Best photos of May 26: A library in Mauritania to Macron in Vietnam

The National picks the most striking images from around the world

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  Library manager Mohamed Ben Baty poses for a portrait in front of his home decorated with traditional paintings in Oualata, on April 4, 2025. Oualata is one of a UNESCO-listed quartet of ancient, fortified towns or "ksour", which in their heyday were trading and religious centres and now hold jewels dating back to the Middle Ages. Centuries-old manuscripts, a rich source of cultural and literary heritage handed down the generations, are also still held in family libraries. For decades, Oualata's population has been dwindling as residents move away in search of jobs, leaving nobody to maintain the historic buildings. (Photo by PATRICK MEINHARDT / AFP)

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  Visitors attend the Arab Media Summit. World Trade Centre, Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National

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  A woman checks the damages at the Fahmi Al Jarjawi School in Gaza city following an Israeli air strike. AFP

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  US Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem at a memorial ceremony for two Israeli embassy staffers killed in Washington, at the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem. EPA

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  Members of the Fire and Rescue New South Wales clear mud from a property damaged following flooding in Smithtown, Australia. Reuters

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  A visitor at Leavenworth National Cemetery in Kansas on the eve of Memorial Day. AP

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  Villagers dry rapeseed at a village in south-western China's Chongqing municipality. AFP

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  French President Emmanuel Macron beats a drum at Van Mieu temple in Hanoi during his first official trip to Vietnam. AP