The Middle East Framed - regional photography for December 22, 2020

We bring you the best images from the Middle East and North Africa

Palestinian amputees take part in a bicycle race during an event at the al-Nusairat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip. AFP

A Palestinian carpenter carves religious statues and figurines from olive wood at a shop near the Church of the Nativity, in the West Bank city of Bethlehem. AFP

A billboard with the pictures of Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis and the Iranian general Qasem Soleimani is seen at Palestine street, in eastern Baghdad, Iraq. Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei announced that Iran will retaliate against the killers of former Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander Qassem Soleimani, who was assassinated by a US drone strike in Iraq in January 2020. EPA

Iraqi protesters take part in a demonstration in the central city of Najaf. Hundreds of angry Iraqis protested in several cities against a currency devaluation that has slashed their purchasing power amid a pandemic-fuelled economic crisis. The Central Bank of Iraq recently devalued the dinar by nearly a quarter against the US dollar. AFP

Iraqi protesters take part in a demonstration at Tahrir Square in Baghdad. AFP

In this photo made available by the US Navy, the guided-missile submarine USS Georgia, front, and the guided-missile cruiser USS Port Royal, transit the Strait of Hormuz in Persian Gulf. The vessels traversed the strategically vital waterway between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula on Monday, amid rising tensions with Iran. AP

Families and relatives of victims of the Beirut port explosion, carrying pictures of their deceased loved ones, surround a Christmas tree during a ceremony in their memory in the Keratin district Beirut, Lebanon. The Christmas tree was set up at the main road in front of Beirut harbour in tribute to those who died in the blast and is decorated with the victims' names. EPA

Families and relatives of victims of the Beirut port explosion, carrying pictures of their deceased loved ones, surround a Christmas tree during a ceremony in their memory in the Keratin district Beirut, Lebanon. EPA

A Syrian woman, suspected of being related to ISIS fighters, carries a cat at the Kurdish-run al-Hol camp, in the al-Hasakeh governorate in north-eastern Syria. AFP

New Kuwaiti Interior Minister, Sheikh Thamer Ali al-Sabah, attends a parliament session at Kuwait's national assembly in Kuwait City. AFP

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