In partnership with the ZUMA photo agency, we present this week’s top images — from scenes of shock in the streets of Washington, D.C. to extreme heatwave striking India, and a very blue kind of record in Brittany, France.
Gaza under siege
May 18 — Food distribution at a Gaza City camp, amid famine caused by closed crossings, blocked aid, and ongoing military escalation.
Israeli Embassy employees shot in Washington, D.C.
May 21— Police secure the area outside the Capital Jewish Museum after two Israeli Embassy staff were fatally shot outside a Jewish museum in Washington, D.C.
Activists stage oil spill outside Shell HQ in London
May 20 — Environmental activists pour fake oil on each other outside Shell HQ in London, to protest oil spills in Nigeria as Shell holds its general assembly at a protest-restricted location in Heathrow.
Inauguration of Pope Leo XIV in Vatican City
May 18 — Pope Leo XIV officiates at Mass in St. Peter’s Square — his first Mass since being elected the Catholic Church’s 267th pope earlier this month.
Mexican navy ship crashes into Brooklyn Bridge
May 19 — Broken masts can be seen dangling from the Mexican Navy ship Cuauhtemoc after a power outage caused it to hit New York’s Brooklyn Bridge, killing two and injuring 19.
Trump and Ramaphosa’s tense Oval Office meeting
May 21 — A White House meeting with President Cyril Ramaphosa went awry after U.S. President Donald Trump unexpectedly showed the South African leader documents and a video allegedly evidencing the harassment and murder of white farmers, and land confiscations. Trump even asked Ramaphosa for explanations about the white “genocide” at play in South Africa.
Heat wave in Kashmir
May 21 — Srinagar recorded its highest May temperature in 57 years, hitting 34.4 °C on Thursday amid an ongoing heatwave across Jammu and Kashmir.
Missile display in Malaysia
May 21 — A missile display kicks off the 17th Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition, an event that draws global defense firms aiming to expand in Asia.
Largest gathering of Smurfs ever
May 17 — After two failed tries, the town of Landerneau in Brittany, France has set a new world record with 3,076 people dressed as Smurfs, Belgium’s beloved blue cartoon characters, surpassing the previous mark of 2,762 set in Germany.
