Today in photos (Feb. 9)

A boat makes its way through floating ice on the river Elbe in Hamburg, northern Germany, on Thursday, Feb. 9, 2012. A cold spell has reached Europe with temperatures plummeting far below zero. (Matthias Schrader / Associated Press)

Lava flows during an eruption of Mt. Etna volcano, near Catania, Sicily, in the early hours of Thursday, Feb. 9, 2012. (Carmelo Imbesi / Associated Press)

Syrian rebels are seen in Idlib, Syria, Thursday, Feb. 9, 2012. Syrian forces fired mortars and rockets that killed scores of people Thursday in the rebellious city of Homs, activists said, the latest strike in a weeklong assault as President Bashar Assad’s regime tries to crush increasingly militarized pockets of dissent. (Associated Press)

A boy peeks inside a tent where the carcass of whale shark is being kept in Karachi, Pakistan, Thursday, Feb. 9, 2012. Qasim Khan waged the unlikeliest of battles with Pakistani authorities Thursday over the right to charge hundreds of curious visitors 20 rupees (22 cents) each to see a roughly 40-foot whale shark he bought from a fisherman. (Fareed Khan / Associated Press)

Visitors surround the carcass of whale shark in Karachi, Pakistan, Thursday, Feb 9, 2012. Qasim Khan waged the unlikeliest of battles with Pakistani authorities Thursday over the right to charge hundreds of curious visitors 20 rupees (22 cents) each to see a roughly 40-foot whale shark he bought from a fisherman. (Fareed Khan / Associated Press)

Nine-year-old Ashley Villatoro, center, holds a sign showing images of former teacher Martin B. Springer outside Miramonte Elementary School in Los Angeles, Thursday, Feb. 9, 2012. Children are returning to a Los Angeles-area elementary school where the entire staff has been replaced following the arrests of two former teachers on charges of committing lewd acts with students in class. (Jae Hong / Associated Press)