The photo of a migrant family in tears, separated by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), won the first prize in the 2026 World Press Photo. The image captured by American photographer Carol Guzy from the American press agency ZUMA and the iWitness institute for the Miami Herald, shows the heartbreaking moment when Luis, an Ecuadorian migrant, is arrested and separated from his wife Cocha and children after a hearing in an immigration court in New York on August 26, 2025.
Taken inside a federal building that was unusually accessible to photographers, the photo shows the tearful and panicked faces of his two daughters as they cling desperately to their father’s sweater.
“The simple act of documenting what is happening, showing that people can actually disappear without a trace, and holding both the agents and their services accountable, I think this is an absolutely essential role that the press plays in this court,” said the winner to AFP.
For 71 years, the World Press Photo contest has been awarding “the best of photojournalism and documentary photography on a global scale,” according to the organization’s website.
“The courage with which (these people) agreed to open their lives to our cameras allowed us to tell their stories. This prize belongs to them, not to me,” said Carol Guzy in her acceptance speech.
The jury, which scrutinized 57,376 photographs taken by 3,747 photojournalists from 141 countries, also revealed the two finalist photos.
The first one, “Gaza Aid Crisis” by Saber Nuraldin for EPA Images, shows a crowd of Palestinians climbing onto an aid truck entering Gaza to get flour during what the Israeli army described as a “tactical suspension” of humanitarian aid operations. For the Gaza photojournalist, this award is a source of pride, profound sense of responsibility, and sadness.
“I was at the heart of the situation, feeling the same hunger, fear, and emotional weight. This image comes from that direct and lived experience,” he explained to AFP.
The second one, “Achi Women’s Trials” by Victor J. Blue, for The New York Times Magazine, is a black and white portrait of Achi women leaving a Guatemalan court after winning a legal battle against those who assaulted them, often raped, 42 years ago during the civil war.
The jury noted “the dignity and authority” of the women, which differs from historical representations that portray them as “powerless subjects.”
Photographer Luis Tato of Agence France Presse also won an award in the “Stories” category for the Africa region, with a series of photos on the “Gen Z” protests in Madagascar.
