Nov. 20, 2012, Gaza City, Palestinian Territories: 2-year-old Suhaib Hijazi and his older brother Muhammad were killed when their house was destroyed by an Israeli missile strike. Their father, Fouad, was also killed and their mother was put in intensive care. Fouad’s brothers carry his children to the mosque for the burial ceremony as his body is carried behind on a stretcher.
- [Paul Hansen, Sweden, Dagens Nyheter/Courtesy]

July 31, 2012, Aleppo, Syria: Opposition fighters regularly launched operations to seize government informants after dark. Two informants were captured, declared guilty under interrogation, and tortured throughout the night; tired soldiers had to be replaced so the torture could continue. After 48 hours, the captives were released.
- [Emin Özmen, Turkey/Courtesy]

Oct. 10, 2012, Aleppo, Syria: A Free Syrian Army fighter takes position during the clashes against Syrian government forces in Sulemain Halabi district in Aleppo.
- [Fabio Bucciarelli, Italy/ AFP/Courtesy]

March 10, 2012, Idib, Syria: Aida cries while recovering from severe injuries she received when her house was shelled by the Syrian Army. Her husband and two children were fatally wounded during the shelling.
- [Rodrigo Abd, Argentina/ The Associated Press/Courtesy]

March 7, 2012, Rikuzentakata, Japan: Pine trees uprooted during the tsunami lay strewn over the beach. One year later, areas of Japan most impacted by the earthquake and subsequent tsunami that left 15,848 dead and 3,305 missing, continue to struggle. Thousands of people remain living in temporary dwellings. The government faces an uphill battle with the need to dispose of rubble as it works to rebuild economies and livelihoods.
- [Daniel Berehulak, Australia/Getty Images]

Feb. 12, 2012, Batu Sangkar, West Sumatra, Indonesia: A jockey, his feet stepped into a harness strapped to the bulls and clutching their tails, shows relief and joy at the end of a dangerous run across rice fields. The Pacu Jawi (bull race) is a popular competition at the end of harvest season keenly contested between villages.
- [Wei Seng Chen, Malaysia//Courtesy]

Feb. 21, 2012, Mogadishu, Somalia: The Somali basketball association pays armed guards to watch over and protect Suweys and her team when they play. In Mogadishu, the war-torn capital of Somalia, young women risk their lives to play basketball. Suweys, the 19-year-old captain of a women's basketball team, and her friends defy radical Islamist views on women’s rights.
- [Jan Grarup, Denmark, Laif/Courtesy]

Apr. 3, 2012, Nairobi, Kenya: Pausing in the rain, a woman working as a trash picker at the 30-acre dump, which literally spills into households of 1 million people living in nearby slums, wishes she had more time to look at the books she comes across. She even likes the industrial parts catalogs. “It gives me something else to do in the day besides picking [trash],” she said.
- [Micah Albert, USA/ Redux Images/Courtesy]

June 22, 2012, Da Nang, Vietnam: Phan Thi Thuy Vy and Dang Thi Bich Bay, who have been together for one year, watch television to relax after studying at school. Vietnam has historically been unwelcoming to same-sex relationships. But its Communist government is considering recognizing same-sex marriage, a move that would make it the first Asian country to do so, despite past human rights issues and a long-standing stigma.
- [Maika Elan, Vietnam, Most/Courtesy]

July 8, 2012, Jeselo, Italy: A family prepares to go camping on a summer holiday, but someone is up too early.
- [Søren Bidstrup, Denmark, Berlingske/Courtesy]

June 1, 2010, Rome, Italy: Despite her husband's life-threatening disease, Mirella devoted her life to assisting Luigi, trying to be positive and reassuring, looking after him with intense love and respect. Mirella, 71, spent 43 years of her life with the only person she loved, with all of life's difficulties, laughter, and beautiful moments. But over the last six years things changed: Mirella lived with her husband Luigi’s illness, Alzheimer’s, and devoted her life to him as his caregiver.
- [Fausto Podavini, Italy/Courtesy]

Feb. 15, 2011, Tilburg, the Netherlands: After living with his father for 10 years and staying in a youth shelter, Martin, 18, returned home two years ago to live with his mother. He arrived with some clothes in a bag and no work or degree.
- [Ananda van der Pluijm, The Netherlands/Courtesy]

Nov. 16, 2012, Black Mountain Road, Australia: The endangered Southern Cassowary feeds on the fruit of the Blue Quandang tree. Cassowaries are a keystone species in northern Australian rainforests because of their ability to carry so many big seeds such long distances.
- [Christian Ziegler, Germany, National Geographic Magazine/Courtesy]

Nov. 18, 2011, Ross Sea, Antarctica: New science shows that Emperor Penguins are capable of tripling their swimming speed by releasing millions of bubbles from their feathers. These bubbles reduce the friction between their feathers and the icy seawater, allowing them to accelerate in the water. They use speeds of up to 30 kilometers per hour to avoid leopard seals and to launch themselves up onto the ice.
- [Paul Nicklen, Canada, National Geographic magazine/Courtesy]