Waterskiing Santas and giant cuts of meat: Christmas around the world
From London to Bethlehem, services and festivities to mark the holiday cheer are in full swing.
3 days ago
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Workers sell off cuts of meat during the traditional Christmas Eve auction at Smithfield meat market in London, UK
From skiing Santas in the US and Mass with Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican, to giant cuts of meat being thrown into crowds in London, Christmas celebrations have been held around the world.
Worshippers in Ukraine, China and Pakistan gathered for Christmas Eve services at their local churches.
While most Christians mark Christmas on 25 December, many Orthodox Christians do not celebrate until 7 January.
Here are some of the best images of the holiday cheer around the world.
Reuters
Pope Leo XIV delivers the traditional Christmas Day Urbi et Orbi speech to the city and the world from the main balcony of St Peter's Basilica at the Vatican
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Two women take a photo in front of the Christmas tree in Nativity Square in Bethlehem, held to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ, in the occupied West Bank
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A woman lights a candle with her son during a Christmas Eve service in Kyiv, Ukraine
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Worshippers attend a Christmas Eve mass at the Church of the Saviour in Beijing, China
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Christians attend midnight Mass at Central Brooks Memorial Church in Karachi, Pakistan
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A man decorates a Christmas tree during Christmas Eve celebrations in Islamabad, Pakistan
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Girls stand alongside a Christmas nativity scene at St Mary's Church in the village of Uswetakeiyawa, Sri Lanka
Reuters
Women hold candles as they attend a Christmas Eve mass in Nairobi, Kenya
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The Chartres cathedral in France is illuminated in bright colours ahead of midnight Mass
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A skiing Santa delights crowds during an annual Waterskiing Santa event in Alexandria, Virginia, in the US on Christmas Eve
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People wearing Santa costumes walk along the sand of Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia
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Police officers dressed in festive gear deliver gifts on Christmas Eve in Lima, Peru
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Fishermen dressed as Santa and the Grinch on a boat in Valparaiso Bay, Chile
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Two men dressed as Santas take a selfie in the snow in Gulmarg in Indian-administered Kashmir