World News in Pictures

[Mr Lick]

Krakow, Poland: A woman passes by a giant poster of the late Pope John Paul II as part of an open-air photo exhibition ahead of his beatification in Rome on Sunday



Cape Canaveral, Florida, US: Lightning strikes in the background as the space shuttle Endeavour awaits launch for its final voyage

[Mr Lick]

El Alto, Bolivia: A shaman prepares offerings to Mother Earth or Pachamama before an Andean indigenous mass baptism at the holy site of Apacheta



Ahmadabad, India: People crowd a vegetable market amid steep food price inflation

[Mr Lick]

La Dolores, Valle del Cauca department, Colombia: Aerial view of a flooded farm. The country faces its worst ever natural disaster because of flooding rains.



Bristol, UK: Police and protesters at demonstrations around a Tesco store

[Mr Lick]

Trouble in Africa as tensions rise



Burkina Faso In April, president Blaise Compaore faced the biggest challenge to his 24-year rule as soldiers ransacked villages, traders set fire to government buildings and students rioted. He fired the government, appointed a new prime minister and named himself defence minister, but police have followed the army in staging a mutiny.



Cameroon Calls in February for a 'day of rage' against long-serving president Paul Biya, above, drew a relatively muted response. 'Mr Biya should draw the lessons from the humiliation of Mr Mubarak’s departure,' an opposition MP said. 'Cameroonians live in worse conditions than Egyptians.' Last week a number of soldiers were arrested after a bank robbery in which nine people were killed.

[Mr Lick]

Democratic Republic of Congo Elections are due in November, with opposition parties claiming that plans to elect the president in one round of voting have 'the sole aim of organising electoral fraud on a grand scale'. There are many murmurs of dissent against president Joseph Kabila on Facebook.



Djibouti Thousands of demonstrators rallied this year to demand the resignation of president Ismail Omar Guelleh, pictured. Security forces used batons and teargas against stone-throwing protesters. But Guelleh won comfortably in this month’s election to secure a third term.

[Mr Lick]

Gabon Riot police fired teargas to break up a demonstration by 5,000 people in January. Opposition leader Andre Mba Obame, pictured, called on them to overthrow the government and said president Ali Bongo 'will go like Ben Ali [of Tunisia]'. Obame took refuge at the UN compound after declaring himself the legitimate president



Guinea The first free election since independence, held last year, earned international kudos after two turbulent years of military rule. But president Alpha Conde has reportedly made little progress in easing internal tensions, controlling security forces or healing relations with foreign investors.



Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo was forced out after his refusal to accept election defeat prompted a four-month stalemate and widespread atrocities that left at least 1,500 people dead. A hard core of loyalists, pictured, fought for Gbagbo to the end, but thousands of soldiers deserted. His successor, Alassane Ouattara, has strong support in the north but the country remains deeply divided.

[Mr Lick]

Kenya Hundreds marched peacefully in Nairobi and Mombasa this month against rising fuel and food prices. Yash Pal Ghai, who helped block traffic near parliament, said: 'Some people have a single meal a day while others live in obscene luxury and comfort. It is amazing there has not been a rebellion by now.'



Mauritania Security forces using teargas and batons dispersed several hundred anti-government protesters. Critics of president Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, pictured, began street protests in late February, although their number has rarely risen above 1,000. Cheikh Ould Jiddou, a leader of the protest, said: 'Mauritanians are fed up with this regime, and it is time that we said it loud and clear.'

[Mr Lick]

Mozambique A steep increase in the price of bread and other goods sparked three days of protests, co-ordinated by mobile text messaging, and riots that left 13 people dead. The government, which had called the price rises 'irreversible', was forced to back down. It is planning another increase but will subsidise food for 2 million poor people in an attempt to head off further civil strife.



Nigeria Rioting left hundreds dead in the mostly Muslim north after incumbent Goodluck Jonathan, a southern Christian, beat northern rival Muhammadu Buhari in the presidential election. The poll was hailed as relatively free and fair but exposed persistent ethnic and religious faultlines that have sparked violence in Africa’s most populous nation.

[Mr Lick]

Senegal A man died in February after setting himself on fire at the gates of the presidential palace. Frustration is growing over power cuts and lack of jobs. President Abdoulaye Wade (pictured on a poster held by a supporter, above) said last week: 'The difference between us and Tunisia and Egypt is that I actually want people to demonstrate. If the Senegalese come out en masse to ask me to quit, I will go. There won’t be a revolution, or a coup d’etat.'



South Africa Protests over poor delivery of electricity, water and other basic services have risen from two in 2006 to 111 last year, according to City Press newspaper. The death of a demonstrator who was allegedly shot with rubber bullets and beaten by police has been seen by many as a watershed. Political commentator Moeletsi Mbeki predicted South Africa’s 'Tunisia Day' will arrive in 2020.

[Mr Lick]

Sudan Southern Sudanese voted in January to separate from the north and form a new nation in a referendum promised to them as part of a 2005 peace deal which ended decades of civil war. At least 165 people were reportedly killed in the space of a week in fighting between south Sudan’s army and rebel militias.



Swaziland A planned uprising in April was extinguished by a brutal security crackdown, but trade unions plan to continue monthly peaceful protests. King Mswati III, who has 13 wives, has been criticised for extravagant displays of wealth. Some of the more militant activists say they want to abolish Africa’s last absolute monarchy and are prepared to 'die for democracy'.



Uganda Opposition leader Kizza Besigye is in detention after leading a series of 'walk to work' protests against rising transport and food costs. The campaign triggered clashes between opposition supporters and police, above, in Kampala and several other towns, in which at least five people were killed. President Yoweri Museveni won a recent election and blames his country's troubles on drought and soaring global oil prices.

[Mr Lick]

Zambia Police banned a meeting intended to discuss the possible secession of Barotseland in western Zambia, triggering deadly protests in January. Riots broke out this month after three people were burned to death, reportedly because they were accused of ritual murders.



Zimbabwe Six activists face trial for treason after holding a meeting where they watched videos of the Egyptian and Tunisian uprisings. Prime minister Morgan Tsvangirai has voiced support for the north African movements but there has been little sign of a popular challenge to president Robert Mugabe, pictured above right. Some analysts say many of the best and brightest Zimbabweans are in exile.

[Mr Lick]

Prof Richard Holmes, acclaimed military historian, dies



The acclaimed military historian, Professor Richard Holmes CBE, has died at the age of 65.

Known for sharing his knowledge of warfare on BBC documentaries, he also taught at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and Cranfield University.

His specialities included England's conflicts with France in the Middle Ages and World War II. He also wrote numerous books.

His focus was the ordinary soldier, whom he wanted to "put centre stage".
Prof Holmes was educated at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, as well as Northern Illinois University and the University of Reading.

He served in the Territorial Army in which he commanded the 2nd Battalion the Wessex Regiment and eventually rose to the rank of brigadier.

He became the first reservist to hold the position of director of Reserve Forces and Cadets.

After a spell of teaching at Sandhurst, he joined Cranfield University as a teacher in 1986 where he worked until 2009.

He was patron of the Guild of Battlefield Guides.

Its founder Major Graeme Cooper praised his unique style: "It was this in-depth, quiet and very, very accurate and acute assessment of what he was saying."
"The words were magical at times, and it brought to the listener a new angle on on how to approach that period of history," Maj Cooper added.

Prof Holmes was also a keen supporter of the Army Benevolent Fund, and was the president of the British Commission for Military History and the Battlefields Trust; and vice president of the UK National Defence Association. In 1998 he was made a CBE.

But he was probably best known for his television work, which included television documentaries on the Duke of Wellington, Sir Winston Churchill and Oliver Cromwell whom he championed in the BBC's Great Britons programme in 2002.

[Mr Lick]

Silwan, Jerusalem: Masked Palestinian youths demonstrate during clashes with Israeli police



Sana'a, Yemen: Female supporters of President Ali Abdullah Saleh chant prayers during a rally in his support



Sana'a, Yemen: A girl holding a balloon sits on the ground next to a guard shortly before the arrival of President Saleh to deliver a speech to supporters



Taiz, Yemen: Anti-government protesters perform Friday prayers during a rally to demand the ousting of President Ali Abdullah Saleh



Rome, Italy: A giant picture of the late John Paul II hangs from a stage set at the Circus Maximus where a prayer vigil is scheduled

[Mr Lick]

Srinagar, India: Policemen and paramilitary soldiers take cover amid teargas during a protest against the arrest of a separatist leader



Misrata, Libya: Rebels carry a comrade who was wounded by shrapnel into a makeshift first aid clinic at a house close to the frontline

[Mr Lick]

NATO Strikes Kills Gaddafi's Son, Grandkids

Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's youngest son and three grandchildren were killed by a NATO missile strike on the son's home (above) in Tripoli on Saturday. Gaddafi, who was in the house, escaped unhurt.

[Mr Lick]

The Official Portrait!

This photograph, taken shortly after the wedding -- but before the two kisses on the balcony -- shows William and Kate, along with their bridesmaids and pageboys, posing in Buckingham Palace's Throne Room.



Of Pageboys and Flower Girls



Men in Dresses!

Fans in drag rush to watch the nuptials in Liverpool.

[Mr Lick]

A bodyboarder rides a wave at Mackenzies Bay on May 1, in Sydney, Australia. A strong east-south-east swell has developed along the NSW coastline with waves between 6ft and 8ft expected to hit the coast for much of the weekend and into next week.




A picture made available on April 30 shows 'Burners' lighting Chinese lanterns during the Afrika Burn festival in the Tankwa Karoo National Park, Ceres, South Africa, April 29. Afrika Burn follows on from Burning Man in the United States and is a week long festival in the baron Tankwa Karoo. The event is styled on 'Burning Man' held in the United States and sees a temporary, non commercial sharing community build in the harsh badlands of the Karoo. Through sharing of ideas and goods, building of art instillations, dance, group drumming, human interaction and the casting off of modern day restraints the participants aim to create an annual four day nirvana.




An art installation consisting of eight Hills Hoists clothes lines complemented by eight 'mums hanging out washing' is seen at Bondi Beach on May 1, in Sydney, Australia. The installation is the latest in a series of surrealist works by artist Andrew Baines, this time to highlight the loss of the typical backyard due to the increase of high density living. The Hills Hoist is considered the epitome of Australian backyards, with Bondi Beach considered Sydney's backyard.



Pilgrims attend a prayer vigil on the eve of John Paul II Beatification ceremony in the ancient Circus Maximus venue on April 30, in Rome, Italy. Pope John Paul II will be beatified by Benedict XVI in a ceremony at the Vatican tomorrow



A Saudi man cleans his windscreen during a sand and dust storm that engulfed the Saudi capital Riyadh on April 30.

[Mr Lick]

Tracy Hannah reacts after returning to her house for the first time since a tornado swept through the Alberta community near Tuscaloosa, Alabama on Friday.



This home in Athens, Ala., was among the hundreds destroyed.



Michael Hodges looks for salvageable items in the rubble of a law office in the Albert neighborhood of Tuscaloosa on Friday.



Alyssa Mosley, 14, checks the piano at the Alberta Baptist Church in Tuscaloosa on Friday









Brothers Darrell and Shane Gilland work on their parents' home in Bethel, Va., on Friday. Their parents survived a twister that hit early Thursday.



Eleanor Stubbs is rescued on Thursday after her home was ravaged by a tornado in Concord, Ala.



Desiree Jemison cries after seeing the belongings of her hospitalized relatives in Pleasant Grove, Ala., on Thursday.






Jennifer Rupley on Thursday shows the injuries she received in a vehicle in Phil Campbell, Ala. as a tornado completely demolished her home.

[Mr Lick]

Tractor trailers at Utility Trailer Manufacturing Co in Glade Spring, Va. were damaged during a tornado. An official estimate of the damage which spread from southwestern to northeastern Virginia,was not available Thursday, but Gov. Bob McDonnell declared a state of emergency.



Deacon Billy Walker, of Elizabeth Baptist Church, Tamarlon Madison and Kelly Bonner of Friendship Baptist Church, cook food and hand out bottled water for those affected by Wednesday's tornado on Thursday in Tuscaloosa, Ala.






This area of Tuscaloosa, known as the Rosedale Court housing community, was flattened.



James Patterson tries to salvage items from his kitchen Thursday in Phil Campbell, Ala. His home was lifted and moved about 15 feet. No one was injured.

[Mr Lick]

Lisa Kirby and Belinda Jones help an injured Golden Retriever whose owner was killed in Pleasant Grove.

[Mr Lick]

[Mr Lick]

[Mr Lick]

A Ben Wheeler firefighter, left, covers the survivor of a twister that completely destroyed her mobile home east of Ben Wheeler, Texas on April 26. She was shaken and had some minor bruises but otherwise escaped without serious injuries. A line of dangerous storms hit East Texas spawning a number of tornados in the area.

[Mr Lick]

Syrian troops killed four people Saturday while storming a mosque that became a focal point for protesters in the besieged southern city of Daraa.

Women and children took to Daraa rooftops Saturday night to chant "God is greater against the tyrant," one resident, who lives in the Manshia neighborhood in the old quarter, told Reuters by telephone.

"The shelling has intensified," he said. "It is the worst night."

Security forces were entering homes and dragging men onto buses, he said.

Earlier, security forces in Damascus kept dozens of women from marching on parliament to urge President Bashar Assad to end his crackdown on a six-week-old uprising.

[Aussie Tigger]

When I see the photos of the trouble spots Mr Lick presents in Africa and the Middle East I thank my lucky stars for the peace I experience living in my two homes in Udon Thani and Adelaide South Australia. I doubt in my life time it will get any better in these locations.