A look at the best news photos from around the world.
February 21, 2017
![A civilian who escaped Islamic State territory phones his family he left behind, in Abu Saif, Iraq. Iraqi forces advanced into the southern outskirts of Mosul in a push to drive Islamic State militants from the city's western half.](https://gdb.voanews.com/370d92b7-aae3-4e34-9984-46a5269bbe7d_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A civilian who escaped Islamic State territory phones his family he left behind, in Abu Saif, Iraq. Iraqi forces advanced into the southern outskirts of Mosul in a push to drive Islamic State militants from the city's western half.
![Israeli soldier Elor Azaria (R), who shot dead a wounded Palestinian assailant in March 2016, is embraced by his mother Oshra (L) at the start of his sentencing hearing in a military court in Tel Aviv.](https://gdb.voanews.com/e32f57da-5935-4a31-b869-22b7f951b5d1_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Israeli soldier Elor Azaria (R), who shot dead a wounded Palestinian assailant in March 2016, is embraced by his mother Oshra (L) at the start of his sentencing hearing in a military court in Tel Aviv.
![Snow is seen in the moat surrounding the Forbidden City during a snowfall in Beijing, China.](https://gdb.voanews.com/26234b77-68ab-4e63-ad21-9b76951429c9_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Snow is seen in the moat surrounding the Forbidden City during a snowfall in Beijing, China.
![A municipal guard fires tear gas at demonstrators during a protest against the state government in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Feb. 20, 2017. The protesters denounced a proposal to privatize the state's water and sewage company.](https://gdb.voanews.com/286fb20d-d5ce-4229-b134-debd91cebea4_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A municipal guard fires tear gas at demonstrators during a protest against the state government in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Feb. 20, 2017. The protesters denounced a proposal to privatize the state's water and sewage company.