A Palestinian man sits on a damaged car following Israeli airstrikes on Jabaliya refugee camp, northern Gaza Strip, Thursday, May 20, 2021. Heavy airstrikes pummeled a street in the Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza, destroying ramshackle homes with corrugated metal roofs nearby. The military said it struck two underground launchers in the camp used to fire rockets at Tel Aviv. (Photo by Khalil Hamra/AP Photo)

As the world marks the International Day of the Girl Child, women's rights activists point to progress on a wide array of issues but say more needs to be done to protect girls from child marriage, sexual assault and other forms of exploitation. Here is a selection of pictures showing the daily lives of girls across the globe, all taken by female Associated Press photojournalists. Here: In this December 14, 2015, file photo, a young clown rides in the back of a car following a procession to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City. Hundreds belonging to various clown associations made their annual pilgrimage to the Basilica to pay their respects to the Virgin of Guadalupe, Mexico's patron saint. (Photo by Rebecca Blackwell/AP Photo)

Miley Cyrus attends the 82nd Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, California, U.S., January 5, 2025. (Photo by Daniel Cole/Reuters)

British singer-songwriter Rita Ora treats herself to a pretty pink martini in the last decade of January 2025. (Photo by ritaora/Instagram)

Swimmer silhouetted in a waterslide in the coastal suburb of Glenelg, Adelaide, Australia on January 21, 2025. (Photo by Amer Ghazzal/Alamy Live News)

Flames engulf a structure as the Eaton Fire burns in Pasadena, California, U.S. January 7, 2025. (Photo by Mario Anzuoni/Reuters)

The sun sets behind the Giant Swing, also known as Sao Chingcha, in Bangkok, Thailand, on March 6, 2025. (Photo by Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters)

Buddhist nuns watch a parade during a Novitiation Ceremony at the Hlegu Township in Yangon on March 15, 2025. (Photo by Sai Aung Main/AFP Photo)