From oil spills, wildfires, and floods to Victory Day and the World Cup, these photos tell the stories that defined 2010.
2010: The Year In Photos
35
A girl holds a South Ossetian flag during a celebration in the region's capital, Tskhinvali, on September 20, the 20th anniversary of the region's declaration of independence from Georgia. Russia has recognized the independence of South Ossetia, along with another breakaway Georgian region, Abkhazia, while most Western countries have not.
Photo by Kazbeg Basayev for Reuters
Photo by Kazbeg Basayev for Reuters
36
Female officers of the Afghan National Army (ANA) attend their graduation ceremony in Kabul on September 23. The newly trained Afghan army is seeking to recruit female officers for its office-based work as it boosts its numbers to enable foreign forces to draw down.
Photo by Shan Marai for AFP
Photo by Shan Marai for AFP
37
Activists stage a mock hanging outside UN headquarters in New York to protest Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad's appearance at the 65th UN General Assembly on September 23.
Photo by Eric Thayer for Reuters
Photo by Eric Thayer for Reuters
38
A Kyrgyz man votes on October 10 in elections to replace the interim government. The polls were aimed at forming the first parliamentary democracy in Central Asia in the wake of a violent uprising earlier in the year.
Photo by Igor Kovalenko for epa
Photo by Igor Kovalenko for epa