A portrait of a veiled woman cradling a wounded relative in her arms, taken in Yemen by Spanish photographer Samuel Aranda for The New York Times, has won this year's top World Press Photo prize.

The photograph, taken on 15 October, captured a moment in the conflict in Yemen when demonstrators against outgoing president Ali Abdullah Saleh used a mosque in Sanaa as a field hospital to treat the wounded.

But judges said it also spoke more broadly for the Arab Spring. “It stands for Yemen, Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, Syria – for everything that has happened during the Arab spring,” said one jury member.

Human consequence of enormous event
Aidan Sullivan, chair of the jury, added: "The winning photo shows a poignant, compassionate moment, the human consequence of an enormous event, an event that is still going on." For capturing this moment, Aranda will receive a prize of 10,000 euros.

"We might never know who this woman is, cradling an injured relative, but together they become a living image of the courage of ordinary people that helped create an important chapter in the history of the Middle East," continued Mr Sullivan.

101,254 photos
The jury awarded 57 other prizes in nine categories to photographers from 24 different countries, including Dutch entries from Ilvy Njiokiktijen, Rob Hornstra and Pavel Prokopchik.

Yasuyoshi Chiba won first prize in the category ‘People in the News’ with a photograph depicting a scene of devastation in the aftermath of the Japan tsunami. Another winning photo shows a victim of the bloodbath on the Norwegian island of Utoya.

A total of 101,254 photographs were submitted to this year’s 55th edition of the Amsterdam-based World Press Photo.

(jn/ae)

© Radio Netherlands Worldwide / Reuters

To see a slideshow with more winning photos, click here.