The week's best photojournalism

In the week's most striking images, Santa Claus climbs to new heights, BB-8 rolls the red carpet, and more

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A member of the "Sibspas" Siberian search and rescue group dressed as Santa Claus (L), shakes hands with his teammate, dressed as Father Frost, the Russian equivalent of Santa Claus, as they
Indigenous people attend the First National Conference of Indigenous Policy in Brasilia, Brazil.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Ueslei Marcelino))

Members of the "Sibspas" Siberian search and rescue group dressed as Santa Claus and Father Frost climb a rock at the Stolby National Nature Reserve in Krasnoyarsk, Russia.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Ilya Naymushin))

A boy runs outside a former Olympic stadium in Athens.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Alkis Konstantinidis))

An animal keeper holds Bei Bei, the National Zoo's newest panda, in Washington, D.C.
(Image credit: (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik))

Chinese paramilitary guards stand on the stairs after the crown prince of Abu Dhabi leaves the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/FRED DUFOUR/Pool))

A worker applies color to strings, which will be used to fly kites, in Ahmedabad, India.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Amit Dave))

Anti-terrorism paramilitary policemen take part in a drill in Changsha, China.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Stringer))

Droid BB-8 arrives at the world premiere of Star Wars: The Force Awakens in Hollywood.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni))

A flock of starlings flies in the dusk sky over Rome.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Tony Gentile))

Photographers take pictures as the Soyuz TMA-19M spacecraft, headed to the International Space Station, blasts off from the launching site at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Shamil Zhumatov))

Soldiers of China's People's Liberation Army jump into the snow as part of their winter training in Heihe, China.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Stringer))

Workers pull a pontoon to construct a temporary bridge for the Magh Mela festival on the Ganges in Allahabad, India.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Jitendra Prakash)**See last week's best photojournalism**)

Lauren Hansen
Lauren Hansen

Lauren Hansen produces The Week’s podcasts and videos and edits the photo blog, Captured. She also manages the production of the magazine's iPad app. A graduate of Kenyon College and Northwestern University, she previously worked at the BBC and Frontline. She knows a thing or two about pretty pictures and cute puppies, both of which she tweets about @mylaurenhansen.