World News in Pictures

[Mr Lick]

[Mr Lick]

City workers walk past the plaza in front of St Paul's Cathedral, empty of Occupy London protesters after bailiffs cleared the grounds

[Mr Lick]

A night at Daytona



Flames erupt from a jet dryer after it was passed by Juan Pablo Montoya of Colombia in his number 42 Chevrolet during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series 54th Daytona 500 race at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, February 27, 2012.






Jimmie Johnson (above) in his number 48 Chevrolet, David Ragan in his number 34 Ford (L) and Danica Patrick in her number 10 Chevrolet crash as Kurt Busch (below) in his number 51 Chevrolet tries to avoid them in the early running of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series 54th Daytona 500 race at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, February 27, 2012.

[Mr Lick]

Danica Patrick prays with crew members next to her number 10 Chevrolet before the start of the rain delayed NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Daytona 500 at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, February 27, 2012.




Terry Labonte (R) in his number 32 Ford spins during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series 54th Daytona 500 race at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, February 27, 2012.



Jimmie Johnson (above) in his number 48 Chevrolet, David Ragan in his number 34 Ford (L) and Danica Patrick in her number 10 Chevrolet crash as Kurt Busch (below) in his number 51 Chevrolet tries to avoid them in the early running of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series 54th Daytona 500 race at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, February 27, 2012.

[Ratchaburi]

Thanks Mr Lick keep up the good work

[Mr Lick]

Surachai Danwattananusorn, 70, gestures upon arrival at criminal court in Bangkok, Thailand, Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2012. The court sentenced Surachai, a member of the Red Shirt political movement to 7 and a half years imprisonment for remarks judged to have insulted the country's monarchy.

[Mr Lick]

Thanks Mr Lick keep up the good work

Your comments are much appreciated R'buri. Half a million views in little over a year now so very pleased that others are also finding this thread worthwhile.

[Ratchaburi]

Keep it going well done thanks

[Mr Lick]

French election: Hollande wants 75% tax on top earners



The Socialist favourite in France's presidential election, Francois Hollande, has said top earners should pay 75% of their income in tax.

"Above 1m euros [£847,000; $1.3m], the tax rate should be 75% because it's not possible to have that level of income," he said.

Speaking on prime time TV, he promised that if elected, he would undo tax breaks enacted by Nicolas Sarkozy.

The tax proposal was condemned by his political opponents.

Opinion polls suggest the gap between the Socialist candidate and Mr Sarkozy has narrowed.

The two are tipped to reach the run-off on 6 May, after eliminating other rivals on 22 April.

Taxation for the rich has become a hot campaign issue, with tax advisers in neighbouring Switzerland saying that higher taxes for the wealthy in France could spark an exodus, Reuters news agency reports.
Many of France's richest celebrities already live abroad.

[Mr Lick]

Horse freed after three hours stuck in mud on Australian beach

A horse gets stuck up to his neck in mud on a beach as the tide rises. His owner, Nicole Graham, who was enjoying an afternoon ride, stayed with him as rescuers struggled for three hours to pull him out. With moments to spare, the 500kg horse, named Astro, was freed with the help of a tractor and harness at Avalon Beach in Geelong, Victoria, Australia




Rescue workers and Nicole Graham, centre, try to free Astro as the tide gets closer











A vet, Stacey Sullivan, left, prepares to sedate the horse as Graham comforts him



Rescue workers attach a harness to Astro to pull him free






Graham leads her horse away from the beach after he was successfully freed

[Mr Lick]

Du Jianguo, a protester claiming to be an independent economist and demonstrating against the World Bank's "China 2030 Report", is removed by a security guard during a news conference by World Bank's President Robert Zoellick at its Beijing office February 28, 2012.



Workers are seen on the tracks in front of VIA Rail passenger train that derailed in Burlington, February 27, 2012. A passenger train derailed near Burlington in southern Ontario on Sunday, killing at least three people, according to the train operator VIA Rail. "There were 75 passengers on board the train at the time of the accident. There are reports of several injuries to passengers and three fatalities," VIA Rail said in a statement. The six-carriage train, which was travelling from Niagara Falls, Ontario, to Toronto, derailed at 1530 EST (2030 GMT) on Sunday.

[Mr Lick]

A former soldier of the Sandinista Popular Army (EPS) prepares to fire a homemade mortar in San Benito town February 27, 2012. Dozens of former soldiers blocked the Pan-American highway to demand that the government of Daniel Ortega provide them with social benefits as veterans of wars.



Senegal's President Abdoulaye Wade speaks to journalists at a news conference in Dakar, February 27, 2012. Wade was locked in a tight race with his main rival, Macky Sall, on Monday as unofficial vote tallies pointed to a possible run-off between the two for the leadership of one of West Africa's most stable countries

[Mr Lick]

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange holds a document containing leaked information at a news conference in London, February 27, 2012. The anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks began publishing on Monday more than five million emails from a U.S.-based global security analysis company that has been likened to a shadow CIA.




Defendant Martin N., (C) accused of killing three children and of several cases of child sexual abuse, covers his face as his lawyers Ralph Wichmann (L) and Christian Esche (R) stand before the sentencing in the district court of Stade, February 27, 2012. Martin N. on Monday was sentenced with lifelong imprisonment.



Potac, a 3-years old male bear, looks out from his four square meters cage in Luhansk, about 800 km (490 miles) from Kiev, February 27, 2012. Potac was kept by his owner, the head of a Luhansk regional children's public organisation to train hunting dogs. The Vier Pfoten (Four Paws) animal welfare organisation, together with authorities, confiscated the bear so it can be transferred to the Synevyr National Nature Park. In 2011, the Ukrainian Minister Of Ecology And Natural Resources Zlochevsky Mykola announced a ban on the poor private captivity of brown bears



An official removes a mask placed on a statue of Britain's Queen Anne at the 'Occupy' camp outside St Paul's Cathedral in London February 27, 2012

[Mr Lick]

Columbian narcotics police say they have seized 5 tons of marijuana after halting a truck in Andalucia Valle,

[Mr Lick]

An occupier outside St Pauls Cathedral, London



India trade unions stage a one day national strike to achieve a minimum wage and stricker labour laws

[Mr Lick]

Egypt court dismisses Sawiris insulting Islam case



A court in Egypt has dismissed one of the two complaints brought against a billionaire Coptic Christian tycoon which accuse him of insulting Islam.

Telecoms mogul Naguib Sawiris angered conservative Muslims in June when he tweeted cartoons of Mickey Mouse in a beard and Minnie Mouse wearing a veil.

Mr Sawiris apologised and removed the tweet, but two groups of lawyers filed separate formal complaints.

The judge dismissed the first case on Tuesday, fining the plaintiff $8 (£5).

Legal sources said the judge at Qasr al-Nil court ruled that the complaint had been made by individuals who "lack legal standing".

A different court is scheduled to rule on Saturday on the second case, which was filed by another group of lawyers, including an ultraconservative Salafist member of parliament, Mamduh Ismail

[OhOh]

A Separation





Winner of the best Foreign Movie at the Oscars.

[OhOh]

Governor of the Central Bank of Iran Mahmoud Bahmani says the country can trade in currencies other than the American dollar in its foreign transactions. “Iran does not just work with the dollar in trade transactions and every country can pay in its own currency,” said Mahmoud Bahmani on Tuesday.

Bahmani added that Tehran could receive gold in its transactions instead of currency transfers. In case a country is willing to pay for the price of its imports from Iran in gold, there is no problem in this respect, he noted.

According to Bahmani, Iran imports commodities from China and India in exchange for the countries’ currencies.

[Mr Lick]

Xiahe village, China: Li Jingchun, top left, a 58-year-old farmer, works with family members on his self-made aircraft on top of his house. The 5m long, 1.5m wide plane, mostly made of recycled iron plates, has taken two years to build



Gadani, Pakistan: Labourers pull an iron rope before separating a portion of a ship into scrap metal at a ship breaking yard



Idlib, Syria: people take shelter after an attack in the town centre

[Mr Lick]

London, England: Police remove members of the Occupy protest movement from the steps of St Paul's Cathedral



New York, US: A student poses her stuffed mouse during an anthropomorphic mouse taxidermy class



Galaxidi, Greece: Revellers celebrate Clean Monday or Ash Monday, by participating in a colourful flour war

[Mr Lick]

Sacramento, US: A mounted highway patrol officer moves a member of the Occupy movement away from a pro-white group during a demonstration



Lanjigarh, India: Dongaria Kondh tribal girls watch sacrifice rituals during the annual festival of Niyam Raja at the sacred Niyamgiri Hill



Ngor, Senegal: A man washes his goat in the Atlantic Ocean

[Mr Lick]

The Costa Allegra adrift



The Costa Allegra cruise ship is pictured in this photo taken by an Indian Navy maritime surveillance aircraft following their distress call in the Indian Ocean, February 27, 2012.



HELP!!!









A still image taken from video footage shows the Costa Allegra cruise ship being towed by French tuna boat Trevignon in the Indian Ocean, February 28, 2012.

[Mr Lick]

John Vandermark wears a sticker after voting at the Royal Oak Farmers Market in Royal Oak, Mich. Republicans held presidential primaries in Michigan and Arizona on Tuesday.



group of students and parents pray for victims of a school shooting in Chardon, Ohio. Three students are dead after a gunman opened fire Monday inside Chardon High School.

[Mr Lick]

Soldiers remove burning tires during a protest against the killing of Shiite Muslims in Karachi, Pakistan. Gunmen disguised as soldiers hauled 18 Shiite Muslim men off buses and executed them in Kohistan district



An Israeli soldier pushes away an angry Palestinian man in Farata, West Bank. Israeli troops were called in after masked Jewish settlers from the Havat Gilad settlement threw stones at Palestinian villagers.

[Mr Lick]

An activist is detained by police at a protest against violence between Hindus and Muslims in Gujarat, India



A woman walks over a street covered with melting snow near Biessenhofen, Germany