In Focus
The Week in Pictures: July 19 - 26
A haze descends on Yosemite, farmers block the Tour de France, wildfires rage in Greece and more.
Bike race blockade
Gendarmes detain a protester as Great Britain's Geraint Thomas, wearing the overall leader's yellow jersey, rides behind during the 16th stage of the Tour de France on July 24.
The race was halted for several minutes when police used tear gas to disperse a farmers' protest that had blocked the road with bales of hay. The farmers were protesting a planned reduction of European Union funding.
Wall of fire
Firefighters try to extinguish the flames of a wildfire in Kineta, Greece, on July 24.
Raging wildfires in Greece killed at least 82 people, including small children, devouring homes and forests as terrified residents fled to the sea to escape the flames.
Reunited
Heydi and her daughter, Mishel, 6, and Luis and his daughter, Selena, 6, relax together in an Annunciation House facility after they were reunited with their children on July 26 in El Paso, Texas.
Heydi, from Guatemala, and Luis, from El Salvador, were reunited at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing center about two months after they were separated when they tried to cross into the U.S.
Stairs on stilts
A dancer performs the "Dance of the Stilts" in honor of Saint Mary Magdalene in Anguiano, Spain, on July 21. In a tradition that dates back more than four centuries, eight young people from the town balance on stilts down the old street, turning to the sound of folk music played on a pipe and drum.
Pony swim
Wild ponies swim across the Assateague Channel during the annual Pony Swim from Assateague Island to Chincoteague, Virginia, on July 25.
Every year the wild ponies are rounded up on the national wildlife refuge to be auctioned off by the Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Company. The first foal to come ashore is named King or Queen Neptune.
Yosemite haze
Hannah Whyatt poses for a friend's photo as smoke from the Ferguson fire fills Yosemite Valley on July 25 in Yosemite National Park in California.
Yosemite Valley, the scenic heart of the national park, was closed at noon Wednesday during the height of tourist season as smoke cast a pall on the region from a fire in the Sierra Nevada. The closure was heartbreaking for travelers, many of whom mapped out their trips months in advance to hike and climb amid the spectacular views of cascading waterfalls and sheer rock faces.
Handheld firework
A man holds his handmade Tezutsu hanabi, or handheld firework, dedicated to the Yoshida Shrine a part of a Shinto ritual, on the eve of the Toyohashi Gion festival, in Toyohashi, Japan, on July 20.
Every year, each male member of the shrine makes his own set of fireworks from bamboo covered by straw ropes with a loaded gun and metal powder, in a tradition that has been practiced for more than 350 years, according to an old document at the shrine.
Seaside destruction
A neighborhood devastated after a wildfire in Mati, Greece, on July 24.
During the fire, hundreds fled to nearby beaches, with many swimming out to sea to escape the ferocious flames and choking smoke. Coast guard and volunteer divers were searching the waters off the coast.
Palestinian mourners
Relatives of a Palestinian militant killed in an Israeli strike mourn during his funeral in Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip on July 21.
Gaza's militant Hamas rulers said Saturday they had accepted a cease-fire ending a massive Israeli onslaught on militant positions after a soldier was shot dead, once again pulling the sides back from the brink of a full-fledged war.
Parched park
Visitors walk along footpaths surrounded by dry brown grass in London's Greenwich Park on July 23. Many parts of the country have seen no rainfall for weeks. London issued a high pollution alert, and fire officials called for a ban on barbecues in parks.
Watery distortion
A child plays in the waterfall at Yards Park in Washington on July 19.
