Oct. 9 Photo Brief: Felix Baumgartner skydive postponed, Greek protesters greet German Chancellor, armed men steal body of top Zetas drug lord
Felix Baumgartner skydive postponed, Greek protesters greet German Chancellor, armed men steal body of top Zetas drug lord and more in today’s daily brief.
- Pilot Felix Baumgartner of Austria sits in his capsule prior to the final manned flight of Red Bull Stratos in Roswell, New Mexico on October 9, 2012. The Austrian daredevil readied for an unprecedented leap from the edge of space on October 9, but weather delays dampened hopes for the sound barrier-breaking free fall. (Joerg Mitter/redbullcontentpool.com via AFP)
- A naked demonstrator flashes the victory sign while running in Athens during a demonstration against the visit of the German Chancellor Angela Merkel on October 9, 2012. Athens went into security lock-down for Merkel’s landmark visit, an austerity hate figure in Greece, whose arrival was greeted by union and opposition party protests. (Aris Messinis/AFP/Getty Images)
- Demonstrators in mock Nazi garb ride in a vehicle in Athens during a demonstration against the vist of the German Chancellor Angela Merkel on October 9, 2012. (Max Gyselinck/AFP/Getty Images)
- A demonstrator looks on during clashes with riot police in Athens against the visit of the German Chancellor Angela Merkel on October 9, 2012. (Aris Messinis/AFP/Getty Images)
- Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras (R) and German Chancellor Angela Merkel make statements to the media at the Maximos Mansion October 9, 2012 in Athens, Greece. Merkel’s first visit to Greece since the eurozone crisis began three years ago is seen by the government as a historic boost to the country’s future in Europe’s shared currency, but by protesters as a harbinger of more austerity and hardship. (Thanassis Stavrakis/Getty Images)
- Coahuila state prosecutor Homero Ramos (L) speaks during a press conference on the death of Heriberto Lazcano, founder of the Zetas drug cartel, in Saltillo on October 9, 2012. The body of the Lazcano was stolen from a funeral parlor by an armed group after he was killed in a shootout with authorities in northern Mexico, officials said Tuesday. (Julio Cesar Aguilar/AFP/Getty Images)
- Bertl Lahnsteiner works on a ‘Gamsbart’, a decoration for traditional alpine hats, at his home in Offensee in Austria’s Salzkammergut area October 8, 2012. A ‘Gamsbart’, a tuft of neck-hair from the chamois, a European mountain goat, originally was the trophy of the dear hunter after successful shooting game. (Herwig Prammer/Reuters)
- A protester wears glasses with a message condemning the implementation of the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012 during a protest in front of the Supreme Court in Manila October 9, 2012. The Supreme Court on Tuesday issued a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) on the controversial law, acting on petitions from journalists, bloggers and activists.(Romeo Ranoco/Reuters)
- New Zealand’s ethnic Maori Metini Mitai Ngatai poses prior to the official opening of the book fair in Frankfurt, October 9, 2012. The world’s largest book fair runs from October 9 to October 14 and has a special feature highlighting the literature of New Zealand. (Ralph Orlowski/Reuters)
- A boy stands in front of the tannery wastes at Hazaribagh in Dhaka October 9, 2012. Luxury leather goods sold across the world are produced in slum areas of Bangladesh’s capital where workers, including children, are exposed to hazardous chemicals which contain animal flesh, sulfuric acid, chromium and lead. (Andrew Biraj/Reuters)
- Indian Sikh devotees light candles at the illuminated Sikh Shrine Golden Temple, for the anniversary of the fourth Sikh Guru Ramdass, in Amritsar on October 9, 2012. (Narinder Nanu/AFP/Getty Images)
- Indian relatives and villagers mourn young students killed after a boat capsized in flood waters at the Burgaon Patekibori village on October 9, 2012. Five school students drowned in two separate boats capsizes at Morigaon district, while 12 others were either rescued or swam to safety, police said. (Biju Boro/AFP/Getty Images)
- An idol of demon Mahishasura is pictured while an artist gives the finishing touches to it during preparations for the upcoming Dashain festival in Lalitpur October 9, 2012. (Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)
- Ugandan soldiers parade during celebrations to mark the country’s 50th anniversary since gaining independence from the British rule in capital Kampala October 9, 2012. (James Akena/Reuters)
- Men inspect the wreckage of a transport plane that crashed on October 7, west of the Sudanese capital Khartoum on October 9, 2012. Fifteen Sudanese military personnel were killed and seven others injured when their transport plane crashed on its way to conflict-plagued Darfur, state media reported. (Stringer/AFP/Getty Images)
- Destroyed buildings in Syria’s besieged central city of Homs is seen following fighting between government and opposition forces, on October 7, 2012. (Shaam News Network Handout via AFP)
- A restorer works on a painting in Florence Opifico delle Pietre Dure restoration laboratory on October 8, 2012. The unfinished oil on canvas “Adorazione dei Magi” by the Tuscan master Leonardo Da Vinci will be restored and in some parts recovered after long diagnostic research by the Uffizzi Gallery researchers. (Filippo Monteforte/AFP/Getty Images)
- The Abyss geothermal pool is seen October 8, 2012 in Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. Yellowstone protects about 10,000 geysers, mudpots, steamvents, and hot springs and is America’s first national park. It extends through Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. (Karen Bleier/AFP/Getty Images)
Mexico says kills top Zetas drug lord but body snatched
Tim Gaynor and Lizbeth Diaz | Reuters
2:53 p.m. EDT, October 9, 2012
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Mexico says it has killed the leader of the brutal Zetas drug gang, the most powerful kingpin to fall in a six-year battle against cartels, but in a surreal twist, his body was snatched from a funeral home by armed men.
Mexico’s Navy said on Tuesday that fingerprint tests had confirmed that Heriberto Lazcano was killed in a firefight in the northern state of Coahuila on Sunday afternoon.
Lazcano, alias “The Executioner,” had a $5 million bounty on his head and was the highest profile drug lord to be killed or captured in a military offensive launched when President Felipe Calderon took office in late 2006.
However, in a scene straight out of a movie, an armed group snatched Lazcano’s body and that of another Zetas member from a funeral home in northern Mexico before dawn on Monday, just hours after they were killed.
“A masked, armed group overpowered the personnel, took the bodies and forced the owner of the funeral home to drive the get-away vehicle,” Homero Ramos, Coahuila’s state prosecutor, told a news conference on Tuesday.