24 hours in pictures, 20 March 2026

2026-03-20 - 16:30

A United States Air Force B-52 Stratofortress strategic bomber takes off from RAF Fairford on March 19, 2026 in Fairford, England. Since UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer back-tracked on his initial refusal to allow the U.S. to use British bases to launch defensive strikes against Iranian missile sites, a variety of U.S. military aircraft, including B52 and B-1 bombers, have been spotted at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire. (Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images) Muslim devotees offer Eid al-Fitr prayers, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan, in the Tuti neighborhood of Khartoum, on March 20, 2026. (Photo by Ebrahim Hamid / AFP) A ‘ninot’ (cardboard figurine whose name literally means ‘doll’ in Valencian language) depicting Charles Chaplin, burns during the “Nit de la Crema” (the night of the burning) on the last night of the Fallas Festival in Valencia on March 19, 2026. The ‘fallas’ —gigantic cardboard structures depicting current events and celebrities, with individual figures known as ‘ninots’— are burned in the streets of Valencia on March 19 as a tribute to Saint Joseph, the patron saint of the carpenters’ guild.” (Photo by Jose JORDAN / AFP) Heavy smoke rises following a fire at a car parts plant in Daejeon on March 20, 2026. A fire at a car parts plant in South Korea on March 20 seriously injured at least 21 people and left 14 others missing, authorities said. (Photo by YONHAP / AFP) Supporters at the announcement for Democratic Alliance (DA) Ekurhuleni mayoral candidate at Olifantsfontein Community Centre on March 20, 2026 in Ekurhuleni, South Africa. The 2026 South African municipal elections will be held across South Africa, to elect councils for all district, metropolitan and local municipalities in each of the country’s nine provinces. (Photo by Gallo Images/Sharon Seretlo) Muslim worshippers gather around the Kaaba, Islam’s holiest shrine, at the Grand Mosque complex in Saudi Arabia’s holy city of Mecca on March 20, 2026 for the early morning prayers for Eid al-Fitr, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan. (Photo by AFP) A Muslim devotee poses for a group photo after Eid al-Fitr prayers, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan, at the National Eid prayer ground in Abuja on March 20, 2026. (Photo by Light Oriye Tamunotonye / AFP) Displaced children from southern Lebanon play under the rain with an umbrella in the courtyard of a school turned into a shelter in Sidon on March 20, 2026. Lebanon was pulled into the regional war on March 2, when Hezbollah fired rockets toward neighbouring Israel in response to the killing of its ally Iran’s supreme leader in Israeli-US attacks. Israel responded with heavy airstrikes across Lebanon and ground incursions in the border area. (Photo by Mahmoud ZAYYAT / AFP) An Israeli self-propelled howitzer artillery gun fires rounds towards southern Lebanon from a position in the upper Galilee in northern Israel near the border on March 20, 2026. Lebanon was drawn into the Middle East war on March 2 when Iran-backed Hezbollah militants launched rockets at Israel after the killing of the Islamic republic’s supreme leader. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP) Birds fly past an installation depicting a crescent moon above the Sheikh Abdul-Qadir al-Jilani (Gilani) Shrine in Baghdad on March 20, 2026 early during Eid al-Fitr, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan, as observed locally. (Photo by AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP) Former Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein (C) appears for a hearing in State Supreme Court in Manhattan with his new defense lawyers, Marc Agnifilo (L) and Jacob Kaplan (R) on March 19, 2026 in New York City. Prosecutors are preparing to retry the former movie mogul following the reversal of his 2020 rape conviction. (Photo by Curtis Means – Pool/Getty Images) Britain’s Skye Higgin riding Fly For You competes during the “Prix du Grand Palais” of “Le Saut Hermès” horse International Jumping Competition at the Grand Palais in Paris, on March 20, 2026. (Photo by Anne-Christine POUJOULAT / AFP) A model displays a creation from the Heaven Gaia collection by Xiong Ying during China Fashion week in Beijing on March 20, 2026. (Photo by WANG Zhao / AFP) Revellers reach out to receive gifts being distributed after the early morning prayers for Eid al-Fitr, marking the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, along a main street outside the Siddiq Mosque in eastern Cairo’s Heliopolis district on March 20, 2026. (Photo by Ahmed HASAN / AFP) A young Muslim boy dressed in an outfit made from patterned fabric, poses for a group photo after Eid al-Fitr prayers, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan, at Unity Stadium in Goma on March 20, 2026. (Photo by Jospin Mwisha / AFP) Activists from the group Dignity in Dying, campaign outside parliament on March 20, 2026 in London, England. The demonstration is being held to mark the second anniversary of Paola Marra’s death, after the 53-year-old traveled to Switzerland to end her own life at Dignitas, an assisted dying clinic. Marra, who had terminal breast and bowel cancer, advocated for laws to be changed to allow for assisted dying in the UK. The campaign group says “a handful of Lords are blocking” the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, which is currently at the committee stage in the House of Lords after passing the House of Commons last summer. If made into law, it would give adults who meet certain criteria in England and Wales the right to end their lives at a time of their choosing, subject to safeguards and protections. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images) MORE PICTURES: Best of British Wildlife Photography Awards