24 hours in pictures

Gaza: A relative of Palestinian militant Ahmed al-Helo mourns during his funeral Photograph: Suhaib Salem/Reuters

Israel: A soldier at rest on the gun barrel of his tank Photograph: Amir Cohen/Reuters

Paris: Vanessa James of Great Britain and Yannick Bonheur of France perform at the Eric Bompard trophy figure skating closing gala Photograph: Ian Langsdon/EPA

Democratic Republic of the Congo: Evening service at a catholic church in Kiwanja Photograph: Jerome Delay/AP

Bandipora, India: A policeman holds back Kashmiri Muslim women during a protest against elections Photograph: Farooq Khan/EPA

Tokyo: Christmas decorations Photograph: Yuriko Nakao/Reuters

Abu Dhabi: Pakistani fans attend the third one-day international cricket match against West Indies Photograph: Karim Sahib/AFP

California: Firefighters plough through thick smoke as wildfires rage across the state Photograph: Mario Anzuoni/Reuters

Birmingham: A woman and her dogs kick through the leaves Photograph: David Jones/PA

Singapore: Art as nature at the Singapore Biennale Photograph: Rina Ota/Reuters

Santa Monica: Crosses commemorate the American soldiers who have died during the Iraq war Photograph: Gabriel Bouys/AFP

Uri, India: Villagers wait for news of survivors after a bridge collapse Photograph: Farooq Khan/EPA

Khost: A transport helicopter arrives to collect American soldiers for a military operation in Afghanistan Photograph: David Furst/AFP

Santa Clara, Cuba: Music fans at the Metal City Festival Photograph: Javier Galeano/AP

Allahabad, India: Butterfly beauty in a university botanical garden Photograph: Rajesh Kumar Singh/AP