Today's best photos: From Popocatepetl spewing ash to release of Arctic foxes

The National picks the most striking images from around the world

Popocatepetl volcano outside Mexico City spews ash. Around two dozen flights have been cancelled as a result. AFP

Competitors take part in the 200-metre swim event during the annual Winter Swimming Festival at Lake Memphremagog in Vermont. EPA

Ostrich chicks roam in a fenced field at a farm in Oudtshoorn, South Africa, one of dozens in the area. AFP

Firebombs explode near riot police at a demonstration in central Athens during a 24-hour national strike. AFP

People ride sleds at the Michlifen ski resort in the Atlas Mountains in Morocco. AFP

Children sit in a destroyed car in Rafah, in the south of the Gaza Strip. AFP

A helicopter carries a container of water over homes burned by the Smokehouse Creek Fire in Canadian, Texas. AP

The Odysseus lunar lander over the south pole region of the Moon. The lander is still beaming back pictures as it nears the final hours of its life. AP

French National Police cadets take part in their graduation ceremony at the National Police Superior School in Cannes-Ecluse. AFP

Conservation biologists Kristine Ulvund and Craig Jackson from Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA) and Park Rangers Olaf Bratland and Harald Normann Andersen, from the Norwegian Nature Inspectorate, release a blue and a white Arctic fox into the wild at the Hardangervidda National Park near Geilo, Norway, February 8, 2024 in this handout image. Climate change and habitat loss push thousands of the world's species to the edge of survival, disrupting food chains and leaving some animals to starve; and while some scientists say it's inevitable that we’ll need more feeding programs to prevent extinctions, others question whether it makes sense to support animals in landscapes that can no longer sustain them. "If the food is not there for them, what do you do?" said Jackson. Craig Jackson/Handout via REUTERS SEARCH "NIESNER ARCTIC FOXES" FOR THIS STORY. SEARCH "WIDER IMAGE" FOR ALL STORIES. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. MANDATORY CREDIT

The National

More from The National:

Wednesday's best photos: From the completion of a UK tunnel to a taxi protest in Bucharest

Tuesday's best photos: From Nato military exercise to India's Modi at space centre

Monday's best photos: From a rally supporting Bolsonaro to ice formations in Michigan

Sunday's best photos: From Macron's visit to an Agricultural Show to a giant panda in Seoul

Saturday's best photos: From American white pelicans to Mercato Market in Ethiopia

Friday's best photos: From a presidential resignation to a Moon landing

Updated: February 29, 2024, 1:10 PM