• 'Reborn babies' adopted by grieving mothers

    Beatrice Debut / AFP - Getty Images

    Plastic heads and limbs of 'reborn babies', dolls which will be made to look just like real babies, are displayed at the reborn babies fair in Brentwood, England on February 27.

    "She reminds me of my daughter when she was a child," says Eve Hasty . Weighing around 11 pounds, with perfectly combed hair and her eyes closed in sleep, Abby looks like a baby girl. But she is a doll, adopted by a grieving mother to help her come to terms with the loss of a child.

    "She brings me peace of mind when I take her in my arms, when I change her clothes," says the 57-year-old retiree from Oklahoma, who had a daughter who died from leukemia at the age of 7.

    Beatrice Debut / AFP - Getty Images

    Finished 'reborn babies', dolls which are made to look just like real babies, on sale at the reborn babies fair in Brentwood, England on February 27.

    The doll was crafted by Nikki Hunn, a British graphic designer who now specializes in making reborn babies. AFP photographer Beatrice Debut took these pictures of Hunn's dolls at a fair in Brentwood, east of London, in February. Hunn says that she has built around half a dozen dolls for women who have lost a child, but that the majority of her customers are simply passionate about dolls.

    Beatrice Debut / AFP - Getty Images

    Plastic heads and limbs of Nikki Hunn's 'reborn babies', dolls which are made to look just like real babies.

    You can read Beatrice Debut's full article (in French) at Luxembourg newspaper Le Quotidien.

    Mike Celizic of Today.com also investigated the lifelike doll phenomenon in 2008.

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  • Mohamad Torokman / Reuters

    A Palestinian boy looks at an Israeli border police officer pointing his weapon during brief clashes between Palestinian stone throwers and Israeli security forces at the Qalandiya checkpoint, near the West Bank city of Ramallah May 14. Palestinians will mark "Nakba Day" (catastrophe) on May 15 to commemorate the expulsion or fleeing of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their homes in the war that led to the founding of Israel in 1948.

    Tension in the West Bank as Palestinians mark Nakba Day

    By Katie Cannon, Senior Multimedia Editor

    How difficult and frightening it must be to raise a child in so many places in the world.

  • Controversy over 'baby safes' where parents can abandon unwanted babies

    Shelley Christians / The Times via Gallo Images / Getty Images

    Kim Highfield, director of Out of Africa Children's Fund, opens the "baby safe" at the Anybody Family Centre on May 9 in Cape Town, South Africa. An alarm goes off when an unwanted baby is placed in the safe, which then automatically locks.

    South Africa's Times newspaper reported today on a controversial new scheme in Cape Town that allows parents to leave unwanted babies anonymously in a "baby safe" mounted on an exterior wall of a community center.

    The initiative was launched last week by charity worker Kim Highfield. "Less than 10 seconds after a baby is placed in the metal structure, which is lined with a baby blanket and pillow, an alarm is triggered inside the building", the Times reported.

    "Child welfare experts agree that, though Highfield means well, her initiative could increase baby abandonment and create a myriad of legal and social problems."

    Nobody has yet made use of the safe, but the newspaper reports that about 101 babies have been deposited in a similar facility in Johannesburg since January 2007.

  • Balancing the budget

    Ym Yik / EPA

    A child stands on a mock wad of 1000 Hong Kong dollar notes as he balances with the help of a frame during the parade of the annual Bun Festival on the island of Cheung Chau, Hong Kong on 10 May. The residents believe the festival can appease the hungry ghosts of pirates with sweet buns which bring good luck to the island's fishermen protecting them from the spirits of pirates that once lurked in the region.

    Vincent Yu / AP

    A young couple standing on poles perform during a parade at the Bun Festival on Cheung Chau island in Hong Kong on May 10. Thousands of the faithful flocked to this tiny Hong Kong island for the Bun festival, honoring the Taoist God of the Sea, in which evil spirits are scared away by loud gongs and drums during the procession.

    By David R Arnott, NBC News

    Kids today, eh? It seems as if they never stop messing with their cellphones, even when you ask them to balance precariously on a pole and scare away evil pirate spirits. 

    Wikipedia has more background on the Cheung Chau Bun Festival.

  • A practice leap on North Korea's Day of the Sun

    David Guttenfelder / AP

    A young dancer leaps by as girls put on panda bear costumes as they prepare to perform at a gathering at a park to celebrate the 99th anniversary of the late leader Kim Il Sung's birthday in Pyongyang, North Korea on April 15. April 15 is called "The Day of the Sun" in honor of the former guerrilla fighter who founded North Korea in 1948.

    By David R Arnott, NBC News

    We see a lot of pictures of North Korean dance spectaculars, but AP photographer David Guttenfelder captured something a little less formal today at a celebration marking the 99th anniversary of Kim Il Sung's birth.

    David Guttenfelder / AP

    A boy beats the drums with a band at a gathering to celebrate the 99th anniversary of Kim Il Sung's birthday in Pyongyang, North Korea on April 15.

    David Guttenfelder / AP

    A film maker records a performance at a park during the celebration of the 99th anniversary of Kim Il Sung's birthday in Pyongyang, North Korea on April 15.

    David Guttenfelder / AP

    A woman in a traditional Korean dress watches people leaving at the end of a performance for the celebration of the 99th anniversary of Kim Il Sung's birthday in Pyongyang, North Korea on April 15.

    See more images of North Korea on PhotoBlog.

  • Children in Fukushima attend their first day of elementary school

    Carlos Barria / Reuters

    Children attend a ceremony on their first day of school at Shimizu elementary school in Fukushima, northern Japan on April 6. Over 70 schools began their regular classes on Wednesday in the city of Fukushima, after the earthquake and tsunami that hit the country on March 11.

    Carlos Barria / Reuters

    A girl walks with her mother after her first day of school at the Shimizu elementary school in Fukushima on April 6.

    Carlos Barria / Reuters

    Children sit inside a classroom on their first day of school at Shimizu elementary school in Fukushima on April 6.

    By David R Arnott, NBC News

    As Alan Boyle reports on Cosmic Log, the Fukushima nuclear disaster's long-term impact on Japan is expected to be considerable. I find myself wondering how these children's lives will be affected as they go through their school careers.

  • Boy steals car from Gadhafi's forces to escape besieged Libyan town

    Another extraordinary story of bravery and foolhardiness out of Libya today: a young boy says that he stole a vehicle from Moammar Gadhafi's forces in order to escape the besieged town of Brega. He then drove at speed through the rebel front line, causing panic and coming under fire as he did so.  

    Ben Curtis / AP

    A young boy who said he had spent two days in besieged Brega and stolen a vehicle belonging to Moammar Gadhafi's forces in order to return to the rebel side, is questioned by rebel fighters near the front line east of Brega on April 3. Rebel fighters shot the tires out of the vehicle as it sped through the front line but released the boy after listening to his story.

    Ben Curtis / AP

    Rebel fighters shoot the tires out of a vehicle, unseen, belonging to Gadhafi's forces as it sped through the rebel front line on April 3. The vehicle was driven by a young boy who said he had spent two days in besieged Brega and stolen the vehicle in order to return to the rebel side.

     See more images from the conflict on PhotoBlog and in our slideshow.

  • "Dear Mommy. I hope you're alive. Are you okay?" 4-year-old quake survivor writes

    Norikazu Tateishi / AP

    In this March 22 photo, Manami Kon, using Japanese hiragana characters she just learned, writes a letter for her mother who's still missing after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami at the devastated city of Miyako, northeastern Japan. The 4-year-old Manami wrote, "Dear Mommy. I hope you're alive. Are you okay?" It took about an hour for her to finish it. Twenty days after the disaster that hit Japan's northeastern coast, her parents and a sister were still unaccounted for.

    Norikazu Tateishi / AP

    In this March 22, 2011 photo, Manami Kon, 4, waits for her parents and younger sister who are still missing after the March 11 massive earthquake and tsunami, in Miyako, northern Japan.

    Norikazu Tateishi / AP

    In this March 22, 2011 photo, 4-year-old Manami Kon exchanges a high-five with her grandmother at the devastated city of Miyako, northeastern Japan. Manami Kon's mother is still missing after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.

    Read about the latest developments in Japan and see more images in our slideshow.

    Related content: 'I will come again tomorrow': Boy, 9, desperately searches for missing family in Japan.

  • Battling obesity at age 4

    Joe Tan / Reuters

    Lu Zhihao, right, sleeps during a noon break at a kindergarten in Foshan, Guangdong province on Tuesday, March 29.

    Joe Tan / Reuters

    Lu Zhihao walks with his parents on a street in Foshan on Tuesday.

    By Elena Grothe

    Young Lu Zhihao weighs 136 pounds at 3 feet 7 inches tall.  Reuters reports that Lu put on weight dramatically since his appetite increased when he was 3 months old. His worried parents took him to several hospitals, but the reason for his obesity remains unknown, though it is possibly due to his dietary habit, according to local media.

    More images here.

    More about childhood obesity here.

    Three-year-old Lu Hao's parents say their son weighed just over 5 pounds at birth but now tips the scales at 132 pounds. TODAY.com's Dara Brown reports.

  • Manu Brabo / EPA

    Volunteer fighters training at a rebel army training camp in Benghazi, Libya on March 29. Media reports state that pro-government forces have intensified their attacks on Libyan rebels, driving them back tens of kilometres over ground they had taken in recent days.

    Young boy joins volunteers in training for Libya's rebel army

    Should coalition forces supply weapons to the rebels in Libya? Read about the debate and see more Libya images on PhotoBlog and in our slideshow.

  • Boxing initiative aims to reduce crime in Caracas

    By Elena Grothe

    Here's a selection of images shot this month that Reuters moved today. According to Reuters, "Boxeo Olimpico de Calle" (Olympic Street Boxing) is an initiative of several institutions of the Venezuelan government, which aims to keep children out of gangs and off drugs in an attempt to combat high crime rates in the Caribbean nation. The program seeks to promote values such as discipline and respect and show that a better future is possible in a country that has nurtured several boxing champions.

    Carlos Garcia Rawlins / Reuters

    Teammates react during a fight in a street boxing championships in Caracas on March 5.

    Carlos Garcia Rawlins / Reuters

    Youths practice street boxing during a training session in the low-income neighborhood of La Vega in Caracas on March 11.

    Carlos Garcia Rawlins / Reuters

    Yoadis Rondon, left, 17 and Winnymar Lopez, 15, practice during a training session of street boxing at a gym in the low-income neighborhood of La Vega in Caracas on March 18.

    Carlos Garcia Rawlins / Reuters

    Darlinger Rodriguez, 12, rests during his fight in a street boxing championship in Caracas on March 5

     

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