With a presence in nearly every city and town across Iran, the paramilitary Basij volunteer corps has an ever-increasing influence on life in the Islamic Republic. Authorities created the Basij, which means mobilization in Persian, just after the country's 1979 Islamic Republic. It is part of Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard. Photo: In this Thursday, August 22, 2013 photo, a female member of the Basij paramilitary militia aims a rifle as a trainer looks over her shoulder in Tehran, Iran. (Photo by Ebrahim Noroozi/AP Photo)

Shara Magomedov, right, punches Armen Petrosyan during a middleweight mixed martial arts bout at UFC Fight Night on Saturday, October 26, 2024, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Altaf Qadri/AP Photo)

Taylor Swift fans wait for the doors of Nilton Santos Olympic stadium to open for her Eras Tour concert amid a heat wave in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Saturday, November 18, 2023. A 23-year-old Taylor Swift fan died at the singer's Eras Tour concert in Rio de Janeiro Friday night, according to a statement from the show's organizers in Brazil. (Photo by Silvia Izquierdo/AP Photo)

A woman holds up an umbrella and license plates, one that reads “love”, during violent protests between riot police and demonstrators in the Causeway Bay district of Hong Kong on October 1, 2019. The city observes the National Day holiday to mark the 70th anniversary of communist China's founding Strife-torn Hong Kong on October 1 marked the 70th anniversary of communist China's founding with defiant “Day of Grief” protests and fresh clashes with police as pro-democracy activists ignored a ban and took to the streets across the city. (Photo by Nicolas Asfouri/AFP Photo)

A camel performs during a “dance competition” held during the Pushkar Camel Fair in Pushkar, in the western state of Rajasthan, on November 5, 2019. Thousands of livestock traders from the region come to the traditional camel fair where livestock, mainly camels, are traded. The annual camel and livestock fair is one of the world's largest camel fairs. (Photo by Himanshu Sharma/AFP Photo)

A cat cries out while sitting before a destroyed cabin from a tornado at Paradise Ranch RV Resort in Tylertown, Miss., Sunday, March 16, 2025. (Photo by Rogelio V. Solis/AP Photo)

Meghan Markle gestures as she and Prince Harry visit children at the Lights Academy in Abuja, Nigeria, Friday, May 10, 2024. Prince Harry and his wife Meghan have arrived in Nigeria to champion the Invictus Games, which he founded to aid the rehabilitation of wounded and sick servicemembers and veterans. (Photo by Sunday Alamba/AP Photo)

It's often said that pets and their owners can start to look alike, but these adorable photographs take the old mantra to a new extreme. They are the work of Svetlana Valyiskaya (27), from St Petersburg, who snaps pets in everyday poses in her spare time from her job as a commercial photographer. The vibrant costumes and scenes, which Svetlana designs herself, have made the photos a hit in her native Russia – and it's not hard to see why. She said: “I really love animals, they are loyal, faithful and true and always interesting to work with – plus they never criticise the photographs afterwards”. (Photo by Svetlana Valyiskaya/Mercury)