TIME's Best Pictures of the Week: Dec. 12 – Dec. 19, 2014

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Dec. 16, 2014. Women mourn their relative Mohammed Ali Khan, 15, a student who was killed during an attack by Taliban gunmen on the Army Public School, at his house in Peshawar Pakistan. At least 132 students and nine staff members were killed after Taliban gunmen broke into a school in the Pakistani city of Peshawar and opened fire.





Dec. 13, 2014. A woman walks pushing a pram between the rubble of destroyed buildings in the besieged rebel bastion of Douma, Syria.





Dec.18, 2014. Russia's President Vladimir Putin is seen through a video camera's viewfinder, as he speaks during his annual press conference in Moscow.





Dec. 12, 2014. Homes are covered with rocks and mud after debris flows smashed into houses as a powerful storm in the Camarillo Springs neighborhood of Camarilla, California.





Dec. 15, 2014. A hostage runs to armed tactical response police officers for safety after she escaped from a cafe under siege at Martin Place in the central business district of Sydney, Australia.





Dec. 16, 2014. Ava Exelbirt hugs one of the remaining horses at the Masterpiece Equestrian Center in Davie, Fla., Ava lost the horse she rode to contaminated feed. There's nothing that can be done to save 18 poisoned horses at a Florida equestrian center, so their young riders are holding "spa days" to brush their manes and tails, paint their hooves, feed them hay and pet their noses to keep the animals comfortable in their last days.





Dec. 14, 2014. An actor takes part in the reanactment of the 70th anniversary of the Battle of the Ardennes also known as the Battle of the Bulge in Recogne, Belgium.





Dec. 16, 2014. The uncle and cousin of injured student Mohammad Baqair, center, comfort him as he mourns the death of his mother who was a teacher at the military-run school, which was attacked by Taliban, in Peshawar, Pakistan.





Dec. 14, 2014. Palestinian militants of the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas's armed wing, show their skills during a parade marking the 27th anniversary of the Islamist movement's creation.





Dec. 17, 2014. A couple dance the tango in front of St. Peter's Square to celebrate Pope Francis 78th birthday, at the Vatican.

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Dec. 17, 2014. Pope Francis blows out candles on a birthday cake on the occasion of his 78th birthday during his weekly general audience in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican.





Dec. 18, 2014. A man arrives with a bunch of flowers in Martin Place in Sydney, Australia. Tens of thousands of Sydneysiders have paid tribute to the two victims of the Martin Place siege, barrister Katrina Dawson and cafe manager Tori Johnson.





In this undated photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) in Pyongyang on Dec. 13, 2014. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (C) smiles as he inspects the Korean People's Army (KPA) navy Unit 189 honoured with the title of "O Jung Hup-led 7th Regiment".





Dec. 18, 2014. Damage inside the Army Public School attacked by Taliban gunmen, in Peshawar, Pakistan.





Dec. 13, 2014. Handguns that were swapped for gift cards during a Los Angeles Police Department sponsored gun buyback event in Los Angeles, California.





Dec. 13, 2014. A young Maasai man competes in the High Jumping competition at the Maasai Olympics 2014, held in Kimana village near the border with Tanzania adjacent to the Amboseli National Park in Kenya.The Maasai Olympics, first held in 2012, was organized by Maasai leaders and the wildlife conservation group 'Big Life Foundation' to stop the killings of lions and other wild animals. The event aims to change the mindset of young Maasai men whose traditional lion hunting has been an important coming-of-age ritual.





Dec. 17, 2014. Rebels fighter watching the movements of regime forces through a window, in Aleppo, Syria.





Dec. 17, 2014. A poster for the movie "The Interview" is taken down by a worker after being pulled from a display case at a Carmike Cinemas movie theater, Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2014, in Atlanta. Georgia-based Carmike Cinemas has decided to cancel its planned showings of "The Interview" in the wake of threats against theatergoers by the Sony hackers.





Dec. 16, 2014. Russian currency dropped to 100 rubles to one euro, more then 25 per cent per a day. The continued drop in the price of crude oil and Western sanctions against Russia over the Ukraine crisis are being blamed for plunging the rouble to a record low against dollar and euro.





Dec. 12, 2014. Filipino student Katrina Tapia (C) reacts while being surrounded by members of Alpha Phi Omega (APO) fraternity during the annual 'Oblation run' inside the University of the Philippines in Diliman, eastern Manila, Philippines.

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Dec. 18, 2014. People pass a poster calling for the release of the Cuban Five spies, the last of who were released the day before, in Havana, Cuba.





Dec. 14, 2014. Foreign tourists walk on a small beach with fallen big trees and damage still visible from the 2004 tsunami in Khao Lak, in Phang Nga province, about 110 km (68 miles) north of the resort island of Phuket. Thailand prepares to mark the tenth anniversary of the 2004 tsunami, the deadliest on the record, that killed at least 226,000 people in 13 Asian and African countries. In Thailand, over 5300 people were killed.





Dec. 14, 2014. Buddhist monks look at the Thai navy police boat which was swept almost 2 km (1.2 miles) inland during the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami as they visit a memorial in Khao Lak, in Thailand's Phang Nga province, about 110 km (68 miles) north of the resort island of Phuket.Thailand prepares to mark the tenth anniversary of the 2004 tsunami, the deadliest on the record.





Dec. 16, 2014. A diver in Santa costume feeds fish as part of upcoming Christmas celebrations at Aquaria KLCC underwater park in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.