The daily photographic digest from The Guardian's picture editors presents a stark contrast of human experience across the globe, from scenes of conflict and mourning to moments of everyday life and severe weather.
Conflict and Crisis
In the Gaza Strip, the human cost of conflict is vividly captured. Palestinian boys were photographed walking through the debris of a damaged building belonging to the Ministry of Religious Endowments in Gaza, a day after it was struck by the Israeli army. Further south, in Khan Younis, grieving Palestinians gathered beside the bodies of their relatives at Nasser hospital. The Palestinian ministry of health reported that at least 24 Palestinians were killed in Israeli airstrikes across the north and south of Gaza on Wednesday.
The war in Ukraine also featured prominently, with a poignant image of a man praying in front of an apartment building in Ternopil that was hit by a Russian missile the previous day.
Global Enforcement and Environmental Challenges
In the United States, federal border patrol agents were seen detaining a person in Charlotte, North Carolina, as part of an immigration enforcement surge dubbed Operation Charlotte's Web. Meanwhile, on the US-Mexico border in Santa Teresa, near Ciudad Juarez, military personnel stood guard near a US army Stryker armoured vehicle.
Environmental issues were also in focus. In central Vietnam, the city of Nha Trang was grappling with severe flooding after a week of torrential rain triggered floods and landslides. In New Delhi, India, a fisher cast his net into the Yamuna river, which was covered with a thick layer of polluted foam on a smoggy morning.
Moments of Resilience and Routine
Amidst the turmoil, images of resilience and daily life offered a counterpoint. In Renk, South Sudan, children gathered at the window of a safe-space classroom managed by the charity War Child Holland. In Acara, Brazil, a boy named Riquelme was pictured playing in the backyard of his home in a quilombola, a community of Afro-descendants.
Back in the UK, the weather made headlines as the iconic Tommy statue on Terrace Green in Seaham was covered in snow as people passed by the seafront. The statue, officially named '1101', provided a striking winter scene on the English coastline.
Other selected photographs included primary school students in Lianyungang, China, taking part in a physical education class, the aftermath of a volcanic eruption in East Java, Indonesia, and firefighters battling a blaze in a Nairobi village.
