World News in Pictures

[Mr Lick]

Patrick O'Brien jogs around Lake Harriet in south Minneapolis in a Spiderman wind suit. A blast of Arctic air gripped the mid-section of the U.S. on Monday, bringing the coldest temperatures in two decades, forcing businesses and schools to close and causing widespread airline delays and hazardous driving conditions



A lone tree stands in flood water from the River Arun near Arundel. Environment Agency flood warnings are in place for parts of the United Kingdom today with high tides and strong winds expected



British singer Sir Tom Jones arrives for a photo call for The Voice UK at the BBC Broadcasting House in central London

[Mr Lick]

KTM rider Mark Davidson of Australia races through the dunes during the second stage of the Dakar Rally between the cities of San Luis and San Rafael in San Rafael, Argentina. The second stage is regarded as one of the fastest in the two-week rally, which ends Jan. 18 in Valparaiso, Chile



By using 3D cameras and tablets placed around the room, the whale airship from the book 'Leviathan' by Scott Westerfeld appears to emerge from the screen behind Intel Corp. CEO Brian Krzanich as he demonstrates immersive technology during his keynote address at the 2014 International CES at The Venetian Las Vegas in USA



The front of a city passenger bus is shown that has crashed into the Idaho Power corporate headquarters building in Boise, Idaho, USA



Police say the brakes failed on the bus in Idaho, causing the driver to swerve through a parking lot before crashing into the building

[Mr Lick]

A woman shovels snow after a winter storm hit St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada



Firefighters try to control a fire in Angol, Chile. More than 16,000 hectares have been destroyed by the fires in several areas in the centre and south of Chile



Time for a spot of winter ice swimming anyone? A woman takes a dip at an open pool in Heihe, China



German chancellor Angela Merkel stands with the aid of crutches as she meets carols singers during a reception at the chancellery in Berlin. Merkel fractured her pelvis in a cross-country skiing accident in Switzerland over the Christmas holidays

[Mr Lick]

A driver waits for passengers during an ongoing strike called by the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist party in Dhaka following recent elections



The scene on the promenade in Aberystwyth following the recent storms. A major cleanup operation has started today in the town after the worst storms to affect the Welsh coastline in 15 years



An Environment Agency employee looks at flood water from the river Arun in Pulborough, UK

[Mr Lick]

A massive plume of spray arches over a group of houses near Sennen Cove, Cornwall, UK



Rescue operations are underway following flooding in Muchelney, Somerset. Warnings are in place of of further serious flooding in southern England after another night of rain and high tides



Nigerians airlifted from the Central African Republic, load trucks with their belongings as they prepare to travel back to Nigeria. Around 1424 Nigerians have been airlifted from Bangui due to the violence which has uprooted nearly a million people

[Mr Lick]

Ash spewing from Indonesia's Mount Sinabung formed a massive cloud around the mountain on Tuesday.

The volcano in the province of North Sumatra has been erupting sporadically for several months, damaging crops and triggering the evacuation of more than 19,000 villagers.

An eruption in 2010 killed two people and caught scientists off guard because the volcano had been quiet for four centuries

[Mr Lick]

Chile's Javier Campillay drives past the burning car of Kazakhstan's Bauyrzhan Issabayev and Gabdulla Ashimov during Stage 2 of the Dakar Rally between San Luis and San Rafael, Argentina, on Monday.

The Kazakh drivers escaped without serious injury but were forced to withdraw from the race. The 13-stage rally will also pass through Bolivia before ending in Valparaiso, Chile

[Mr Lick]

A large wave crashes over the promenade at high tide in Aberystwyth, mid Wales January 6, 2014



Men jump into the waters of a lake in an attempt to grab a wooden cross on Epiphany Day in Sofia January 6, 2014. Orthodox priests throughout the country bless the waters by throwing a cross into it as worshippers try to retrieve the cross. It is strongly believed that catching the cross brings health and prosperity to the person who catches it

[Mr Lick]

French author Marek Halter cleans the word 'quenelle' written on "The Wall For Peace" at the Champs de Mars near the Eiffel Tower in Paris January 6, 2014. The expression "la quenelle" literally translates into English as meaning an elongated creamed fish dumpling but is also a reference to the French comedian Dieudonne's trademark straight-arm salute. France is considering banning performances by Dieudonne M'bala M'bala whose shows have, according to Interior Minister Manuel Valls last December, repeatedly insulted the memory of Holocaust victims and could threaten public order



Members of the Public Safety System, or the community police of Guerrero state, march to commemorate the first anniversary of their foundation in Ayutla de los Libres, Guerrero state, January 5, 2014. Groups of community police entered the village of Paracuaro in neighbouring Michoacan state on Saturday and disarmed the federal police after multiple clashes to gain control over the town in an effort to rid the area of the Knights Templar cartel (Caballeros Templarios), according to local media. Michoacan has been rocked by repeated explosions of civil unrest in 2013 and vigilante groups have sprung up in the region which complain that state and federal police are not protecting them from the gangs

[Mr Lick]

Soldiers guard the damaged airplane that was carrying Jose Manuel Mireles, head of Michoacan state's community police, after an accident in Aguacana in Michoacan state, January 5, 2014. Mireles and four other people were injured on Saturday when the plane they were travelling in met with an accident. The leader suffered a mild head injury and a dislocated jaw and was transferred on Sunday to a hospital in the capital of Mexico, but he is stable and conscious, according to local media. Michoacan has been rocked by repeated explosions of civil unrest in 2013 and vigilante groups have sprung up in the region which complain that state and federal police are not protecting them from the gangs



Austria's tournament overall leader Thomas Diethart soars through the air during the final jumping of the four-hills ski jumping tournament in Bischofshofen, January 6, 2014

[Mr Lick]

Anti-cartel vigilantes in Mexico




Members of the community police, acting in this case as vigilantes, stand together after breaking into the village of Paracuaro, and taking over, in Michoacan state, January 4, 2014. Some 100 gunmen of the community police from different towns, riding in a convoy of trucks entered Paracuaro and disarmed the police to gain control over the town in an effort to rid the area of the Knights Templar cartel (Caballeros Templarios), according to local media. Michoacan has been rocked by repeated explosions of civil unrest in 2013 and vigilante groups have sprung up in the region which complain that state and federal police are not protecting them from the gangs

[Mr Lick]

Members of the community police walk near a deceased member of the Knights Templar cartel (Caballeros Templarios) after a clash near the village of Paracuaro in Michoacan state, January 5, 2014

[Mr Lick]

Members of the Public Safety System, or community police of Guerrero state, commemorate the first anniversary of their foundation in Ayutla de los Libres, Guerrero State, January 5, 2014



A member of Public Safety System, or community police of Guerrero state, receives a communion wafer from a priest to commemorate the first anniversary of their foundation in Ayutla de los Libres, Guerrero state, January 5, 2014

[Mr Lick]

Deep freeze in US/CANADA

[Mr Lick]

[Mr Lick]

[Mr Lick]

US big freeze spreads



In Chicago, temperatures were not expected to go above -14C (6F) on Tuesday. Police warned people to keep off the roads, with many people staying at home on Monday.



Indiana, where a temperature of -37C was forecast for Tuesday, has issued a red alert travel warning, making it illegal to drive a private vehicle except in an emergency.

[Mr Lick]

At a factory in Tianchang, China, a woman makes Fuleco the Armadillo, a soft toy of the official mascot of the 2014 World Cup football tournament, which will be held in Brazil this summer.



North America's brutal cold snap is heading east, ushering in dangerous temperatures not seen in two decades, warn forecasters. Here a passenger jet is de-iced outside the terminal at Indianapolis International Airport.

[Mr Lick]

Nanuq the polar bear dives for an ice cake made of frozen fish, meat and fruit in the zoo in Hanover, Germany



A plucky gull bravely tried to steal this bird of prey's lunch from right under his beak - and won. Feathers flew as the adult black gull took on the young goshawk in the noisy battle over food. Photographer Bill Lomeland said both birds screamed during the scrap, which broke out in Orre, southern Norway

[Mr Lick]

Pope Francis carries a lamb on his shoulders as he visits the parish of the Sant'Alfonso Maria de Liguori during the Epiphany day in Rome



Anastasia IV pulls a 4.4 ton vehicle along the seafront in Eastbourne, Sussex. A hook was plaited into the hair of the Circus of Horror performer so she could pull the car along



Anastasia IV, from Poland, already holds the Guinness World Record for lifting the heaviest weight with her hair

[Mr Lick]

Ruddy Muddy, whose real name is Rick Minns, has been creating art on white vans for a couple of years. He initially used his fingertips, but has progressed to using cotton buds and tissues for more varied textures

[Mr Lick]

An Ann Arbor firefighter, covered in ice, works to put out a fire that engulfed Happy's Pizza in Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA

[Mr Lick]

Police officers check confiscated fake Maotai liquor before the bottles are destroyed in public, at a landfill in Chongqing, China. A total of 552 bottles of fake Maotai liquor, with an estimated value of over a million yuan (£100,500) were destroyed by local authorities on Monday



Harbin Pole Aquarium staff use a bottle to fed carp



White whales and their trainers present a show for visitors at Harbin Pole Aquarium in China

[Mr Lick]

Men help a wounded boy who survived what activists say was an airstrike by forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the Duma neighbourhood of Damascus



Chinese icebreaker Xuelong has finally escaped from thick ice in Antarctica. The ship, which had earlier rescued 52 passengers from a stranded Russian vessel, broke through ice where it had been trapped for the last four days



Two police officers walk down what was the main road on the seafront in Aberystwyth. A major cleanup operation has started today in the town after the worst storms to affect the Welsh coastline in 15 years

[Mr Lick]

Pentax cameras are on display at the Ricoh booth at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas



Play-i's three-wheeled robot for children Bo moves its arm to play a tune, at the 2014 International CES in Las Vegas. Bo helps teach youngsters about programming and is controlled with an i-Pad via a bluetooth-based remote control app. The global market for consumer robots was $1.6 billion in 2012, dominated by the task and entertainment segments, according to ABI Research, but this is expected to grow to $6.5 billion in 2017 with security and telepresence becoming more significant



Solar panels sit on a vehicle as part of an advertisement at the CES