The Guardian’s picture editors have selected a series of compelling photographs from around the world for Friday, capturing moments of political significance, cultural celebration, and natural beauty.
United Kingdom: Election Highlights
In London, Zack Polanski, leader of the Green Party, embraced Green candidate Zoë Garbett after she was elected as mayor of Hackney. Labour leader Keir Starmer met party members at Kingsdown Methodist Church in Ealing. In Sunderland, the gold shoes of Reform UK candidate Philip Thompson caught attention at the election count. Meanwhile, in Edinburgh, a vote counter paused while ballot boxes were emptied during the Scottish parliamentary elections.
International Politics and Diplomacy
Pope Leo XIV met with beneficiaries of the Temple of Charity in Pompeii, Italy, on the first anniversary of his pontificate. In Rome, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni held talks at Chigi Palace. US President Donald Trump visited the Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool in Washington DC, observing a new blue protective coating applied during renovation. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspected a naval vessel at an undisclosed location, as shown in an image released by state media. In Lebanon, mourners attended a funeral for four people killed in an Israeli strike. Firefighters in Ukraine worked to extinguish a forest fire in the Chornobyl exclusion zone after a drone crashed near the defunct nuclear plant.
Legal and Military Events
In Melbourne, Australia, an armoured police vehicle transported two women allegedly linked to Islamic State from a magistrates court. In Taipei, Taiwan, Cheng Li-wun, chair of the Kuomintang, reacted after parliament approved a $25bn special defence budget bill.
Culture and Entertainment
In Budapest, members of the FrenAk Company performed during a rehearsal of F-EVER at the National Dance Theatre. In Mexico City, fans of the South Korean K-pop band BTS gathered outside Estadio GNP Seguros before a concert. In Chengdu, China, cars passed blooming bougainvillea flowers along viaducts.
Remarkable Discovery
In Geneva, Switzerland, the Ocean Dream, a triangular vivid blue-green diamond weighing 5.50 carats, was displayed at Christie’s auction house. It is said to be the largest such diamond known to exist, valued between £6.6m and £9.4m.
