Pictures of the week: Dec. 23, 2016 - MSN.com

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© Vincent West/Reuters
Santander, Spain
A surfer rides a large wave during the Vaca Gigante (Big Cow) giant wave surf competition on Dec. 17.





© Vadim Ghirda/AP Photo
Bucharest, Romania
A woman walks away from a monument commemorating the anti-communist resistance in Bucharest, Romania, on Dec. 21, 2016, after a memorial ceremony for the victims of the 1989 uprising.





© Michaela Rehle/Reuters
Munich
Participants in costumes take a break during a traditional Perchtenlauf (Perchten parade) on Dec. 17.





© Rick Wilking/Reuters
Denver
A Christmas wreath is placed at a grave at Ft. Logan National Cemetery in the Wreaths Across America event in Denver on December 17, 2016.





© Andy Buchanan/AFP/Getty Images
Glasgow, Scotland
Steam rises above the packs during a scrum at the European Champions Cup pool 1 rugby union match between Glasgow Warriors and Racing 92 on Dec. 16.





© Sandy Huffaker/AFP/Getty Images
Oceanside, Calif.
A U.S. Marine is seen with his kids during a homecoming at Camp Pendleton on Dec. 16.




© Martin Bureau/AFP/Getty Images
Paris
A man dressed as Santa Claus dives to feed fish in the aquarium of Paris on Dec. 17.





© Baz Ratner/Reuters
Amona, West Bank
A Jewish man prays on Dec. 18.





© Darko Vojinovic/AP Photo
Belgrade, Serbia
A river gull flies over the Sava River on Dec. 17.





© Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty Images
Geneva
A swimmer in a Superman costume dives into Lake Geneva during the 78th 'Coupe de Noel' (Christmas cup) swimming race on Dec. 18.

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© Francisco Seco/AP Photo
Madrid
People dressed in Santa Claus costumes take part in a Santa Run on Dec. 17.





© VCG via Getty Images
Shenyang, China
A woman jumps into a pool dug in the frozen river at Beiling Park on Dec. 20.





© Colin E. Braley/AP Photo
Kansas City, Kan.
Northwest Missouri State head coach Adam Dorrel holds up the championship trophy after an NCAA Division II championship football game on Dec. 17. Northwest beat North Alabama 29-3.





© Lucas Jackson/Reuters
Mobile, Ala.
President-elect Donald Trump greets a group of gathered Azalea Trail Maids as he arrives for stop on his USA Thank You Tour event in Mobile, Ala., on December 17, 2016.





© Ilya Naymushin/Reuters
Krasnoyarsk, Russia
A man dressed as Father Frost, Russian equivalent of Santa Claus, sits by the fire with a reindeer Yakut, marking winter solstice at the Royev Ruchey Park of Flora and Fauna in the Siberian Taiga wood on Dec. 21.





© Burhan Ozbilici/AP Photo
Ankara, Turkey
A man identified as Mevlut Mert Altintas holds up a gun after shooting Andrei Karlov, the Russian Ambassador to Turkey, at a photo gallery on Dec. 19. After shooting the ambassador, he exchanged fire with police for about 15 minutes before he was shot dead.





© Peter Dejong/AP Photo
Arnhem, Netherlands
A Cheetah mother licks one of her six cubs as they venture outside for the first time after the cubs birth at Burgers' Zoo in Arnhem, eastern Netherlands, on Dec. 20, 2016.





© Dario Lopez-Mills/AP Photo
Colima, Mexico
A large plume of ash rises from the Colima volcano on Dec. 18.





© Hannibal Hanschke/Reuters
Berlin
A fire fighter stands beside the truck which ploughed into a crowded Christmas market, on Dec. 20.





© Stefano Rellandini/Reuters
Alta Badia, Italy
Marcel Hirscher of Austria in action during FIS Alpine Skiing World Cup on Dec. 19.

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© VCG via Getty Images
Shenyang, China
A woman jumps into a pool dug in the frozen river at Beiling Park on Dec. 20.





© Joel Saget/AFP/Getty Images
Paris
People enjoy skating at the open air Christmas ice rink on the first floor of the Eiffel Tower after its reopening on Dec. 19.





© Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi/AP Photo
Masvingo, Zimbabwe
Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe addresses people at an event before the closure of his party's 16th Annual Peoples Conference on Dec. 17.





© Christian Palma/AP Photo
Tultepec, Mexico
A fireworks market lays in ruins one day after an explosion at the San Pablito Market in Tultepec on the outskirts of Mexico City on Dec. 21, 2016.





© Ammar Awad/Reuters
Khazer camp, Iraq
Abeer Abdullah, a 6-year-old displaced Iraqi girl who fled the Islamic State stronghold of Mosul, poses for a picture on Dec. 19.





© David Gray/Reuters
Sydney
An Australia sea lion licks a frozen treat underwater during an annual Christmas event in which animals receive special food gifts at Taronga Zoo on Dec. 21.





© Manuel Lorenzo/AFP/Getty Images
Orihuela, Spain
A car wades through flood waters following heavy rains on Dec. 19.





© Amit Dave/Reuters
Ahmedabad, India
A man decorates a church ahead of Christmas celebrations on Dec. 18.





© Fabrizio Bensch/Reuters
Berlin
Women mourn at the scene where a truck crashed into a crowded Christmas market, on Dec. 20.





© Danish Ismail/Reuters
Srinagar, India
Fishermen cover their heads and part of their boats with blankets and straw as they wait to catch fish at Anchar Lake on Dec. 20.

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© Omar Sobhani/Reuters
Kabul, Afghanistan
An Afghan officer reacts in front of a burning pile of seized narcotics and alcoholic drinks on Dec. 20.





© Narinder Nanu/AFP/Getty Images
Amritsar, India
People perform 'Gatka' the Sikh martial art during a competition on Dec. 20.





© Francisco Leong/AFP/Getty Images
Nazaré, Portugal
American big wave surfer Nic Lamb drops a wave off Praia do Norte during the first edition of the World Surf League's Nazare Challenge on Dec. 20.





© Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/AFP/Getty Images/Getty Images
Hoboken, NJ
The setting sun casts light on lower Manhattan and One World Trade Center in New York City on Dec. 20, as seen from Hoboken.





© Bulent Kilic/AFP/Getty Images
Istanbul
Whirling Dervishes perform during a ceremony marking the anniversary of the death of Jelaleddin Mevlana Rumi, Sufi mystic and poet on Dec. 21.





© Edgard Garrido/Reuters
Tultepec, Mexico
A sign reading "No alcoholic beverages" is seen next to flattened houses after an explosion at the San Pablito fireworks market on Dec. 20.





© Natasha Quarmby/REX/Shutterstock
Stonehenge, UK
Two revelers during the festivities to mark the winter solstice on Dec. 21.





© Giannis Papanikos/AP Photo
Agios Athanasios, Greece
A Yazidi refugee child is seen through a hole on a wall, in the northern Greek village of Agios Athanasios, near Thessaloniki city, on Dec. 21, 2016.





© Faisal Mahmood/Reuters
Islamabad
A man decorates a Christian neighborhood ahead of Christmas celebrations in Islamabad on December 21, 2016.





© Wong Maye-E/AP Photo
Singapore
People are silhouetted against a giant light sculpture at the Gardens by the Bay in Singapore, as part of celebrations in the lead up to Christmas, on Dec. 21, 2016.

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© Henry Romero/Reuters
Tultepec, Mexico
A soldier walks past a cordoned off area near the wreckage of houses destroyed in an explosion at the San Pablito fireworks market in Tultepec, Mexico, on December 21, 2016.





© China Stringer Network/Reuters
Jinan, China
Buildings are seen in heavy smog on Dec. 20.





© Reuters
Tokorozawa, Japan
Japan's ON-ART Corp's eight metre tall human-operated walking dinosaur robot performs with other robots at the company's studio in Tokorozawa, Japan, on December 6, 2016.





© Kyodo via Reuters
Kawaminami, Japan
Quarantine officials in protective gear head to a poultry farm in Kawaminami, Miyazaki Prefecture, southwestern Japan to bury chickens culled after a highly virulent strain of bird flu was detected on December 20, 2016.





© Eddie Keogh/Reuters
London
People skate on the ice rink at Hampton Court Palace in London on December 20, 2016.





© Nyoman Budhiana/Antara Foto via Reuters
Kuta Beach, Bali
A surfing instructor dressed as Santa Claus gives a lesson to orphans on Kuta Beach, Bali, Indonesia December 19, 2016.





© Antonio Bronic/Reuters
Zagreb, Croatia
Participants release sky lanterns during the "Christmas light of wishes" event in Zagreb, Croatia, on December 17, 2016.

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