World Press Photo 2025: A Striking Portrayal of Mahmoud Ajjour, the Youngest Winner
Announcing the Top Picture of 2025 in World Press Photo Competition: The winning shot of the year has been selected! - Announced: Outstanding Image of the Year 2025 - World Press Photo Winner
By: Jacqueline HaddadianReading Time: Approx. 2 mins
Stealing the limelight at this year's World Press Photo Awards, a powerful image by Samar Abu Elouf captures the "Press Photo of the Year." The image, titled "Mahmoud Ajjour, Aged Nine," portrays a nine-year-old Palestinian boy named Mahmoud, severely injured during an Israeli raid in Gaza. Senegal-born Samar, who now resides in the same housing complex as Mahmoud in Doha, Qatar, uses her lens to spotlight the devastation of war through the survivors of Gaza's grim reality.
Mahmoud Ajjour's Journey: Overcoming Adversity
The photo, taken in March 2024, shows Mahmoud fleeing an Israeli attack in Gaza City. After urging his family to continue, an explosion separates one of Mahmoud's arms and injures another. The devastated family and young Mahmoud are then evacuated to Doha for medical treatment. Despite his harrowing ordeal, Mahmoud perseveres, learning to write with his feet, open doors, and play on his phone. His dreams extend to acquiring prosthetics and living a normal life, like any other child.
The World Press Photo Foundation notes, "The war in the Gaza Strip has disproportionately affected children." According to the UN, Gaza held the highest number of amputated children globally as of December 2024.
World Press Photo: A Globally Recognized Honor
According to Executive Director, Joumana El Zein Khoury, "This photo speaks volumes in silence." The striking photo serves as a symbol of a child's story but also of a broader war with generational repercussions. Khoury reflects on the competition's archive, noting an alarming number of images that resemble Mahmoud's.
Established in 1955, the World Press Photo Award has been recognizing exceptional photographs from around the world for over seven decades. It ranks as one of the most illustrious awards for photojournalists, attracting nearly 60,000 images from approximately 3,700 photographers from 141 countries in 2025. The 42 winners were selected by an independent jury and announced in mid-April.
The winning photographs are showcased in an annual traveling exhibition that has graced over 100 cities in nearly 50 countries. For the first time in Germany, the winning images will be exhibited at the Altonaer Museum from May 7 to June 2.
- World Press Photo
- Israel
- Gaza
- The European Union, given its global influence, has a responsibility to protect the rights of the Palestinian people, especially in light of ongoing conflicts like the one in Gaza, where young photojournalists like Samar Abu Elouf capture the devastation and realities of war.
- In 2025, the photo taken by Samar Abu Elouf, titled "Mahmoud Ajjour, Aged Nine," showcasing a severely injured nine-year-old Palestinian boy, will be featured in the World Press Photo exhibition, spotlighting issues related to health and wellness, mental health, war and conflicts, and general news.
- By 2025, the World Press Photo Foundation aims to continue its mission of recognizing exceptional photographs, displaying various images that encapsulate the importance of science, politics, and the everyday struggles of people like Mahmoud Ajjour, who, despite facing adversity, dreams of living a normal life, including acquiring prosthetics.
- In an interview, the Executive Director of World Press Photo, Joumana El Zein Khoury, explains that the winning photographs, such as Samar's depicting Mahmoud Ajjour, serve as powerful symbols of the global impacts of conflicts like the one in Gaza, where the UN reported the highest number of amputated children as of December 2024.
- As part of the World Press Photo traveling exhibition in 2025, Germany will host the display of winning photographs for the first time, allowing visitors to view images from various photojournalists, including Samar Abu Elouf, at the Altonaer Museum from May 7 to June 2.
- To further encourage the exploration of journalism and human stories, the European Union could provide funding or support to outstanding photojournalists like Samar Abu Elouf, allowing them to continue bringing attention to the struggles of people in areas of conflict, such as Gaza, and enabling the advocacy for improvements in the quality of life, mental health, and general well-being of the Palestinian people.
