AFP Releases Its Best Photographs of the Year

AFP Releases Its Best Photographs of the Year US surfer Balaram Stack wipes out during the 2017 Backdoor Shootout surfing contest White House adviser Kellyanne Conway kneels on an Oval office couch to take a group photo A demonstrator catches fire during clashes with riot police within a protest against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro Italy's Linda Cerruti and Costanza Ferro competing in the Women Duet technical final during the synchronized swimming competition An air tanker drops fire retardant on flames as firefighters continue to battle against the Detwiler fire in Mariposa, California Italy's Eugenio Amos and his co-driver Sebastien Delaunay of France ride over sand dunes while competing during the Stage 12 of the Silk Way Students clean the steps in front of the statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il-Sung and Kim Jong-Il at Mansu hill as the country marks 'Victory Day' US athlete Justin Gatlin kneels in front of Jamaica's Usain Bolt at the 2017 IAAF World Championship Top models Carla Bruni, Claudia Schiffer, Naomi Campbell, Cindy Crawford and Helena Christensen pose at the end of the Versace fashion show People remove the portrait of former Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe after his resignation