Through the lens: The Citizen's Picture Editors select the best news photographs from South Africa and around the world.
Indian activists from the Bajrang Dal and Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) shout slogans after being detained by police during a protest against the mob lynching of a Hindu worker in Bangladesh, near the Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in Mumbai, India, 23 December 2025. Dipu Chandra das, a Hindu worker in Bangladesh, was allegedly lynched by a mob over the allegation of blasphemy in Mymensingh district on 18 December. Picture: EPA/DIVYAKANT SOLANKIVictor Mthethwa Majola appears at Johannesburg Magistrates Court, 24 December 2025, on charges of premeditated murder of DJ Warras. The case was postponed to 6 January 2026. Picture: Nigel Sibanda/ The CitizenMembers of the Bolivian Workers’ Union (COB) clash with police during a protest demanding the repeal of a law that removes fuel subsidies in La Paz, Bolivia, 23 December 2025. Picture: EPA/LUIS GANDARILLASA general view of a campaign billboard of Uganda’s President and presidential candidate for the National Resistance Movement (NRM) Yoweri Museveni next to a road congested with traffick in Kampala on December 24, 2025 as people rush to do last minute shopping and travelling to their villages on Christmas eve. (Photo by Badru KATUMBA / AFP)Supporters of Guimaraes light flares as they cheer during the Portuguese First League soccer match between Vitoria de Guimaraes and Sporting CP, in Guimaraes, Portugal, 23 December 2025. Picture: EPA/JOSE COELHOA Palestinian boy waves a Palestinian flag over the rubble of the home belonging to the family of Malik Ismail Salem in Bizarya village near the West Bank city of Nablus, 24 December 2025. The Israeli army demolished the home of Malik Ismail Salem, who was killed by Israeli fire on 10 July 2025, according to the Palestinian WAFA news Agency. Picture: EPA/ALAA BADARNEHA young butcher holds up a duck at Smithfield Christmas meat auction in London, Britain, 24 December 2025. Hundreds of people gathered for a chance to purchase bargain meat on Christmas Eve at Smithfield market in London. Picture: EPA/ANDY RAINThis handout photograph taken and released on December 24, 2025 by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) shows ISRO’s launch vehicle LVM3-M6 carrying the United States’ next-generation BlueBird Block-2 communication satellite of AST SpaceMobile lifting off from the launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota in India’s Andhra Pradesh state. (Photo by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) / AFP)Ukrainians sing Christmas carols and carry traditional doughnuts (pampushky) during a parade in downtown Lviv, Western Ukraine, 24 December 2025, as part of Christmas celebrations amid the Russian invasion. Ukraine will celebrate Christmas on 25 December for the third time according to the Western calendar. Ukrainian President Zelensky signed a law in July 2023 moving the official Christmas Day holiday to 25 December, departing from the Russian Orthodox Church tradition of celebrating on 07 January. Picture: EPA/MYKOLA TYSPeople enjoy the outdoors on Christmas Eve at Coolangatta on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia, 24 December 2025. Picture: EPA/Jason O’BrienAn elephant lifts a Christmas tree decorated with carrots with its trunk during a special Christmas feeding at the Budapest Zoo, in Budapest, Hungary, 23 December 2025. Picture: EPA/Zoltan BaloghA man pours water as he exercises outdoor during snowfall in Shenyang, northern China’s Liaoning province on December 23, 2025. (Photo by AFP)A saleswoman adjusts gold jewellery for sale at a shop in Lianyungang, in China’s eastern Jiangsu province on December 24, 2025. (Photo by AFP)Police officers inspect the Hati Kudus Catholic Church during a security check ahead of Christmas celebrations in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, 24 December 2025. Although the majority of Indonesians are Muslim, Christmas is widely observed across the country, with many non-Christians celebrating it as a secular holiday. Picture: EPA/HOTLI SIMANJUNTAK
