24 hours in pictures

Managua, Nicaragua: Children stand in their house, a building damaged by a 1972 earthquake. The earthquake killed about 10,000 people and was 6.2 magnitude. Forty years later around 100 families still live in the old centre of Managua Photograph: Oswaldo Rivas/Reuters

Aleppo, Syria: A boy carries a megaphone during a protest, where young people and children sang songs against Bashar Assad and the Syrian regime Photograph: Virginie Nguyen Hoang/AP

Buenos Aires, Argentina: A policeman disperses looters after an attack on a San Fernando supermarket. Two people died and two more were seriously injured as mobs looted shops Photograph: Juan Mabromata/AFP/Getty Images

Bethlehem, West Bank: A man prays inside the grotto where Christians believe the Virgin Mary gave birth to Jesus Christ in the Church of the Nativity, as preparations for Christmas celebrations get underway Photograph: Musa Al Shaer/AFP/Getty Images

Brussels, Belgium: A pro-democracy activist from Ukraine's feminist group Femen is arrested after staging a brief topless protest against the Russian president, who is in the city for an EU summit Photograph: Jacob Khrist/Demotix/Corbis

Madinat Zayed, Abu Dhabi: Jockeys compete during the Mazayin Dhafra camel festival. The festival, which attracts participants from around the Gulf region, includes a camel beauty contest, a display of UAE handcrafts and other activities aimed at promoting the country's folklore Photograph: Karim Sahib/AFP/Getty Images

Mount Suswa, Kenya: Maasai children sit near a fire inside a hut. Mount Suswa is a sacred place for the Maasai tribe and every 10 years Maasai from all over Kenya gather to witness the coming of age ceremony for the Morans known as an "age set". The ritual sees Morans achieving the status of manhood in their community's eyes Photograph: Carl De Souza/AFP/Getty Images

Madrid, Spain: A lottery enthusiast dressed in costume attends the draw for the world's richest lottery, known as el gordo or "the fat one". The total prize money of €2.5bn (£2.04bn) is split into thousands of cash prizes among hundreds of winning numbers Photograph: Susana Vera/Reuters

Connecticut, USA: People at the Blue Colony diner observe a moment of silence for victims of the 14 December shootings at Sandy Hook elementary school in Newtown Photograph: Eric Thayer/Reuters

Herat, Afghanistan: Spectators watch as wrestlers compete at an outdoor arena. Wrestling is a popular sport in the war-torn nation Photograph: Aref Karimi/AFP/Getty Images

Damascus, Syria: Women smoke shishas as a waiter decorates a Christmas tree at a cafe in the Old City
Photograph: Carole Alfarah/AFP/Getty Images

Santiago, Chile: A demonstrator is hit by a police water canon during a student rally. Hundreds of people participated in the protest that ended with clashes Photograph: Felipe Trueba/EPA

Tbilisi, Georgia: Ushangi Davitashvili kisses the bust of Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin that stands in the courtyard of his apartment building. Stalin was born in Georgia in 1879 and led the Soviet Union through decades of totalitarian reforms and political purges Photograph: Shakh Aivazov/AP

Teotihuacan, Mexico: People in Aztec costumes dance during a ceremony for the new Sun, the sixth in the Aztec calendar, near the Teotihuacan archaeological site Photograph: Alfredo Estrella/AFP/Getty Images

Salisbury, England: A reveller, dressed as a unicorn, celebrates the sunrise during the winter solstice at Stonehenge on Salisbury Plain. The winter solstice is the shortest day of the year, and the longest night of the year. Photograph: Kieran Doherty/Reuters