Pictures in the News | Oct. 18, 2012

Syrians react after an airstrike by government forces in Maaret al-Numaan. Syrian regime warplanes launched a new wave of strikes on the northwestern town seized by rebels last week, an AFP correspondent reported. (Bulent Kilic / AFP/Getty Images)

Oct. 18, 2012 9:39 AM PT

In Thursday’s Pictures in the News: The aftermath of an airstrike by Syrian government forces against rebels, demonstrators clash with riot police during a 24-hour strike in Athens, Cambodians mourn the death of King Norodom Sihanouk at the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh, and more.

A demonstrator clashes with riot police during a 24-hour strike in Athens. Greek riot police fired tear gas to disperse protesters at an anti-austerity rally held during a national general strike as EU leaders were to tackle the eurozone crisis at a summit. The protesters had broken through a police line outside luxury hotels on central Syntagma Square and scattered groups of youths later attacked police with stones and firebombs, an AFP reporter said. (Aris Messinis / AFP/Getty Images)

Miners sing as they run during their strike at the AngloGold Ashanti Mine, in Fochville near Johannesburg. Thousands of South African gold miners say they will continue striking despite a plea by the president that they return to work. President Jacob Zuma had urged the striking mineworkers to return to work “as soon as possible” in order to normalize South Africa’s crucial mine sector, which has been reeling from strike action since August. (Themba Hadebe / Associated Press)

A Cambodian woman mourns the death of late King Norodom Sihanouk at the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh. The body of Sihanouk returned to his homeland on a plane from China on Wednesday, welcomed by tens of thousands of mourners who packed tree-lined roads in the Southeast Asian nation’s capital ahead of the royal funeral. (Wong Maye-E / Associated Press)

A soldier reacts to al-Shabab militants who fired on his convoy as it advanced along the road to Baidoa. A Ugandan contingent of the AMISOM forces, along with the Somali national army, advanced from Ballidoogole airbase to Balewin town on the road to Baidoa. Only minor resistance was met along the way. (Tobin Jones / AFP/Getty Images)

The shadow of a man holding a child falls on clothes hung to dry on the banks of the River Ganges in Allahabad, on the confluence of the rivers Ganges, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswathi, is one of Hinduism’s important centers. (Rajesh Kumar Singh / Associated Press)

Runners take the water jump in the Bathwick Tyres Yeovil Handicap Steeple Chase at Wincanton racecourse in Wincanton. (Alan Crowhurst / Getty Images)