The week in pictures

December 19 — People  in Santa Claus outfits join a race to collect funds to help victims of the Cumbre Vieja volcano eruption, in Madrid, Spain. This week scientists said solidifying lava vents could signal an end to the three-month eruption.

December 19 — Chilean presidential candidate Gabriel Boric, 35, celebrates after the presidential election, in Concepcion, Chile.  Boric was elected by a larger-than-expected margin, and could oversee the most profound transformation of Chilean society in decades. His government will also oversee the final stages of the writing of a new constitution to replace the country’s dictatorship-era document.

December 19 — Algerian fans celebrate and welcome the Algeria team as they arrive in a bus after their Fifa Arab Cup win, in Algiers.

December 19 — People ride on a military vehicle as they celebrate reaching the presidential palace during another protest against military rule following last month’s coup in Khartoum, Sudan. Reports said at least one person was killed when security forces fired teargas and live rounds to disperse thousands of protesters.

December 19 — A man picks through the rubble and debris in the aftermath of Typhoon Rai, in Dimiao, Bohol province, the Philippines.

December 19 — Officials empty a ballot box following the Legislative Council general election  in Hong Kong, China.  Only 30.2% of voters participated and some activists were arrested after they had urged people to boycott the election that saw a number of pro-Beijing candidates win seats.

December 20 — A woman wearing a mask walks among holiday lights in central London, Britain.  Prime Minister Boris  Johnson resisted scientists’ calls to take tougher measures to slow the exploding number of new infections as the holiday season starts.

December 20 — A man knits a traditional Banarasi saree in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

December 20 —  Japanese billionaire and astronaut Yusaku Maezawa disembarks from a helicopter as he arrives at Zhezkazgan airport after returning from 12 days in space on the International Space Station,  in Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan.

December 21 — Revellers enjoy the sunrise as they welcome the  winter solstice at the 5,000-year-old stone age passage tomb of Newgrange in the Boyne Valley, Ireland.. Entry inside the chamber was closed for the second year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

December 21 — Choristers from St Paul’s Cathedral choir take part in a rehearsal at the cathedral in London, England.

December 21 —  Scotland  First Minister Nicola Sturgeon leaves after updating members of the Scottish parliaments on changes to  Covid-19 restrictions over Christmas following the emergence of  Omicron, in Edinburgh.

December 21 — Russian President Vladimir Putin listens to the chief of Russia’s armed forces, Valery Gerasimov, during an expanded meeting of the defence ministry  in Moscow, Russia. Putin threatened a military response to counter Nato expansion towards Russia’s border, while insisting he wasn’t issuing an ultimatum.

December 21 — New Berlin mayor Franziska Giffey is welcomed by chimney sweeps as she arrives at the Town Hall in Berlin, Germany. 

December 22 — People queue at a Covid-19 testing centre in Melbourne, Australia. Demand at testing centres across the city has increased in the run-up to Christmas as new coronavirus cases continue to emerge.

December 22 — A woman and a child walk past a house decorated with Christmas lights and a Santa Claus display, in Manila, the Philippines.

December 23 — Participants dressed as Santa Claus wait for the start of a procession during the month-long Vypeen Folklore Festival on the outskirts of Kochi, India.