Picture editors choices

Each year, the picture editors of every newspaper and media outlet sift through tens of thousands of images - some more memorable than others. Here, Peter Dench compiles a round-up of the most powerful photographs some of these visual editors have seen in 2023

Mikko Takkunen, Photo Editor, International, The New York Times

The New York Times's International desk is doing an ambitious project about Africa's youth boom, which is based on the statistic that Africa has the fastest-growing, youngest population of any continent. By 2050, one in four people on the planet will be African, causing this seismic change, which is already starting to register. The opening piece was written by the chief Africa correspondent for the Times, Declan Walsh, and we assigned Paris-based Filipina photographer Hannah Reyes Morales to take the photographs. She made four trips to five countries in different parts of the continent. This photograph, showing university students playing on the Yoff Beach in Dakar, Senegal, in March of 2023, ran at the top of the story online and on the cover of the 40-page special print section. I think the image does a great job at capturing the youthful energy which is at the centre of the story. It has beautiful light and colour palette, and the way the students are composed is strikingly layered. It also feels very dynamic and active, especially the youths' expressions and body postures. It's a photograph people around the world can relate to. There's something very universal in it.

University students are seen hanging out in the afternoon in Yoff Beach, Dakar, Senegal. With a median age of 19, Africa is the continent with the world's youngest population. As the demographic shift presents an opportunity for growth in the region, young people continue to navigate complex challenges - while taking an active role in shaping their future

Palestinian woman Inas Abu Maamar, 36, embraces the body of her five-year-old niece Saly, who was killed in an Israeli strike, at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, 17 October 2023