Japanese farmers in Miyazaki prefecture tend to a field of vegetables, surrounded by flowers.
An Iraqi woman washes her husband's keffiyeh in a stream on the outskirts of the holy city of Najaf.
Children play in India's Andaman and Nicobar islands, where scientists say last year's tsunami has altered the landscape.
Tyres burn in a roadblock set up by Tamil Tiger rebels to deter voters on election day in Sri Lanka.
A Christmas tree is cut down in Oslo to be shipped to London's Trafalgar Square - an annual present from Norway.
Student protesters calling for the Filipino government's resignation flee riot police in the capital, Manila.
Porters carry luggage across the border of the divided Kashmir region, helping home travellers stranded by the earthquake.
People watch the changing of the guard in Monaco as ceremonies begin for Prince Albert II's investiture as ruler.
Pakistani policemen and English cricket captain Michael Vaughan discuss security outside his hotel in Faisalabad.
Europe's most powerful rocket, the Ariane 5, blasts off from a launch pad in French Guiana.