The top photos of the day by AP's photojournalists

From front page news to powerful moments you may have missed, this gallery showcases today's top photos, chosen by Associated Press photo editors.

Police arrest protesters blocking a road outside United Nations headquarters during a Jewish Voice for Peace sit-in against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)

Italy's Jasmine Paolini hugs a member of her team after winning the Billie Jean King Cup women doubles quarterfinals tennis match between China and Italy, in Shenzhen, China's Guangdong province, Friday, Sept. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

A portrait of the late Dolly Parton is installed outside RCA Studio A, Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2026, in Nashville, Tenn. where she recorded "Jolene" and "I Will Always Love You" during a 1973 recording session. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Vaughn Hillyard, White House correspondent for MS NOW, does a report from near the White House,, Monday, Sept. 21, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Supporters of Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who is running for reelection, attend a campaign rally ahead the October general election, in Sao Goncalo, Rio de Janeiro state, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)

A street vendor sells duckling hair clips at the Mid Autumn Festival Market in Hanoi, Vietnam, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Hau Dinh)

A supporter of opposition leader Maria Corina Machado waves a Venezuelan flag during a protest that calls for her return to the country, in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

Cardi B attends the Roberto Cavalli women's Spring-Summer 2027 fashion show, in Milan, Italy, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg speaks during the Meta Connect conference, Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2026, in Menlo Park, Calif. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

An Israeli settler walks with his camels toward an outpost near a Palestinian-Bedouin community on the outskirts of the West Bank town of Taybeh, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu holds a device as he speaks speaks during the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly at United Nations headquarters, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

President Donald Trump and China's President Xi Jinping meet in the Oval Office of the White House, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Demonstrators wave Israeli flags during a protest ahead of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's address at the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Madison Swart)

Kashmiri Muslim devotees pray as the head priest displays a relic of Sufi saint Syed Abdul Qadir Gilani during the saint's Urs, or annual commemoration, at a shrine in Srinagar, Indian-controlled Kashmir, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan)

ROME (AP) — Italy’s government passed a decree Thursday to place an upper limit on the number of students in each school classroom who have only limited Italian language skills and to ban face-covering Islamic veils in schools.

Premier Giorgia Meloni’s conservative government said the package is aimed at strengthening integration through language learning and has drawn support from right-wing allies.

Opponents including some educators, unions and opposition parties warn that new rules could force students to attend schools far from their neighborhoods, while critics accuse the government of turning immigration into a political issue.

With elections possible as early as next spring, analysts say the measures allow the premier to reassert her credentials on issues central to her conservative base, even though their impact is likely to be limited and significant questions remain about how they would be enforced.

Under the plan, a limit of 30% of foreign students lacking sufficient Italian proficiency would be allowed in any individual classroom.

The government decree goes into effect immediately but needs to be endorsed within 60 days in parliament, where Meloni's coalition commands a majority.

Meloni wrote on social media that they are “common-sense measures that do not divide but help foster genuine integration, avoiding ‘ghetto’ classrooms and giving all students equal opportunities.”

The decree comes as Meloni faces mounting pressure on her right flank from a new hard-line challenger, retired army Gen. Roberto Vannacci, who has been seeking to capitalize on voter concerns over immigration and national identity.

Education Minister Giuseppe Valditara said local school authorities will coordinate student placements to avoid concentrations of non-Italian-speaking pupils, while schools unable to comply would be eligible for exemptions and additional language-support funding.

The minister says it would affect around 1,000 classrooms, about 0.3% of the total nationwide, and primarily those with high concentrations of recently arrived students with little or no Italian-language proficiency.

School principals questioned how the measure could work in areas with large migrant populations.

“From an educational perspective, the issue is well-founded and valid, but it’s difficult to turn it into a practical solution,” said Antonello Giannelli, president of the National Association of Principals.

"We have situations in which there is a district, a neighborhood that is mainly inhabited by immigrants and maybe there is only one school. So, since these are children, presumably young children in primary school, it is evident that they will hardly be able to go kilometers from their home,” Giannelli added.

Teachers’ unions criticized what they called a lack of both consultation and resources for the measure. They argued that the government’s 14-million-euro ($16 million) funding package would not be enough to hire specialized language teachers and cultural mediators needed to support students.

“Differences mean opportunities, and as with every opportunity one must be able to catch it. In most cases they (foreign students) allow the class to enrich their view of the world,” said Giovanni Castagno, a 52-year-old primary school teacher in central Rome.

According to Education Ministry data, students without Italian citizenship accounted for 11.2% of Italy’s school population in the 2022-23 academic year, while classes with more than 30% foreign students represented 7.6% of the total.

Foreign students who were born in the country would be exempt from the cap, along with those who attended Italian preschool or have already progressed through the school system.

The decree also bans burqas and niqabs in schools while continuing to allow hijabs.

The measure is narrower than restrictions adopted in some other European countries.

France banned full-face veils in public spaces in 2011, citing public security concerns, despite the small number of women affected. France also prohibits students from wearing conspicuous religious symbols, including Islamic headscarves, in public schools under its strict secularism doctrine.

Critics in Italy said the provision addresses a phenomenon rarely seen in Italian classrooms. Educators noted that while headscarves are common among some Muslim students, full-face veils are seldom seen in schools, and they argued that the provision risks becoming a symbolic political issue rather than an educational one.

Opposition parties also said the 30% threshold largely mirrors guidance already introduced by the Education Ministry in 2010, noting the government was repackaging an existing policy rather than investing in struggling schools. Center-left leader Elly Schlein accused the government of using schools to advance a political message on migration.

Valditara, the education minister, rejected those criticisms, saying the goal is integration through language acquisition and stronger educational support.

The decree provides additional teaching resources for schools where newly arrived foreign students exceed 20% of enrollment and additional language-learning funds for schools exceeding the 30% threshold.

It also would require some parents of foreign students to attend Italian-language courses when language barriers within families contribute to educational or behavioral difficulties.

Schools would refer eligible families to social services, which could enroll them in a tailored support program through adult education centers. Parents who fail to attend the courses could face fines ranging from 200 to 1,000 euros, although exemptions are included for those with certified age-related, medical or disability-related barriers to language learning.

— AP video journalist Paolo Santalucia in Rome contributed to this report.

Parents and relatives wait for their children exit a school in downtown Rome, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Jannatur Nayeem, 33, an Italian citizen of Bangladeshi origin, top left face to the camera, chats with other mothers as they wait for a sports lesson to end at a school in downtown Rome, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Jannatur Nayeem, 33, an Italian citizen of Bangladeshi origin, top left, chats with other mothers as they wait for a sports lesson to end at a school in downtown Rome, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Italian premier Giorgia Meloni speaks during "Porta a porta" TV program in Rome, Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2026 (Roberto Monaldo/LaPresse via AP)