Friday 1 January 2016

AP PHOTOS: Editor's picks from the Mideast and Pakistan

In this Thursday, Dec. 31, 2015 file photo, a Palestinian woman shops on the last day of 2015 in Gaza city.
In this Thursday, Dec. 31, 2015 file photo, a Palestinian woman shops on the last day of 2015 in Gaza city.  

In this Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015 file photo, a rainbow appears after a heavy rain in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, 5.
In this Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015 file photo, a rainbow appears after a heavy rain in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, 5.  
In this Wednesday, Dec. 310, 2015 file photo, the setting sun sets wispy clouds aglow above the skyline of the Dubai Marina in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
In this Wednesday, Dec. 310, 2015 file photo, the setting sun sets wispy clouds aglow above the skyline of the Dubai Marina in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.  
In this Thursday, Dec. 31, 2015 file photo, smoke and flames pouring from a residential building, which also contains the Address Downtown Hotel, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
In this Thursday, Dec. 31, 2015 file photo, smoke and flames pouring from a residential building, which also contains the Address Downtown Hotel, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.  
Smoke and flames pouring from a residential building, which also contains the Address Downtown Hotel, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Thursday evening, Dec. 31, 2015.
Smoke and flames pouring from a residential building, which also contains the Address Downtown Hotel, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Thursday evening, Dec. 31, 2015.  
Fireworks illuminate the Burj Khalifa as a tower burns behind it in Dubai, United Arab Emirates on Friday, Jan. 1, 2016.
Fireworks illuminate the Burj Khalifa as a tower burns behind it in Dubai, United Arab Emirates on Friday, Jan. 1, 2016.
Fireworks light up the Burj Khalifa as a tower, bottom right, continues to burn in Dubai, United Arab Emirates on Friday, Jan. 1, 2016.
Fireworks light up the Burj Khalifa as a tower, bottom right, continues to burn in Dubai, United Arab Emirates on Friday, Jan. 1, 2016.  
In this Sunday, Dec. 31, 2015 file photo, Iraqi security forces enter heavy damaged downtown Ramadi, 70 miles (115 kilometers) west of Baghdad, Iraq. Islamic State fighters are putting up a tough fight in the militant-held city of Ramadi, slowing down the advance of Iraqi forces, Gen. Ismail al-Mahlawi, head of the Anbar military operations, said Sunday.
In this Sunday, Dec. 31, 2015 file photo, Iraqi security forces enter heavy damaged downtown Ramadi, 70 miles (115 kilometers) west of Baghdad, Iraq. Islamic State fighters are putting up a tough fight in the militant-held city of Ramadi, slowing down the advance of Iraqi forces, Gen. Ismail al-Mahlawi, head of the Anbar military operations, said Sunday.  
In this Monday, Dec. 28, 2015 file photo, Iraqi security forces enter the government complex in central Ramadi, 70 miles (115 kilometers) west of Baghdad, Iraq. Iraqi military forces on Monday retook a strategic government complex in the city of Ramadi from Islamic State militants who have occupied the city since May.
In this Monday, Dec. 28, 2015 file photo, Iraqi security forces enter the government complex in central Ramadi, 70 miles (115 kilometers) west of Baghdad, Iraq. Iraqi military forces on Monday retook a strategic government complex in the city of Ramadi from Islamic State militants who have occupied the city since May.  
Iraqi security forces help trapped civilians to come out to safe places in Ramadi, 70 miles (115 kilometers) west of Baghdad, Iraq, Thursday, Dec. 31, 2015. Anbar Provincial Council head Sabah Karhout told The Associated Press on Thursday that sporadic clashes and airstrikes were taking place in areas that are still under IS control. He says a major offensive to clear the remainder of the provincial capital is on hold due to the bad weather, he says families are still trapped in the IS-held areas of the city, where they are being used as human shields.
Iraqi security forces help trapped civilians to come out to safe places in Ramadi, 70 miles (115 kilometers) west of Baghdad, Iraq, Thursday, Dec. 31, 2015. Anbar Provincial Council head Sabah Karhout told The Associated Press on Thursday that sporadic clashes and airstrikes were taking place in areas that are still under IS control. He says a major offensive to clear the remainder of the provincial capital is on hold due to the bad weather, he says families are still trapped in the IS-held areas of the city, where they are being used as human shields.   
In this Sunday, Dec. 27, 2015 file photo, Iraqi security forces raise an Iraqi flag near the provincial council building in central Ramadi, 70 miles (115 kilometers) west of Baghdad. Iraqi military forces on Monday retook a strategic government complex in the city of Ramadi from Islamic State militants who have occupied the city since May.
In this Sunday, Dec. 27, 2015 file photo, Iraqi security forces raise an Iraqi flag near the provincial council building in central Ramadi, 70 miles (115 kilometers) west of Baghdad. Iraqi military forces on Monday retook a strategic government complex in the city of Ramadi from Islamic State militants who have occupied the city since May.   
In this Monday, Dec. 28, 2015 file photo, Syrian and Lebanese wave and flash victory signs as convoys carrying wounded Syrian opposition fighters leave the Lebanese border crossing point of Masnaa. Syrian opposition fighters, some on wheelchairs, stretchers or crutches left the Syrian mountain resort of Zabadani toward the Lebanon border, where they will be flown to Turkey. The evacuation is part of a U.N.-backed truce deal reached in September for two key Syrian battleground areas that will see the transfer of thousands of Shiite and Sunni civilians and fighters from one area to another.
In this Monday, Dec. 28, 2015 file photo, Syrian and Lebanese wave and flash victory signs as convoys carrying wounded Syrian opposition fighters leave the Lebanese border crossing point of Masnaa. Syrian opposition fighters, some on wheelchairs, stretchers or crutches left the Syrian mountain resort of Zabadani toward the Lebanon border, where they will be flown to Turkey. The evacuation is part of a U.N.-backed truce deal reached in September for two key Syrian battleground areas that will see the transfer of thousands of Shiite and Sunni civilians and fighters from one area to another.             
In this Monday, Dec. 28, 2015 file photo, relatives of wounded Syrian opposition fighters wait for their release at the Lebanese border crossing point of Masnaa. Syrian opposition fighters, some on wheelchairs, stretchers or crutches left the Syrian mountain resort of Zabadani toward the Lebanon border, where they will be flown to Turkey. The evacuation is part of a U.N.-backed truce deal reached in September for two key Syrian battleground areas that will see the transfer of thousands of Shiite and Sunni civilians and fighters from one area to another. Arabic on the papers read, "Father, we are waiting for you, I am Mena," right, and "Aglak Al-Garhy from Al Zabadani."
In this Monday, Dec. 28, 2015 file photo, relatives of wounded Syrian opposition fighters wait for their release at the Lebanese border crossing point of Masnaa. Syrian opposition fighters, some on wheelchairs, stretchers or crutches left the Syrian mountain resort of Zabadani toward the Lebanon border, where they will be flown to Turkey. The evacuation is part of a U.N.-backed truce deal reached in September for two key Syrian battleground areas that will see the transfer of thousands of Shiite and Sunni civilians and fighters from one area to another. Arabic on the papers read, "Father, we are waiting for you, I am Mena," right, and "Aglak Al-Garhy from Al Zabadani."               
In this Monday, Dec. 28, 2015 file photo, a convoy carrying wounded Syrian opposition fighters leaves the Lebanese border crossing point of Masnaa. Syrian opposition fighters, some on wheelchairs, stretchers or crutches left the Syrian mountain resort of Zabadani toward the Lebanon border, where they will be flown to Turkey. The evacuation is part of a U.N.-backed truce deal reached in September for two key Syrian battleground areas that will see the transfer of thousands of Shiite and Sunni civilians and fighters from one area to another.
In this Monday, Dec. 28, 2015 file photo, a convoy carrying wounded Syrian opposition fighters leaves the Lebanese border crossing point of Masnaa. Syrian opposition fighters, some on wheelchairs, stretchers or crutches left the Syrian mountain resort of Zabadani toward the Lebanon border, where they will be flown to Turkey. The evacuation is part of a U.N.-backed truce deal reached in September for two key Syrian battleground areas that will see the transfer of thousands of Shiite and Sunni civilians and fighters from one area to another.          
In this Monday. Dec. 28, 2015 file photo, family members of a Pakistani nomad family walk toward their hut after getting drinking water from a nearby point in suburbs of Islamabad, Pakistan.
In this Monday. Dec. 28, 2015 file photo, family members of a Pakistani nomad family walk toward their hut after getting drinking water from a nearby point in suburbs of Islamabad, Pakistan.                                     
In this Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015 file photo, tourists from Korea, one covering her head with a plastic bag against the rain, walk in Jerusalem.
In this Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015 file photo, tourists from Korea, one covering her head with a plastic bag against the rain, walk in Jerusalem.  
A Palestinian youth wearing a mask and a 2016 Santa Claus cap stands in a heavy rain during the New Year celebrations along the street in Gaza City, Friday, Jan. 1, 2016.
A Palestinian youth wearing a mask and a 2016 Santa Claus cap stands in a heavy rain during the New Year celebrations along the street in Gaza City, Friday, Jan. 1, 2016.           
Two Egyptian men and a camel stand on a hill overlooking one of the Giza Pyramids during a New Year's Eve fireworks display near Cairo, Egypt at midnight on Friday, Jan. 1, 2016.
Two Egyptian men and a camel stand on a hill overlooking one of the Giza Pyramids during a New Year's Eve fireworks display near Cairo, Egypt at midnight on Friday, Jan. 1, 2016.  
Pakistani laborers are silhouetted against the last sunset of 2015 on their way home on the outskirts of Islamabad, Pakistan, Thursday, Dec. 31, 2015.
Pakistani laborers are silhouetted against the last sunset of 2015 on their way home on the outskirts of Islamabad, Pakistan, Thursday, Dec. 31, 2015.
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