EMEA News Photo Story of the Year
1st Place
Chris McGrath
“This picture story from Syria captured the drama, the heartbreak, the elation of an incredible moment in history, which the world hadn’t anticipated unfolding as it did, when it did. But this photographer was there, documenting the breadth of emotion a war-torn nation was experiencing, as people celebrated the rapid fall of the Assad regime, burning images of the man that represented the pain and oppression of 13 years of civil war. Then the grim process of searching for the dead and missing, glimpsing the inside of the hellish prisons where so many were tortured and perished, and mourning unimaginable losses. But this set of pictures also shows us the brighter moments - an emotional reunion, the waving of flags, and then leaves us with the seemingly innocuous image of people posing for pictures overlooking the Damascus skyline - a simple expression of freedom against the backdrop of a nation and its potential for peace.”
‘Syria: The Fall Of The Regime 1’
On December 8, rebel forces in Syria retook the capital and several other cities from longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad, who fled the country for Moscow. The fall of the Assad regime marks a new chapter for Syria, which has been mired in a multi-party civil war since 2011, sparked by the Arab Spring uprisings.
2nd Place
David Ramos
‘After the Floods’
Valencia faced devastating storms that brought record-breaking rainfall, flooding towns like Massanassa, Alfafar, and Valencia itself. Torrents swept away cars, submerged homes, and severely disrupted infrastructure, leaving residents stranded and emergency services overwhelmed. Key areas, including railway lines, were heavily affected, halting transportation for days. Rescue teams confirmed 231 official victims, underlining the catastrophic scale of the tragedy. The aftermath revealed the region’s vulnerability to extreme weather and the urgent need for improved infrastructure and emergency planning to prevent future disasters.
3rd Place
Dan Kitwood
‘The Great British Beach Hut’
Colourful, wooden beach huts are an iconic fixture of the British seaside. Most are only big enough in which to sit, change and store belongings, while others have been equipped with kitchenettes. For many decades since their proliferation in the early 20th century, such beach huts were relatively cheap, especially as air travel saw British holidaymakers increasingly favour sunny foreign locales over their own seaside. In recent years, prices for hiring or buying beach huts have gone ever upward, particularly during the pandemic, as travel bans accelerated Britons' renewed appreciation for their coastal resorts. In some places, luxury beach huts have commanded six-figure sums.
Honourable Mention
Dan Kitwood
‘Refugee Crisis Deepens In Chad As Conflict In Sudan Rages’
Since the beginning of the recent conflict between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the the Sudanese Armed Forces, (SAF), which began in March 2023, over 600,000 new refugees have crossed the border from Darfur in Sudan, into Chad. The total number of refugees, including those from previous conflicts, now stands at 1.2 million. Aid agencies, including The World Food Programme, (WFP), Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, (UNHCR), already struggling with acute supply shortages, have warned that the life-saving programmes in Chad, will ‘grind to a halt in a matter of weeks without urgent funding’. Chad is now home to one of the largest and fastest-growing refugee populations in Africa.
