Year in Pictures: 2013

TOPSHOTS A French soldier wearing a skeleton mask stands next to a tank in a street in Niono, on January 20, 2013. French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said today that the goal of France's military action in Mali was to retake control of the entire country from Islamist militants who have seized the north. \"The goal is the total reconquest of Mali. We will not leave any pockets\" of resistance, Le Drian said on French television. AFP / PHOTO / ISSOUF SANOGOISSOUF SANOGO/AFP/Getty Images

CHICAGO, IL - JANUARY 23: A truck is covered in ice as firefighters help to extinguish a massive blaze at a vacant warehouse on January 23, 2013 in Chicago, Illinois. More than 200 firefighters battled a five-alarm fire as temperatures were in the single digits. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Image #: 21001149 *** EXCLUSIVE *** NAZARE, PORTUGAL - JANUARY 28: Surfing legend Garrett McNamara appears to have surfed the biggest wave in history with a crowd watching on January 20, 2013 in Nazare, Portugal. A DAREDEVIL surfer rides down possibly the biggest wave ever conquered. Legendary American surfer Garrett McNamara rode the massive wall of water, estimated to be about 100ft-high, on the waters off Nazare, in Portugal, on Monday (January 28). If confirmed, McNamara will have broken his own record, which he set riding a 78ft high wave in late 2011. The moment was captured from the hillside overlooking the bay by Portugese photographer Tó Mané. To Mane/Barcroft Media /Landov

Free Syrian Army fighters run for cover as a tank shell explodes on a wall during heavy fighting in the Ain Tarma neighbourhood of Damascus January 30, 2013. REUTERS/Goran Tomasevic (SYRIA - Tags: CONFLICT CIVIL UNREST POLITICS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY)

San Francisco 49ers cheerleaders perform during a power outage at the Superdome in the second half of the NFL Super Bowl XLVII football game between the 49ers and the Baltimore Ravens, Sunday, Feb. 3, 2013, in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

A woman digs out her car after it was blocked in by drifting snow during a blizzard, Saturday, Feb. 9, 2013, in Portland, Maine. The storm dumped more than 30 inches of snow as of Saturday afternoon, breaking the record for the biggest storm on record. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

Kyle Larson (32) goes into the catch fence as he collides with Justin Allgaier (31), Brian Scott (2), Parker Klingerman (77) and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (88) at the conclusion of the NASCAR Nationwide Series auto race Saturday, Feb. 23, 2013, at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Terry Renna)

Aerial view of the Taim Ecological Station on fire, in Rio Grande do Sul state, southern Brazil, on March 27, 2013. The fire that started Tuesday in southern Brazil had reached approximately 1,400 acres and the risk of spreading is severe, since there is no way to reach the place by water or land. AFP PHOTO / Lauro Alves / Agencia RBS / BRAZIL OUTLAURO ALVES/AFP/Getty Images

epa03653615 An eye-opening experience for Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) as he is confronted by a topless demonstrator with written messages on her back during an opening tour of the Hanover Fair, Hanover, Germany 8 April 2013. He was accompanied by German Chancellor Angela Merkel (seen right) and Volkswagen Chief Executive Officer Martin Winterkorn (extreme right) EPA/JOCHEN LUEBKE

Amish boys watch a game of baseball outside the school house in Bergholz, Ohio on Tuesday, April 9, 2013. Many Amish families gathered following the final day of school for a celebration and farewell picnic. (AP Photo/Scott R. Galvin)

BOSTON - APRIL 15: Police officers with their guns drawn hear the second explosion down the street. The first explosion knocked down a runner at the finish line of the 117th Boston Marathon. (Photo by John Tlumacki/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

Medical responders run an injured man past the finish line the 2013 Boston Marathon following an explosion in Boston, Monday, April 15, 2013. Two explosions shattered the euphoria of the Boston Marathon finish line on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

A police officer evacuates a shoeless man holding a child as members of law enforcement conduct a search for a suspect in the Boston Marathon bombings, Friday, April 19, 2013, in Watertown, Mass. The two suspects in the Boston Marathon bombing killed an MIT police officer and hurled explosives at police in a car chase and gun battle overnight that left one of them dead and his brother on the loose, authorities said Friday as thousands of officers swarmed the streets in a manhunt that all but paralyzed the Boston area. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

In this Friday, April 19, 2013 Massachusetts State Police photo, 19-year-old Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev raises his hand from a boat at the time of his capture by law enforcement authorities in Watertown, Mass. (AP Photo/Massachusetts State Police, Sean Murphy)

Pall bearers set down the coffin of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher during her ceremonial funeral service at St Paul's Cathedral in London, Wednesday April 17, 2013. Margaret Thatcher, Britain's Iron Lady, was laid to rest Wednesday with a level of pomp and protest reflecting her status as a commanding, polarizing political figure. (AP Photo/Dominic Lipinski, Pool)

03_Garment Workers in Deathtrap_ Taslima Akhter_ Nobody knows who are they, what is the relation between them but the crude reality make them closer and may be they are trying to save each other and the last moment of their life from the death trap of Savar Rana Plaza_. Embrace in Death. Near about 438 workers died as building Collapse at Savar Rana Plaza. Most of them are women. Savar Dhaka, Bangladesh, 24th April 2013

A Bangladeshi woman survivor is lifted out of the rubble by rescuers at the site of a building that collapsed Wednesday in Savar, near Dhaka, Bangladesh, Thursday, April 25, 2013. By Thursday, the death toll reached at least 194 people as rescuers continued to search for injured and missing, after a huge section of an eight-story building that housed several garment factories splintered into a pile of concrete.(AP Photo/Kevin Frayer)

A man sits on the window of a burning building before falling from it, in central Lahore May 9, 2013. Fire erupted on the seventh floor of the LDA plaza in Lahore and quickly spread to higher floors leaving many people trapped inside the building. At least three people fell from the high floors trying to avoid fire that engulfed the building, local media reports. REUTERS/Damir Sagolj (PAKISTAN - Tags: SOCIETY TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY DISASTER)

epa03692187 A view of the activity of volcano Tungurahua, seen from the village of Cotalo, Ecuador, 08 May 2013. Tungurahua keeps generating explosions and the expulsion of incandescent boulders, which roll down its flanks. EPA/JOSE JACOME

U.S. President Barack Obama checks to see if he still needs the umbrella held by a U.S. Marine to protect him from the rain during a joint news conference with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, May 16, 2013. REUTERS/Jason Reed (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS)

Graduate Leland Shelton, center, is congratulated as he is acknowledged by President Barack Obama during the 129th commencement ceremony address at Morehouse College, Sunday, May 19, 2013, in Atlanta. After a difficult childhood Shelton graduated Phi Beta Kappa and is on his way to Harvard Law School. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

RNPS - PICTURES OF THE YEAR 2013 - A Turkish riot policeman uses tear gas as people protest against the destruction of trees in a park brought about by a pedestrian project, in Taksim Square in central Istanbul May 28, 2013. REUTERS/Osman Orsal (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST ENVIRONMENT TPX)

A woman carries her child through a field near the collapsed Plaza Towers Elementary School in Moore, Okla., Monday, May 20, 2013. A tornado as much as a mile (1.6 kilometers) wide with winds up to 200 mph (320 kph) roared through the Oklahoma City suburbs Monday, flattening entire neighborhoods, setting buildings on fire and landing a direct blow on an elementary school. (AP Photo Sue Ogrocki)

A garden with a swimming pool is inundated by the waters of the Elbe river during floods near Magdeburg in the federal state of Saxony Anhalt, June 10, 2013. Tens of thousands of Germans, Hungarians and Czechs were evacuated from their homes on Wednesday as soldiers raced to pile up sandbags to hold back rising waters in the region's worst floods in a decade. REUTERS/Thomas Peter (GERMANY - Tags: DISASTER ENVIRONMENT TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY)

epa03739800 A protestor is hit by water sprayed from a water cannon during clashes in Taksim Square, Istanbul, Turkey, 11 June 2013. Police used water cannons and tear gas as they moved into Istanbul's Taksim Square, where two weeks of protests have been held, as some demonstrators threw rocks and Molotov cocktails. Authorities used construction machinery to clear barricades erected by the protesters around the central square as police entered it for the first time since 01 June after a crackdown on the demonstrations drew international condemnation. EPA/KERIM OKTEN

U.S. President Barack Obama (L) meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin during the G8 Summit at Lough Erne in Enniskillen, Northern Ireland June 17, 2013. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque (NORTHERN IRELAND - Tags: POLITICS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY)

A demonstrator is shot by rubber bullets as anti riot police officers charge after clashes erupted during a protest against corruption and price hikes, on June 20, 2013, in Rio de Janeiro. Brazilians took to the streets again Thursday in several cities on a new day of mass nationwide protests, demanding better public services and bemoaning massive spending to stage the World Cup. TOPSHOTS AFP PHOTO / CHRISTOPHE SIMONCHRISTOPHE SIMON/AFP/Getty Images

epa03769362 A handout photograph released by West Midlands Fire Service on showing West Midland firefighters tackling a large blaze at a recycling plant called J & A Young, Dartmouth Road, Smethwick, central England on 01 July 2013. Reports state that more than 150 firefighters and 35 fire appliances are still tackling the blaze involving 100,000 tonnes of plastic recycling material sending a plume of smoke is rising 6,000ft into the air. EPA/JOHN MCCNAUGHTON / WEST MIDLANDS FIRE SERVICE / HANDOUT MANDATORY CREDIT: WEST MIDLANDS FIRE SERVICE HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES

An aerial photo taken on July 4, 2013, shows the site where 19 firefighters were killed in an Arizona wildfire on Sunday, June 30, 2013. The line in the middle of the photo, built by a bulldozer after the deaths, allowed law enforcement and fellow firefighters to reach the fallen firefighters and remove their bodies from the mountain the day after they were killed. The Prescott Fire Department identified the site where the men died as the discolored patch of earth just beyond where the bulldozer line ends. The photo also shows that the intense wildfire wiped out all vegetation in the area. (AP Photo/Prescott Fire Department)

SANFORD, FL - JULY 13: George Zimmerman (R) looks down at the moment the verdict of not guilty is read as his defense co-counsel, Don West (2L) and Lorna Truett (2R), look at Zimmerman's lead defense attorney Mark O'Mara, on the 25th day of his trial at the Seminole County Criminal Justice Center July 13, 2013 in Sanford, Florida. Zimmerman was charged with second-degree murder in the 2012 shooting death of Trayvon Martin. (Photo by Joe Burbank-Pool/Getty Images) *** BESTPIX ***

RNPS - PICTURES OF THE YEAR 2013 - A woman carrying her baby and wrapped with a shawl walks through a sandstorm in Timbuktu July 29, 2013. REUTERS/Joe Penney (MALI - Tags: SOCIETY ENVIRONMENT TPX)

-- AFP PICTURES OF THE YEAR 2013 -- An aerial view shows the Zaatari refugee camp on July 18, 2013 near the Jordanian city of Mafraq, some 8 kilometers from the Jordanian-Syrian border. The northern Jordanian Zaatari refugee camp is home to 115,000 Syrians. AFP PHOTO/MANDEL NGAN/POOLMANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images

-- AFP PICTURES OF THE YEAR 2013 -- An Egyptian woman tries to stop a military bulldozer from hurting a wounded youth during clashes that broke out as Egyptian security forces moved in to disperse supporters of Egypt's deposed president Mohamed Morsi in a huge protest camp near Rabaa al-Adawiya mosque in eastern Cairo on August 14, 2013. The operation began shortly after dawn when security forces surrounded the sprawling Rabaa al-Adawiya camp in east Cairo and a similar one at Al-Nahda square, in the centre of the capital, launching a long-threatened crackdown that left dozens dead. The fate of the young man is not certain, but at the time of taking these photos he was seriously injured having been shot by birdshot. For futher information refer to this link: http://blogs.afp.com/correspondent/?post/Echoes-of-Tiananmen-in-Egypt-protest-camp. AFP PHOTO /MOHAMMED ABDEL MONEIMMOHAMMED ABDEL MONEIM/AFP/Getty Images

A police vehicle is pushed off of the 6th of October bridge by protesters close to the largest sit-in by supporters of ousted Islamist President Mohammed Morsi in the eastern Nasr City district of Cairo, Egypt, Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2013. Egyptian police in riot gear swept in with armored vehicles and bulldozers Wednesday to clear the sit-in camps set up by supporters of the country's ousted Islamist president in Cairo, showering protesters with tear gas as the sound of gunfire rang out. (AP Photo/Sabry Khaled, El Shorouk Newspaper) EGYPT OUT

ATTENTION EDITORS - VISUALS COVERAGE OF SCENES OF DEATH AND INJURY A view shows bodies of children activists say were killed by nerve gas in the Ghouta region, in the Duma neighbourhood of Damascus August 21, 2013. Syrian activists accused President Bashar al-Assad's forces of launching a nerve gas attack on rebel-held districts near Damascus on Wednesday that they said killed more than 200 people. There was no immediate comment from Syrian authorities, who have denied using chemical weapons during the country's two-year conflict, and have accused rebels of using them, which the rebels deny. REUTERS/Mohamed al-Abdullah/Shaam News Network/Handout via Reuters (SYRIACONFLICT UNREST - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS PICTURE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. REUTERS IS UNABLE TO INDEPENDENTLY VERIFY THE AUTHENTICITY, CONTENT, LOCATION OR DATE OF THIS IMAGE. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. NO SALES. NO ARCHIVES.

Lightning strikes the Grand Canyon on Aug. 30, 2013. MANDATORY CREDIT: Rolf Maeder/Rex Features. IMAGES OUTSIDE OF PRINT NEWSPAPER SUBSCRIPTIONS. FEES APPLY FOR UNIQUE IPAD USE.Lightning striking the Grand Canyon Electrifying: Stunning Images Show Lightning Striking the Grand Canyon The Grand Canyon is awe-inspiring as it is, but these jaw-dropping shots of lightning striking the natural wonder are electrifying. Using clever low exposure techinques, photographer Rolf Maeder managed to capture multiple strikes hitting the canyon under atmospheric stormy skies. Rolf explains: \"Sometimes an opportunity comes very unexpected. On August 30th, my friends Scott Stulberg, Holly Kehrt, both wonderful photographers, and I were driving from Sedona to the Grand Canyon to get some sunset shots. \"After a short time being there, we noticed that we couldn't get what we wanted because of the very hazy light. So we decided to return to Sedona, just short

A frog is captured during a lift off of NASA's Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia, September 6, 2013. REUTER/Chris Perry/NASA/Handout via Reuters (UNITED STATES - Tags: ANIMALS SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY ENVIRONMENT TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS PICTURE WAS PROCESSED BY REUTERS TO ENHANCE QUALITY. AN UNPROCESSED VERSION WILL BE PROVIDED SEPARATELY

A police officer tries to secure an area inside the Westgate Shopping Centre where gunmen went on a shooting spree in Nairobi September 21, 2013. The gunmen stormed the shopping mall in Nairobi on Saturday killing at least 20 people in what Kenya's government said could be a terrorist attack, and sending scores fleeing into shops, a cinema and onto the streets in search of safety. Sporadic gun shots could be heard hours after the assault started as soldiers surrounded the mall and police and soldiers combed the building, hunting down the attackers shop by shop. Some local television stations reported hostages had been taken, but there was no official confirmation. REUTERS/Siegfried Modola (KENYA - Tags: CIVIL UNREST)

A woman and children hide inside Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya, Sept. 21, 2013. A group of armed men attacked the upscale shopping mall in Nairobi on Saturday, killing at least 59 people and wounding at least 175. On Sunday, extremists holding an unknown number of hostages continued a siege after Kenyan security forces surrounded the facility. (Tyler Hicks/The New York Times)

Women carrying children run for safety as armed police hunt gunmen who went on a shooting spree in Westgate shopping centre in Nairobi September 21, 2013. The gunmen stormed the shopping mall in Nairobi on Saturday killing at least 15 people in what Kenya's government said might be a terrorist attack, and sending scores fleeing into shops, a cinema and onto the streets in search of safety. Sporadic gun shots could be heard hours after the assault started as soldiers surrounded the mall and police combed the building, hunting down the attackers shop by shop. Some local television stations reported hostages had been taken, but there was no official confirmation. REUTERS/Goran Tomasevic (KENYA - Tags: CIVIL UNREST MILITARY) **Woan on left later identified as Katherine Walton, an American woman who was trapped at the mall with her children.**

RNPS PICTURES OF THE YEAR 2013 - Visitors take pictures of tidal waves under the influence of Typhoon Usagi in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, September 22, 2013. According to official Xinhua news agency, China's National Meteorological Center issued its highest alert, warning that Usagi would bring gales and downpours to southern coastal areas. REUTERS/Chance Chan (CHINA - Tags: ENVIRONMENT SOCIETY DISASTER TPX) CHINA OUT. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN CHINA

Pope Francis poses with youths during a meeting with the Piacenza diocese in Saint Peter's Basilica at the Vatican in this August 28, 2013 picture provided by Osservatore Romano. Picture taken August 28, 2013. REUTERS/Osservatore Romano (VATICAN - Tags: RELIGION TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS PICTURE IS DISTRIBUTED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS. NO SALES. NO ARCHIVES

In this Sunday, Sept. 22, 2013 photo, North Koreans soldiers play an arcade game at the Pyongyang Pleasure park in Pyongyang, North Korea. North Korean authorities have been encouraging a broader interest in sports in the country, both at the elite and recreational levels, as a means of energizing and mobilizing the masses. (AP Photo/David Guttenfelder)

BOSTON - OCTOBER 14: Detroit's Torii Hunter falls into the bullpen trying to catch Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz's home run that tied the game in the eighth inning. The Boston Red Sox hosted the Detroit Tigers in Game Two of the American League Championship Series at Fenway Park. (Photo by Stan Grossfeld/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

A Pakistani man carrying a child rushes away from the site of a blast shortly after a car exploded in Peshawar, Pakistan, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2013. A car bomb exploded on a crowded street in northwestern Pakistan Sunday, killing scores of people in the third blast to hit the troubled city of Peshawar in a week, officials said. (AP Photo/Mohammad Sajjad)

LEYTE, PHILIPPINES - NOVEMBER 19: A man fans flames on a fire Tanauan on November 19, 2013 in Leyte, Philippines. Typhoon Haiyan which ripped through Philippines over a week ago has been described as on of the most powerful typhoons ever to hit land, leaving thousands dead and hundreds of thousands homeless. Countries all over the world have pledged relief aid to help support those affected by the typhoon however damage to the airport and roads have made moving the aid into the most affected areas very difficult. With dead bodies left out in the open air and very limited food, water and shelter, health concerns are growing. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

TOPSHOTS Survivors of Super Typhoon Haiyan march during a religious procession in Tolosa on the eastern Philippine island of Leyte on November 18, 2013 over one week after Super Typhoon Haiyan devastated the area. The United Nations estimates that 13 million people were affected by Super Typhoon Haiyan with around 1.9 million losing their homes. AFP PHOTO / Philippe LopezPHILIPPE LOPEZ/AFP/Getty Images

Filipino groom Earvin Nierva, left, kisses his bride Riza as they pose for their wedding pictures beside damaged homes and a ship that was washed ashore when Typhoon Haiyan hit Tacloban city, central Philippines on Saturday, Dec. 7, 2013. The newly-wed couple decided to have the photo shoot at the area to symbolize that they can overcome tragedy and to urge residents to \"stand up and rise again.\" They are residents of Tacloban and also victims of the typhoon. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

RNPS - PICTURES OF THE YEAR 2013 - A hibiscus flower is seen on an ash-covered plant at Mardingding village in Karo district, Indonesia's north Sumatra province November 19, 2013. The volcano continued to emit volcanic ash, throwing an 8,000m (26,247 ft)-high plume into the atmosphere, as thousands of residents fearful of more eruptions remained in temporary shelters, according to local media. REUTERS/Roni Bintang (INDONESIA - Tags: DISASTER ENVIRONMENT TPX)

TOPSHOTS Tribesmen lead their camels through the sand dunes of the Liwa desert, 220 kms west of Abu Dhabi, on November 23, 2013. TOPSHOTS/AFP PHOTO/KARIM SAHIBKARIM SAHIB/AFP/Getty Images

A Christian man chases a suspected Seleka officer in civilian clothes with a knife near the airport in Bangui, Central African Republic, Monday Dec. 9, 2013. Both Christian and Muslim mobs went on lynching sprees as French Forces deployed in the capital. The Seleka man was taken into custody by French forces who fired warning shots to disperse the crowds. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)

South African mourners, wave and shout as the hearse carrying the body of former South African President Nelson Mandela passes by, in Pretoria, South Africa, Thursday Dec. 12, 2013. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen)