening meal breaking the Ramadan fast, in front of Bab Al Futuh, one of the remaining gates of the old city of Cairo, Egypt. AP

People walk on a flooded street after heavy rains in Pucallpa, Peruvian Amazon. AFP

Smoke rises following an Israeli air strike in Gaza city. EPA

Gregoire Munster of Belgium drives his Ford Puma Rally 1 car during day three of Rally Safari 2025, in Naivasha, Kenya. EPA

Hikers make their way through the Ladder Canyon and Painted Canyon trails in the Mecca Hills Wilderness at the Chuckwalla National Monument near Coachella, California. Reuters

An Indonesian Muslim woman reads the Quran while others take sleeping breaks as they spend the night in worship at the Al Akbar Mosque on the 23rd night of Ramadan, in Surabaya. AFP

The Christ the Redeemer statue stands with its lights turned off during an hour of voluntary darkness for the global "Earth Hour" campaign in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. AP