Updated: March 16, 2014, 12:00 AM
Best photography from around the world, March 15
Crimean flags float in the wind near the monument dedicated to Soviet Union founder Vladimir Lenin in Simferopol’s Lenin Square, on March 15, 2014. Ukraine braced for a breakaway vote in Crimea as deadly violence flared again in the ex-Soviet country’s tinderbox east amid the biggest East-West showdown since the Cold War. Filippo Monteforte / AFP
A woman writes a message for passengers aboard a missing Malaysia Airlines plane. Investigators have concluded that one or more people with significant flying experience hijacked the missing Malaysia Airlines jet. Lai Seng Sin / AP
Palestinians warm themselves during a rainy day at Shati refugee camp in Gaza City. Mohammed Salem / REUTERS
Visitors enjoy music during a fountain show in front of Olympic cauldron at the Sochi 2014 Paralympic Games. Sergei Chirikov / EPA
Jack Peak, 5, casts a shadow across a chalk portrait of Salvador Dali chalked by William Godfrey as kids, artists, and artist kids gather at the Brooks Museum in Memphis, Tenn. Jim Webber/ AP
A boy stands in front of the Crimean parliament building, with members of Crimean self-defence units seen in the background, Thomas Peter / REUTERS
Indian widows smeared in gulal (colored powder) look on they and others participate in Holi celebrations in Vrindavan. Prakash Singh / AFP
People hold a Soviet flag as they take part in a pro-Russian rally in the Black Sea Ukrainian city of Odessa. Alexey Kravtsov / AFP
A man rides a bicycle on the Esplanade du Trocadero in front of the Eiffel tower, in Paris. Ludovic Marin / AFP