Pictures of the Week: From America's 250th Independence Day to the Arab Reading Challenge
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The US Air Force Thunderbirds display team perform above Washington's Great American State Fair, as the country marks its 250th anniversary. EPA -
A taxidermy bear, used for presentations in elementary school workshops on the animal, is seen on the backseat of wild bear expert Akiko Takii's van as she packs up after setting a bear trap at a forest in Ina, Nagano Prefecture. Based in Japan's mountainous Nagano prefecture, Takii along with her research partner collect fur and tooth samples from wild Asian black bears for academic purposes. The bears are then tagged with GPS transmitters to study their movements before they are released back into the wild. AFP -
Introduction classes on camel riding during the Sheikh Zayed Summer Festival held at Al Wathba in Abu Dhabi. Victor Besa / The National -
This handout photo taken and obtained on July 9, 2026 from the office of the Lithuanian President shows a revolver offered by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda with the president's name engraved, including live rounds, and displayed during a press presentation in Vilnius, Lithuania. What does a world leader do with a gun and six bullets? That was the conundrum NATO leaders faced after the Turkish president offered them each a revolver after the Ankara summit. AFP -
Britain's King Charles III (L) acknowledges the cheers from a the crowd at the penguin beach at ZSL London Zoo as he and Britain's Queen Camilla (R) visit to celebrate the zoo's 200th anniversary in central London on July 9, 2026. AFP -
UAE Team Emirates - XRG's Slovenian rider Tadej Pogacar cycles to the finish line to win the 6th stage of the 113th edition of the Tour de France cycling race, 186 km between Pau and Gavarnie-Gedre in the French Pyrenees. AFP -
Rafale fighter jets fly over the Arc de Triomphe during a rehearsal, ahead of the Bastille Day parade on the Champs-Elysees avenue in Paris. AFP -
A drone view shows fishing vessels docked in Subic Bay, Zambales province, Philippines. As the Philippines marks the 10th anniversary of the July 12, 2016, international arbitral ruling that invalidated China's expansive claims in the South China Sea. Reuters -
Mourners take part in the funeral procession of Iran's late supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at Imam Hussein Shrine in Karbala. Iranians were preparing on July 9 to bury their slain leader Ali Khamenei in his hometown of Mashhad in northeast Iran, as new US strikes threatened to trigger a fresh escalation in the Middle East war. The late leader's burial follows a multi-day funeral ceremony that attracted millions of mourners across various cities in both Iran and Iraq. AFP -
France's forward #10 Kylian Mbappe celebrates after winning the 2026 World Cup football tournament quarter-final match between France and Morocco at Boston Stadium in Foxborough. AFP -
Models walk the runway during the Elie Saab Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2026/2027 show as part of Paris Fashion Week in Paris, France. Getty Images -
A bus lies partially submerged in a flooded river following landslides triggered by heavy rains in Wayanad. AFP -
Syrian President Ahmad Al Shara and US President Donald Trump at the Nato summit in Ankara. Getty Images -
Repairs are carried out at a logistics park struck by a tornado in Huanggang, Hubei province, China. Reuters -
Glowing bursts of lava erupt from Stromboli volcano on the Italian island of the same name, off the north coast of Sicily. It is one of Europe's most active volcanoes. AFP -
Sri Lanka prison officials in Colombo mourn beside the bodies of colleagues killed in clashes between rival groups of inmates at Negombo Prison. Reuters -
Recycling artist Caroline Chaptini retouches a huge Lebanese flag made from 10,452 bottle caps in Aajaltoun. The number represents the area of Lebanon in square kilometres. EPA -
Customers seek shade at a coffee shop amid a heatwave in the French Riviera city of Nice. AFP -
A firefighter works at the site of a Russian missile strike in Kyiv, Ukraine. Reuters -
A protest over alleged inadequate police action against undocumented migrants in Centurion, South Africa. AFP -
Bulls are run through Pamplona during the San Fermin festival in northern Spain. AFP -
Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo is left dejected after his side are knocked out of the World Cup by Spain. Reuters -
The coffins of victims of the twin earthquakes that rocked Venezuela are buried in Carayaca, La Guaira state. AFP -
Relatives and friends of Waleed Nidal Waleed Abu Sneineh, a 16-year-old Palestinian boy reportedly shot dead by Israeli forces, mourn over his body at a hospital in Ramallah. AFP -
Exiled Tibetans carry a portrait of their spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, to mark his 91st birthday, in Kathmandu, Nepal. EPA -
Veterinary surgeon Angel Cordero carries a white Bengal tiger cub born at Cuba's National Zoo, a milestone for the under-resourced facility in Havana. Reuters -
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un observes an assessment of the newly built naval destroyer Kang Kon's combat systems at an unknown location in North Korea. Reuters -
A white peacock at Sri Lanka's National Zoological Gardens in Dehiwala, with the zoo marking its 90th anniversary. AFP -
Police clash with activists protesting against a conference organised by the far-right Alternative for Germany party in Erfurt. Reuters -
Award ceremony for UAE winner of Arab Reading Challenge, presented by Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed Al Maktoum, Chairperson of the Dubai Culture and Arts Authority. Dubai Exhibition Centre, Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National
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