In this Jan. 24, 2018 photo, former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva speaks during a rally with his supporters in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Appellate court judges have voted to uphold a graft conviction against da Silva, raising the specter that the former leader won't be able to run for Brazil's top job despite holding a lead in the polls.
In this Jan. 24, 2018 photo, former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva speaks during a rally with his supporters in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Appellate court judges have voted to uphold a graft conviction against da Silva, raising the specter that the former leader won't be able to run for Brazil's top job despite holding a lead in the polls. Andre Penner AP Photo
In this Jan. 24, 2018 photo, former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva speaks during a rally with his supporters in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Appellate court judges have voted to uphold a graft conviction against da Silva, raising the specter that the former leader won't be able to run for Brazil's top job despite holding a lead in the polls. Andre Penner AP Photo

AP PHOTOS: Editor selections from Latin America, Caribbean

January 26, 2018 12:04 AM

This photo gallery highlights some of the top news images made by Associated Press photographers in Latin America and the Caribbean published in the past week.

Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, the popular former president of Brazil who is facing a number of corruption charges, suffered a big blow to his plans to run in October's presidential election when an appellate court upheld his conviction in one case.

A Brazilian pet owner rushed his dog to safety after it was hit by a bullet during a shootout between police and gangsters in Rio de Janeiro. A few days earlier in Rio, a car drove onto the crowded seaside boardwalk along Copacabana Beach, killing a baby and injuring 17 people.

Pope Francis returned to the Vatican after visiting Peru on the final leg of his trip to that nation and Chile.

Honduras saw more protests against President Juan Orlando Ordones as opponents refuse to recognize his victory in a disputed election marred by irregularities.

In Venezuela, authorities buried former police officer Oscar Perez and six other members of a rebel group while keeping nearly all their relatives away from the cemetery. Perez and the others were killed in a shootout with security forces.

Bolivians flocked to the opening of the annual two-week Alasitas festival that is held in honor of Ekeko, the god of prosperity.

An unconventional couple in Mexico City is striving to keep up with the dog shelter they run even though they were forced to leave home because of damage from September's earthquake.

The grueling Dakar Rally came to an end in Argentina.

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This photo gallery was curated by photo editor Tomas Stargardter in Mexico City.