Year of the sheep, Ash Wednesday, Royal baby bump, Ukrainian conflict | Feb. 18
The day in photos from around the world.
- A woman takes a selfie in front of a multi coloured sheep installation displayed in a shopping mall for the Chinese New Year celebrations in Hong Kong on February 18, 2015. The Chinese Lunar New Year of the Sheep begins on February 19. (Philippe Lopez/Getty Images)
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Icicles hang from the chin of a plastic cow at the Memphis Zoo in Memphis, Tenn.
|| CREDIT: THE COMMERCIAL APPEAL, JIM WEBER – AP PHOTO
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Flamingoes at the Memphis Zoo huddle together for warmth in Memphis, Tenn. Low temperatures gripped the South on Wednesday, refreezing the snow and ice and making roads hazardous.
|| CREDIT: THE COMMERCIAL APPEAL, JIM WEBER – AP PHOTO
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Hindu devotees, their bodies pierced with lemon and paladai, or bowl with a spout mainly used to feed milk to infants, wait to participate in a procession to mark Shivratri, or the night of Shiva, in Chennai, India, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2015. Such processions are held as an offering and show of devotion by devotees on the day dedicated to the worship of Lord Shiva, the Hindu god of destruction.
|| CREDIT: ARUN SANKAR K – AP PHOTO
- Performers wearing lion dance costumes ride an escalator as they make their way to the Philippine stock exchange for Lunar New Year of the Sheep celebrations in Manila on February 18, 2015. The Lunar New Year, the most important holiday in China and a number of countries in east and southeast Asia, starts on February 19 bringing in the “Year of the Sheep”. (Ted Aljibe/Getty Images)
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Worshipers with ash crosses marked on their foreheads attend Mass on Ash Wednesday at the San Francisco church in La Paz, Bolivia, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2015. Ash Wednesday for Christians worldwide ushers in a period of penitence and reflection, known as the season of Lent, that leads up to Easter Sunday.
|| CREDIT: JUAN KARITA – AP PHOTO
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Monsignor Robert Ritchie, right, places ashes on Cardinal Timothy Dolan’s forehead during an Ash Wednesday Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2015 in New York. Ash Wednesday marks the start of the Lent, a season of prayer and fasting for Christians before Easter.
|| CREDIT: MARY ALTAFFER – AP PHOTO
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Britain’s Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, smiles during her visit to Cape Hill Children’s Centre, Smethwick, central England, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2015.
|| CREDIT: EDDIE MULHOLLAND, POOL – AP PHOTO
- A young girl eats ice cream as she walks through a market that sells sweets for the upcoming Lunar New Year in the Chinatown area of Bangkok on February 18, 2015. The Lunar New Year of the Sheep begins on February 19. (Nicolas Asfouri/Getty Images)
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A devotee reaches for good luck under a lantern on the eve of the Chinese Lunar New Year at the Lungshan Temple in Taipei, Taiwan, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2015. According to the lunar calendar, Chinese will celebrate the Lunar New Year on Feb. 19 this year which marks the Year of the Sheep.
|| CREDIT: WALLY SANTANA – AP PHOTO
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A devotee prays on the eve of the Chinese lunar new year at the Lungshan Temple in Taipei, Taiwan, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2015. According to the Lunar calendar, Chinese will celebrate the Lunar New Year on Feb. 19 this year which marks the Year of the Sheep.
|| CREDIT: WALLY SANTANA – AP PHOTO
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Good Samaritans helped push a car up South Upper St. during a heavy morning snow in Lexington, Ky., Wednesday Feb. 18, 2015. Low temperatures gripped the region Wednesday, freezing and refreezing the snow and ice and making the roads as hazardous as they were during the height of the storm. A major winter storm crossed Kentucky Monday with as much as 17 inches of snow reported in some spots.
|| CREDIT: LEXINGTON HERALD-LEADER, CHARLES BERTRAM – AP PHOTO
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An Ukrainian soldier stands next to a broken down vehicle outside Artemivsk, Ukraine, as troops pull out of Debaltseve, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2015. After weeks of relentless fighting, the embattled Ukrainian rail hub of Debaltseve fell Wednesday to Russia-backed separatists, who hoisted a flag in triumph over the town. The Ukrainian president confirmed that he had ordered troops to pull out and the rebels reported taking hundreds of soldiers captive.
|| CREDIT: VADIM GHIRDA – AP PHOTO
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Ukrainian troops ride on an armored vehicle outside Artemivsk, Ukraine, while pulling out of Debaltseve, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2015. After weeks of relentless fighting, the embattled Ukrainian rail hub of Debaltseve fell Wednesday to Russia-backed separatists, who hoisted a flag in triumph over the town. The Ukrainian president confirmed that he had ordered troops to pull out and the rebels reported taking hundreds of soldiers captive.
|| CREDIT: VADIM GHIRDA – AP PHOTO
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Ukrainian troops ride on an armored vehicle outside Artemivsk, Ukraine, while pulling out of Debaltseve, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2015. After weeks of relentless fighting, the embattled Ukrainian rail hub of Debaltseve fell Wednesday to Russia-backed separatists, who hoisted a flag in triumph over the town. The Ukrainian president confirmed that he had ordered troops to pull out and the rebels reported taking hundreds of soldiers captive.
|| CREDIT: VADIM GHIRDA – AP PHOTO
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Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, right, shakes hands with Ukrainian servicemen in the town of Artemivsk, Ukraine, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2015. Poroshenko traveled to eastern Ukraine to shake the hands of the soldiers leaving Debaltseve. The Ukrainian president confirmed that he had ordered troops to pull out and the rebels reported taking hundreds of soldiers captive.
|| CREDIT: MIKHAIL PALINCHAK – AP PHOTO
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An Orthodox priest leads a service at a memorial dedicated to people who died in clashes with security forces in Kiev, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2015. Municipal workers are preparing the square to commemorate the Maidan protest movement and the events which took place in late Feb. 2014 that led to the departure of former Ukrainian President Victor Yanukovich and the formation of a new government.
|| CREDIT: SERGEI CHUZAVKOV – AP PHOTO
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A devotee prays on the eve of the Chinese new year at the Lungshan Temple in Taipei, Taiwan, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2015. According to the Lunar calendar, Chinese will celebrate the Lunar New Year on Feb. 19 this year which marks the Year of the Sheep.
|| CREDIT: WALLY SANTANA – AP PHOTO
- Britain’s Breitling SkyWalkers Aerobatic Team members perform aerial stunts atop Boeing Stearman Biplane at Yelahanka Airforce Station in Bangalore on February 18, 2015, on the inaugural day of Aero India 2015. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has vowed to end India’s status as the world’s number one defense importer, saying he wanted 70 percent of hardware to be manufactured domestically by the turn of the decade. Speaking at the start of a major aviation industry conference, Modi told hundreds of foreign and local businessmen that his government would favor domestic firms when awarding defense contracts as part of a larger push to boost India’s manufacturing sector. (Manjunath Kiran/Getty Images)
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A cameraman films as Russian aerobatic team Yakovlev performs at the inaugural function of Aero India 2015 at Yelahanka air base in Bangalore, India, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2015. Aviation companies from around the world are participating in the five-day event which runs through Feb. 22.
|| CREDIT: AIJAZ RAHI – AP PHOTO
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The Italian team compete during the Women’s Team Pursuit qualifying at the Track Cycling World Championships in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, outside Paris, France, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2015.
|| CREDIT: MICHEL EULER – AP PHOTO
- The pack rides during the first stage of the 2015 Tour of Oman, between Bayt Al Naman castle and al-Wutayyah (161 kms). Italian Andrea Guardini won the first stage and got the leader’s red jersey and the green jersey of general points classification best rider of the tour of Oman as Austrian Patrick Konrad won the white jersey of best young rider. (Lionel Bonaventure/Getty Images)
- Somali federal government forces patrol a street of Mogadishu on February 18, 2015, during an operation against Al-Shebab insurgents. Al-Qaeda-affiliated Shebab rebels are fighting to overthrow the country’s internationally-backed government. (Mohamed Abdiwahab/Getty Images)
- People walk under heavy snow in the Asian side of Istanbul, on February 18, 2015. (Bulent Kilic/Getty Images)
- An injured Myanmar Red Cross volunteer lies on ground after vehicles of a rescue convoy were attacked by Kokang rebels nearthe self-administered Kokang capital Laukkai, northern Shan State, Myanmar. Myanmar’s president has vowed “not to lose an inch” of territory in clashes with ethnic rebels in a region bordering China, state-backed media said on February 17, after intense fighting sent tens of thousands fleeing across the frontier. (Getty Images)
- A reveller with a wooden mask and carnival garb jumps during the traditional Celtic carnival “Caretos” in the village of Lazarim, central Portugal where, over two days, diabolical figures that at this time of the year are authorized to show themselves appear dressed in colourful clothes created from quilts and cover their faces with masks made from wood or leather. They carry bells around their waist, and run round the village shouting excitedly frightening people and generally disturbing the daily calm. (Francisco Leong/Getty Images)