Here are some of the most compelling photographs from the 50th week of 2022 from around RFE/RL's region. For more photo galleries, see our photo gallery archive.
Photos Of The Week (December 12-18)
- By RFE/RL
![A Ferris wheel and decorative Christmas lights, taken with a low shutter speed and zoomed out, are seen at the Christmas market in downtown Bucharest.](https://gdb.rferl.org/058a0000-0aff-0242-3019-08dadd2cd67f_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A Ferris wheel and decorative Christmas lights, taken with a low shutter speed and zoomed out, are seen at the Christmas market in downtown Bucharest.
![An Afghan boy holds balloons as he walks along a path in the Barmal district of Paktika Province on December 15.](https://gdb.rferl.org/058a0000-0aff-0242-e003-08dadf71efb4_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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An Afghan boy holds balloons as he walks along a path in the Barmal district of Paktika Province on December 15.
![Young women sing carols as they hold candles to celebrate St. Lucia's Day at the Evangelical Lutheran Church of St. Catherine in St. Petersburg, Russia, on December 13.](https://gdb.rferl.org/034d0000-0aff-0242-a6ae-08dade6b38a9_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Young women sing carols as they hold candles to celebrate St. Lucia's Day at the Evangelical Lutheran Church of St. Catherine in St. Petersburg, Russia, on December 13.
![Members of the Beryozka Folk Dance Ensemble, founded by Russian choreographer Nadezhda Nadezhdina, perform during a concert titled Russian Choreographic Miracle marking the 75th anniversary of the ensemble's founding at the State Kremlin Palace on December 12.](https://gdb.rferl.org/034d0000-0aff-0242-9afa-08dadcd7f2aa_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Members of the Beryozka Folk Dance Ensemble, founded by Russian choreographer Nadezhda Nadezhdina, perform during a concert titled Russian Choreographic Miracle marking the 75th anniversary of the ensemble's founding at the State Kremlin Palace on December 12.
![The governor of Pakistan's Sindh Province, Kamran Tessori, presents a piece of cake to a female elephant named Sonia on the occasion of her 16th birthday at a safari park in Karachi. ](https://gdb.rferl.org/058a0000-0aff-0242-089b-08dade9ce5db_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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The governor of Pakistan's Sindh Province, Kamran Tessori, presents a piece of cake to a female elephant named Sonia on the occasion of her 16th birthday at a safari park in Karachi.
![A woman walks past the Gucci fashion house shop window, which is covered with chipboard to protect against shelling fragments, with a sign reading, "Gucci is open," in the center of Kyiv on December 12.](https://gdb.rferl.org/034d0000-0aff-0242-06bf-08dadc50f19f_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A woman walks past the Gucci fashion house shop window, which is covered with chipboard to protect against shelling fragments, with a sign reading, "Gucci is open," in the center of Kyiv on December 12.
![People cross the street amid snowfall in central Kyiv on December 12.](https://gdb.rferl.org/034d0000-0aff-0242-ac7d-08dadc2531b3_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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People cross the street amid snowfall in central Kyiv on December 12.
![People who were injured in clashes that erupted in Chaman, at the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan, are transferred to a hospital in Quetta, Pakistan, on December 11.](https://gdb.rferl.org/034d0000-0aff-0242-6be6-08dadc3e13d8_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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People who were injured in clashes that erupted in Chaman, at the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan, are transferred to a hospital in Quetta, Pakistan, on December 11.
![Demonstrators in Belgrade light flares during a rally in support of ethnic Serbs who are protesting against the Pristina government's actions in northern Kosovo on December 12.](https://gdb.rferl.org/058a0000-0aff-0242-548d-08dadcd6c642_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Demonstrators in Belgrade light flares during a rally in support of ethnic Serbs who are protesting against the Pristina government's actions in northern Kosovo on December 12.
![A man holds a flashlight during a blackout in the Ukrainian Black Sea city of Odesa on December 12. ](https://gdb.rferl.org/058a0000-0aff-0242-a726-08dadcd759c3_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A man holds a flashlight during a blackout in the Ukrainian Black Sea city of Odesa on December 12.
![Protesters light flares and gesture next to riot police during a rally against a controversial law on presidential powers in Podgorica on December 12.](https://gdb.rferl.org/058a0000-0aff-0242-abfc-08dadcd718ba_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Protesters light flares and gesture next to riot police during a rally against a controversial law on presidential powers in Podgorica on December 12.
![A Pakistani laborer works at a factory that produces handicrafts made of salt stones in Karachi, Pakistan.](https://gdb.rferl.org/058a0000-0aff-0242-cac3-08dadd28f6de_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A Pakistani laborer works at a factory that produces handicrafts made of salt stones in Karachi, Pakistan.
![A man walks his dog following a snowfall in a park in Sofia on December 13.](https://gdb.rferl.org/02490000-0aff-0242-ff6e-08dadd2c88b7_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A man walks his dog following a snowfall in a park in Sofia on December 13.
![Members of the Pakistani Christian minority take part in a parade ahead of Christmas, in Karachi, Pakistan, on December 11.](https://gdb.rferl.org/058a0000-0aff-0242-1a01-08dadd2d3c4e_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Members of the Pakistani Christian minority take part in a parade ahead of Christmas, in Karachi, Pakistan, on December 11.
![Residents watch as a bombed-out building is demolished in Borodyanka, Ukraine, on December 13.](https://gdb.rferl.org/034d0000-0aff-0242-ffa0-08daddb8b402_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Residents watch as a bombed-out building is demolished in Borodyanka, Ukraine, on December 13.
![A hole from a shell explosion in the dome of a church is seen after what Russian officials in Donetsk said was shelling by Ukrainian forces in Donetsk, the capital of the Russian-controlled Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine, on December 15.](https://gdb.rferl.org/02490000-0aff-0242-a030-08dadf2f1f24_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A hole from a shell explosion in the dome of a church is seen after what Russian officials in Donetsk said was shelling by Ukrainian forces in Donetsk, the capital of the Russian-controlled Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine, on December 15.
![Georgian national Christmas trees are displayed for sale at a street market in Tbilisi on December 16.](https://gdb.rferl.org/034d0000-0aff-0242-0dcd-08dadf726178_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Georgian national Christmas trees are displayed for sale at a street market in Tbilisi on December 16.
![The Town Hall in the old part of the city of Sarajevo is illuminated on December 16.](https://gdb.rferl.org/02490000-0aff-0242-36aa-08dadf72b4fb_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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The Town Hall in the old part of the city of Sarajevo is illuminated on December 16.
![Hungarian border police officers patrol the border with Serbia on December 15.](https://gdb.rferl.org/034d0000-0aff-0242-d8fc-08dadf7351cc_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Hungarian border police officers patrol the border with Serbia on December 15.
![A local government official burns expired food items removed from shops on the outskirts of Kandahar.](https://gdb.rferl.org/058a0000-0aff-0242-9c99-08dadf73ef35_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A local government official burns expired food items removed from shops on the outskirts of Kandahar.