Thai office workers walk past armed soldiers standing guard outside the Shinawatra Tower Two in Bangkok, Thailand, 20 May 2014. Thai army Chief Prayuth Chan-ocha early on 20 May 2014, declared martial law giving the military full control to prevent further protest-related violence in the country. The statement was issued about 3 am on 20 May (2000 GMT), according to local media reports. Prayuth has the authority to declare martial law without the consent of the government, which has had caretaker status since 09 December 2013. Thailand has been wracked by six months of non-stop protests seeking to topple the government. At least 25 people have died in political-related violence and more than 700 injured. (Photo by Narong Sangnak/EPA)

“Lofoten Glow”. I was desperately searching a good sunrise spot this particular morning. Normally Storvatnet Lake is completely covered in snow, so you can only imagine my surprise when I saw these crazy ice formations almost being shot out of the frozen lake. I put my crampons on and took a big risk walking out. I could hear the ice cracking underneath my feet, and when you’re all alone in a fjord/canyon like this – the cracks are echoed and sound really frightening. Was it worth it? I sure think so! Photo location: Storvatnet, Lofoten Islands in Northern Norway. (Photo and caption by Stian Klo/National Geographic Photo Contest)

In this March 7, 1991 file photo, a U.S. Marine patrol walks across the charred oil landscape near a burning well during perimeter security patrol near Kuwait City. Twenty five years after the first U.S. Marines swept across the border into Kuwait in the 1991 Gulf War, American forces find themselves battling the extremist Islamic State group, born out of al-Qaida, in the splintered territories of Iraq and Syria. The Arab allies that joined the 1991 coalition are fighting their own conflicts both at home and abroad, as Iran vies for greater regional power following a nuclear deal with world powers. (Photo by John Gaps III/AP Photo)

Eight year-old Maya Mohammad Ali Merhi walks using prosthetic legs made by her father from tin cans in a camp for displaced people, in the northern Syrian province of Idlib on June 20, 2018. Maya and her father were both born without lower limbs. Unable to afford real prosthetic limbs, her father made her a pair out of tin cans filled with cotton and scrap pieces of cloth. Maya's family had to leave their home in the Aleppo province to flee battles. (Photo by Aaref Watad/AFP Photo)

People walk in a field of California poppies and other wildflowers outside of the Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve, after recent rains moved the region's second-driest winter on record up to its seventh-driest, near Lancaster, California, on April 2, 2022. The California Department of Water Resources reported that about one-third of the Sierra Nevada snowpack's water equivalency melted last week under higher-than-normal temperatures, leaving the statewide snow-water equivalent at 38% of normal for the date. (Photo by David Mcnew/AFP Photo)

An aerial view of the holy Muslim Shiite shrine of Imam Moussa al-Kazim as pilgrims gather to commemorate his death, in the Shiite district of Kazimiyah, Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, May 13, 2015. The anniversary of 8th century Shiite Imam Moussa al- Kazim drew tens of thousands of Shiites from all walks to converge on his golden-domed shrine in northern Baghdad. The pilgrims typically march to the shrine while hundreds of tents are erected to offer them free food, drinks and services. (Photo by Hadi Mizban/AP Photo)

A “Star Wars” superfan has brought the universe to his backyard. Amateur photographer Zahir Batin, from Selangor in Malaysia, added stormtroopers, X-wings and other famous sights to his native Tanjong Karang rice fields. The Malaysian snapper decided to combine his love for his hometown with his passion for the out-of-this-world space opera and, in particular, the toys. The amazing shots show TIE fighters on fire flying overhead and AT-AT walking tanks towering over tiny children, as well as Dark Side forces marching through the countryside. Here: a Nubian Royal Starship hovers over the Malaysian rice fields. (Photo by Zahir Batin/Mercury Press)

Belarussians in costumes sing songs during the traditional rite of Shchadrets (Schedry vecher or Generous Eve) in the village of Osovo, some 190 km from Minsk, Belarus, 13 January 2015. Shchadrets is a Belarusian folk holiday celebrated on the New Year's Eve in accordance with the Julian calendar (Old New Year). The holiday is similar to Koliady, when youth in costumes walk from house to house singing holiday songs, performing, and asking for a reward afterwards. (Photo by Tatyana Zenkovich/EPA)