Participants take part in the so-called “Bearded Men” parade in the streets of Slawatycze village, eastern Poland, 29 December 2023. “Bearded Men” is an old local tradition, passed from generation to generation. In last three days of December, costumed citizens of Slawatycze say goodbye to the old year and make wishes for the New Year. (Photo by Wojtek Jargilo/EPA/EFE)

Palestinian couples participate in a mass wedding ceremony in Hamad City in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, Tuesday, December 2, 2025. (Photo by Abdel Kareem Hana/AP Photo)

A horseman rides through a bonfire during the annual “Luminarias” celebration on the eve of Saint Anthony's day, Spain's patron saint of animals, in the village of San Bartolome de Pinares, Avila, Spain, January 16, 2026. (Photo by Ana Beltran/Reuters)

At least 43 people have been killed and more than 200 others wounded in an attack by Somali Islamist militants on a Nairobi shopping mall, the Kenyan Red Cross said on Sunday. The Somali Islamist group al Shabaab claimed responsibility for Saturday’s attack on the Kenyan capital’s Westgate mall, which is frequented by Westerners as well as Kenyans. Several foreigners, including a Canadian diplomat, were among the dead. Photo: Security officers secure an area inside the Westgate Shopping Centre. (Photo by Siegfried Modola/Reuters)

This bat gives a cheeky smile as he gobbles down his food at Singapore Zoo, on September 10, 2013. (Photo by Benny Iskander/HotSpot Media)

Young Chinese football players help an injured player off the field during training at the Evergrande International Football School on June 12, 2014 near Qingyuan in Guangdong Province, China. The sprawling 167-acre campus is the brainchild of property tycoon Xu Jiayin, whose ambition is to train a generation of young athletes to establish China as a football powerhouse. The school is considered the largest football academy in the world with 2400 students, more than 50 pitches and a squad of Spanish coaches through a partnership with Real Madrid. (Photo by Kevin Frayer/Getty Images)

“Basunga”. Basunga (3 weeks-old newborn with albinism) is happily sleeping with his cousin. For now, he does not yet realize the difficulties he will face to integrate into the Congolese society as a PWA. The success of his integration will greatly depends of how he accepts himself and his skin condition a and how educated he will be. Photo location: Kinshasa, Congo RDC. (Photo and caption by Patricia Willocq/National Geographic Photo Contest)

Fishermen slaughter a 9.61m Baird's Beaked whale at Wada Port on June 28, 2008 in Minami Boso, Chiba, Japan. Only five ports are allowed whaling under the coastal whaling program which tries to keep whaling tradition that dates back to the seventeenth century. Japan is only allowed to hunt a limited number of whales every year. (Photo by Koichi Kamoshida/Getty Images)