Feb. 2 Daily Brief: Groundhog Day, Rally in Ukraine, Olympics prep
Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow, preparation for the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics continues, the opposition movement in Ukraine holds a rally and more in today’s daily brief.
- Members of the Groundhog Club raise Punxsutawney Phil in a container to a pedestal on stage, after Phil’s annual weather prediction on Gobbler’s Knob on the 128th Groundhog Day in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, Feb. 2, 2014. Punxsutawney Phil, a famed U.S. groundhog with an even more famous shadow, emerged from his burrow on Sunday and predicted six more weeks of winter, much to the chagrin of those hoping for an early spring. (Stephanie Strasburg/Reuters)
- A volunteer takes a photo of the Women’s downhill slope at the Rosa Khutor Alpine Center in the mountain cluster on February 2, 2014, prior to the start of Sochi Winter Olympic Games. (Olivier Morin/AFP/Getty Images)
- Deborah Agot Deng, who is elderly and blind, talks about her experiences when fighting began in Bor, South Sudan on February 1, 2014. Recent fighting in the country has seen waves of brutal revenge attacks, as fighters and ethnic militia use the violence to loot and settle old scores. The United Nations and human rights workers are reporting that horrific atrocities have been committed by both sides. Many fear the conflict has slid out of the control of political leaders. (Carl De Souza/AFP/Getty Images)
- Youth from the Cidade de Deus shantytown play football at Ipanema Beach at sunset in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on February 1, 2014. (Christophe Simon/AFP/Getty Images)
- Atalanta’s supporters light fireworks during the Serie A soccer match between Atalanta vs Napoli at “Azzurri D’Italia” Stadium in Bergamo on February 2, 2014. (Guiseppe Cacace/AFP/Getty Images)
- Thousands of anti-government protesters hold Ukrainian national flags as they gather at Kiev’s Independent Square on February 2, 2014. Ukraine’s opposition holds a new rally amid concern about military intervention in the country’s worst crisis since independence, after pledges of support from Europe and the United States and fresh accusations from Russia. (Aris Messinis/AFP/Getty Images)
- An anti-government protester holds a picture of Virgin Mary in Independence Square during a demo in Kiev on February 2, 2014. Ukraine’s opposition said it had requested financial aid from Western powers that have pledged support for the protest movement against President Viktor Yanukovych. (Angelos Tzortzinis/AFP/Getty Images)
- Waves crash onto a breakwater, partially destroyed during Saturday night’s storm, in Cudillero, Spain, February 2, 2014. Rough weather brought the north of Spain to a standstill with 26-foot high waves causing damage in many coastal towns. (Eloy Alonso/Reuters)
- Worshippers are covered in thick smoke from burning incense sticks as people marked the third day of the Lunar New Year holiday at Che Kung Temple in Hong Kong on February 2, 2014. Chinese communities across Asia came together to usher in the Year of the Horse, with tens of thousands of worshippers flocking to temples across China to pray for good fortune in the new year. (Alex Ogle/AFP/Getty Images)
- A rescue worker collects evidence at a cinema house, the site of explosions, in Peshawar, Pakistan, February 2, 2014. At least three people were killed and more than 30 others injured on Sunday night in two explosions at the cinema house, Superintendent of Police Muhammad Faisal Mukhtar confirmed in local media. (Fayaz Aziz/Reuters)
- The Czech Republic’s Zdenek Stybar celebrates at the finishing line after winning the men’s event at the 2014 UCI Cyclo-Cross World Championships in Hoogerheide February 2, 2014. (Laurent Dubrule/Reuters)
- Palestinian workers collect rubbish from a garbage dump in search of recyclable material on February 2, 2014 in Gaza City. (Mahmud Hams/AFP/Getty Images)