Photos of the week
Week in review: The most compelling photos from the week's news, Aug. 15-22, 2015, including a Thai bomb blast and the Iowa State Fair
Two Syrian refugees sit at the dock of the port of Kos as the passenger ship "Eleftherios Venizelos" backs into the quay on the Greek island The vessel will house more than 2,500 migrants who arrived in the country from the Turkish coast and will be used as a registration center for migrants. The United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) called on Greece to take control of the "total chaos" on Mediterranean islands, where thousands of migrants have landed. About 124,000 have arrived this year by sea, many via Turkey, according to Vincent Cochetel, UNHCR director for Europe.
Washington wildfire
A wildfire burns behind a home on Twisp River Road, Thursday, Aug. 20, 2015 in Twisp, Washington.
Authorities on Wednesday afternoon urged people in the north-central Washington town to evacuate because of a fast-moving wildfire.
Cuba
Medical student Electo Rossel, 20, wearing a shirt with a picture of U.S. President Barack Obama, listens to music at the Malecon seafront outside the U.S. embassy (not pictured) in Havana, Cuba. Watched over by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, U.S. Marines raised the U.S. flag at the embassy in Cuba for the first time in 54 years on Friday, August 14, symbolically ushering in an era of renewed diplomatic relations between the two Cold War-era foes.
Iowa State Fair - Hillary Clinton
U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton greets Louie Dixon as she campaigns at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines, August 15, 2015.
China - explosion
A drone operated by paramilitary police flies over the site of last week's explosions at Binhai new district in Tianjin, China, August 17, 2015.
Many operations have resumed at China's Tianjin port, after explosions last week that killed more than 100 people and disrupted business at what is an important oil, gas and bulk import harbor for Asia's biggest economy. The explosions on Aug. 12 led to the disruption of all chemical and oil tanker discharges at the port, and imports of iron ore were also affected.
Australia - electronic shark repellent
Surfer Arlen Macpherson sits on his board, which has an electronic shark repellent device installed, at Sydney's Bondi Beach, August 18, 2015.
A spate of shark attacks in Australia has left some of world's top surfing beaches deserted and many people having second thoughts about taking a swim as the summer approaches. Macpherson paid A$390 for a device embedded in his surf board to repel sharks by emitting an electronic force field that overpowers its sensing organs.
Washington State wildfire
A tanker drops fire retardant on a fire that flared-up Thursday, Aug. 20, 2015, in Twisp, Washington.
Wildfires rampaged across the drought-choked West as authorities scrambled for resources to beat back the flames.
New York - memory card game
Pendo Noni, left, and Kabula Masanja play a memory card game in New York. One out of every 1,400 citizens in Tanzania has albinism. Pendo and Kabula were attacked in Tanzania and their limbs amputated in the belief that their body parts will bring wealth. Five Tanzanian children have been brought to Shriner's Hospital for Children in Philadelphia to receive free surgery and protheses.
Turkey
A grouse sits on Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan's head as he visits a facility of the Forest and Water Management Ministry in Rize, Turkey.
Turkey's nationalist opposition made clear it would not roll over and back a minority government, making Erdogan's aim of taking the country to a snap election with the ruling party in control look increasingly difficult. Talks on forming a grand coalition between the AK Party and the main opposition CHP broke down, making an autumn election almost inevitable and leaving the ruling party having to turn to the nationalist MHP for support.
Israel - sand car
Rotem, a sand cat, is pictured with her three kittens at the Safari in Ramat Gan, near Tel Aviv, August 18, 2015.
Rotem gave birth to her kittens three weeks ago. The species is listed as near threatened and extinct in Israel, according to the zoo's staff.
Baltimore
Baltimore Orioles center fielder Adam Jones (not pictured) pies left fielder Henry Urrutia (51) after his walk off home run during the ninth inning against the New York Mets at Oriole Park at Camden Yards.
Baltimore Orioles defeated New York Mets 5-4.
Ivory Coast
Workers from the Animal Protection Ministry cull chicks to contain an outbreak of bird flu, at a farm in the village of Modeste, Ivory Coast, August 14, 2015. Officials said that H5N1 bird flu had spread to a third location in the country, in the latest in a series of outbreaks in West Africa.
The case was discovered on a farm in the village of Modeste, about 15 km (nine miles) east of the commercial capital Abidjan.
Slovenia - cliff diving
A competitor jumps from the old bridge during a cliff diving competition in Kanal ob Soci on August 16, 2015.
Czech Republic - Grand Prex
Honda MotoGP rider Dani Pedrosa of Spain competes during the third free practice of the Czech Grand Prix in Brno, Czech Republic, August 15, 2015.
Macedonia
A policeman tries to stop a migrant from boarding a train through a window at Gevgelija train station in Macedonia, close to the border with Greece, August 15, 2015. In the past month, an estimated 30,000 refugees have passed through Macedonia, another step in their uncertain search for a better life in western Europe.
New Hampshire - Donald Trump
U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump hugs a U.S. flag as he takes the stage for a campaign town hall meeting in Derry, New Hampshire on August 19, 2015.
Georgia - Women graduate Ranger School
1st Lt. Shaye Haver (R) conducts mountaineering training during the Ranger Course on Mount Yonah in Cleveland, Georgia, July 14, 2015.
When two women completed the daunting U.S. Army Ranger School this week they helped end questions about whether women can serve as combat leaders, as the Pentagon is poised to open new roles, including elite Navy SEALs, to women in coming months.
Army Captain Kristen Griest and First Lieutenant Shaye Haver completed a 62-day course including parachute jumps, helicopter assaults, swamp survival and small unit leadership that earned them a Ranger badge.
Crimea - Putin graffiti
People walk past graffiti depicting Russian President Vladimir Putin on a residential building in Simferopol, Crimea, August 19, 2015. The sign on the graffiti reads "Ours."
Turkey - PKK
Masked members of YDG-H, youth wing of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), sit next to their weapons in Silvan, near the southeastern city of Diyarbakir, Turkey, August 17, 2015.
The PKK has attacked military targets on a near-daily basis since the Turkish government launched air strikes on rebel camps in northern Iraq on July 25, wrecking a two-year-old ceasefire.
India - Kumbh Mela
A devotee dressed as Hindu Lord Shiva waits to participate in a parade during Kumbh Mela in Trimbakeshwar, India, August 18, 2015.
The Kumbh Mela takes place four times every 12 years at four different river bank locations in India.
Lebanon - Syrian refugees
Syrian refugee children look out from their tent during a visit by United Nations (U.N.) Humanitarian Chief and Emergency Relief Coordinator Stephen O'Brien to their makeshift settlement in Saadnayel in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley on August 17, 2015.
Egypt - Rafah border crossing
A woman waits for a travel permit to cross into Egypt at the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the southern Gaza Strip, August 18, 2015.
Egypt opened the Rafah border crossing on Monday for four days to allow Palestinians to travel in and out of the Gaza Strip for the first time in around two months, officials said. Gaza, a small impoverished coastal enclave, is under blockade by neighboring Israel, and Egypt has kept its Rafah crossing largely shut since Cairo's Islamist president was toppled by the army in 2013.
Gaza Strip
A building, that was destroyed in past Israeli shelling, is seen in the background as Palestinians swim in the Mediterranean Sea in the northern Gaza Strip, August 14, 2015.
Indonesia - Illegal fishing boats
A foreign fishing boat confiscated for illegal fishing is blown up by the Indonesian Navy off of Lemukutan Island, West Kalimantan, Indonesia on August 18, 2015.
The Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries together with the Navy destroyed 38 foreign fishing vessels in various locations confiscated for illegal fishing in the waters of Indonesia.
Peru - Skylodge Adventure Suites
A guest does yoga above a sleeping pod at the Skylodge Adventure Suites in the Sacred Valley in Cuzco, Peru, August 14, 2015.
Tourists taking on an arduous climb up the steep cliff face of Peru's Sacred Valley are being rewarded for their efforts by being able to spend the night in transparent mountaintop sleeping pods at the Skylodge Adventure Suites. To reach the pods, visitors need to climb 400 meters of via ferrata (a steel cable and rungs) up the valley side or hike an intrepid trail through zip lines.
Atlanta - Carter press conference
Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter (C) takes questions from the media during a news conference about his recent cancer diagnosis and treatment plans, as his grandson Jason Carter (R) listens on, at the Carter Center in Atlanta, August 20, 2015.
Carter said he will start radiation treatment for cancer on his brain later in the day. Carter, 90, said he will cut back dramatically on his schedule to receive treatment every three weeks after doctors detected four spots of melanoma on his brain following recent liver cancer surgery.
Japan - H-2B rocket
A H-2B rocket carrying cargo craft for the International Space Station (ISS) called "Kounotori No.5" blasts off from the launching pad at Tanegashima Space Center on the Japanese southwestern island of Tanegashima, Kagoshima prefecture, southwestern Japan, in Kyodo on August 19, 2015.
"Kounotori" which is Japanese for White stork lifted off with supplies for the International Space Station on Wednesday. The unmanned cargo craft is bringing food, hygiene items and spare parts to the ISS, local media reported. Picture taken with about eight-minute long exposure.
Thailand - deadly bomb blast
Damage caused by Monday's deadly blast is seen on the statue of Hindu god Brahma at the Erawan shrine in central Bangkok, August 20, 2015.
International terrorists were not suspected of the bomb attack in Bangkok this week that killed 20 people and China was not the target, Thai authorities said on Thursday, as police said they believed at least 10 plotters were involved.
Brazil - Merkel and Rousseff
Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel (L) and Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff listen to the Brazilian national anthem before a meeting at the Planalto Palace in Brasilia, Brazil, August 20, 2015.
Afghanistan - dust storm
A man walks next to a tree during a dust storm in Kabul, August 20, 2015.