Angela Merkel and a cat-eating python: Tuesday's best photos

The Guardian’s picture editors select photo highlights from around the world

Main image: Berlin, Germany Chancellor Angela Merkel with children dressed as the Magi. Photograph: Hayoung Jeon/EPA

  • Rumah, Saudi Arabia

    Annual King Abdulaziz camel festival
    Rumah, Saudi Arabia Annual King Abdulaziz Camel Festival

  • Paris, France

    Flowers are laid in front of Charlie Hebdo’s old headquarters on the 5th anniversary of the terrorist attack
    Paris, FranceFlowers in front of Charlie Hebdo’s old headquarters on the 5th anniversary of the terrorist attack.

  • Heilongjiang, China

    34th Harbin international ice sculpture competition
    Heilongjiang, China34th Harbin International Ice Sculpture Competition

  • Ayubia, Pakistan

    Monkey eats corn during a snowfall
    Ayubia, Pakistan Monkey eats corn during a snowfall

  • Shuya

    , RussiaA Christmas ball is held at the Pavlov Mansion as part of the Russian Christmas festival
    Shuya, RussiaA Christmas ball is held at the Pavlov Mansion as part of the Russian Christmas festival

  • Paralimni, Cyprus

    Activists protest outside a court in Famagusta where a British teenager was given a four-month suspended prison sentence after being convicted of falsely accusing a dozen Israeli tourists of gang-rape
    Paralimni, Cyprus. Activists protest outside a court in Famagusta where a British teenager was given a four-month suspended prison sentence after being convicted of falsely accusing a dozen Israeli tourists of gang-rape

  • Tehran, Iran

    Revolutionary Guards surround the coffin of Qassem Suleimani as thousands of mourners gather to pay tribute. The 62-year-old head of the al-Quds Force, and one of the most powerful men in the Middle East, was killed in a targeted US airstrike
    Tehran, Iran. Revolutionary Guards surround the coffin of Qassem Suleimani as thousands of mourners gather to pay tribute. The 62-year-old head of Iran’s Quds Force was killed in a targeted US airstrike

  • West Thurrock, England

    Toxic fumes rise from an industrial site in Essex. Nearby residents have been advised to stay indoors with their windows closed after a chemical leak released a cloud of hydrochloric acid
    West Thurrock, England. Toxic fumes rise from an industrial site in Essex. Nearby residents have been advised to stay indoors with their windows closed after a chemical leak released a cloud of hydrochloric acid

  • Eden, Australia

    The deck of HMAS Adelaide, which has docked off the coast of New South Wales to help fight the bushfires sweeping the country
    Eden, Australia. The deck of HMAS Adelaide, which has docked off the coast of New South Wales to help fight the bushfires sweeping the country

  • Berlin, Germany

    Angela Merkel attends a welcome reception for carol singers. Children dressed as the Magi traditionally visit the German chancellor while they collect donations for charity
    Berlin, Germany. Angela Merkel attends a welcome reception for carol singers. Children dressed as the Magi traditionally visit the German chancellor while they collect donations for charity

  • Manila, Philippines

    Children aboard a float carrying replicas of the Black Nazarene are doused with holy water during a religious parade. The Black Nazarene statue is a depiction of a dark-skinned Jesus carrying a cross en route to his crucifixion
    Manila, Philippines Children aboard a float carrying replicas of the Black Nazarene are doused with holy water during a parade

  • Manchester, England

    A shopping list of firearms belonging to a teenage neo-Nazi, which was shown to a jury at Manchester crown court. The boy, who planned terrorist attacks on synagogues and others targets, was sentenced to six years and eight months in prison
    Manchester, England. A shopping list of firearms belonging to a teenage neo-Nazi,

  • Idlib, Syria

    A child’s shoes are covered in mud at Sarut camp in the Sarmada district of the city. About 130 families who fled from the Assad regime and Russian attacks live in the camp’s harsh conditions
    Idlib, Syria. A child’s shoes are covered in mud at Sarut camp in the Sarmada district of the city. About 130 families who fled from the Assad regime and Russian attacks live in the camp’s harsh conditions

  • Kabul, Afghanistan

    A man wheels a TV on a snow-covered street. Wintry weather has led to an unofficial ceasefire in many parts of the country after weeks of violence claimed hundreds of lives
    Kabul, Afghanistan. A man wheels a TV on a snow-covered street

  • Queensland, Australia

    A large python attempts to digest a pet cat. A woman found the two-metre snake with its bulging belly asleep in her garden
    Queensland, Australia. A large python attempts to digest a pet cat. A woman found the two-metre snake with its bulging belly asleep in her garden

  • Phnom Penh, Cambodia

    Dancers perform during the Victory Day parade. Cambodia marked its 41st anniversary of liberation from the Khmer Rouge regime
    Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Dancers perform during the Victory Day parade

  • Eagle, US

    A man tosses a tree on a bonfire as part of an annual Twelfth Night tradition
    Eagle, US. A man tosses a tree on a bonfire as part of an annual Twelfth Night tradition

  • London, England

    Matt Hancock, the health and social care secretary, is spotted wearing Union Jack socks as he leaves with the leader of the House of Lords, Natalie Evans, after a cabinet meeting in Downing Street
    London, England. Matt Hancock, the health and social care secretary, is spotted wearing Union Jack socks as he leaves with the leader of the House of Lords, Natalie Evans, after a cabinet meeting in Downing Street

  • South Shields, England

    Sunrise over the Herd Groyne lighthouse
    South Shields, England Sunrise over the Herd Groyne lighthouse
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