The Best Pictures of the Week, October 14 – October 21

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From the death of Muammar Gaddafi and the release of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, to the global spread of the Occupy Wall Street protests and the horrific crash that killed Dan Wheldon, TIME’s photo department presents the best images of the week.

October 18, 2011. In the company of members of his family, Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit is guided from an army helicopter. After being captured by Hamas militants in 2006 and spending five years in captivity in Gaza, Shalit was freed in exchange for the release of more than 1,000 Palestinians from Israeli jails. Dror Art Zi—EPA
October 16, 2011. A woman awaits the dedication ceremony for the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial in Washington, D.C. The ceremony had been scheduled for the 48th anniversary of King’s “I Have a Dream” speech in August but was postponed because of Hurricane Irene. Ml Aden Antonov—AFP/Getty
Dar Yasin—AP
October 15, 2011. Police in Ghariand, India, pay their last respects to fellow officer Sajjad Ahmad Parray at his funeral procession. Parray died from wounds he sustained in a suspected militant attack a day earlier.
20 October 2011. The body of killed former Libyan Leader Muammar Gaddafi is brought by ambulance to the hospital in Misrata, Libya. Libyans poured into the streets to celebrate the news of Gaddafi's capture and death, as Western leaders called on the country's transitional government to embrace a new era of democracy after decades of despotism in the North African nation.Guillen Valle—EPA
October 16, 2011. A Palestinian woman gazes out of the back of an armored vehicle after her arrest in a clash between stone throwers and Israeli soldiers in the West Bank city of Hebron. Abed Al Hashl Amoun—EPA
October 14, 2011. Weakened by political scandals and economic woes that emboldened his rivals and undercut his support from former allies in the business community, Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi awaits a no-confidence vote at the Parliament in Rome. He narrowly won, avoiding ouster from office. Gregorio Borgia—AP
October 16, 2011. A horrifying 15-car crash cut short the IndyCar World Championship in Las Vegas. The fiery pileup, blamed on unsafe track conditions, claimed the life of driver Dan Wheldon, in car 77. Robert Laberge—Getty Images
World Press Photo Alternate Frame Samuel Aranda
October 15, 2011. A woman cradles a wounded relative at a mosque in Sana‘a, Yemen, that is being used as a hospital by anti-government protesters. At least 16 protesters and civilians were killed in clashes with forces loyal to President Ali Abdullah Saleh. The New York Times/Redux
October 19, 2011. An Irish traveler resident holds up a cross for the media, in front of a burning barricade during evictions at the Dale Farm travelers site, near Basildon England, 30 miles east of London. Police in riot gear used sledgehammers to clear the way for the eviction of a community of Irish travelers from a site where they have lived illegally for a decade. Matt Dunham—AP
October 15, 2011. An injured Occupy Wall Street protester kneels before a police officer in Rome. Protests against banks, wealth inequality and economic policies have spread to dozens of cities worldwide. In Rome, police fired tear gas and water cannons as protesters smashed windows, threw bottles and set cars ablaze. Gregorio Borgia—AP
October 19, 2011. A piece of plaster torn from a building and thrown by a protester shatters as it hits the paint-spattered helmet of a riot policeman, during clashes in central Athens. Greek anger over new austerity measures and layoffs erupted into violence, as demonstrators hurled chunks of marble and gasoline bombs and riot police responded with tear gas and stun grenades that echoed across Athens' main square. Petros Giannakouris—AP
October 18, 2011. Agence France Presse photographer, Hector Retamal, is arrested by police during a protest in Santiago, Chile, on the first day of a new national strike called by students, that was described by government as a "complete failure."Mario Ruiz–EPA
October 15, 2011. A Thai boy holds banknotes aloft to keep them dry while he swims during the flood in Nonthaburi province in suburban Bangkok. Thailand fought to hold back floodwaters flowing towards Bangkok as a spring tide hindered efforts to protect the city of 12 million people from the kingdom's worst inundation in decades. pornchai Kittiwongsakul—AFP/Getty Images
October 16, 2011. In Thailand’s ancient capital city of Ayutthaya, a circle of vehicles sit partially submerged in floodwater. Inland flooding that encroached on the modern capital, Bangkok, has claimed 300 lives and displaced tens of thousands. Christophe Archambault—AFP/Getty Images
October 15, 2011. Highway police and motorway jetski club volunteers patrolled and handed out food and water to stranded residents along a flooded street in Pathum Thani province in suburban Bangkok. Thousands of sandbags piled alongside a canal on the northern edge of Bangkok form the last line of defense between the city of 12 million people and a wall of floodwater bearing down on the capital. Nicholas Asfouri—AFP/Getty Images
October 18, 2011. The view of a street after clashes between Libyan interim government forces and loyalists of Muammar Gaddafi in Sirt.Esam Al-Fetori—Reuters
October 17, 2011. Libyan National Transitional Council (NTC) fighters provide displaced Bangladeshis with food and drink after fleeing Sirt during heavy fighting between loyalist troops and NTC forces. Families of former Libyan regime officials streamed out of the coastal city, including the mother and brother of Muammar Gaddafi's spokesman Mussa Ibrahim. Philippe Desmazes—AFP/Getty Images
October 18, 2011. A Libyan National Transitional Council (NTC) fighter falls on the ground after being shot during a street battle in Sirt. Fierce street fighting erupted in Muammar Gaddafi's sole remaining bastion of Sirt as streets reverberated with the sound of heavy gunfire, rockets and mortars. Philippe Desmazes—Getty Images
October 13, 2011. Andreina Acevedo Martinez of Venezuela practices rhythmic gymnastics ahead of the XVI Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico. Lucy Nicholson—Reuters
October 18, 2011. A Tibetan exile monk holds his head as he sits among other monks during a daylong hunger strike in New Delhi, India, to express solidarity with the plight of the people in Tibet. A Tibetan nun calling for greater religious freedom died after setting herself on fire in western China, the latest in a series of self-immolations among the region's Buddhist clergy.Manish Swarup—AP
October 19, 2011. Indian washermen wash clothes at the banks of the River Yamuna on the outskirts of Allahabad, India. Rajesh Kumar Singh–AP
October 16, 2011. An Israeli border guard secures the areas as thousands of Jewish men and women participate in a mass Cohanim prayer (priest's blessing) during the annual pilgrimage festival of Sukkot, or the feast of the Tabernacles, at the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old City. Thousands of Jews make the week-long pilgrimage to Jerusalem during the holiday which commemorates the desert wanderings of the Israelites after their exodus from Egypt.Menahem Kahana-APF/Getty
October 16, 2011. Another image of the festival of Sukkot, or the feast of the Tabernacles, at the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old City.Menahem Kahana—AFP/Getty Images
October 17, 2011. US Flight Medic, sergeant 1st class Joseph Lemons (R) from 159th Brigade Task Force Thunder comforts the blindfold Afghan civilian cook, Salman Gowhar in an ambulance on the way to the Kandahar Hospital Hero after airlifting him from the Khakriz village in Kandahar province. Salman was injured by the steam blown on his face and eyes while cooking in his village in Kandahar province.Behrouz Mehri—AFP/Getty Images
October 18, 2011. South Korean honour guards perform during a welcoming ceremony for foreign military leaders visiting for the Seoul International Aerospace & Defense Exhibition 2011 at the Defence Ministry in Seoul.Jo Yong-Hak–Reuters
October 19, 2011. Queen Elizabeth II inspects an honor guard after her arrival at Fairbairn airforce base in Canberra. The Queen is on a tour to Australia, her first visit since 2006.Rick Rycroft–AP
October 13, 2011. A member of the U.S. Coast Guard falls backwards during a welcome ceremony for President Lee Myung-bak of the Republic of Korea on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC. Alex Wong–Polaris
October 15, 2011. A tax police officer is helped by colleagues as he lies on the ground during clashes in Rome. Italian police fired tear gas and water cannons as protesters in Rome turned a demonstration against corporate greed into a riot, smashing shop and bank windows, torching cars and hurling bottles. The protest in the Italian capital was part of "Occupy Wall Street" demonstrations against capitalism and austerity measures that went global, leading to dozens of marches and protests worldwide. Angelo Carconi–AP
October 12, 2011. Central hospital of "Bin Sina " located in the heart of the city of Sirt has suffered a lack of electricity and water while it is full of injured, and dead NTC fighters. National Transitional Council (NTC) fighters say this is the final assault on Muammar Gaddafi's home town as they capture the main hospital, University and the Ouagadougou conference center in the city. Pooyan Tabatabaei–Polaris
October 18, 2011. The shadow of a Palestinian is cast against a poster depicting Hamas militants capturing Israeli soldier during a rally celebrating the release of prisoners from Israeli jails, in Gaza City. Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit and hundreds of Palestinians crossed Israel's borders in opposite directions as a thousand-for-one prisoner exchange brought joy to families but did little to ease decades of conflict. Ismail Zaydah–Reuters
October 17, 2011. Palestinian workers prepare a field in Gaza City where celebrations will be held to welcome prisoners released from Israeli prisons the following day, as Palestinians prepare for the first stage of an unprecedented prisoner exchange deal under which Israel has agreed to free 1,027 Palestinian detainees in return for captured soldier Gilad Shalit. Alessio Romenzi–AFP/Getty Images
October 19, 2011. Indian washermen wash clothes at the banks of the River Yamuna on the outskirts of Allahabad, India. Rajesh Kumar Singh–AP
October 17, 2011. Tents are pitched in front of St Paul's Cathedral on the third day of a protest to occupy the London Stock Exchange in London, England. The demonstration, which is targeting corporate greed, stemmed from the "Occupy Wall Street" movement in New York and has spread to the financial districts of cities around the world.Oli Scarff–Getty Images
October 17, 2011. An agent scans the area from a rooftop as President Barack Obama speaks at the Asheville Regional Airport in Fletcher, North Carolina, during the first day of his three-day American Jobs Act bus tour to discuss jobs and the economy. Jewel Samad–AP/Getty Images
October 14, 2011. A cross and a crescent are painted on the palm of an Egyptian demonstrator holding the hand of a fellow protester during a rally in support of national unity in Cairo's Tahrir Square, days after 25 people, mostly Coptic Christians, were killed in weekend clashes with Egyptian security forces.Mohammed Hossam–AFP/Getty Images
October 17, 2011. Charles Thibault of Canada competes in the men's trampoline qualification round at the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico. Lucy Nicholson–Reuters
October 15, 2011. A car burns during a demonstration in Rome. Tens of thousands marched in Rome today as part of a global day of protests inspired by the "Occupy Wall Street" and "Indignant" movements, with the Italian capital under a security lockdown. Alberto Pizzoli–AFP/Getty Images
October 18, 2011. Red Bull Renault Formula One test drivers during the unveiling of the Buddh International Circuit, a venue for India's first Formula One Grand Prix located on the outskirts of New Delhi, India. India is to host its first Formula One Grand Prix on October 30, 2011. Anindito Mukherjee–EPA
October 20, 2011. Anti-Gaddafi fighters celebrate the fall of Sirt in the town. Libyan interim government fighters captured Muammar Gaddafi's home town, extinguishing the last significant resistance by forces loyal to the deposed leader and ending a two-month siege. Esam Al-Fetori–Reuters

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