World Press Photo Award 2008

British photographer Tim Hetherington won the world press photo of the year prize with this picture of an unidentified US soldier resting in a bunker in the Korengal Valley, Afghanistan Photograph: Tim Hetherington/AFP

The evacuation of dead mountain gorillas at Virunga National Park, Eastern Congo won first prize in the contemporary issues singles category Photograph: Brent Stirton/AP

Hunting the Narwal in Nunavut, Canada won second prize in the nature stories category Photograph: Paul Nicklen/AP

Operation rock avalanche, Afghanistan, won first prize in the general news stories category Photograph: Balazs Gardi/AFP

A basketball match from Chris Detrick's portfolio that won him the third prize in the sports action stories category Photograph: Chris Detrick/AP

PKK fighters in southern Kurdistan/northern Iraq won first prize for people in the news Photograph: Philippe Dudouit/EPA

Competitors crossing the Copenhagen marathon finish line won first prize for sports features Photograph: Erik Refner/AFP

Russian president Vladimir Putin, the photograph that won first prize for single portraits Photograph: Platon/AFP

Freeride competitor Philippe Meier chased by an avalanche in Flaine, France won the sports action singles prize Photograph: Ivaylo Velev/AFP

A retired circus artist won the arts and entertainment stories first prize Photograph: Rafal Milach/AFP

An endangered plant at Wanzhou city garden sanctuary, China won first prize in the nature singles category Photograph: Fang Qianhua/AP

Kenyan policemen chase opposition protesters who were looting goods from a shop in Kibera, a picture that won third prize in the category of spot news singles Photograph: Stephen Morrison/EPA

Rural school girls in eastern Turkey, winner of the portraits stories prize Photograph: Vanessa Winship/EPA

A girl in an animated character costume taken in Shanghai, China, winner of the arts and entertainment singles award Photograph: Ariana Lindquist/AFP

Mui, a homeless woman with HIV, and her son bathing in the Red River, Hanoi, Vietnam, the picture that was the first prize winner for daily life singles Photograph: Justin Maxon/AFP