WOMEN across the world today are marking International Women’s Day with marches and protests against persistent gender inequality. 

Below are a selection of photographs from across the world. 

Serbia: Women carry a banner reading Jobs, Not Hunger! Food, Not Arms! as they march marking International Women’s Day in Belgrade, Serbia

China: A woman takes a photo of a female police officer holding a bouquet of flowers on Tiananmen Square to mark International Women’s Day during a plenary session of China’s National People’s Congress (NPC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing

Ukraine: Ukrainian people hold banners and march on the occasion of the International Women’s Day in Kiev.

Italy: Women hold up scarves during a demonstration in front of the Italian Health Ministry to mark the International Women’s Day, in Rome.

Spain: Women march in Barcelona, Spain. Women across the country are marking International Women’s Day with a full day strike and dozens of protests across the country against the wage gap and gender violence.

Belgium: Women protest outside the European Parliament marking International Women’s Day in Brussels.

Afghanistan: Independent Afghan artists draw graffiti on a barrier wall of the Ministry of Women’s Affairs to mark International Women’s Day in Kabul, Afghanistan.

Kyrgyzstan: Women march through the centre of Kyrgyzstan's capital Bishkek.

India: Women march through New Delhi. Hundreds of women held street plays and marched in the Indian capital highlighting domestic violence, sexual attacks and discrimination in jobs and wages against them. Violent crime against women has been on the rise in India.

Kenya: Hundreds of women marched in downtown Nairobi highlighting domestic violence, sexual attacks and discrimination in jobs and wages.

Indonesia: Women activists march as they mark International Women’s Day during a rally near Merdeka palace in Jakarta.

South Korea: Members of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions attend during a rally to mark the International Women’s Day in downtown Seoul. More than a thousand people attended at a rally demanding better working condition for women workers and gender equality. The banners read Gender Equality.

North Korea: A North Korean family has their photo taken as they mark International Women’s Day in Pyongyang