Pictures of the week: From a sandstorm in Basra to fishermen in Fujairah


  • A wheelchair-bound person is assisted across a road in low visibility during a severe sandstorm in Basra, southern Iraq. AFP
    A wheelchair-bound person is assisted across a road in low visibility during a severe sandstorm in Basra, southern Iraq. AFP
  • Artist Mohamed Kazem at the Art Dubai 2025 preview. Antonie Robertson/The National
    Artist Mohamed Kazem at the Art Dubai 2025 preview. Antonie Robertson/The National
  • Visitors ride the escalator to the main arena at Expo 2025 Osaka-Kansai in Japan. Victor Besa / The National
    Visitors ride the escalator to the main arena at Expo 2025 Osaka-Kansai in Japan. Victor Besa / The National
  • Chinese flags wave as President Xi Jinping arrives in Hanoi for a two-day state visit to Vietnam. AFP
    Chinese flags wave as President Xi Jinping arrives in Hanoi for a two-day state visit to Vietnam. AFP
  • Nomads in traditional garb take part in a sand hockey match during the Nomads Festival, in Mhamid El Ghizlane in Morocco's southern Sahara desert. AFP
    Nomads in traditional garb take part in a sand hockey match during the Nomads Festival, in Mhamid El Ghizlane in Morocco's southern Sahara desert. AFP
  • Indonesian Catholics reenact the crucifixion of Jesus Christ at the compound of St. Vincent A Paulo church in Surabaya, eastern Java island. AFP
    Indonesian Catholics reenact the crucifixion of Jesus Christ at the compound of St. Vincent A Paulo church in Surabaya, eastern Java island. AFP
  • A wave breaks on a rock pool at North Narrabeen Beach in Sydney as large swells hit the east coast of Australia. AFP
    A wave breaks on a rock pool at North Narrabeen Beach in Sydney as large swells hit the east coast of Australia. AFP
  • Sikh pilgrims take a holy dip at the Gurdwara Panja Sahib in Hassan Abdal, Pakistan. EPA
    Sikh pilgrims take a holy dip at the Gurdwara Panja Sahib in Hassan Abdal, Pakistan. EPA
  • A Javan hawk-eagle in an enclosure at the Bali Wildlife Rescue Centre in Tabanan, Indonesia. EPA
    A Javan hawk-eagle in an enclosure at the Bali Wildlife Rescue Centre in Tabanan, Indonesia. EPA
  • Palestinians gather following an Israeli attack on a metalsmith's workshop in the Zaytoun neighbourhood of Gaza city. AFP
    Palestinians gather following an Israeli attack on a metalsmith's workshop in the Zaytoun neighbourhood of Gaza city. AFP
  • Police detain Shama Mohamed, a member of India's main opposition Congress party, as she and others protest outside the party headquarters after the party's senior leader, Rahul Gandhi, and his mother Sonia Gandhi were accused in a money laundering case by the country’s financial crime agency, in New Delhi. Reuters
    Police detain Shama Mohamed, a member of India's main opposition Congress party, as she and others protest outside the party headquarters after the party's senior leader, Rahul Gandhi, and his mother Sonia Gandhi were accused in a money laundering case by the country’s financial crime agency, in New Delhi. Reuters
  • People smeared in vermilion powder carry a ceremonial palanquin during the Bisket Jatra festival, in Thimi, on the outskirts of Kathmandu, Nepal. EPA
    People smeared in vermilion powder carry a ceremonial palanquin during the Bisket Jatra festival, in Thimi, on the outskirts of Kathmandu, Nepal. EPA
  • South Korean firefighters work at the scene of a collapsed subway construction site in Gwangmyeong on April 12. AP
    South Korean firefighters work at the scene of a collapsed subway construction site in Gwangmyeong on April 12. AP
  • Palestinians inspect the damage at the site of an Israeli strike on a tent sheltering displaced people, in Khan Younis, Gaza. Reuters
    Palestinians inspect the damage at the site of an Israeli strike on a tent sheltering displaced people, in Khan Younis, Gaza. Reuters
  • Flower sellers at work near a collapsed building in Mandalay on 12 April as Myanmar recovers from a 7.7 magnitude earthquake that killed more than 3,000 people two weeks ago. EPA
    Flower sellers at work near a collapsed building in Mandalay on 12 April as Myanmar recovers from a 7.7 magnitude earthquake that killed more than 3,000 people two weeks ago. EPA
  • An Afghan girl peers through a torn curtain at the entrance of her home at Kababayan Refugee Camp in Peshawar, Pakistan. AP
    An Afghan girl peers through a torn curtain at the entrance of her home at Kababayan Refugee Camp in Peshawar, Pakistan. AP
  • Salvadoran police officers escort an alleged member of the gangs Venezuelan Tren de Aragua and MS-13 who was deported by the US government to be held in the Terrorism Confinement Centre prison, Tecaluca, El Salvador. Reuters
    Salvadoran police officers escort an alleged member of the gangs Venezuelan Tren de Aragua and MS-13 who was deported by the US government to be held in the Terrorism Confinement Centre prison, Tecaluca, El Salvador. Reuters
  • Trader Peter Michael Tuchman waits for the closing bell on April 11's session of the New York Stock Exchange. AFP
    Trader Peter Michael Tuchman waits for the closing bell on April 11's session of the New York Stock Exchange. AFP
  • Victor Martins hits a board in a Formula Two race at Bahrain International Circuit. Getty Images
    Victor Martins hits a board in a Formula Two race at Bahrain International Circuit. Getty Images
  • Revellers gather for the first weekend of the Coachella Music and Arts Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California. AP
    Revellers gather for the first weekend of the Coachella Music and Arts Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California. AP
  • Filipinos wave fronds as they celebrate Palm Sunday at a church in San Jose Del Monte, Bulacan, the Philippines. Getty Images
    Filipinos wave fronds as they celebrate Palm Sunday at a church in San Jose Del Monte, Bulacan, the Philippines. Getty Images
  • Penitents of 'El Cerro' brotherhood take part in Easter celebrations in Seville. AFP
    Penitents of 'El Cerro' brotherhood take part in Easter celebrations in Seville. AFP
  • A Hindu devotee is painted to celebrate the Lal Kach festival in Munshiganj, Bangladesh. Reuters
    A Hindu devotee is painted to celebrate the Lal Kach festival in Munshiganj, Bangladesh. Reuters
  • A man looks at photographs of missing people attached to the Mexico-US border fence in Playas de Tijuana, Baja California State, Mexico. AFP
    A man looks at photographs of missing people attached to the Mexico-US border fence in Playas de Tijuana, Baja California State, Mexico. AFP
  • The aftermath of a Russian drone attack on Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, on April 12. Reuters
    The aftermath of a Russian drone attack on Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, on April 12. Reuters
  • Visitors walk among flowers in bloom, some of the 1.5 million bulbs grown for Tulleys Tulip Fest, at Turners Hill, southern England. Reuters
    Visitors walk among flowers in bloom, some of the 1.5 million bulbs grown for Tulleys Tulip Fest, at Turners Hill, southern England. Reuters
  • Divers take the plunge from the Quebrada cliff in the resort town of Acapulco, Guerrero, Mexico. EPA
    Divers take the plunge from the Quebrada cliff in the resort town of Acapulco, Guerrero, Mexico. EPA
  • People evacuate Florida State University in Tallahassee after a mass shooting. Reuters
    People evacuate Florida State University in Tallahassee after a mass shooting. Reuters
  • Terraced rice fields are seen in Congjiang, in south-west China's Guizhou Province. AFP
    Terraced rice fields are seen in Congjiang, in south-west China's Guizhou Province. AFP
  • Fishermen bring their catch to shore at a beach in Fujairah. AFP
    Fishermen bring their catch to shore at a beach in Fujairah. AFP