Death, disaster and destruction: These are AFP's most striking images of 2016

It's been a turbulent year in many ways, which is reflected in pictures of Black Lives Matter protests, the ongoing refugee crisis, the carnage in Aleppo, and the battle to defeat the Islamic State in the Middle East. The death of Cuban leader Fidel Castro, Thai king Bhumibol Adulyadej and countless beloved celebrities only added to an already disastrous year.

Now, French news agency Agence France Presse (AFP) has released their most striking photographs of 2016, which range from light-hearted to powerful to shocking to absolutely heartbreaking.

AFP photographers are employed across the world to capture major events and each year they make a selection of the images that best represent the year gone by.

The pictures range from the worlds of news, politics, entertainment, and sports. This year, they include events like David Cameron's resignation after the Brexit vote and Donald Trump's election victory, as well as sporting events like the Olympics and Euro 2016.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, which is just as well because thousands of words wouldn't be enough to encapsulate all that has happened around the world over the last 12 months. So, if you want to relive it, there's no better way than through these images.