A Week in Pictures, Middle East and Africa, May 29, 2020

Mike Hutchings’ gentle picture just speaks to me of calm. Soft light plays on the faces of the clerics waiting to catch a glimpse of the moon. This all set in an arc of light that extends from complete darkness in the top left to the highlight on the left. The figures and the horizon break the image up into classic thirds. More pictures here.  

Muslim clerics await the sighting of the moon that marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan during a lockdown aimed at limiting the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on Sea Point promenade in Cape Town, South Africa, May 23, 2020. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings

A very simple picture by Khalid al-Mousily that I was drawn too and then tried to discount as not much is happening in it, but I kept coming back to it. I asked myself, why? Well there is really something quite sad about this brightly coloured merry-go-round that is devoid of children and screams of delight. More pictures here.  

A view of a deserted amusement park during the first day of Eid al-Fitr, after the government imposed a full lockdown on some areas of the city, amid the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Baghdad, Iraq May 24, 2020. REUTERS/Khalid al-Mousily

 Amir Cohen’s picture is both very good and I think very lucky. Netanyahu supporters wave a sea of flags: whites and blues all set against a dark background. Through this whirling mass we are drawn to the focal point of the image, a single face, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. How much different this image would have been if the face was even slightly covered. Just a mass of flags and no focal point. Read on here.    

Supporters of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wave Israeli flags during a rally as Netanyahu's corruption trial opens, near the Jerusalem District Court May 24, 2020. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

Luc Gnago treats us to a complex compositional zig-zag as children socially distance on their first day back at school. Boys in blue, girls in pink, evenly spaced, feet together, wearing masks to help protect them against coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and all weighed down by school bags heavy with books and lunch. And if we are in any doubt where we are we see the big word SCOLAIRE – school.

Pupils, wearing protective masks, stand in line in front of the Merlan school of Paillet, observing social distancing during the reopening of schools, as the lockdown due to coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is eased, may 25, 2020 in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. REUTERS/Luc Gnago

Putting it quite simply Muhammad Hamed has delivered a crowd pleaser. Red fireworks caught at their peak and a crescent moon set against a pitch-black sky with a hint of a smoke-covered cityscape. What’s not to like? So, enjoy it for what it is.

Fireworks light up the sky above the Abdali Boulevard, next to the crescent moon, during a celebration of the country's 74th Independence Day within a limited number of activities amid the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Amman, Jordan May 25, 2020. REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed

Hard to choose one or even two pictures from a project that has taken quite a while to pull together and involves many photographers from different countries but I have settled on pictures by Ronen Zvulun and Siphiwe Sibeko. What I especially like is that the subjects shot the picture from inside due to social distancing and I love that they have shot as they got into the spirit of the project. For Ronen’s image I like both the mix of warm and cold light created by the tungsten glow and all those busy triangles and diagonal lines in the composition. These angles echoed by Yael with her feet, the bed edge and the window framing. Read on here. 

A combination picture shows Yael Ben Ezer, a dancer from Israel's Batsheva Dance Company, seen through a window while she practices in her apartment, and a view that she sees from her apartment, as authorities around the world impose various guidelines on lockdowns and social distancing to curb the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Tel Aviv, Israel May 19, 2020. When asked, what will you miss most about being in lockdown? Yael Ben Ezer, replied 'I will miss the comfortable feeling of IT'S OK. It's ok not to "do" anything, it's ok not to be "productive" in the way we usually think. Things would come and go, the sun would rise and set, and I would just be living. And that's totally enough'. Picture taken May 19, 2020. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun and Yael Ben Ezer/Handout/via REUTERS

Siphiwe Sibeko also played with shapes, but in his image ovals and circles are fighting with the harsh light. But that harsh light has helped create strong blocks of colour. And for Zodidi’s picture we are treated to a soft and warm light through the curtains.  

A combination picture shows Zodidi Desewula, a housewife from the Eastern Cape province, taking a break by reading as seen through the doorway of her one-roomed rondavel house on May 23, 2020, and a view is pictured from her house on May 24, 2020, as authorities around the world impose various guidelines on lockdowns and social distancing to curb the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), at the Sibanye Stillwater's women hostel in Carletonville, South Africa. When asked, what will you miss most about being in lockdown? Zodidi says there is nothing she will miss about the lockdown once it is over. To her it was torture because she and her husband were stuck in one place unable to move. She also said " Myself and my husband were stuck in this single room house unable to go to work. We were struggling in getting food to eat because there was no income". REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko and Zodidi Desewula/via REUTERS

To me, Zohra Bensemra’s picture has an element of fear in it, but I am not sure if I am projecting my own concerns for the boy or whether it’s the way it has been beautifully shot that creates this feeling. The boy is looking out from an encroaching black space that occupies almost a half of the image and looks to consume him in darkness, almost like a giant wave. The mask adds to this feeling of breathlessness and holding breath waiting for the wave. He is looking out of the window towards the light, the glass separating him from the scene, his eyes seem to be searching for someone. But if we look at all the figures outside they seem to have their backs turned and he won’t be able to see the loves one he is looking for. Read on here.

A boy looks out of a bus window as teachers prepare to board government-chartered buses to go back to schools of countryside towns, scheduled to reopen next week, amid travel bans between regions due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Dakar, Senegal May 27, 2020. REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra

At first glance Ahmed Jadallah’s picture looks like a lone skier coming to the end of a ski run with lots of ski lifts seen against a grey sky, the red fencing guiding him to safety. But all is not all it seems, as this is a 3D trompe l’oeil and I like the momentary visual trick until the caption is read. As Dubai slowly comes out from lockdown what better way to celebrate and get some exercise than at an indoor ski slope in a shopping mall in the desert city. 

A person wearing a protective face mask ski at Ski Dubai during the reopening of malls, following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), at Mall of the Emirates in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, May 28, 2020. REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah

 Aziz Taher is not shooting pictures at the biggest or most violent clash in his long career but for sure it is one of the first instances where he, the security forces and the protesters all need to protect themselves against coronavirus disease (COVID-19) as well as the usual clashes. Those closest and face to face in the confrontation are all wearing face masks. I like the rather stylish mask the woman is wearing as she leans back from the baton that looks as if it is being raised as a warning rather than for a downward whack on exposed fingers or head.  

Demonstrators confront with riot police as they try to cross barricades on a road leading to the UNESCO Palace where Lebanon's parliament is holding a legislative session, during a protest against a controversial amnesty draft law, in Beirut Lebanon May 28, 2020. REUTERS/Aziz Taher

A Week in Pictures Middle East and Africa, June 7, 2019

The devastation of a mud slide is graphically illustrated in Newton Nambwaya’s striking picture. As far as the eye can see a brown gash of mud cuts down from the horizon, through the green trees, destroying and smothering all in its path. The woman in the foreground struggles through the mud, seemingly with little or no hope of achieving anything. This all seems slightly unreal. It was torrential rains that caused this mud slide, but the scene is now bathed in warm sunshine. 

A resident struggles through the destruction caused after a landslide rolled down the slopes of Mt Elgon through the Shisakali village in Bududa district, Uganda June 6, 2019.    REUTERS/Newton Nambwaya

Strong warm highlights and dark cold shadows in Khalil Ashawi’s bomb aftermath picture give us a real feel of the chaos of what is going on. It’s hard to work it out. Your eye is drawn immediately to the bright yellow and you spot the spray of water, or is it smoke? It’s then that you see the man with the jeans and white t-shirt, behind him another with the fire hose dousing the damaged vehicle. The ground, wet with water, reflects the light and the action. Slowly, the bystanders can be seen in the shadows on the right. They seem calm and used to all this. 

People try to extinguish a fire at the site of a car blast in Azaz, Syria, June 2, 2019.   REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi

The overall shape of the police arriving at the scene is like a wave crashing on the beach, with a strong right-to-left diagonal formed by the line of their helmets. Then you get a sense of a strong undercurrent pulling back. I think it’s the position of their arms that give us this sense of back and forth motion. Take special notice of the man’s hand in the centre of the picture. He looks like a surfer in a powerful current trying to control the flow of the wave.

Israeli policemen gather as they aim their weapons during clashes with Palestinians on ‘Jerusalem Day’ on the compound known to Muslims as Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as temple Mount, in Jerusalem’s Old City June 2, 2019.   REUTERS/Ammar Awad

A cacophony of colour and line makes your eyes swirl around Afolabi Sotunde’s picture from Eid prayers. Finally, you are allowed to rest on the brand name Hello Kitty, to make this a terrific business news picture. Then, and only then, you see the fingers reaching to the edge of the frame. Imagine just how disappointing it would be if these were cropped off! To see more picture from Eid click here

Muslim sisters pray next to a Hello Kitty hand bag during the Eid al-fitr celebration in Abuja, Nigeria June 4, 2019.    REUTERS/Afolabi Sotunde

An affectionate and simple set of pictures by Abdullah Dhiaa Al-Deen looks at the tradition of buying new clothes to celebrate Eid. The black background and the relaxed poses draw attention to the varieties of clothing purchased. Abdullah is taking a break from news photography to bring us a visual surprise to enjoy. I have pulled them together as a combination so you can see a small selection.  

Ghufran Ali Kazim, 21, Zuhair Ramzy Khalil, 23 and Mariam Farouq Naji, 23, pose for pictures wearing clothes brought for the celebration of Eid al-Fitr in Kerbala, Iraq June 5, 2019.    REUTERS/Abdullah Dhiaa Al-Deen 

All colour has been choked out of Thaier Al-Sudani’s cityscape by the smoke from the chimneys. The image looks like it’s from a bygone era. A tiny figure is dwarfed by the chimney stacks and the extent of the pollution. It’s the vehicle on the right that snaps us out of this illusion that this is from the past. It’s happening right now. Read on here 

A general view of brick factories as smoke rises from the chimney stacks in Nahrawan in Baghdad, Iraq, June 3, 2019.    REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani

All compositional lines in Azad Lashari’s picture lead to the fiery open mouth, from the torch itself, the line of the eyebrow, to the clothing of those watching. The yellow glow of the flame will be snuffed out in an instant as the worshipper closes his mouth, shutting off the oxygen to the flame. But the moment before that happens has been captured forever.  

A member of the Iraqi Muslims dervishes of Sufis, puts a torch of fire into his mouth as he takes part in a ritual during the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan, in Erbil, Iraq May 19, 2019.    REUTERS/Azad Lashari 

Like a Mondrian painting, this picture is made up of rectangular blocks, with the strong vertical lines of the telegraph poles intersecting the horizonal lines of the cables and breaking the image up into sections. A slab of solid back-lit black is counterweighted by the bright colours of the translucent flag held aloft. The picture structure feels like a loud drum beat. 

A Sudanese protester holds a national flag as he stands on a road barricade demanding that the country’s Transitional Military Council hand over power to civilians, in Khartoum, Sudan June 5, 2019.    REUTERS

A Week in Pictures Middle East & Africa, June 22, 2018

I love the strong diagonal composition of Thaier al-Sudani’s picture, which seems to pivot around the light-coloured headdress of the man in the centre. As your eye moves to the top of the frame you are rewarded with a break in the strong line, al-Hakim leading the prayer. It’s not often I would like to see video from a scene that has been well photographed but I would love to see the left to right movement of the line of worshippers. Maybe it’s the wide-screen 16 x 9 proportions of the crop that puts this in my mind. 

Ammar al-Hakim, leader of the Hikma Current, leads prayers for the Muslim festival of Eid al-Fitr at his headquarters, in Baghdad, Iraq, June 16, 2018.    REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani

Muhammad Hamad’s picture almost makes me feel breathless as it’s so busy. I love it that I feel I have to fight my way through a visual crowd of arms, hands, microphones and even the background wallpaper to finally get to the speaking PM al-Razzaz . Once there I feel that I am trapped in a small, almost claustrophobic space, immersed in a sea of wonderful colour and warmth.      

Journalists try to ask Jordan’s Prime Minister Omar al-Razzaz questions during his news conference in Amman, Jordan June 19, 2018.   REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed

There is a dream-like quality to Amir Cohen’s Eid al-Fitr holiday picture, thanks to a complex combination of elements that would normally send a picture to the spike. But the flare, over-exposure and back focus all work together with Amir’s great composition of figures. 

People enjoy themselves along the shore of the Mediterranean Sea during the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr at a beach in Tel Aviv, Israel, June 17, 2018.   REUTERS/Amir Cohen

Ahmed Jadallah was given exclusive access to the Aramco driving school for women in Saudi Arabia, where hundreds of women are preparing for the historic day on June 24, when they will be allowed to drive in Saudi Arabia. It’s not an easy story to photograph. Ahmed’s simple picture of pupil and teacher discussing mirror position is essentially a detail picture; hands, eyes and profile of the women’s faces that for me tells the whole story. You can see the rest of the story here

Trainee driver Maria al-Farai (L) adjusts the mirror during a driving lesson with instructor Ahlam al-Somali at the Saudi Aramco Driving Centre in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, June 6, 2018.   REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah

The half-open door and the plastic sheeting seems to wrap around the scene of grief like a cold embrace as boys huddle together looking for warm comfort in Mohammed Salem’s powerful and distressing image. Their hands and arms seems to claw through the picture, the open mouths and faces wet with tears leave us in no doubt about the extent of their grief. I hear the cries and screams ringing in my ears. A very sad picture. 

Relatives of a Palestinian, who was killed at the Israel-Gaza border, react at a hospital in Gaza City June 18, 2018.   REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

I am encroaching on another patch but can’t resist including Christian Hartmann’s fun picture of Senegal fans at their game against Poland at the World Cup in Russia . These guys have taken a lot of time to coordinate not only what they look like but where they stand. Their efforts were rewarded with a 2-1 win. 

Senegal fans cheers during their World Cup match against Poland in Spartak Stadium, Moscow, Russia June 19, 2018.   REUTERS/Christian Hartmann