An Iraqi special forces Counter Terrorism Service (CTS) member screams during a battle against Islamic State group jihadists (IS) in Mosul's al-Rifaq neighbourhood on January 8, 2017, as an ongoing military operation against the militants continues. Elite Iraqi forces battling the Islamic State group in eastern Mosul reached the Tigris River that splits the city in two for the first time, a spokesman said. (Photo by Dimitar Dilkoff/AFP Photo)

A former Gurkha (special forces soldier), Nirmal Purja, takes a selfie at the start of his attempt to scale the world’s 14 highest peaks in seven months to break a 31-year-old record. Nirmal Purja, known as Nims, aims to smash the current record – which stands at seven years, 11 months and 14 days – set by Polish climber Jerzy Kukuczka. On the way, he also plans to defeat at least seven speed world records on mountains over 8,000m high. (Photo by Nirmal Purja/PA Wire Press Association)

In this photo taken on Saturday, January 26, 2019 photo, rescued flamingo chicks have access to water at a centre after being rescued from a dried out dam in Kimberley, South Africa. A special airlift for thousands of baby flamingos is under way in South Africa as drought has put their breeding ground in peril. A reservoir that hosts one of southern Africa's largest flamingo populations is drying up. (Photo by AP Photo/Stringer)

Denis and Nelya, both 30, from Moscow, Russia invited brown bear Stepan along to their very special ceremony. As well as witnessing the couple exchange vows, the bear also played the role of registrar at one point. Denis said: “We both knew Stepan is a very kind bear but still it is a huge, unpredictable animal so we were a bit scared, but still happy to be able to make our dream come true. It was a fantastic experience to have this photoshoot with Stepan”. (Photo by Olga Barantseva/Caters News)

The electronically animated giant baby Miguelin (created by Isabel Coixet in collaboration with the special effects team behind Alien vs. Predator) was seen in the Spanish Pavilion at the site of Shanghai 2010 World Expo on April 27, 2010 in Shanghai, China. (Photo by China Photos)

Johnson Cheung-shing Tsang is a Hong Kong sculptor specializing in ceramics, stainless steel sculpture and public artworks. Tsang’s works mostly employ realist sculptural techniques with a surrealist imagination, integrating the two elements, human beings and objects, into creative themes.

“Theyyam”. Preparation for the Theyyam performance in the surroundings of Kasaragod city. Theyyam is a popular ritual dance form of North Kerala, particularly in Kannur and Kasargod districts. The Theyyam represents a mythological, divine or heroic character. Make up of Theyyams is done by specialist. There are different types of face painting for which primarily and secondary colours are used. Therefore it is essential that the makeup man should have perfect knowledge of primary and secondary colour combinations. Sometimes, it takes several hours to paint each face. Photo location: Kasaragod, India. (Photo and caption by Rafal Ziejewski/National Geographic Photo Contest)

An actress dressed as Black Cat poses for a photo at the London Super Comic Convention at the ExCeL Centre on February 23, 2013 in London, England. Enthusiasts at the Comic Convention are encouraged to wear a costume of their favourite comic character and flock to the ExCeL to gather all the latest news in the world of comics, manga, anime, film, cosplay, games and cult fiction. (Photo by Jordan Mansfield)