24 hours in pictures

Deh Karez, Afghanistan: Sergeant Thomas James Brennan from the First Battalion Eighth Marines Alpha Company smokes a cigarette beneath camouflage netting Photograph: Finbarr O'reilly/Reuters

Panompa, Thailand: A man holds a stick as he installs a pump to extract mud at a primitive gold mine Photograph: Damir Sagolj/Reuters

Lampedusa, Italy: A boat full of illegal migrants enters the port Photograph: Roberto Salomone/AFP/Getty Images

Amritsar, India: Schoolboys wearing traditional bhangra dance costumes wait for the start of a procession to mark the beginning of the Amritsar heritage festival Photograph: Raminder Pal Singh/EPA

Rukungiri, Uganda: Election officials transport ballot boxes on a motorbike to a polling centre Photograph: James Akena/Reuters

Cairo, Egypt: An army band plays music in Tahrir Square during celebrations marking one week after Hosni Mubarak was forced out of office Photograph: Pedro Ugarte/AFP/Getty Images

Beijing, China: Fireworks explode over the National Theatre to celebrate the annual Lantern festival Photograph: Peter Parks/AFP/Getty Images

Mexico City, Mexico: Estibalis Chavez sits on a street while painting a portrait of Prince William and Kate Middleton. The Mexican teenager is staging a hunger strike outside the British embassy in Mexico City in an attempt to secure an invitation to the royal wedding Photograph: Jorge Dan Lopez /Reuters

Havana, Cuba: A pruner, or 'desmochador', climbs a royal palm tree to cut branches of berries on a farm Photograph: Desmond Boylan/Reuters

Shanghai, China: Laundry is hung to dry in a traditionally built area as a high-rise apartment complex looms in the background Photograph: Eugene Hoshiko/AP

Nyala, Sudan: Darfurians perform a traditional dance during the opening of an international envoys' conference to resolve the Darfur crisis Photograph: Ashraf Shazly/AFP/Getty Images

Lashkar Gah, Afghanistan: Policemen stand in line as they attend a shooting course at Camp Leatherneck Photograph: Adek Berry/AFP/Getty Images