48 hours in pictures, 26 July 2026

Through the lens: The Citizen's Picture Editors select the best news photographs from South Africa and around the world. Thousands of walkers take part in the 702 Jozi My Jozi Walk The Talk as they cross the Nelson Mandela Bridge in Braamfontein, 26 July 2026. The event partnered with homelessness organisations MES and U-Turn to encourage dignified giving through Mi-change blockchain vouchers, which provide homeless people with access to meals, hygiene facilities, clothing and shelter. Picture: Michel Bega/The Citizen South Africans take part in the 702 Jozi My Jozi Walk the Talk 2026 at Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg on 26 July 2026. The event features three routes: the 15km Mandela Bridge route, the 8km Main Street route, and the 5km Victoria Yards route. Picture: Nigel Sibanda/The Citizen Participants pose nude with their bodies painted as US photographer Spencer Tunick takes photographs upon his collective art action “Grand Spectrum” in Santa Ana square, in the Vegueta district of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria on July 26, 2026. (Photo by David DELFOUR / AFP) Sherri Steward, the niece of David D. Steward, of the United States, who was killed in the Korean War, touches his name before laying a flower at the Korean War Memorial in Seoul on July 26, 2026. Seventy-four participants from 21 countries, including 13 UN Korean War veterans and bereaved family members are visiting Seoul as part of the Revisit Korea Program for UN Korean War Veterans. (Photo by GREG BAKER / AFP) Cars drive along the road as smoke rises above residential buildings from a warehouse for a Russian e-commerce giant near Saint Petersburg after being hit by Ukrainian drones early on July 24, 2026 morning, triggering a fire that sent smoke pouring over the historic city, according to local officials. Kyiv has targeted Saint Petersburg as it steps up long-range drone strikes on Russian energy, military and logistics sites in recent weeks. Russia’s defence ministry said its forces shot down some 571 drones overnight over more than a dozen regions and Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula that Russia annexed in 2014. (Photo by AFP) Minister of Electricity and Energy Kgosientsho Ramokgopa (left) presents a Motsepe Foundation Impact Circle Certificate of Honour to Zizipho Yekelo as Motsepe Foundation co-founder Precious Moloi-Motsepe looks on at the Houghton Hotel in Johannesburg, 24 July 2026. The ceremony recognised graduates of the Motsepe Foundation’s scholarship programme, many of whom have excelled in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), and saw them pledge to lead with integrity, uphold the values of ubuntu and give back to society. Picture: Nigel Sibanda/The Citizen A destroyed building is pictured in the village of Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh in southern Lebanon on July 26, 2026. Lebanon’s army had on July 21 began deploying to Zawtar al-Gharbiya as part of a US-sponsored framework agreement signed by Lebanon and Israel last month. Under the deal, the army is to disarm Hezbollah and the Israeli military is to withdraw from “pilot zones” where Lebanese troops will subsequently deploy. (Photo by MAHMOUD ZAYYAT / AFP) A Hindu devotee dressed as goddess Amman takes part in a religious procession to celebrate ‘Aadi’ festival in Chennai on July 26, 2026. (Photo by R. Satish BABU / AFP) Revellers in cowboy attire watch a live country music performance from a distance during International Cowboy Day celebrations at Ngong Racecourse in Nairobi on July 25, 2026. Observed annually on the fourth Saturday of July, International Cowboy Day celebrates the history, culture and enduring legacy of cowboys and cowgirls around the world. While rooted in the traditions of North America, cowboy culture and country music have gained a growing following across parts of Africa in recent years, particularly in Kenya, where Western-style fashion, line dancing, horseback riding and country music events have attracted an expanding community of enthusiasts. (Photo by Luis TATO / AFP) The funeral service for Bafana Bafana player Jayden Adams at Coetzenburg Sports Grounds on July 25, 2026 in Stellenbosch, South Africa. Adams tragically passed away at the age of 25 in Cape Town, shortly after returning from representing South Africa at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. (Photo by Gallo Images/Brenton Geach) Robots fight during the “Rek Tokyo 2026” humanoid robot fights in Akihabara district of Tokyo on July 25, 2026. (Photo by Philip FONG / AFP) An Indonesian performer dressed in a HEAL (Humanity, Earth, and Life)-themed costume takes part in parade during the Jember Fashion Carnival in Jember, East Java island, on July 26, 2026. (Photo by Juni KRISWANTO / AFP) People set up bouquets of flowers on July 26, 2026 in front of landmark Brandenburg Gate prior to a so-called “community mourning” one day after the car ramming attack on people on the outskirts of Berlin’s Christopher Street Day (CSD) parade on late July 25, 2026, killing one person and injuring 16 in the Tiergarten park. German police searched on July 26, 2026 for a suspect believed linked to Islamist circles after a car ploughed into a crowd near Berlin’s Gay Pride celebrations, killing one person and wounding 16 others. The incident shattered what had been a day of celebration for hundreds of thousands attending Christopher Street Day, one of Europe’s largest Pride events, and left revellers fleeing a central Berlin park as sirens echoed through the night. (Photo by RALF HIRSCHBERGER / AFP) A made-up participant attends the Drag Queen March in Berlin on July 24, 2026. Ahead of the Christopher Street Day (CSD) parade, Berlin hosts its first-ever Drag March bringing a tradition known from New York to Berlin. (Photo by RALF HIRSCHBERGER / AFP) This aerial view shows burnt cars following a wildfire in Le Porge, in the Gironde Department, south-western France on July 25, 2026. The fires, which are on an unprecedented scale and have forced the evacuation of around 200,000 “fire refugees” in Gironde and the Landes, were still not under control on July 25, 2026 and continue to keep firefighters and military personnel on high alert, including an A400M aircraft deployed to tackle the blaze for the first time. (Photo by Florian PLAUCHEUR / AFP) General view of crowd inside the stadium during the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) 13th Anniversary Rally and 2026 Manifesto Launch at Thohoyandou Stadium on July 25, 2026 in Thohoyandou, South Africa. The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) celebrate the party’s 13th anniversary and launch its 2026 manifesto, with party president Julius Malema addressing supporters during the event. (Photo by Gallo Images/Kabelo Leputu) Moulin Rouge dancers perform the Can-Can along the race route before the 21st stage of the 113th edition of the Tour de France cycling race, 88,7 km starting and finishing in Paris, on July 26, 2026. (Photo by Kenzo TRIBOUILLARD / AFP) Residents block traffic in a neighbourhood of San Miguel del Padrón in Havana July 24, 2026, and bang pots and pans, dumping garbages on the street and setting fires to protest against ongoing blackouts and water shortages. (Photo by ADALBERTO ROQUE / AFP) Farmers harvest water chestnuts in a pond in Zhangjiayuan community in Taizhou, eastern China’s Jiangsu province, on July 26, 2026. (Photo by CN-STR / AFP) MORE: 24 hours in pictures, 22 July 2026