"World Press Photo" 2025: Mahmoud from Gaza Moves the World
Around 60,000 images from almost 4,000 photographers from around the world participated in the competition, as the jury in Amsterdam announced. The main themes were conflicts, migration, and climate change.
Gaza War: Photo of a Mutilated Boy is "World Press Photo" 2025
The Palestinian Elouf photographed nine-year-old Mahmoud Ajjour, who was so severely injured while fleeing an Israeli attack in March 2024 that both arms had to be amputated. The image was taken for the "New York Times". The boy stands at a window in half-shadow, the warm light falls on his face and emphasizes his melancholic expression.
"It is a silent photo with a loud message," said the general director of the World Press Photo competition, Joumana El Zein Khoury. "It tells the story of a boy, but also of a larger war that will have impacts for generations." The photographer had to leave Gaza in December 2023 and now lives in Doha, Qatar - in the same residential complex as Mahmoud. She documented the severe injuries of people from the Gaza Strip.
Mahmoud is now learning to write, play games, and open doors with his feet, the jury reported. He has a dream: "He wishes for prosthetics and wants to live like any other child."
Migration and Climate Change as Additional Focus Areas
Among the three entries in the final is a photo by US photographer John Moore. It shows Chinese migrants warming themselves by a fire at the US-Mexico border.
A work by Musuk Nolte (Peru/Mexico) on the topic of drought in the Amazon region was also awarded. A young man stands with bags full of food in front of a dried-up river. His village Manacapuru in Brazil is no longer accessible by boat.
The jury awarded a total of 42 photographers in various categories. The winning photos can be seen in exhibitions in more than 60 cities. In Vienna, the exhibition usually takes place in the fall at the WestLicht Gallery.
(APA/Red)
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