Fisherman Omerserik Ibragimov heads out to put his nets in the water of the Aral Sea in Kazakhstan on Aug. 7. <a href=

Fisherman Omerserik Ibragimov heads out to put his nets in the water of the Aral Sea in Kazakhstan on Aug. 7. Click here for the full story. / NPR

The events of 2024 unfolded around the world with experiences of resilience, celebration and grief. There has been devastation with the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine, and the continued escalation of climate change.

Whether on the front lines of these pivotal stories or on the scene of quieter but no less momentous events, photographers have been there to bear witness. They shed light on the events that shaped the past year, often at personal risk.

Here is a selection of photography made and commissioned by NPR from 2024.

Camilo Garcia peeks through a curtain of his house on the morning of March 9, in the town of Juntas, Buenaventura, Colombia. The community gathers during Holy Week to celebrate the Manacillos festival, an ancestral ritual originating in the upper part of the Yurumangui River. <a href=

Camilo Garcia peeks through a curtain of his house on the morning of March 9, in the town of Juntas, Buenaventura, Colombia. The community gathers during Holy Week to celebrate the Manacillos festival, an ancestral ritual originating in the upper part of the Yurumangui River. Click here for the full story.

The crowd cheers at the Democratic Progressive Party's Rally on Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei, Taiwan, on Jan. 11. <a href=

The crowd cheers at the Democratic Progressive Party's Rally on Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei, Taiwan, on Jan. 11. Click here for the full story.

Rachel Mukantabana talks about the legacy of the Rwandan genocide she survived, 30 years later, on April 8. <a href=

Rachel Mukantabana talks about the legacy of the Rwandan genocide she survived, 30 years later, on April 8. Click here for the full story. / Jacques Nkinzingabo for NPR

Noor Assi, 15, sits on his bed while watched by his 5-year-old sister Jenna in the village of Qarawat Bani Hassan, Israeli-occupied West Bank, on Feb. 23. <a href=

Noor Assi, 15, sits on his bed while watched by his 5-year-old sister Jenna in the village of Qarawat Bani Hassan, Israeli-occupied West Bank, on Feb. 23. Click here for the full story.

Relatives of Amal Hassan al-Durr, a 5-year-old girl, lay her body to rest at the cemetery in Majdal Zoun, southern Lebanon, on Feb. 22. She lost her life during an Israeli attack. <a href=

Relatives of Amal Hassan al-Durr, a 5-year-old girl, lay her body to rest at the cemetery in Majdal Zoun, southern Lebanon, on Feb. 22. She lost her life during an Israeli attack. Click here for the full story. / Diego Ibarra Sánchez for NPR

Aviva Siegel, who was held hostage in Gaza for 51 days after the Hamas-led attack on Israel of Oct. 7, 2023, places a flower behind her eight-year-old granddaughter Yali Tiv's ear as they go for a walk near Kibbutz Gazit on March 26. <a href=

Aviva Siegel, who was held hostage in Gaza for 51 days after the Hamas-led attack on Israel of Oct. 7, 2023, places a flower behind her eight-year-old granddaughter Yali Tiv's ear as they go for a walk near Kibbutz Gazit on March 26. Click here for a full story.

Israelis shelter along a highway during a missile barrage from Iran on Oct. 1. <a href=

Israelis shelter along a highway during a missile barrage from Iran on Oct. 1. Click here for the full story.

Search-and-rescue teams carry a body recovered from the rubble at the site of an Israeli strike on a central Beirut neighborhood in Lebanon on Nov. 23. <a href=

Search-and-rescue teams carry a body recovered from the rubble at the site of an Israeli strike on a central Beirut neighborhood in Lebanon on Nov. 23. Click here for the full story.

Jordanian air force personnel inside a C-130 aircraft after airdropping pallets of aid over Gaza on Feb.29. <a href=

Jordanian air force personnel inside a C-130 aircraft after airdropping pallets of aid over Gaza on Feb.29. Click here for the full story. / Moises Saman for NPR

A group of Syrian children with their parents return home in the cabin of a truck, after more than eight years taking shelter in the Rukban camp for displaced people in al-Tanf, Syria, near the border with Jordan, Dec. 14. <a href=

A group of Syrian children with their parents return home in the cabin of a truck, after more than eight years taking shelter in the Rukban camp for displaced people in al-Tanf, Syria, near the border with Jordan, Dec. 14. Click here for the full story.

Rafaias Villan considered leaving his home on the outskirts of Caracas, Venezuela, following disputed election results on Aug. 7. <a href=

Rafaias Villan considered leaving his home on the outskirts of Caracas, Venezuela, following disputed election results on Aug. 7. Click here for the full story.

Members of <em>bate-bola</em> (

Members of bate-bola ("ball-beaters") crew Bem Feito, wearing clown-like costumes, go out during Carnival celebrations in Pedra de Guaratiba, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Feb. 11. Read the full story here.

Ilia Reyes Aymani, a researcher and teacher, has written short songs in Ckunsa, a once-extinct Indigenous language, to teach colors and numbers to the local children. She stands for a portrait in San Pedro de Atacama in Antofagasta, Chile, on April 15. <a href=

Ilia Reyes Aymani, a researcher and teacher, has written short songs in Ckunsa, a once-extinct Indigenous language, to teach colors and numbers to the local children. She stands for a portrait in San Pedro de Atacama in Antofagasta, Chile, on April 15. Click here for the full story.

A teacher leads a class at a school for girls administered but the main U.N. agency for Palestinian aid, UNRWA, in Qalandia refugee camp, near Ramallah, in the West Bank, on Nov. 14. <a href=

A teacher leads a class at a school for girls administered but the main U.N. agency for Palestinian aid, UNRWA, in Qalandia refugee camp, near Ramallah, in the West Bank, on Nov. 14. Click here for the fully story.

A police officer looks through damage caused by a shell at the Omdurman Maternity Hospital in Omdurman, Sudan, on Sept. 7. <a href=

A police officer looks through damage caused by a shell at the Omdurman Maternity Hospital in Omdurman, Sudan, on Sept. 7. Click here for the full story.

A Ukrainian man from the city of Pokrovsk goes to board a bus in Pavlohrad, Ukraine, to seek safety in the western part of the country or elsewhere in Europe, on Oct. 19. <a href=

A Ukrainian man from the city of Pokrovsk goes to board a bus in Pavlohrad, Ukraine, to seek safety in the western part of the country or elsewhere in Europe, on Oct. 19. Click here for the full story.

An aerobics class is in session on Aug. 17 at a Ukrainian sanatorium, where the focus is not just on fitness, but also on finding moments of normalcy and joy amid challenging times. <a href=

An aerobics class is in session on Aug. 17 at a Ukrainian sanatorium, where the focus is not just on fitness, but also on finding moments of normalcy and joy amid challenging times. Click here for full story.

Yulya Dmytrieeva and her husband Vadym, who have been together for over a decade, embrace in the snow in Sloviansk, Ukraine, where they spend a few days together while he has a break from the trenches on the front lines in February. <a href=

Yulya Dmytrieeva and her husband Vadym, who have been together for over a decade, embrace in the snow in Sloviansk, Ukraine, where they spend a few days together while he has a break from the trenches on the front lines in February. Click here for the full story. / NPR

After rocket strikes, workers at a Ukrainian thermal power plant repair the facility to restore power as temperatures drop, Oct. 4. <a href=

After rocket strikes, workers at a Ukrainian thermal power plant repair the facility to restore power as temperatures drop, Oct. 4. Click here for the full story.

After a rehearsal, members of the Hutsul Theater troupe have drinks and share some meats and cheeses together on Nov. 3 in Krasnoillya, Ukraine. <a href=

After a rehearsal, members of the Hutsul Theater troupe have drinks and share some meats and cheeses together on Nov. 3 in Krasnoillya, Ukraine. Click here for the full story. / NPR

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