Pictures We Love: Best of January

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Photograph by Dieu Nalio Chery, AP

The magnitude 7 earthquake that struck near Port au Prince, Haiti, in January 2010 so devastated the country that recovery efforts are still ongoing.

Professional dancer Georges Exantus, one of the many casualties of that day, was trapped in his flattened apartment for three days, according to news reports. After friends dug him out, doctors amputated his right leg below the knee. With the help of a prosthetic leg, Exantus is able to dance again. (Read about his comeback.)

Why We Love It

"This is an intimate photo, taken in the subject's most personal space as he lies asleep and vulnerable, perhaps unaware of the photographer. The dancer's prosthetic leg lies in the foreground as an unavoidable reminder of the hardships he faced in the 2010 earthquake. This image makes me want to hear more of Georges' story."—Ben Fitch, associate photo editor

"This image uses aesthetics and the beauty of suggestion to tell a story. We are not given all the details in the image, but it is enough to make us question and wonder."—Janna Dotschkal, associate photo editor

Published February 1, 2013

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Super Bowl XLVII Live Blog: Ravens in Control

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8:22  p.m. ET: And Beyonce ends an impressive and energetic halftime performance with Halo.


8:19  p.m. ET: Looks like the DC reunion is over – it was fun while it laster!


8:16  p.m. ET: Destiny’s Child reunion for Bootylicious!


8:14  p.m. ET: So many Beyonces!


8:12  p.m. ET: For the halftime performance, there are 135 dancers on the field, and 2,000 fans. And really cool visuals on the stage.


8:10  p.m. ET: Beyonce kicks off the halftime show with Love on Top followed by Crazy in Love.


8:07  p.m. ET: Here’s what the President and First Lady are eating at their Super Bowl party: Chesapeake Crab Cakes and San Francisco Cioppino Stew with Sourdough Toast. There are also wings, and they’re drinking Anchor Steam and Clipper City beers.


8:05  p.m. ET: Still, the 49ers rallied from a 17-0 deficit to make it to the Super Bowl so it’s tough to count them out just halfway through.


8:04  p.m. ET: Ravens dominating so far, and it’s not even really close. While the teams take a breather, Beyonce heads to the field for the half time show.


8:00  p.m. ET: First half ends with a Ray Lewis sack. The likely future Hall of Famer is retiring after this game. Strangely enough, his first NFL sack was of Jim Harbaugh – who is currently coaching the 49ers. Also in that game? Randy Moss, who is currently having a rough game for the 49ers.


7:59  p.m. ET: Field goal is Good. 21-6 Ravens at the half.


7:58  p.m. ET: Really looks like the big game jitters are getting to Kaepernick. Ray Lewis sack brings out Akers for a field goal attempt.


7:55  p.m. ET: Fun Fact – Kaepernick was drafted by the Chicago Cubs as a pitcher in 2009. You can see the pitcher still in him with some of these throws.


7:54  p.m. ET: 49ers back in the red zone after a few big gains. They still have two timeouts with less than one minute left in the second quarter.


7:52  p.m. ET: 15-yard penalty and automatic first down for the 49ers on a roughing the passer call.


7:50  p.m. ET: That’s Flacco’s 11th touchdown pass this postseason.


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Dave Martin/AP Photo


7:49  p.m. ET: 21 – 3 Baltimore as incredible throw, catch and run lead to a touchdown for the Ravens. 49ers have A LOT of  work to do in the second half.


7:48  p.m. ET: TOUCHDOWN RAVENS.


7:45  p.m. ET: No flag on what looked like offensive pass interference as Culliver breaks up a Flacco long throw, and we hit the two-minute warning.


7:44  p.m. ET: 2nd and 10 for the Ravens with 2 minutes left in the second quarter. The Ravens will be receiving the ball at the beginning of the second half.


7:41  p.m. ET: Kaepernick, who had been noted for his great decision making calls under pressure, is having a rough game so far. At 25 years old, this start is only the tenth pro start of his career.


7:39  p.m. ET: Awesome 9-year-old girl football player Sam Gordon is in the house!


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Obtained by ABC News


7:37  p.m. ET: Volkswagen’s controversial ad just aired – here’s Jamaica’s reaction to it.


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Harry How/Getty Images


7:37  p.m. ET: Gutsy fake field goal call considering the Ravens’ rookie kicker is about as sure a thing as there is for points.


7:36  p.m. ET: Tricky – fake field goal by the Ravens, but short of a first down.


7:34  p.m. ET: Almost an interception by the Niners, but it’s just an incomplete pass by Flacco. 3rd and 9.


7:31  p.m. ET: Another first down for the Ravens.


7:30  p.m. ET: Personal fouls by both teams cancel each other out. Ravens first down at 49ers 38.


7:29  p.m. ET: That interception is evidently the first time a 49ers quarterback has ever been intercepted in the Super Bowl (that’s five previous games). And Reed ties the record with his 9th postseason interception.


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Jamie Squire/Getty Images


7:28  p.m. ET: Interception by Baltimore but flag is down and teams fighting on the field.


7:24  p.m. ET: After that commercial about sports fans’ superstitions – here’s an interesting article about when those superstitions cross the line into OCD.


7:22  p.m. ET: Penalties and that fumble killing San Francisco so far. 14-3 Ravens. Ten touchdowns and no interceptions so far this postseason for Flacco.


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Harry How/Getty Images


7:22  p.m. ET: TOUCHDOWN BALTIMORE.


7:21  p.m. ET: Automatic first and goal for Ravens after another penalty – a personal foul on 49ers’ Whitner.


7:20  p.m. ET: Flacco connects with Dickson, and a flag is down.


7:19  p.m. ET: While they’re on the subject of Patrick Willis, here’s an interesting story about him and his “brother for life,” the Baltimore’s Michael Oher.


7:17  p.m. ET: Another first down for the Ravens. That’s 4/5 third down conversions for the Ravens so far.


7:16  p.m. ET: Major change of momentum, as Ravens get gain of about 5 after 49ers fumble.


7:12  p.m. ET: Fumble recovered by Ravens. First down for Baltimore.


7:12  p.m. ET: Another first down for the Niners.


7:11  p.m. ET: Another first down on gain of eleven with reception by Davis. Another another small scuffle breaks out. Teams clearly (obviously) passionate.


7:10  p.m. ET: Looks like Davis is okay – gain of 29 yards on great throw from Kaepernick.


7:08  p.m. ET: First Harbaugh parent sightings of the night! They’ve said tonight will be really bittersweet for them.


7:08  p.m. ET: They may be brothers, but side-by-side comparison of the Harbaugh brothers’ reactions to last play show totally different styles.


7:05  p.m. ET: Flacco sacked with 12 seconds left in quarter.


7:04  p.m. ET: Incomplete throw by Flacco with 17 seconds left in the 1st quarter.


7:03  p.m. ET: Unbelievable throw and catch by Boldin for 31-yards.


7:02  p.m. ET: 3rd and 7 for Ravens after incomplete pass by Flacco.


7:00  p.m. ET: 9-yard gain for the Ravens. Ed Reed in locker room for evaluation.


6:57  p.m. ET: Jacoby Jones returns kick to the 22-yard line. Ravens’ Ed Reed and 49ers’ Vernon Davis both apparently being checked out after Reed hit Davis on previous drive.


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Harry How/Getty Images


6:55  p.m. ET: And to the relief of 49ers fans, David Akers field goal attempt is good. 7-3 Ravens.


6:54  p.m. ET: Kaepernick sacked. 49ers going for field goal.


6:53  p.m. ET: Davis out and being worked on by trainers. Second and goal, incomplete in the end zone, off of Crabtree’s hands.


6:52  p.m. ET: Vernon Davis, a super speedy tight end, with another first down on a 24-yard reception from Kaepernick. 1st and goal.


6:51 p.m. ET: And Gore with another first down.


6:50 p.m. ET: Kaepernick scrambles for a gain of seven, 2nd and 3.


6:50 p.m. ET: Kaepernick, who shocked the league with his legs when he took over from Alex Smith, gets a 1st down and then some.


6:49 p.m. ET: Gore gains nine, after having a rough few carries early.


6:48 p.m. ET: Huge, 19-yard game for Michael Crabtree, who broke out this season once Kaepernick took over the starting QB job.


6:46 p.m. ET: Already looking to be a really physical game as scuffle between players breaks out after 49ers loss of two yards.


6:45 p.m. ET: And here’s the GoDaddy commercial everybody has already been talking about – supermodel makes out with Hollywood’s favorite extra.


6:44 p.m. ET: Penalties already hurting the 49ers – big game jitters?


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McNamee/Getty Images


6:41 p.m. ET: And the extra point is good. 7-0 Ravens


6:40 p.m. ET: TOUCHDOWN BALTIMORE. Ravens take an early lead with a reception by Anquan Boldin.


6:39 p.m. ET: On 3rd and 9, same thing happens, but flag is down for defensive offsides – five yard penalty and replay of 3rd down.


6:39 p.m. ET: Given some time, Flacco throws ball beyond end zone for an incompletion on 2nd and 9.


6:38 p.m. ET: Ravens QB, Joe Flacco, known for his exceptionally strong arm, gets the ball to Torrey Jones at the SF 19.


6:37 p.m. ET: And a first down for the Ravens from SF 39.


6:36 p.m. ET: Better start for the Ravens, who pick up eight yards on their first down of the game.


6:36 p.m. ET: And the first drive of the game goes nowhere; Andy Lee punts on 4th down, and Jacoby Jones returns to near the 50-yard line.


6:34 p.m. ET: On first and 15, no gain for 49ers all-time leading rusher, Frank Gore.


6:33 p.m. ET: Five yard penalty for the 49ers for illegal formation.


6:32 p.m. ET: Kaepernick connects with Vernon Davis for a gain of 20, but a flag is down.


6:31 p.m. ET: Here we go – 49ers start the first drive at the 20-yard line.


6:28 p.m. ET: Ravens chose heads, and elected to defer their choice until the second half. 49ers to receive at kickoff.


6:27 p.m. ET: Newest members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame join the team captains for the coin toss.


6:22 p.m. ET: Alicia Keys performs the Star Spangled Banner, wearing a red dress and playing a white piano at the 50-yard line.


6:21 p.m. ET: Joint Armed Forces Color Guard present the flags.


6:20 p.m. ET: Hudson wearing a green ribbon in honor of the victims of the Sandy Hook school shooting while performing with the students.


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Jamie Squire/Getty Images


6:19 p.m. ET: In a touching performance, Sandy Hook Elementary School students perform “America the Beautiful,” with Jennifer Hudson.


6:18 p.m. ET: Jason Witten wins the 2012 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award.


6:12 p.m. ET: And out come the 49ers.


6:11 p.m. ET: The Ravens players are introduced in the stadium to a raucous crowd.


6:09 p.m. ET: And another historic first tonight – the two head coaches are brothers, born just 15 months apart. John Harbaugh, 50, is in his fifth season as the Baltimore Ravens head coach, and has won playoff games in each of his previous seasons. Jim Harbaugh, 49, is in his second season as head coach of the San Francisco 49ers, leading his team to the playoffs both seasons.


6:05 p.m. ET: The San Francisco 49ers are going for their 6th Lombardi trophy, which would tie them for the most championships ever with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Baltimore Ravens are trying for their second Super Bowl victory. Neither team has ever lost a Super Bowl game – and at the end of the night, there will only be one team left in the NFL to have never lost a Super Bowl game.


6:00 p.m. ET: It’s here – the biggest spectacle in American sports, the Super Bowl. We’ll be covering the game, performances and, of course, the commercials right here.


It’s been an incredible season so far, and everything has led up to tonight’s game in New Orleans, where the NFC Champion San Francisco 49ers face the AFC Champion Baltimore Ravens in Super Bowl XLVII. Keep refreshing for the latest updates throughout what promises to be a great game.

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Reid details positions in gun debate

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“Everyone acknowledges we should do something with background checks,” Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said in an interview on ABC News’s “This Week With George Stephanopoulos.”


While Reid pronounced his support for expanding background checks on gun purchases, he said he was undecided about proposed bans on assault-style weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines.

“I didn’t vote for the assault weapons last time because it . . . didn’t make sense,” Reid said. Nonetheless, Reid said he plans to “take a look” at the latest proposal. And imposing new restrictions on high-capacity magazines is “something we definitely have to take a look at,” he said.

Reid’s support for expanding background checks is a boost to the gun-control measure that appears to stand the best chance of garnering broad support on Capitol Hill. A bipartisan group of senators has been working on a proposal to expand background checks, and polls show that most Americans support mandating background checks for all gun sales. Under current law, sales involving licensed gun dealers require background checks, but those between private citizens do not.

By comparison, it’s been much more difficult for gun-control advocates to build consensus around a proposed assault weapons ban, which a group of Democratic lawmakers introduced last month. It’s not just Republicans who are likely to oppose the ban; Democrats facing reelection in conservative states next year could face intense criticism from gun rights groups over a vote in favor of the measure, which might prompt some f them to oppose it.

The nation’s largest gun rights group, the National Rifle Association, staunchly opposes universal background checks. NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre warned on “Fox News Sunday” that requiring universal checks would lead to “a “universal registry of law-abiding people.”

Reid is the recipient of a “B” rating from the NRA, a better mark than most Senate Democrats. “I know Wayne LaPierre; he’s always been extremely pleasant to me,” Reid said, but “just because they resist it doesn’t mean we can’t do things.”

As the gears turn in Congress, President Obama will make his latest push for stricter gun control laws in a Monday appearance in Minneapolis, where he will meet with local leaders and law enforcement officials and deliver remarks. The president last month unveiled a sweeping slate of new gun control proposals including a call for Congress to pass laws requiring background checks and banning assault-style weapons and high-capacity magazines.

The White House released a photo Saturday of Obama skeet shooting at Camp David last summer. The president was recently asked by the New Republic magazine whether he had ever fired a gun. “Yes, in fact, up at Camp David, we do skeet shooting all the time,” the president responded, prompting an outpouring of questions about whether the White House could validate the comment.

On Capitol Hill, the renewed gun-control debate officially kicked off last week, when the Senate Judiciary Committee called witnesses to testify at a hearing. LaPierre appeared before the committee, as did former congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona, who survived a 2011 assassination attempt that nearly took her life.

Giffords and her husband, former astronaut Mark Kelly, recently announced the formation of a group designed to counteract the influence of the NRA. On Sunday, Kelly kept up his push for new gun control measures, citing December’s mass shooting at a Newtown, Conn., elementary school as a reason to take urgent action.

“This is about public safety. We had 20 first-graders die in their classrooms because we don’t have sufficient gun violence legislation in the country,” Kelly said on “Fox News Sunday.”

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Spain opposition calls on PM Rajoy to resign

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MADRID: The leader of Spain's opposition Socialist party called on Sunday for Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy to resign amid a damaging corruption scandal.

"Rajoy should give up his role as the head of government (because) he cannot tackle the very difficult situation confronting Spain," Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba told reporters.

Spain's centre-left newspaper El Pais published account ledgers purportedly showing that donations were channelled into secret payments to Rajoy and other top party officials.

Rajoy has dismissed the ledgers as false and has vehemently denies receiving any payments.

The prime minister "cannot lead the country in this delicate time," Rubalcaba said.

"His presence (at the head of the government) is not going to help resolve this political crisis," the opposition leader said.

The scandal has infuriated Spaniards, millions of whom are still struggling to find work in an ongoing recession with the highest jobless rate, at 26 percent, since the return of democracy in 1975.

Many feel they have been forced to bear the brunt of an economic crisis triggered by the collapse of a construction boom, which they blame on corrupt politicians and unscrupulous banks.

Since the scandal broke on Thursday, hundreds of angry demonstrators have mounted daily protests outside Rajoy's Popular Party (PP) offices, waving envelopes symbolising the envelopes stuffed with cash that were allegedly distributed to party members.

At Sunday's protest around 100 people hemmed in by barricades and police vans shouted "Resign!", "Delinquents!" and "This Isn't a Party, It's a Mafia!"

An online petition to oust Rajoy had gathered 766,000 signatures by midday on Sunday.

In an emergency meeting with PP members on Saturday, Rajoy fought off the allegations and vowed not to resign.

"I have never received nor distributed undeclared money," he said.

"I commit myself personally and all of my party to maximum transparency," he added, promising to publish full details of his earnings and assets.

According to Rubalcaba, Spain needs "a strong government that inspires confidence and the government does not do that, starting with its leader."

Rajoy had "added a problem, a moral crisis," he said.

The published ledgers show details of donations, mostly from construction companies, that were then allegedly channelled into a fund benefiting Rajoy and other top officials.

El Pais cited ledgers kept by former party treasurer Luis Barcenas, apparently showing payments including 25,200 euros ($34,400) a year to Rajoy between 1997 and 2008.

Had the payments been declared, they would be legal, the paper said.

Barcenas, who is already under investigation over reports that he had stashed millions of euros in Swiss bank accounts, denied the allegations, as did most of the top officials named in the report, who include the party's current secretary-general Maria Dolores de Cospedal.

She rejected the allegations on behalf of the party, insisting that its accounts were "transparent".

A poll published in El Pais on Sunday showed that the PP's popularity rating had dropped to 23.9 percent, the lowest since it came to power in 2011, and only just higher than the Socialists on 23.5 percent.

Spain's authorities have meanwhile sought to play down the affair, with Deputy Prime Minister Soraya Saenz de Santamaria saying the government enjoyed "great stability".

Rajoy swept to power in a 2011 election when voters angry at the economic crisis kicked out the Socialists. He defied speculation that the country would need a financial bailout in 2012, only for the political scandal to erupt in the new year.

-AFP/ac



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Iran hedges on nuclear talks with six powers or U.S.

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MUNICH (Reuters) - Iran said on Sunday it was open to a U.S. offer of direct talks on its nuclear program and that six world powers had suggested a new round of nuclear negotiations this month, but without committing itself to either proposal.


Diplomatic efforts to resolve a dispute over Iran's nuclear program, which Tehran says is peaceful but the West suspects is intended to give Iran the capability to build a nuclear bomb, have been all but deadlocked for years, while Iran has continued to announce advances in the program.


Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi said a suggestion on Saturday by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden that Washington was ready for direct talks with Iran if Tehran was serious about negotiations was a "step forward".


"We take these statements with positive consideration. I think this is a step forward but ... each time we have come and negotiated it was the other side unfortunately who did not heed ... its commitment," Salehi said at the Munich Security Conference where Biden made his overture a day earlier.


He also complained to Iran's English-language Press TV of "other contradictory signals", pointing to the rhetoric of "keeping all options on the table" used by U.S. officials to indicate they are willing to use force to keep Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.


"This does not go along with this gesture (of talks) so we will have to wait a little bit longer and see if they are really faithful this time," Salehi said.


Iran is under a tightening web of sanctions. Israel has also hinted it may strike if diplomacy and international sanctions fail to curb Iran's nuclear drive.


In Washington, Army General Martin Dempsey, the top U.S. military officer, said in an interview broadcast on Sunday that the United States has the capability to stop any Iranian effort to build nuclear weapons, but Iranian "intentions have to be influenced through other means."


Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, made his comments on NBC's program "Meet the Press," speaking alongside outgoing Defense Secretary Leon Panetta.


Panetta said current U.S. intelligence indicated that Iranian leaders have not made a decision to proceed with the development of a nuclear weapon.


"But every indication is they want to continue to increase their nuclear capability," he said. "And that's a concern. And that's what we're asking them to stop doing."


The new U.S. secretary of state, John Kerry, has said he will give diplomacy every chance of solving the Iran standoff.


THE BEST CHANCE


With six-power talks making little progress, some experts say talks between Tehran and Washington could be the best chance, perhaps after Iran has elected a new president in June.


Negotiations between Iran and the six powers - Russia, China, the United States, Britain, France and Germany - have been deadlocked since a meeting last June.


EU officials have accused Iran of dragging its feet in weeks of haggling over the date and venue for new talks.


Salehi said he had "good news", having heard that the six powers would meet in Kazakhstan on February 25.


A spokesman for EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, who coordinates the efforts of the six powers, confirmed that she had proposed talks in the week of February 25 but noted that Iran had not yet accepted.


Kazakhstan said it was ready to host the talks in either Astana or Almaty.


Salehi said Iran had "never pulled back" from the stuttering negotiations with the six powers. "We still are very hopeful. There are two packages, one package from Iran with five steps and the other package from the (six powers) with three steps."


Iran raised international concern last week by announcing plans to install and operate advanced uranium enrichment machines. The EU said the move, potentially shortening the path to weapons-grade material, could deepen doubts about the peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear program.


Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that Israel's mission to stop its arch-enemy from acquiring nuclear weapons was "becoming more complex, since the Iranians are equipping themselves with cutting-edge centrifuges that shorten the time of (uranium) enrichment".


"We must not accept this process," said Netanyahu, who is trying to form a new government after winning an election last month. Israel is generally believed to be the only country in the Middle East with nuclear weapons.


(Additional reporting by Myra MacDonald and Stephen Brown in Munich, Dmitry Solovyov in Almaty, Yeganeh Torbati in Dubai and Jim Wolf in Washington; Editing by Kevin Liffey and Will Dunham)



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Pictures We Love: Best of January

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Photograph by Dieu Nalio Chery, AP

The magnitude 7 earthquake that struck near Port au Prince, Haiti, in January 2010 so devastated the country that recovery efforts are still ongoing.

Professional dancer Georges Exantus, one of the many casualties of that day, was trapped in his flattened apartment for three days, according to news reports. After friends dug him out, doctors amputated his right leg below the knee. With the help of a prosthetic leg, Exantus is able to dance again. (Read about his comeback.)

Why We Love It

"This is an intimate photo, taken in the subject's most personal space as he lies asleep and vulnerable, perhaps unaware of the photographer. The dancer's prosthetic leg lies in the foreground as an unavoidable reminder of the hardships he faced in the 2010 earthquake. This image makes me want to hear more of Georges' story."—Ben Fitch, associate photo editor

"This image uses aesthetics and the beauty of suggestion to tell a story. We are not given all the details in the image, but it is enough to make us question and wonder."—Janna Dotschkal, associate photo editor

Published February 1, 2013

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Body of Missing Mom Reportedly Found in Turkey

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The body of an American woman who went missing while on a solo trip to Turkey has been pulled from a bay in Istanbul, and nine people have been held for questioning, according to local media.


Sarai Sierra, 33, was last heard from on Jan. 21, the day she was due to board a flight home to New York City.


The state-run Andolu Agency reported that residents found a woman's body today near the ruins of some ancient city walls in a low-income district, and police identified the body as Sierra.


Rep. Michael Grimm, R-NY, who with his staff had been assisting the Sierra family in the search, said he was "deeply saddened" to hear the news of her death.


"I urge Turkish officials to move quickly to identify whomever is responsible for her tragic death and ensure that any guilty parties are punished to the fullest extent of the law," he said in a statement.






Courtesy Sarai Sierra's family











Footage Shows Missing New York Mom in Turkish Mall Watch Video









NYC Woman Goes Missing While Traveling In Turkey Watch Video









New York Mother Goes Missing on Turkish Vacation Watch Video





The New York City mother, who has two young boys, traveled to Turkey alone on Jan. 7 after a friend had to cancel. Sierra, who is an avid photographer with a popular Instagram stream, planned to document her dream vacation with her camera.


"It was her first time outside of the United States, and every day while she was there she pretty much kept in contact with us, letting us know what she was up to, where she was going, whether it be through texting or whether it be through video chat, she was touching base with us," Steven Sierra told ABC News before he departed for Istanbul last Sunday to aid in the search.


Steven Sierra has been in the country, meeting with U.S. officials and local authorities, as they searched for his wife.


On Friday, Turkish authorities detained a man who had spoken with Sierra online before her disappearance. The identity of the man and the details of his arrest were not disclosed, The Associated Press reported.


The family said it is completely out of character for the happily married mother, who met her husband in church youth group, to disappear.


She took two side trips, to Amsterdam and Munich, before returning to Turkey, but kept in contact with her family the entire time, a family friend told ABC News.


Further investigation revealed she had left her passport, clothes, phone chargers and medical cards in her room at a hostel in Beyoglu, Turkey.



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