BBC News - Week in pictures: 14-20 March 2015

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Our selection of some of the best news photographs taken around the world this week.



An Israeli soldier casts his ballot for the parliamentary election behind a mobile voting booth in the West Bank
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing Likud Party won a surprise victory in Israel's election. The outcome gives Mr Netanyahu a strong chance of forming a right-wing coalition government and will make him Israel's longest-serving prime minster.





A trail of blood covers a large area of pavement close to the visitors' entrance of the National Bardo Museum in Tunis, Tunisia
Gunmen killed 23 people, the majority of them foreign tourists, during an attack on the Bardo museum in the Tunisian capital, Tunis. Those killed included citizens from Japan, Italy, Colombia, Australia, Britain, France, Poland and Spain, Prime Minister Habib Essid said. The Islamic State militant group has said it was behind the attack.





A child climbs on a block of earth under a uprooted tree near Port Vila
Cyclone Pam caused widespread devastation when it struck the Pacific archipelago of Vanuatu with gusts of wind of up to 300km/h (185mph).





The lead peloton in action during stage five of the Absa Cape Epic mountain bike team stage race in Worcester, South Africa
The multi-stage Absa Cape Epic race saw 1,200 cyclists riding in pairs over 700km (435 miles) and climbing more than 16,000m, twice the height of Mount Everest during eight days of racing in South Africa.





A total solar eclipse is seen in Longyearbyen on Svalbard
Millions of people in the UK and northern Europe enjoyed the best solar eclipse in years, with large areas plunging into deep shadow. In Svalbard, the capital city of Longyearbyen witnessed two and a half minutes of totality, starting shortly after 10:10 GMT.





Protesters and police clash during the opening of the new headquarters of the European Central Bank in Frankfurt, Germany
Dozens of people were hurt and 350 people arrested as anti-austerity demonstrators clashed with police in the German city of Frankfurt during the opening of a new base for the European Central Bank. The bank, in charge of managing the euro, is also responsible for framing eurozone policy and, along with the IMF and European Commission is part of a troika which has set conditions for bailouts in Ireland, Greece, Portugal and Cyprus.





The Prince of Wales laughs
The Prince of Wales laughed as the British ambassador to the United States, Sir Peter Westmacott (unseen), gave welcoming remarks during a private reception at his official residence. During their four-day visit to the country, Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall met Barack Obama and Vice-President Joe Biden at the Oval Office.





Dragster driver Larry Dixon crashes
Dragster driver Larry Dixon was flung into the air when his car split in half during qualifying for the Gatornationals at Auto Plus Raceway in Gainesville, Florida. Dixon walked away from the incident.





Two women pose with a statue of a monster
Two women pose with a statue of a monster at Yeouido Park in Seoul, South Korea.