Snapshots of the Fortnight (December 1 - 12)

Published: Dec 19, 2012

Lisha Barboza stands with her father Ben while he holds a picture of his wife– nurse Jacintha

Image by : Dylan Martinez / Reuters

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Lisha Barboza stands with her father Ben while he holds a picture of his wife– nurse Jacintha Saldanha, as they leave the Houses of Parliament in London December 10, 2012. Two Australian radio announcers who made a prank call to a British hospital treating Prince William's pregnant wife Kate broke a three-day silence on Monday to speak of their distress at the apparent suicide of the nurse who took their call

A woman walks past a shut down business in central London on December 5, 2012. British Finance Minis

Image by : Andrew Winning / Reuters

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A woman walks past a shut down business in central London on December 5, 2012. British Finance Minister George Osborne announced that he would break a key debt promise and warned that growth would be weaker than expected in a bleak outlook that could damage his party's hopes of winning the 2015 elections

Bridal dwarf couples hold roses as they pose for a photo at a group wedding in Beijing on December 1

Image by : Reuters

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Bridal dwarf couples hold roses as they pose for a photo at a group wedding in Beijing on December 1, 2012. Seven dwarf couples, who are all actors from a shadow puppet troupe, participated in the group wedding. All the 45 actors in this troupe are dwarves, with the average height of 1.26 metre (49.6 inches), local media reported

Palestinians wave flags during a rally marking the UN General Assembly's upgrading of the Palest

Image by : Ammar Awad / Reuters

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Palestinians wave flags during a rally marking the UN General Assembly's upgrading of the Palestinians' status from "observer entity" to "non-member state", in the West Bank city of Ramallah on December 2, 2012. Israel said it was withholding this month's transfer of tax revenues to the Palestinian Authority, after the United Nations' de facto recognition of a Palestinian state

China's newly appointed leader Xi Jinping is directed as he prepares to greet a panel of foreign

Image by : Ed Jones / Reuters

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China's newly appointed leader Xi Jinping is directed as he prepares to greet a panel of foreign experts prior to a meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on December 5, 2012

Actors dressed as (L-R) Joseph and the Three Wise Men, part of a live-human nativity scene, stroll p

Image by : Jason Reed / Reuters

6/13

Actors dressed as (L-R) Joseph and the Three Wise Men, part of a live-human nativity scene, stroll past the US Capitol Building after demonstrating outside the nearby Supreme Court in Washington on December 5, 2012. The Christian Defense Coalition gathered with live actors and animals to demonstrate that such displays are protected by the First Amendment. The event was a reaction to other courts’ involvement in the banning of nativity scenes in some parts of the United States

Rescuers evacuate a child who survived flooding with her pregnant mother as they cross a river in Ne

Image by : Erik De Castro / Reuters

7/13

Rescuers evacuate a child who survived flooding with her pregnant mother as they cross a river in New Bataan town, Compostela Valley in southern Philippines on December 6, 2012. Rescuers found a six-month pregnant woman from the other side of a river with her one-year-old son escaping floods that swamped their house after Typhoon Bopha hit land in Compostela Valley

Firefighters climb down a building during a fire protection drill at a firefighter training base in

Image by : Reuters

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Firefighters climb down a building during a fire protection drill at a firefighter training base in Chongqing Municipality on December 6, 2012. At least 300 personnel and 30 fire engines participated in the exercise on the day

Pelicans try to steal fish from a bucket at a fish market in Chorrillos beach in Lima, Peru on Decem

Image by : Reuters

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Pelicans try to steal fish from a bucket at a fish market in Chorrillos beach in Lima, Peru on December 6, 2012

Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov of Russia perform during the pairs’ short programme at th

Image by : Pawel Kopczynski / Reuters

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Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov of Russia perform during the pairs’ short programme at the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final in Sochi on December 7, 2012

A man walks with a statue of Santa Claus in the streets of downtown Guatemala City on December 6, 20

Image by : Jorge Dan Lopez / Reuters

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A man walks with a statue of Santa Claus in the streets of downtown Guatemala City on December 6, 2012

Pro-democracy lawmaker Leung Kwok-hung (third R), also known as "Long Hair," is blocked by

Image by : Bobby Yip / Reuters

12/13

Pro-democracy lawmaker Leung Kwok-hung (third R), also known as "Long Hair," is blocked by security guards as he tries to approach Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying (L) inside the Legislative Council in Hong Kong on December 10, 2012. Lawmakers and protesters urged Leung Chun-ying to step down for illegal structures found in his house. On the right is Legislative Council Chairman Jasper Tsang

Female Afghan National Police (ANP) officers aim their weapons during a drill at a training centre n

Image by : Fabrizio Bensch / Reuters

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Female Afghan National Police (ANP) officers aim their weapons during a drill at a training centre near the German Bundeswehr army camp Marmal in Mazar-e-Sharif, northern Afghanistan on December 11, 2012. German police is mentoring the training programme for ANP, as a part of an ongoing International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) mission.