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Week in pictures: 10 - 16 July 2021

A selection of powerful news photographs taken around the world this week.

Sascha Steinbach / EPA Houses collapsed near a gravel pit in Erftstadt Blessem, GermanySascha Steinbach / EPA
Houses collapsed near a gravel pit in Erftstadt-Blessem, Germany, following flooding caused by record rainfall. Across western Europe, at least 120 people have died and hundreds more are unaccounted for after some of the worst flooding in decades.
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AFP A member of the South African Police Forces pointed a gun at looters during protests in Durban, South AfricaAFP
A member of the South African police force tries to control looting during protests sparked by the jailing of former President Jacob Zuma. More than 200 people have died and more than 2,000 people have been arrested during the recent unrest, the worst in the country for years.
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Getty Images Giorgio Chiellini of Italy lifts the Euro 2020 trophy at Wembley StadiumGetty Images
Leonardo Bonucci of Italy celebrates winning Euro 2020 by lifting the trophy with team mates. England's hopes of winning its first major trophy in 55 years were crushed in a 3-2 penalty shoot out defeat at Wembley Stadium, London.
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Christopher Furlong / Getty Images People look at the messages of support and the newly repaired mural of England footballer Marcus Rashford by the artist known as AKSE_P19 in Manchester, EnglandChristopher Furlong / Getty Images
Messages of support are seen on a mural of footballer Marcus Rashford in Withington, Manchester. The artwork was defaced shortly after Rashford missed a penalty, along with Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka, in the Euro 2020 final. All three players were targeted with racist abuse on social media following the match.
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David Swanson / Reuters Firefighters spray water from a fire train over Rock Creek Bridge as a fire grows in Plumas National Forest, CaliforniaDavid Swanson / Reuters
Firefighters spray water from a fire train over Rock Creek Bridge in Plumas National Forest, California. Wildfires are raging in the west of the United States following a heatwave that brought record temperatures to several areas.
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Ian West / PA Media A titan arum plant blooms in a glass hot house at Kew Gardens in LondonIan West / PA Media
A titan arum (Amorphophallus titanum) plant at Kew Gardens, London, blooms for the first time in two years. Native to the Sumatran rainforest of Indonesia, titan arum is also known as 'corpse flower' due to the foul stench of rotting flesh it emits when in bloom to attract flies and carrion beetles for pollination.
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Christopher Furlong / Getty Images A yellow inflatable artwork with spikes is seen bursting through the pillars of the Temple of Piety at Studley RoyalChristopher Furlong / Getty Images
Spiked, an inflatable artwork by Steve Messam, bursts through the columns of the Temple of Piety at Studley Royal near Ripon, North Yorkshire.
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Kim Kyung-Hoon / Reuters A person fishes on a boat on Lake Hamana in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, JapanKim Kyung-Hoon / Reuters
A person fishes on a boat on Lake Hamana as the sun sets in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan.
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Giuseppe Cacace / AFP A diver sinks in Deep Dive Dubai swimming pool in Dubai, United Arab EmiratesGiuseppe Cacace / AFP
A diver descends in the world's deepest swimming pool in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Deep Dive Dubai is 60m deep and filled with 14 million litres of water heated to 30C.
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Edward Berthelot / Getty Images Fireworks explode around the Eiffel Tower during the annual Bastille Day celebrations on 14 July 2021 in Paris, FranceEdward Berthelot / Getty Images
Fireworks explode around the Eiffel Tower during Bastille Day celebrations in Paris. The annual events mark the storming of Bastille prison on 14 July 1789, seen as the start of the French Revolution.

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