• A Malachite butterfly at at the Butterfly Garden in Abu Dhabi. Victor Besa / The National
    A Malachite butterfly at at the Butterfly Garden in Abu Dhabi. Victor Besa / The National
  • Palestinians run for cover as an Israeli strike hits Al Muttaqin Mosque, in Gaza city. AFP
    Palestinians run for cover as an Israeli strike hits Al Muttaqin Mosque, in Gaza city. AFP
  • A displaced Syrian Kurdish woman from the city of Ras Al Ain carries a child on her back, at Al Talaeh displacement camp. AFP
    A displaced Syrian Kurdish woman from the city of Ras Al Ain carries a child on her back, at Al Talaeh displacement camp. AFP
  • Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attend the funeral of US senator Lindsey Graham in Washington, DC. AFP
    Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attend the funeral of US senator Lindsey Graham in Washington, DC. AFP
  • Migrants reach Spanish territory after swimming from Morocco to Ceuta, a Spanish enclave in North Africa. EPA
    Migrants reach Spanish territory after swimming from Morocco to Ceuta, a Spanish enclave in North Africa. EPA
  • Europe's largest statue of the Virgin Mary, measuring 55.6 metres, in the village of Konotopie, near Torun, Poland. Reuters
    Europe's largest statue of the Virgin Mary, measuring 55.6 metres, in the village of Konotopie, near Torun, Poland. Reuters
  • A wax float is driven through the streets on the first day of the Ubon Ratchathani Candle Festival in Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand. EPA
    A wax float is driven through the streets on the first day of the Ubon Ratchathani Candle Festival in Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand. EPA
  • People swimming near the wreckage of a sunken Second World War German ship, exposed due to low levels in the Danube River, caused by drought and extreme heat, in Prahovo, Serbia. Reuters
    People swimming near the wreckage of a sunken Second World War German ship, exposed due to low levels in the Danube River, caused by drought and extreme heat, in Prahovo, Serbia. Reuters
  • Ash rises during an eruption of Mt Etna, in Italy. AFP
    Ash rises during an eruption of Mt Etna, in Italy. AFP
  • Protesters chant as an elderly woman waits for her ID photo at the Department of Home Affairs offices during a demonstration calling for the removal of undocumented immigrants in Alexandra township, South Africa. AFP
    Protesters chant as an elderly woman waits for her ID photo at the Department of Home Affairs offices during a demonstration calling for the removal of undocumented immigrants in Alexandra township, South Africa. AFP
  • The demolition of the cooling towers of Endesa's thermal power plant near A Coruna, Spain. EPA
    The demolition of the cooling towers of Endesa's thermal power plant near A Coruna, Spain. EPA
  • Canadian bass-baritone Philippe Sly performs during a dress rehearsal for the opera Saint Francois d'Assise at the Salzburg Festival. AFP
    Canadian bass-baritone Philippe Sly performs during a dress rehearsal for the opera Saint Francois d'Assise at the Salzburg Festival. AFP
  • Damage from a landslide on the slopes of Mayuyama mountain after an earthquake struck Japan's southern Kumamoto prefecture, in Shimabara City, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. Reuters
    Damage from a landslide on the slopes of Mayuyama mountain after an earthquake struck Japan's southern Kumamoto prefecture, in Shimabara City, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. Reuters
  • Israeli settlers try to extinguish a wildfire near the Ein Samiya spring in the occupied West Bank. AFP
    Israeli settlers try to extinguish a wildfire near the Ein Samiya spring in the occupied West Bank. AFP
  • A man bows as he enters a shrine damaged in a 6.8-magnitude earthquake in Yatsushiro city, Kumamoto prefecture, Japan. Getty Images
    A man bows as he enters a shrine damaged in a 6.8-magnitude earthquake in Yatsushiro city, Kumamoto prefecture, Japan. Getty Images
  • People take shelter at a metro station during a Russian missile strike on Kyiv, Ukraine. AFP
    People take shelter at a metro station during a Russian missile strike on Kyiv, Ukraine. AFP
  • People cool off at a water park in Nanjing, in eastern China's Jiangsu province. AFP
    People cool off at a water park in Nanjing, in eastern China's Jiangsu province. AFP
  • A model presents a creation by designer Rahul Mishra during the finale of India Couture Week in New Delhi. EPA
    A model presents a creation by designer Rahul Mishra during the finale of India Couture Week in New Delhi. EPA
  • Iranian missiles on display at Azadi Square in Tehran. EPA
    Iranian missiles on display at Azadi Square in Tehran. EPA
  • Competitors in the men's 50-metre butterfly final on day six of the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. AFP
    Competitors in the men's 50-metre butterfly final on day six of the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. AFP
  • Palestinian beekeepers inspect hives on top of a damaged building in Gaza city. Reuters
    Palestinian beekeepers inspect hives on top of a damaged building in Gaza city. Reuters
  • A giant puppet on parade during Manchester Day as the UK city celebrates its cultural links with Barcelona in Spain. Reuters
    A giant puppet on parade during Manchester Day as the UK city celebrates its cultural links with Barcelona in Spain. Reuters
  • Dancers mark the 73rd anniversary of the end of the Korean War at the plaza of the Arch of Triumph in Pyongyang. AFP
    Dancers mark the 73rd anniversary of the end of the Korean War at the plaza of the Arch of Triumph in Pyongyang. AFP
  • Traditional arm-held firework performers, hold a tezutsu hanabi, hand-crafted bamboo tube packed with gunpowder that erupts in a towering column of sparks and flame, during a festival in Tatebayashi, Japan. AFP
    Traditional arm-held firework performers, hold a tezutsu hanabi, hand-crafted bamboo tube packed with gunpowder that erupts in a towering column of sparks and flame, during a festival in Tatebayashi, Japan. AFP
  • Farmers harvest water chestnuts in a pond, in Taizhou, eastern China's Jiangsu province. AFP
    Farmers harvest water chestnuts in a pond, in Taizhou, eastern China's Jiangsu province. AFP
  • South Koreans get into the spirit of the annual Boryeong Mud Festival. Reuters
    South Koreans get into the spirit of the annual Boryeong Mud Festival. Reuters
  • An ambulance carries the body of a Palestinian killed in the violence in Tell, near Nablus. Reuters
    An ambulance carries the body of a Palestinian killed in the violence in Tell, near Nablus. Reuters
  • A man salutes as the body of Japanese militant Kozo Okamoto is carried through Beirut. AFP
    A man salutes as the body of Japanese militant Kozo Okamoto is carried through Beirut. AFP
  • Clouds of smoke caused by wildfires drift past a beach in Lacanau, south-western France. AFP
    Clouds of smoke caused by wildfires drift past a beach in Lacanau, south-western France. AFP
  • Dates are picked at a farm near Liwa, Abu Dhabi. Antonie Robertson / The National
    Dates are picked at a farm near Liwa, Abu Dhabi. Antonie Robertson / The National

Pictures of the week: From a Malachite butterfly in Abu Dhabi to a date harvest in Liwa


Updated: July 31, 2026, 6:02 PM