The winning photo represents Mahmoud Ajjour, nine, whose weapons were cut during an Israeli attack in Gaza last year.
The solemn portrait of a nine -year -old Palestinian boy, whose arms were cut and mutilated during an Israeli attack on Gaza City, won the photo of the year of the year 2025.
The photo, given the distinction on Thursday, was taken by Samar Abu Elouf for the New York Times newspaper and represents Mahmoud Ajjour.
“One of the most difficult things that Mahmoud’s mother explained to me was how, when Mahmoud realized for the first time that his arms were amputated, the first sentence he said was:” How can I hug you “?” said Abu Elouf.
Ajjour was evacuated to Doha, Qatar, after the Israeli explosion in March of last year, an attack on the war continued which killed at least 51,025 Palestinians, injured about 116,432 others and reduced a large part of the enclave in rubble.
The photographer is also from Gaza and was herself evacuated in December 2023. She is now taking photos of poorly injured Palestinians based in Doha.
“This is a silent photo that speaks loudly. It tells the story of a boy, but also a wider war that will have an impact for generations,” said Joumana El Zein Khoury, executive director of World Press Photo.
The jury praised the “composition and strong attention of the photo of the photo and its stimulating subject, in particular the questions raised on the future of Mahmoud.
He also praised the way in which the photo portrays “the dehumanization of a region and on the incessant targeting of journalists in Gaza alongside the continuous denial of access to international journalists seeking to expose the realities of this war”.
The boy is now learning to play games on his phone, write and open doors with his feet, but always need special help for most daily activities, such as eating and dressing, said the jury.
“Mahmoud’s dream is simple: he wants to get prostheses and live his life as a child,” the world press photos said in a statement.
The declaration cited the recent estimate of the United Nations Works and Rescue Agency (Undadra) that by last year of last year, Gaza had more amputees of children per capita than everywhere else in the world.
“Children are disproportionately affected by war,” said the jury.
Finalist prize
The jury has also selected two photos for the finalist prize.
The first, entitled “Soueghts in the Amazon” by Musuk Nolte for Panos Pictures and the Bertha Foundation, shows a man on a dried river bed in the Amazon carrying supplies in a village once accessible by boat.
The second, “Night Crossing” by John Moore shooting for Getty Images, represents Chinese migrants huddling near a fire during cold rain after crossing the American-Mexican border.
The jury spent 59,320 photographs of 3,778 photojournalists to select 42 award -winning shots from around the world.
Luis Tato, based in Nairobi, has won in the “stories” category for the African region for a selection of photos representing the uprising of Kenya young people.
Jerome Brouillett won in the “simple” category in Asia-Pacific and Oceania for his emblematic photo of the Gabriel Medina surfer who apparently floated above the waves.
Clarens Siffroy won in the category of northern “stories” of Central America for his coverage of the gang crisis in Haiti.
Finally, Anselmo Cunha won the “simple” category for South America for his photo of a Boeing 727-200 stranded at Salgado Filho International Airport in Brazil.
