The week in photos: September 19-25, 2026

MANILA, Philippines — On September 19, the White House denied access to journalists from CNN, MS NOW, and Politico, following through with US President Donald Trump‘s announcement that he would ban them from the building’s grounds.

All three news outlets separately said their teams’ press passes were confiscated when their journalists went to the White House. They have signaled that they may contest the ban on the grounds that it conflicts with the US Constitution’s First Amendment protections for free speech and a free press.

On September 21, US District Judge Tim Kelly orders the Trump administration to immediately return the outlets’ press passes and blocked officials from enforcing the ban for 14 days. On September 24, the White House said it has reinstated access to the three news organizations.

At the Senate, the impeachment court voted on September 23 to lower the voting threshold for the conviction of Vice President Sara Duterte. The ruling, which passed with 13 votes in favor and one against, approved the September 8 appeal of Senator-judge Erwin Tulfo seeking to overturn the July 6 ruling of Presiding Officer Francis “Chiz” Escudero.

Meanwhile, former overseas Filipino worker and human trafficking victim Mary Jane Veloso was released from the Correctional Institution for Women on September 25. This comes a day after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. granted her absolute pardon, after more than a decade in detention.

Catch more stories in these photos from the week that was:

MS NOW correspondent Akayla Gardner reports from the sidewalk in Washington DC after US President Donald Trump banned three major news outlets, CNN, MS NOW and Politico, from the White House, on September 19, 2026. PHOTO BY ANNA ROSE LAYDEN/REUTERS

Migrants play with a ball surrounded by tents at the Trampolin beach, following the mass crossing of migrants from Morocco in Ceuta, Spain, on September 19, 2026. PHOTO BY JON NAZCA/REUTERS

Kabuki dancers Nakamura Kantaro III and Nakamura Chozaburo II perform during the opening ceremony of the Asian Games at Paloma Mizuho Stadium in Nagoya, Japan, on September 19, 2026. PHOTO BY ANUSHREE FADNAVIS/REUTERS

Members of various progressive groups gather at the EDSA Shrine to call out political and social issues, a day ahead of the 54th anniversary of the declaration of Martial Law, on September 20, 2026. PHOTO BY ANGIE DE SILVA/RAPPLER

Jewish worshippers take part in Slichot prayers seeking forgiveness and Hatarat Nedarim (annulment of vows) ahead of Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement and the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, in Tel Aviv, Israel, on September 20, 2026. PHOTO BY TOMER NEUBERG/REUTERS

A woman with a dog looks at a damaged multi-storey residential building hit by what authorities described as a Ukrainian drone strike, in Kotelniki in the Moscow region, Russia, on September 20, 2026. STRINGER PHOTO VIA REUTERS

Young residents gather as smoke rises over a warehouse, which was hit by a Russian drone strike, in Kyiv region, Ukraine, on September 20, 2026. PHOTO BY SERHII KOROVAINYI/REUTERS

Members of a local electoral commission empty a ballot box before counting votes after the closure of a polling station, located in a cultural center decorated with a mosaic of Soviet state founder Vladimir Lenin, on the final day of Russia’s three-day parliamentary election in the town of Podolsk near Moscow, Russia, on September 20, 2026. PHOTO BY RAMIL SITDIKOV/REUTERS

A grey paint is applied to a model at the backstage of the Liza Keane Spring/Summer 2027 collection show during London Fashion Week, in London, Britain, on September 21, 2026. PHOTO BY KATIE COLLINS/REUTERS

Effigies of the two brothers Bikash Pradhan, 30, and Bijay Pradhan, 20, lie on the ground during their cremation ritual using effigies, as their bodies remain missing following the deadly flash floods and mudslide, at Pashupatinath Temple in Kathmandu, Nepal, on September 22, 2026. PHOTO BY NAVESH CHITRAKAR/REUTERS

Senator-judges listen to the positions of both the House prosecution and defense panel during the oral argument on the voting threshold for the conviction of Vice President Sara Duterte in her impeachment trial, on September 23, 2026. SENATE SOCIAL MEDIA UNIT

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian addresses the 81st United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters in New York City, on September 23, 2026. PHOTO BY MIKE SEGAR/REUTERS

Harvey Weinstein appears in Manhattan Supreme Court to be sentenced for sexual assault in New York City, on September 23, 2026. PHOTO BY STEVEN HIRSCH/REUTERS

Demonstrators wearing Winnie the Pooh costumes stage a protest near the White House as Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump hold a meeting, in Washington DC, on September 24, 2026. PHOTO BY KEVIN LAMARQUE/REUTERS

Pocak, the 6-year-old Labrador yawns during a test that shows dogs are able to process speech in a way previously known only in humans, at the Ethology Department of the Eotvos Lorand University in Budapest, Hungary, on September 24, 2026. PHOTO BY BERNADETT SZABO/REUTERS

A drone view shows volunteers as they place flowers and petals to form designs as part of The Flower Project, which sees more than 300,000 dahlia flowerheads displayed in a 29 metre wide design inspired by the area’s textile history by local artist Shiraz Ali in Bradford, Britain, on September 24, 2026. PHOTO BY PHIL NOBLE/REUTERS

Philippines’ Carlos Yulo glides on air during the Men’s Floor Exercise Final of the Asian Games Artistic Gymnastics at Nagoya City General Gymnasium, Nagoya, Japan, on September 24, 2026. POC MEDIA TEAM

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators protest against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump, on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly, in Times Square, New York, on September 24, 2026. PHOTO BY BING GUAN/REUTERS

French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron prepare to welcome Pope Leo for a courtesy visit at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, on September 25, 2026. PHOTO BY REMO CASILLI/REUTERS

An emotional Mary Jane Veloso shows President Marcos’ absolute pardon order during a press conference of her release from the Correctional Institution for Women in Mandaluyong City on September 25, 2026. PHOTO BY JIRE CARREON/RAPPLER