LONDON — A group of British lawmakers proposed new laws Thursday to ban the use of airports, harbors or highways in the secret rendition of suspected terrorists, while a human rights group urged the government to stop detaining terror suspects without charge.
NEW YORK — A drop in unemployment claims and an upbeat forecast from Cisco Systems Inc. gave investors a jolt of confidence a day before a key government report on jobs.
MOSCOW — Russian investigators announced Thursday the arrests of two suspects in the killings of a human rights lawyer and a journalist who were shot in central Moscow in January.
BARCELONA, Spain — Negotiators at a U.N. climate conference in Spain further defined plans for reducing greenhouse emissions and continued work on a draft climate change treaty, with next month’s deadline for a legal document increasingly in doubt.
MADISON, Wis. — Pushing for a link between student test scores and teacher pay, President Barack Obama on Wednesday dangled $5 billion in federal grants to states willing to undertake a top-to-bottom overhaul of their schools in support of White House priorities.
SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea claimed Tuesday that it has successfully weaponized more plutonium for atomic bombs, a day after warning Washington to agree quickly to direct talks or face the prospect of a growing North Korean nuclear arsenal.
Officials expect health care bill to advance in House this week
PHILADELPHIA — Even in the best of times, waking up to a surprise transit strike is like a bad dream come true. When the sudden walkout comes during an economic downturn, it becomes more like a nightmare.
HARARE, Zimbabwe — Zimbabwe’s neighbors will hold a summit this week to try to break an impasse that threatens the southern African nation’s unity government, a spokesman for Zimbabwe’s prime minister said Monday.
PORTLAND, Maine — Bolstered by out-of-state money and volunteers, both sides jockeyed Monday to boost turnout for Maine’s referendum on same-sex marriage — a contest that could give gay-rights activists in the U.S. their first such victory at the ballot box.
MARRAKECH, Morocco — Trying to mute Arab criticism that the Obama administration had retreated from its tough stance on Israeli settlements, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton softened her praise for Israel’s offer to restrain new housing in Palestinian areas on Monday.
DELA, Kenya — When 64-year-old Jimale Irobe was a young man, he guided his herds of cows and camels through knee-high grass.
PALO ALTO, Calif. — Grim news hit this university town in late October just two days before a PTA forum on teenage stress: Another Palo Alto teen had died after stepping in front of a commuter train, the fourth such suicide in less than six months.
A new treatment for swine flu may already be on pharmacy shelves — cholesterol-lowering statin drugs like Lipitor and Zocor.
WASHINGTON — Construction can finally begin on the long-delayed Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial slated for the National Mall after the National Park Service issued building permits Thursday for the project.
PEORIA, Ill. — An al-Qaida sleeper agent who admitted having contact with the alleged mastermind behind the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks was sentenced to more than eight years in prison Thursday.
LOS ANGELES — A gunman shot and wounded two men in the parking garage of a North Hollywood synagogue Thursday, frightening worshippers who heard gunshots and screams before the bleeding victims stumbled in during morning services.
Although budget cuts are taking place across campus in almost every department, the setbacks at UT have not led to any legal conflicts.
UNITED NATIONS — Cuba is willing to hold talks with the United States "on any level," Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez said Wednesday in conciliatory remarks aimed at the Obama administration.
WASHINGTON — The Great Recession may be over, but the recovery is just beginning — and it’s doesn’t promise to be much easier.
ARCADIA, Fla. — President Barack Obama made a pitch for renewable energy Tuesday, announcing $3.4 billion in government support for 100 projects aimed at modernizing the nation’s power grid.
TEHRAN, Iran — Iran will seek “important changes” in a U.N.-drafted plan to ship enriched uranium out of the country for processing, state TV reported Tuesday, raising alarm bells among Western leaders who are pushing the deal to ease concerns over Iran’s nuclear program.
WASHINGTON — Anti-abortion activist Randall Terry is calling on people to burn effigies of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid this Halloween, as part of a “Burn in Hell” video contest to protest the health care legislation in Congress.
Al-Qaida affiliate in Iraq claims responsibility for twin bombings; Attack on Pakistani army officer, mother disrupts violent capital
KABUL — A U.S. military helicopter crashed Monday while returning from the scene of a firefight with suspected Taliban drug traffickers in western Afghanistan, killing 10 Americans including three DEA agents in a not-so-noticed war within a war.
ELDORADO, Texas — More than 150 potential jurors, including 10 women with prairie dresses and braids, crammed into a makeshift courtroom Monday as jury selection began in the first criminal trial stemming from the raid of a polygamist sect’s ranch last year.
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — More than 100 federal authorities entered a smoldering fuel depot for the first time Sunday to investigate whether someone intentionally caused an explosion that forced hundreds to evacuate and spewed thick, toxic smoke across the region.
ORANGE PARK, Fla. — Investigators had more than a thousand tips but are still trying to figure out what happened when 7-year-old Somer Thompson disappeared on her walk home from a north Florida school last week.
ISLAMABAD — Suspected militants on a motorbike fatally shot a senior army officer and a soldier in the Pakistani capital Thursday, striking at security forces as the military wages a major anti-Taliban offensive in the northwest.
KABUL — Election authorities began delivering ballots with U.N. assistance across Afghanistan on Thursday, as hurried preparations for the Nov. 7 runoff in the insurgency-plagued nation’s presidential election got under way.
Search engine powerhouse Google is facing new complaints over its book-scanning digital library project — from Chinese authors who say their copyrights are being violated.SHANGHAI — Search engine powerhouse Google is facing new complaints over its book-scanning digital library project — from Chinese authors who say their copyrights are being violated.
A 70-foot female blue whale that officials believe was struck by a ship has washed ashore on the Northern California coast in what scientists are calling a rare occurrence.
Authorities have been warning that militants would try to bring the war to Pakistan’s cities since the army began its offensive. Many schools and universities were closed after receiving word from authorities on Monday they could be targeted.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — NASA’s lofty new rocket arrived at the launching pad Tuesday for a test flight next week that comes at a time when the future of the country’s spaceflight program is up in the air.
White House, Democrats seek support for health care bill
KABUL — U.N.-backed fraud investigators on Monday threw out nearly a third of President Hamid Karzai’s votes from the August election, undercutting his claim of victory and stepping up the pressure for him to accept a runoff.
Despite persistently low demand, prices for gasoline have spiked over the past week along with crude oil, threatening one of the very few points of relief for the recession-striken U.S. consumer: cheap gas.
RIO DE JANEIRO — At least 2,000 police officers patrolled this coastal city Sunday and Brazilian officials pledged to host a violence-free 2016 Olympics despite bloody drug gang shootouts that left 14 people dead.
FORT COLLINS, Colo. — The story that a little boy had floated away in a giant helium balloon was a hoax concocted to land a reality television show, authorities said, and the boy's parents will likely face felony charges.
NEW ORLEANS — President Barack Obama defended himself Thursday against complaints from residents of the Katrina-ravaged Gulf Coast who feel recovery help has not come soon enough from his administration.
TOKYO — Japanese police released an American man held for 18 days on Thursday, pending an investigation into accusations he snatched his children from his ex-wife.
LAHORE, Pakistan — Teams of gunmen launched coordinated attacks on three law enforcement facilities in Pakistan’s second-largest city of Lahore, detonating car bombs in two cities near the Afghan border Thursday, killing 39 people in an escalating wave of anti-government violence.
Israel seeks support from UN allies on Gaza War crimes vote; UN voices concern over Iran’s nuclear power, uranium stores
KABUL — Afghan officials would face a daunting task in organizing a runoff presidential election before the arrival of winter — including hiring unbiased staff and securing polling stations in areas under threat of Taliban attack.
LONDON — British Prime Minister Gordon Brown pledged Wednesday to send more troops to Afghanistan if NATO and the Afghan government do more to help fight the Taliban.
Fingerprint on artwork confirms that drawing is one of Leonardo’s; Obama calls for $250 payments to retired, disabled Americans
MOSCOW — U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton met with Russian leaders on Tuesday to urge their support in pressuring Iran to prove its nuclear program is peaceful.
In talks with Russia’s president and foreign minister, Clinton is trying to gauge Moscow’s willingness to back specific measures that could be imposed on Iran if it fails to comply with international demands to come clean on its atomic activities.
DUBLIN — The speaker of Ireland’s parliament resigned Tuesday after his years of lavish expenses and foreign travel were publically exposed.
JOHANNESBURG — Police allegedly fired more than a dozen rounds at a car they mistakenly thought was stolen, killing a woman and fueling a debate about whether officers should have greater leeway to use deadly force to combat South Africa’s high crime rate.
GOP Senator joins Democrats in advancing new health care bill; Nobel Peace Prize judges defend awarding Obama distinction; Abortion rate declines globally, unsafe procedures kill women; Russian court rules against Stalin’s grandson’s libel lawsuit; Study: Less-invasive prostate surgery may mean higher risk of incontinence, sexual problems; Stocks recede from highest levels of 2009 as lower sales from Johnson & Johnson disappoint
Abortion rate declines globally, unsafe procedures kill women; Russian court rules against Stalin's grandson's libel lawsuit; Study: Less-invasive prostate surgery may mean higher risk of incontinence, sexual problems; Stocks recede from highest levels of 2009 as lower sales from Johnson & Johnson disappoint
JERUSALEM — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday vowed never to allow Israeli leaders or soldiers to stand trial on war crimes charges over their actions during last winter’s military offensive in the Gaza Strip, furiously denouncing a U.N. report in a keynote address to parliament.
WASHINGTON — One scholar studies how best to manage resources like forests, fisheries and oilfields. A fellow American looks at why some companies grow so large. Together they’re winners of this year’s Nobel Prize in economics for groundbreaking work that could affect efforts to prevent another global financial crisis.
MOSCOW — The pro-Kremlin party dominated an election for Moscow city council and other local votes across Russia, results released Monday showed.
WASHINGTON — Thousands of gay rights supporters marched Sunday from the White House to the Capitol, demanding that President Barack Obama keep his promises to allow gays to serve openly in the military and work to end discrimination against gays.
DUBLIN — The Irish National Liberation Army, an IRA splinter group responsible for some of the most notorious killings of the Northern Ireland conflict, renounced violence Sunday and signaled it could hand over weapons soon to disarmament officials.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A mother whose baby was kidnapped said she was devastated when child welfare officials took him into state custody shortly after he was recovered; she described the pain of that separation as worse than the knife wounds that the kidnapper inflicted on her.
LEBANON, Pa. — A suburban mother who became a voice of the gun-rights movement when she openly carried a loaded pistol to her daughter’s soccer game was fatally shot Wednesday along with her parole-officer husband in an apparent murder-suicide at their home in Pennsylvania Dutch country, authorities said.
ROME — Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi said Thursday he will go on TV and appear in courtrooms to prove that corruption and tax fraud charges in two trials against him are false.
RAMALLAH, West Bank — In five turbulent years in office, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has never faced as much outrage as over his decision to suspend efforts to get Israeli officials put on trial for war crimes in Gaza.
MOSCOW — Hundreds of people urged Russian authorities to find and punish the killers of journalists and human rights activists in Russia, rallying Wednesday to mark the third anniversary of the killing of Anna Politkovskaya.
ISLAMABAD — Pakistan’s powerful military on Wednesday rejected U.S. attempts to link billions of dollars in foreign aid to increased monitoring of its anti-terror efforts, complicating American attempts to strike al-Qaida and Taliban fighters on the Afghan border.
JERUSALEM — Israeli police mobilized reinforcements from across the country to secure volatile Jerusalem on Tuesday, deploying thousands of officers on city streets for fear that two days of minor clashes with Palestinian protesters would escalate.
WASHINGTON — Supreme Court justices indicated on Tuesday that a federal law aimed at graphic videos of dog fights and other acts of animal cruelty goes too far in limiting free speech.
North Korea offers to resume multinational nuclear talks; Obama reschedules Washington conference with Dalai Lama
JOHANNESBURG — The Sudanese billionaire behind a lucrative prize to promote leadership in Africa on Monday condemned the killing of pro-democracy protesters in Guinea.
DALLAS — There is enough evidence for prosecutors to continue their case against a Jordanian man accused of trying to blow up a Dallas skyscraper with what he believed to be a car bomb, a judge ruled Monday.
Obama will not walk away from war in Afghanistan; Three Americans win Nobel Prize for chromosome work;
WASHINGTON — Many middle-class Americans would still struggle to pay for health insurance despite efforts by President Barack Obama and the Democrats to make coverage more affordable.
TEHRAN, Iran — The visiting head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog set Oct. 25 as the date for his inspectors to check Iran's newly revealed uranium enrichment site and struck an upbeat note Sunday, saying Tehran's confrontation with the West is shifting gears to more cooperation and transparency.
HARTFORD, Conn. — The nation's nursing homes are perilously close to laying off workers, cutting services — possibly even closing — because of a perfect storm wallop from the recession and deep federal and state government spending cuts, industry experts say.
Just over half of youths aged 16 to 24 have jobs, lowest number since 1948
University students looking for a part-time job may have to be patient.
Italian Premier to build new houses for mudslide victims
Towboat hits bridge, shuts down part of Mississippi River; Speeding car crashes into rig killing passengers and driver; First swine flu vaccinations shipped, more to come
PADANG, Indonesia — As rescue workers searched for survivors in the wreckage of a four-story school Thursday, Mira Utami’s mother clawed away, too — looking for the shoes missing from her daughter’s body. Mira was taking a high school English final when the quake hit, flattening the school in seconds and killing her a week before her 16th birthday.
FRESNO, Calif. — Cold water gushed from behind a central California dam Thursday to meet its old, dry riverbed, marking the first step in a federal plan to reawaken the state's second-largest river so salmon can flourish again.
NEW YORK — The Afghan immigrant accused of buying large quantities of hair dye and nail polish remover to make explosives had the goods to kill scores of people in New York — a devastating attack on a scale with the transit bombings in London and Madrid, according to documents and interviews with former FBI experts.
California attorney general starts ACORN investigation; Escaped llama cannot survive in wild for long on its own
BEIJING — To mark 60 years of communist rule China put together its biggest-ever military parade: hundreds of thousands of marchers, batteries of goose-stepping soldiers and weaponry from drone missiles to amphibious assault vehicles. Everyone else, though, was asked to stay home.
WASHINGTON — A White House-backed overhaul of the nation’s health care system survived a long day of Republican challenges over abortion, illegal immigration and other issues Wednesday, and the bill’s architect claimed enough votes for passage by the Senate Finance Committee, possibly by the end of the week.
GENEVA — The U.S. and five other world powers go to the table with Iran today to demand a freeze of its nuclear activities, and a senior U.S. official said Washington may seek rare face-to-face talks with Iranian diplomats.
Study: Too much candy could lead to violent behavior, prison
LONDON — Willy Wonka would be horrified. Children who eat too much candy may be more likely to be arrested for violent behavior as adults, new research suggests.
TEHRAN, Iran — Iran’s nuclear chief said Tuesday his country built its newly revealed uranium enrichment facility inside a mountain next to a military site to ensure continuity of its nuclear activities in case of an attack — an unusually detailed disclosure that may be intended to defuse international pressure.
NEW YORK — An Afghan immigrant pleaded not guilty Tuesday to plotting a New York City terrorist attack with bombs made from beauty-supply chemicals and was ordered held without bail.
MANILA, Philippines — Two U.S. soldiers were killed Tuesday in a roadside bomb believed to have been planted by al-Qaida-linked militants, U.S. officials said. They were the first American troops to die in an attack in the Philippines in seven years.
US, allies will demand open access to Iranian nuclear facility; Obama says kids need longer school days, shorter summers
Pope Benedict XVI visits Czech Republic, emphasizes religion; Honduras limits civil liberties, issues ultimatum to Brazil
MANILA, Philippines — Rescuers pulled more bodies from swollen rivers Monday as
residents started to dig their homes out from under layers of mud after flooding left 240 people dead in the Philippine capital and surrounding towns.
TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras — The coup-installed president of Honduras backed down Monday from an escalating standoff with protesters and suggested he would restore civil liberties and reopen dissident television and radio stations by the end of the week.
NEW YORK — Organized religion was already in trouble before the fall of 2008.
Denominations were stagnating or shrinking, and congregations across faith groups were fretting about their finances.
Prime Minister refers to Obama's, first lady's skin color at Milan rally
ROME — Premier Silvio Berlusconi is still talking about President Barack Obama’s “tan,” and this time the gaffe-prone Italian leader has made a wisecrack about Michelle Obama’s skin color as well.
OCALA, Fla. — Elizabeth Pineda climbs out of bed, her 4-year-old son Adrian asleep nearby.
Attempt at smuggling illegal immigrants ends in shooting; Authorities release inmates from Guantanamo Bay
Pesticides in French Carribean lead to ban on fishing in rivers
BAGHDAD — U.S. aircraft and Iraqi patrols combined in a massive manhunt Thursday after the escape of 16 prisoners — including five al-Qaida-linked inmates awaiting execution — who apparently crawled through a bathroom window in a makeshift jail on a former compound of Saddam Hussein.
PITTSBURGH — Police fired canisters of pepper spray and smoke at marchers protesting the Group of 20 summit Thursday after anarchists responded to calls to disperse by rolling trash bins and throwing rocks.
Ohio woman carries another baby due to fertility mix-up.; Construction accident kills 20, injures 5 others.
MOORPARK, Calif. — Firefighters guarded rural homes, ranches and orchards Wednesday as a wind-driven wildfire apparently caused by spontaneous combustion in manure marched through rugged land between small Southern California communities Wednesday.
UNITED NATIONS — President Barack Obama challenged world leaders Wednesday to shoulder more of the globe’s critical burdens, promising a newly cooperative partner in America but sternly warning they can no longer castigate the U.S. as a go-it-alone bully while still demanding it cure all ills.
MOORPARK, Calif. — New wildfires threatened homes in Southern California on Tuesday as hot and dry Santa Ana winds turned the region tinder.
DALLAS — The Texas alcohol agency under fire for its raid at a gay bar rarely punishes its officers for misconduct, and officers' supervisors are usually the ones who conduct disciplinary investigations. Experts say that method increases the likelihood of flawed probes and analyses.
Tens of thousands of men around the world will try to further a tradition as they give up their razors this November to promote cancer awareness and raise funds for research.
WASHINGTON, D.C., — The White House is considering expanding counterterror operations in Pakistan to refocus on eliminating al-Qaida instead of mounting a major military escalation in Afghanistan.
TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras — Deposed President Manuel Zelaya made a dramatic return to Honduras’ capital on Monday, taking shelter from arrest at Brazil’s embassy and calling for negotiations with the leaders who forced him from the country at gunpoint.
NEW YORK — Among the world leaders gathering this week at the United Nations to tackle problems ranging from climate change to the spread of nuclear weapons will be many new faces, including the presidents of the United States, Russia and China.
CALAIS, France — Hijrat Hotak’s parents sold the family home in Afghanistan, paying a smuggler $15,000 to help buy a bright future in Britain for their 15-year-old son.
HAVANA, Cuba — Hundreds of thousands of Cubans flocked to sprawling Revolution Plaza on Sunday for an open-air “peace concert” headlined by Colombian rocker Juanes, an event criticized by some Cuban-Americans who say the performers are lending support to the island’s communist government simply by showing up.
SEATTLE — In one corner of Washington state, a 62-year-old rheumatoid arthritis patient could face more than eight years in prison for growing marijuana for himself and three others.
HAVANA— Cuba and the United States sat down for rare talks aimed at re-establishing direct mail service Thursday, a modest step toward cooperation that caps a bitter week of recriminations over the extension of Washington’s trade embargo against the communist-run island.
SALT LAKE CITY — Tens of thousands of dead birds are showing up along the shore of the Great Salt Lake.
NEW HAVEN, Conn. — As police charged a Yale animal lab technician with murdering a graduate student who worked in his building, a portrait began to emerge Thursday of an unpleasant stickler for the rules who often clashed with researchers and considered the mice cages his personal fiefdom.
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Gazans who lost loved ones during Israel’s winter offensive against Hamas militants said Wednesday they’re taking some solace from a U.N. report that accuses both sides of committing war crimes, but they’re skeptical anyone will be brought to justice.
LAS CRUCES, N.M. — The U.S. and Mexico are making headway in the ongoing struggle to curb the flow of illegal drugs, cash and weapons across the border, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said Wednesday.
PITTSBURGH — President Barack Obama told the AFL-CIO Tuesday his administration has “stopped our economic free fall” and is determined to seal a recovery while revitalizing America’s middle class.
SAN FRANCISCO — Blockbuster Inc. may close as many as 960 stores by the end of next year, shedding more dead weight as the struggling video rental chain tries to reverse its losses and fend off rapidly growing rivals Netflix Inc. and Redbox.
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Nine employees of American Airlines have been charged with participating in a smuggling ring that shipped cocaine from Puerto Rico’s main airport aboard flights to the U.S. mainland, officials said Tuesday.
Close to 300,000 Tamil civilians still detained by Sri Lankan government
UNITED NATIONS — Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is sending the U.N. political chief to Sri Lanka to press the government to step up the release of nearly 300,000 Tamil civilians who have been detained since the South Asian nation’s civil war ended in May.
NEW YORK — President Barack Obama sternly warned Wall Street Monday against returning to the sort of reckless and unchecked behavior that threatened the nation with a second Great Depression.
Yale student’s body discovered stuffed in building’s wall
Osama bin Laden releases new audiotape for 9/11 anniversary
VERONA, Italy — It happened night after night, the deaf man said, sometimes in the priest’s bedroom, sometimes in the bathroom, even in the confessional.
BOSTON — When Dr. Robert Flaherty launched a private practice in 2001, he soon found himself cramming in as many patients as possible to make ends meet, leaving little time to discuss with them the steps they could take to prevent future health troubles.
NEW YORK — Americans planned beach cleanups, packages for soldiers and save-the-tree fundraisers along with familiar remembrances in three cities to mark eight years since the attacks of Sept. 11, the first time the anniversary was named a national day of service.
SAN’A, Yemen — Yemen’s government launched a new offensive against Shiite rebels in the north of the country, destroying many of their vehicles and hideouts, an army statement said Thursday.
Photographs of Guantanamo Bay detainees surface on web
WASHINGTON — Frustrated with poor maintenance by the federal government, the group that built the Vietnam War memorial is aiming to improve its little corner of the National Mall by taking over lawn care for 13.5 acres marred by weeds, moss and brown spots.
WASHINGTON — Shaking off a summer of setbacks, President Barack Obama summoned Congress to enact sweeping health care legislation Wednesday night, declaring the “time for bickering is over” and the moment has arrived to protect millions who have unreliable insurance or no coverage at all.
BAGHDAD — Roadside bombs killed four U.S. soldiers in Iraq on Tuesday, the military said, in the deadliest day for American troops in the country in weeks, as a series of bomb attacks along roads claimed eight Iraqi lives.
Sudanese woman convicted of wearing trousers free; Kenya replaces police chief after abuse claims
NYC man charged in Ponzi scheme with porn link; Obama space panel says moon return plan is a no go
KUNDUZ, Afghanistan — An Afghan rights group said Monday a recent airstrike on a pair of hijacked fuel tankers killed as many as 70 civilians in northern Afghanistan, as the German troops whose commander ordered the bombing defended the action.
TEHRAN, Iran — President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad received a broad mandate Thursday as parliament backed his main Cabinet choices — naming the first woman minister since the 1979 Islamic Revolution but showing international defiance by supporting a suspected mastermind in the bombing of an Argentine Jewish center.
FALL CITY, Wash. — Ben Alexander spent nearly every waking minute playing the video game “World of Warcraft.” As a result, he flunked out of the University of Iowa.
LOS ANGELES — Federal authorities failed to follow through on plans earlier this year to burn away highly flammable brush in a forest on the edge of Los Angeles to avoid the very kind of wildfire now raging there, The Associated Press has learned.
BAGHDAD — The women formed a human chain while the men chanted, confronting Iraqi troops moving into their compound. Gunfire rang out, and the soldiers waded in with batons, wooden bats and automatic weapons.
SAN BRUNO, Calif. — A campus shooting has a Northern California college on lockdown as police search for a suspect who wounded a student.
Woman wires money abroad thanks to fraud on Facebook; Stranger accused of slapping crying 2-year-old at Wal-Mart
LOS CABOS, Mexico — Tourists fled resorts at the tip of the Baja California Peninsula as Hurricane Jimena roared their way Tuesday, but many slum dwellers concerned about looting refused to leave their imperiled shanties.
DUXBURY, VT. — After 17 years together, Bill Slimback and Bob Sullivan couldn’t wait another minute to get married. So they didn’t.
XINTANG, China — During the first half of this year, Yang Zongfu’s blue jean factory had few customers. Now, as his business picks up, he can’t find enough workers.
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Nearly a third of all cocaine seized in the United States is laced with a dangerous veterinary medicine — a livestock de-worming drug that might enhance cocaine’s effects but has been blamed in at least three deaths and scores of serious illnesses.
NEW YORK — NBC’s “Today” show has hired someone with White House experience as a new correspondent — former first daughter Jenna Hager.
CAIRO — Al-Qaida claimed responsibility Sunday for a suicide attack that injured a Saudi prince and said the bomber — a wanted militant who had fled to Yemen — arrived on a royal jet after convincing the ruling family he wanted to surrender.
Conn., Pa. face budget issues after decrease in revenue flow
Rebel clashes de-escalate along China-Myanmar border
NASA spends millions to test rocket that might never launch; Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. may be running out of money
MEXICO CITY — Mexico now has one of the world’s most liberal laws for drug users after eliminating jail time for small amounts of marijuana, cocaine, heroin, LSD and methamphetamine.
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — After a series of flip-flops, authorities in Malaysia decided this week that a 32-year old Muslim woman caught drinking beer in violation of Islamic law would not be caned after all.
BOSTON — Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, the liberal lion of the Senate and haunted bearer of the Camelot torch after two of his brothers fell to assassins' bullets, has died after battling a brain tumor. He was 77.
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan — Five car bombs detonated in a single simultaneous blast Tuesday in Afghanistan’s largest southern city, flattening buildings and killing at least 41 people, officials said.
WASHINGTON — Consumer confidence rose more than expected in August and expectations hit the highest level since the recession began, indicating that Americans’ pessimism about the economy may be lifting.
US seeks crackdown on drug smuggling aboard trains; NY considers law to ban shackling pregnant inmates
EDINBURGH, Scotland — Scotland’s justice minister on Monday defended his much-criticized decision to free the Lockerbie bomber, as the U.S. State Department said that though it disagreed “passionately” the move would not affect relations between America and Britain.
TULSA, Okla. — This is the new formula for methamphetamine: a two-liter soda bottle, a few handfuls of cold pills and some noxious chemicals. Shake the bottle and the volatile reaction produces one of the world’s most addictive drugs.
KABUL — One of the youngest people ever held at Guantanamo was welcomed home Monday by Afghanistan’s president and joyful relatives after almost seven years in prison — freed by a military judge who ruled he was coerced into confessing to wounding U.S. soldiers with a grenade.
Explosions kill 11 just southeast of Baghdad, according to police; London ATMs to offer Cockney slang as a language option
ATHENS, Greece — A raging wildfire raced down a mountain slope in Greece toward the town of Marathon on Sunday, nearing two ancient temples while despairing residents pleaded for firefighters and equipment that were nowhere to be seen.
Final weekend of clunkers program draws big crowds
From Vermont to California, exhausted but appreciative car dealers watched their lots grow empty as crowds rushed to trade in gas guzzlers during the final weekend of the popular Cash for Clunkers program.
KABUL — Millions of Afghans defied threats Thursday to cast ballots in the country’s second national elections since Taliban rule, but turnout appeared weaker this time because of continuing violence, fear and disenchantment.
SINFA — Barefoot and helmeted, the frightened survivors of deadly Typhoon Morakot dangled high over jagged rocks and a raging river Thursday as soldiers hauled them to safety one by one along a 100-foot-long cable.
PENSACOLA, Fla. — Dr. Jason Newsom railed against burgers, french fries, fried chicken and sweet tea in his campaign to promote better eating in a part of the country known as the Redneck Riviera.
Pa. church’s jam sessions end amid allegations of drug use; Investors send stocks higher for second consecutive day
Double suicide bombing kills at least 21 in Iraq, wounds 32; Investigators across Europe join search for ship
ABUJA, Nigeria — U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Wednesday said corruption has undermined the legitimacy of Nigeria’s government and urged the oil-rich nation to embrace broad political reform and ease sectarian tensions.
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — Sen. Arlen Specter heard a fresh chorus of taunts Wednesday from opponents of health care reform and said they were “not necessarily representative of America” but should be heard.
WTO win could open China’s door to US export companies;
Wounded AP journalists evacuated from Afghanistan
Fed says economy is ‘leveling out,’ signals recession ending; Dallas officials hand city zoo’s keys over to private society; California gay rights groups debate path to queer nuptials
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Birmingham’s mayor offered a blanket pardon Tuesday to thousands of demonstrators charged in this cauldron of the civil rights movement in the 1960s, a mostly symbolic forgiveness he acknowledges few may actually want.
PHILADELPHIA — Three American hikers detained in Iran for nearly two weeks entered the country by mistake and their families are hoping for a quick resolution that will reunite them with their children, the families said in a statement Tuesday.
BANGKOK — A Thai court on Tuesday rejected a U.S. request to extradite a Russian arms dealer who allegedly sold weapons to dictators and warlords around the world, raising the prospect that he could be freed by the weekend.
Wisconsin teenager charged in fatal stabbing over milk; Texas man in gang rape, murder case loses appeal
HOLLYWOOD, Fla. — Rescuers failed in a frantic bid to save a mother whale and her baby after the pair ran aground off a South Florida beach Monday as hundreds looked on, many in tears. Neither animal survived despite efforts to keep them alive with moist towelsand umbrellas to protect their drying skin from the scorching sun.
NEW YORK — The collision of a sightseeing helicopter and a small plane over New York’s Hudson River has intensified pressure to tighten the rules governing one of the world’s most crowded air corridors — a largely unregulated airspace some pilots compare to the Wild West.
USGS: Huge earthquake hits in Indian Ocean, no tsunami; 50 drug barons on US ‘kill or capture’ list in Afghanistan; Iranian hardliners purge Intelligence Ministry ranks
Ohio mom of 6 pleads guilty in cancer con of friends’ money; 47 spend ‘surreal’ 6 hours on grounded plane in Rochester
NEW YORK — Flying a small plane above the Hudson River can feel like ducking into a crowded, urban canyon — with towering skyscrapers on each side and more than a dozen helicopters and planes all buzzing lower than the nearby Empire State Building.
TAIPEI, Taiwan — Typhoon Morakot churned toward China forcing the evacuation of nearly 1 million people Sunday, a day after lashing Taiwan with torrential rains that caused the worst flooding on the island in 50 years.
About 250 inmates injured in riot at California prison; NC terror suspect’s stories could be an exaggeration
Obama attending first US- Canada-Mexico summit; Honduras prohibits visit of OAS crisis negotiators
ISLAMABAD — U.S. and Pakistani authorities are investigating reports that Pakistani Taliban chief Baitullah Mehsud was killed in an American missile strike, officials from both countries said Friday.
RALEIGH, N.C. — The ex-mistress of John Edwards spent much of Thursday in a federal courthouse in Raleigh where a grand jury was meeting, at a time when federal investigators are examining the two-time presidential candidate’s finances.
New influenza vaccinations could require three shots; Petitions for US worker green cards down sharply
BAGHDAD — Muhanad Talib, a Sunni Muslim, married his Shiite bride because she was a “suitable woman” for him. It also didn’t hurt that their vows made them eligible for a $2,000 payout from the government.
NEW YORK — The American Psychological Association declared Wednesday that mental health professionals should not tell gay clients they can become straight through therapy or other treatments.
Man accused of child abuse after wife, lovers assault him; Hurricane Felicia strengthens over warm Pacific waters; Senate reaches deal on $2B ‘cash for clunkers’ fill-up
KHARTOUM, Sudan — Sudanese police fired tear gas and beat women protesting at the trial Tuesday of a female journalist who faces a flogging for wearing trousers in public.
For many, less desirable goods offer an affordable discount worth the price
ARVADA, Colo. — You won’t find a perfectly ripe tomato at Martin Palumbo’s grocery store. You won’t even find a perfect can of tomatoes.
Border agents find marijuana worth thousands of dollars; 7 convicted of mailing drugs;
East Texan pleads guilty over electric fence death
NIAMEY, Niger — His opponents are calling it a “slow-motion coup.”
MIAMI — Some passengers were snoozing while others snacked when the first turbulence rattled Continental Flight 128 over the Atlantic. Suddenly, the jetliner began to plunge and shake violently, hurling passengers over seatbacks and slamming them against luggage bins.
Strong quake hits Mexico’s Gulf of California, felt in Phoenix; China seals off NW town as plague kills 2nd man
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — Does Islam frown on nose jobs? Chemical peels? How about breast implants?
TEL AVIV, Israel — Reeling from the worst attack ever aimed at gay youth in Israel, members of the country’s gay community and their supporters rallied Sunday in the heart of Tel Aviv a day after a masked gunman killed two people at a center for gay youth and escaped.
HONOLULU — Wrecking coral will cost you in Hawaii.
BRYAN, Texas — Thousands of Central Texas residents are being evacuated and the Texas A&M University campus is closed as a fire burns at a chemical plant that processes explosive ammonium nitrate.
MAIDUGURI, Nigeria — The leader of the Islamist sect blamed for days of violence in northern Nigeria has been shot and killed while in police custody, officials said Thursday.
Woman with baby cut from womb claimed pregnancy; Cops accused of performing Obama background checks
WASHINGTON — The Senate debate over Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor turned bitter Wednesday, after Democrats warned the GOP it would pay a steep price for opposing the judge who would be the first Hispanic justice, and a top Republican charged they were playing destructive racial politics.
COLUMBIA, S.C. — A South Carolina man was charged with having sex with a horse after the animal’s owner caught the act on videotape, then staked out the stable and caught him at shotgun point, authorities said Wednesday.
Probable car bomb explodes in Burgos, northern Spain; Benz on vacation causes German political scandal
BAGHDAD — U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates was getting a firsthand look at U.S.-Iraqi cooperation following formal handover of control of Iraqi cities to Iraqi security forces. He met with Iraq’s Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki in Baghdad over Iraqi requests for more military hardware, including state of the art fighter jets.
RALEIGH, N.C. — Daniel Boyd may have spent the past three years traveling to the Middle East, secretly buying guns and training for jihad with a group of aspiring terrorists as federal authorities claim, but people on his cul-de-sac said Tuesday he also made plenty of time to be a good neighbor.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a revised $85 billion budget Tuesday that he said contained “the good, the bad and the ugly,” including additional cuts to child welfare programs, health care for the poor and AIDS prevention efforts.
Nigerian troops surround likely hideout of known terrorist
Driver tells Connecticut police that snakes caused car crash; US, China pledge closer cooperation
SAN ANTONIO — The scene was so gruesome investigators could barely speak: A 3 1/2-week-old boy lay dismembered in the bedroom of a single-story house, three of his tiny toes chewed off, his face torn away, his head severed and his brains ripped out.
PARIS — Nicolas Sarkozy’s high-octane lifestyle just hit a speed bump.
BEIJING — For the first time, a giant panda cub has been born in China after being conceived using frozen sperm, officials announced Friday — an innovation scientists hope will help the endangered species avoid extinction.
CAIRO — The Revolutionary Guard tightened its already powerful hold over Iran during the post-election turmoil, raising alarm among some Iranians that it is transforming the Islamic Republic into a military state.
WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton stood fast Sunday behind the administration’s readiness to engage with foes like Iran and North Korea and heaped praise on China in advance of two days of critical talks aimed at easing the global economic downturn.
NEW YORK — Walter Cronkite was remembered as a great newsman, sailor, friend and father during Thursday’s funeral for the CBS anchor.
TEXARKANA, Ark. — Jurors took a pair of breaks from their deliberations at the sex-crimes trial of evangelist Tony Alamo on Thursday so they could pose questions to the federal judge presiding over the case.
BEIJING — Family planning officials in Shanghai are making home visits and slipping leaflets under doorways to encourage certain residents to have a second child in a bid to lessen the burden of the city’s growing senior population.
US envoy: Securing Pakistan’s Swat should be top priority; Exiled Honduran leader plans return, risking arrest by police
WASHINGTON — Democrats command the votes needed to pass a sweeping health care bill through the House, Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Wednesday, an unexpected statement that quickly drew a biting response from rank-and-file conservatives demanding changes in President Barack Obama’s trademark legislation.
LITTLE EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP, N.J. — When word got out that Mr. McBeth, a popular substitute teacher at two southern New Jersey school districts, was about to come back to class as Miss McBeth, it caused an uproar.
Scholar Gates’ case dropped, debate over blame continues; Wis. man gets 2 years for hiding body with plans for resurrection
Biden pledges visits to Georgia, Ukraine; announces support; iPhone prototype loss spurs Chinese worker’s suicide jump
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — When it comes to sneezing in a spacesuit while in the void of space, it is best to aim well.
Diplomats discuss issues regarding territory, agree to avoid sovereignty talk
MADRID — Spain’s foreign minister made a historic border crossing to the disputed British colony of Gibraltar on Tuesday, the first by a Spanish Cabinet minister since the Rock was ceded almost 300 years ago.
WASHINGTON — The Senate voted to terminate further production of the Air Force’s topline F-22 fighter jets Tuesday, giving President Barack Obama a major spending victory and siding with the Pentagon’s desire for smaller jets better suited to 21st century wars.
Obama admits to frumpiness after wearing old bluejeans; Independent investigator rules against Palin in ethics probe
SAN DIEGO — A judge on Monday gave the city of San Diego 72 hours to begin chasing harbor seals out of the Children’s Pool at La Jolla beach or face heavy daily fines, ruling firmly for humans in a decade-long battle over who should win exclusive use of the cove.
WASHINGTON — The same question that could have been asked 40 years ago moments after Neil Armstrong stepped on the moon is still being asked today: Now what?
CAPE TOWN, South Africa — South Africa launched a high-profile trial of an AIDS vaccine created by its own researchers Monday, a proud moment in a nation where government denial, neglect and unscientific responses have helped fuel the world’s worst AIDS crisis.
TIBURON, Calif. — Visitors should be prepared to have their pictures taken as they enter and leave this picturesque town of million-dollar views and homes along the San Francisco Bay.
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — In just six months, one of the world’s largest camps for war refugees has been carved out of the jungles of northern Sri Lanka, complete with banks, post offices, schools and a supermarket. But no one is allowed out, and hardly anyone is allowed in.
Mousavi supporters take to Tehran's streets again after Friday's prayers
TEHRAN, Iran — President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, already at the center of a post-election crisis, came under criticism from his own hard-line supporters Sunday for appointing a first vice president who once caused an outcry by saying Iranians were friends of Israelis.
US tells Israel to stop building project in East Jerusalem;
S. Korea uses cloned dogs at checkpoints to sniff out drugs; Bolivian coca farmers back left-wing Morales in upcoming poll
WASHINGTON — NASA could put a man on the moon but didn’t have the sense to keep the original video of the live TV transmission.
President accentuates individual responsibility in speech to NAACP
NEW YORK — Heralding the NAACP for a century of courage and progress, President Barack Obama will come before the nation’s oldest civil rights organization Thursday with a message of shared responsibility: Government can help communities, but people are in charge of helping themselves.
Iceland’s parliament votes to take steps towards joining EU; Taylor defends himself against charges but admits mischief
Jumbo squid invade San Diego shores, test divers’ fortitude; Suspects with shotgun critically injure police officers in chase
WASHINGTON — Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor determinedly sidestepped volleys of Republican questions on abortion and gun rights Wednesday, keeping her demeanor cool and her opinions mostly private as she neared the end of a marathon Senate grilling on the road to all but sure confirmation.
Downtown DC chaos as man’s car hit two officers, rammed police cruiser
WASHINGTON — A chaotic scene unfolded near the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday after police shot and killed an armed man in what authorities described as a routine rush hour traffic stop that turned deadly.
WASHINGTON — Smoke ‘em if you got ‘em. The Pentagon reassured troops Wednesday that it won’t ban tobacco products in war zones.
Mexico launches coordinated action against drug cartels; Casualties in Afghanistan mount, nearing Iraq levels; Iranian airliner crashes, all 168 people on board dead
WASHINGTON — Sonia Sotomayor pushed back vigorously Tuesday against Republican charges that she would bring bias and a liberal agenda to her seat as the first Hispanic woman on the Supreme Court, insisting repeatedly she would be impartial as GOP senators tried to undercut her with her own words from past speeches.
BEIJING — Widening income gaps, corrupt local administrations and policies that seem to favor the well-connected few over the disadvantaged many are fueling spasms of violence that spring up in cities across China.
Liberia’s ex-leader proclaims himself innocent of war crimes; Flight simulation experiment involving isolation concludes; British musician, wife commit suicide amid health problems
Madoff starts 150-year prison sentence in North Carolina; Confusing color-coded terror alert system to be reviewed
AYNAK, Afghanistan — Afghan villagers had complained to the U.S. Marines for days: The police are the problem, not the Taliban. They steal from villagers and beat them. Days later,the Marines learned firsthand what the villagers meant.
NEW YORK — Combining its century-old mission of fighting for equality with the instantaneous reach of modern-day technology, the NAACP has launched a program that lets people use their cell phones to report incidents of police misconduct.
CAPE COAST, Ghana — For a new president, there inevitably comes that moment: the first time he hears a foreign crowd hoarsely chanting his name, or sees thousands of well-wishers surging forward, or realizes youngsters are running pell-mell beside his motorcade, desperate for a glimpse of his face.
Sandstorms, drought give Iraqi government budget more woes; Investigation launched into Norwegian fjord ship oil spill
Gunman surrenders to police, trades bullets for cigarettes; Rhode Island fights to keep Greyhound racing in business
Violence persists as Iraq takes control of security, Iranian suspects set free
BAGHDAD — Bombs killed nearly 60 people in Iraq on Thursday in the worst violence since U.S. combat troops withdrew from urban areas last week, and American forces released five Iranian officials suspected of aiding Shiite insurgents.
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Since Sarah Palin abruptly resigned as governor, she has repeatedly cited the bombardment of ethics complaints against her while conceding the financial burden of defending herself had taken its toll.
SAN JOSE, Costa Rica — Talks to resolve the leadership crisis in Honduras got on track Thursday, with both sides holding closed-door meetings with Costa Rican President Oscar Arias to discuss a coup that has re-awoken fears of political instability in the region.
Law enforcement cracks down on dogfighting in joint efforts; Coast Guard calls off search for possible plane crash survivors
SEOUL, South Korea — Suspected cyber attacks paralyzed Web sites of major South Korean government agencies, banks and Internet sites in a barrage that appeared linked to similar attacks in the U.S., South Korean officials said Tuesday.
BEIJING — When riots broke out in the restive west this week, China took a different tack with foreign journalists: Instead of being barred, reporters were invited on an official tour of Xinjiang’s capital.
Residents chant ‘camp’ as Obama tours quake zone; Vatican replaces cardinal in Holocaust controversy
Nevada Supreme Court rules ‘HOE’ vanity plate acceptable; Police say ‘something went wrong,’ in McNair relationship
URUMQI, China — Sobbing Muslim women scuffled with riot police, and Chinese men wielding steel pipes, meat cleavers and sticks rampaged through the streets Tuesday as ethnic tensions worsened in China’s oil-rich Xinjiang territory, forcing officials to declare a curfew.
JAKARTA, Indonesia — Indonesians began casting votes Wednesday in this emerging democracy’s second direct presidential election, in which the incumbent is expected to win a single-round victory.
WASHINGTON — “I’m an extremely good-looking person,” satirist-turned-senator Al Franken cracked as photographers snapped his picture Tuesday after he took the oath of office.
Bipartisan health care bill seessignificant Senatorial setback; More kids may have been zapped at prisons in Florida; Plane lands safely at Maryland airport following bird strike
URUMQI, China — Riots and street battles killed at least 156 people in China’s western Xinjiang province, state media said Tuesday, and injured 828 others in the deadliest ethnic unrest to hit the region in decades. Officials said the death toll was expected to rise.
YANGON, Myanmar — Myanmar’s ruling junta wanted Ban Ki-moon to go into a grandiose drug museum through the back door to prevent the U.N. secretary-general from making a rock-star entrance.
Police investigate link between serial killings and dead burglar; Detective: Accused cat killer laughed in police questioning
MEXICO CITY — Drug violence, an economic downturn and recent cases of political malfeasance weighed heavily as Mexicans voted Sunday in midterm congressional elections that could decide the future of President Felipe Calderon’s anti-crime and economic policies.
MOSCOW — Presidents Barack Obama and Dmitry Medvedev end a seven-year hiatus in U.S.-Russian summitry on Monday, with each declaring his determination to further cut nuclear arsenals and repair a badly damaged relationship.
Former D.C. Mayor Marion Barry charged with stalking; Palin resigns governorship, attacks press for predictability
Assault campaign aims to safeguard Afghanistan before elections
NAWA, Afghanistan — U.S. Marines suffered their first casualties of a massive new military campaign Thursday as they engaged in sporadic gunbattles along 55 miles of Taliban-controlled heartland in southern Afghanistan.
Weekly wages decline, number of unemployed reaches 14.7 million
WASHINGTON — Employers cut a larger-than-expected 467,000 jobs in June and the unemployment rate climbed to a 26-year high of 9.5 percent. Workers also saw weekly wages fall, suggesting Americans will have little appetite to spend and the economy’s road to recovery will be bumpy.
TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras — A top diplomat said Thursday he is heading to Honduras to demand the return of the president toppled at gunpoint — a mission he said is likely to meet rejection, bringing diplomatic and economic punishment for the impoverished Central American nation.
Communist nation's test of short-range missiles heightens nuke worries
SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea fired a barrage of short-range missiles off its east coast Thursday, a possible prelude to the launch of a long-range missile toward Hawaii over the July Fourth holiday.
GOP senator: Sotomayor group’s ‘extreme positions’; Baaad news? Global warming now reducing size of sheep; Police: Conn. teens mishear sex screams, assault man
New law will put 400,000 people out of work in midst of recession
MOSCOW — Thousands of casinos, slot-machine parlors and betting halls across Russia shut down Wednesday, complying with sweeping new restrictions that require all gambling business to relocate to four remote regions of the country.
New rules aimed toward boosting tourism in state, bar owners celebrate
SALT LAKE CITY — Bartenders in Utah threw open their doors Wednesday as the state ditched a 40-year-old requirement that customers fill out an application, pay a fee and become a member of a private club before setting foot in a bar.
DETROIT — U.S. sales at Ford and Chrysler last month offered sharply different views on the downtrodden U.S. market for cars and trucks, while General Motors Corp. held its own even though it entered bankruptcy protection.
Enraged elephant stomps 3 Thai workers to death; Mexico remittances plunge in worst drop on record
TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras — Honduras’ ousted president won overwhelming international support Tuesday as he planned a high-profile return to his chaotic country.
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Al Franken ascended Tuesday from the ranks of former “Saturday Night Live” comedians to an even more exclusive club, outlasting Republican Norm Coleman in an eight-month recount and courtroom saga to win a seat in the U.S. Senate.
Gunmen fire at group of teens near Detroit school, two in critical condition
DETROIT — Gunmen in a green minivan opened fire on a group of teenagers waiting at a bus stop near a Detroit school on Tuesday, wounding seven including two who were in critical condition, authorities said.
Iraqis celebrate US pullback but car bombing kills 33; Yemeni plane carrying 153 crashes off Comoros Islands; China backs down from rule requiring Internet-filtering
BAGHDAD — Iraqi forces assumed formal control of Baghdad and other cities Tuesday after American troops handed over security in urban areas in a defining step toward ending the U.S. combat role in the country.
TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras — Police and soldiers are using tear gas outside the Honduran presidential palace to scatter thousands of people protesting a coup that drove President Manuel Zelaya into exile.
WASHINGTON — Aiming to keep the focus on climate change legislation, President Barack Obama put a plug in for administration efforts to make lamps and lighting equipment useless energy.
SULLIVANS ISLAND, S.C. — South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford considered resigning from office after his extramarital affair came to light, the Republican revealed Sunday in an exclusive interview with The Associated Press.
MIAMI, Okla. — Two survivors of an Oklahoma traffic wreck that killed nine people when a tractor-trailer slammed into stopped cars were in critical condition Saturday.
TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras — The Honduran Congress has named its leader to replace President Manuel Zelaya following his military ouster and forced exile in Costa Rica.
Paramedics find singer unresponsive in home, attempt resuscitation
LOS ANGELES — Michael Jackson, the “King of Pop” who once moonwalked above the music world, died Thursday as he prepared for a comeback bid to vanquish nightmare years of sexual scandal and financial calamity. He was 50.
WASHINGTON — Senators working to give President Barack Obama a comprehensive health care overhaul said Thursday they had figured out how to pare back the complex legislation to keep costs from crashing through a $1 trillion, 10-year ceiling.
BAGHDAD — The bombing of a Baghdad bus station Thursday pushed the death toll from a weeklong series of blasts near Shiite targets to about 200, calling into question Iraq’s ability to provide security as U.S. combat troops slowly withdraw from cities.
Undiagnosed US swine flu cases may be approaching 1 million; Adult magazine can’t publish nude photos of slain woman; DC Metro accident may have been caused by faulty signaling
Hurricane season gets latest start in 40 years, makes presence known
PUERTO VALLARTA, Mexico — The remnants of Tropical Storm Andres were dissipating over the Pacific on Wednesday after flooding homes and killing at least one person on Mexico’s southwestern coast.
COLUMBIA, S.C. — After going AWOL for seven days, Gov. Mark Sanford admitted Wednesday that he had secretly flown to Argentina to visit a woman with whom he was having an affair.
Pakistan silence surprises after US attack on Taliban kills 80; Tiananmen Square participant arrested again, family not told
Hurricane season gets latest start in 40 years, makes presence known
PUERTO VALLARTA, Mexico — The remnants of Tropical Storm Andres were dissipating over the Pacific on Wednesday after flooding homes and killing at least one person on Mexico’s southwestern coast.
CAIRO, Egypt — Mir-Hossein Mousavi is still nominally the guiding force of the fury over Iran’s disputed election. But there are ample signs his rebel stature is being eroded by his hesitation to shift from campaigner to street agitator as his supporters challenge security forces.
HAGERSTOWN, Md. — A towering sculpture in the Maryland mountains depicting three New York City firefighters raising the U.S. flag at Ground Zero was financed by investor fraud, federal regulators say.
Likely North Korean weapon smugglers spotted near China; Scientists reconstructing rare preserved elephant skeleton; Taliban commander killed by own guard in Pakistan; US, Kyrgyzstan reach air base deal after months of limbo
Poll: Americans consider pets family, bestow human names; Montana city ends policy seeking Internet passwords; TV show helps Utah boy survive night solo in woods
WASHINGTON — One Metro transit train smashed into the rear of another at the height of the city’s Monday evening rush hour, killing at least six people and injuring scores of others as the front end of the trailing train jackknifed violently into the air and fell atop the first.
BAGHDAD — Police and rescue crews sifted through the rubble of a mosque and dozens of flattened mud-brick homes on Sunday looking for survivors of the worst attack in Iraq this year — a truck bombing blamed on al-Qaida that killed 72 people.
Ultra-modern building holds 4,000 ancient relics in shadow of Acropolis
ATHENS, Greece — The new Acropolis Museum opened its gates Sunday to hundreds of visitors eager to explore its vast collection of sculptures and artifacts from ancient Greece.
The museum holds more than 4,000 ancient works, including some of the best surviving classical sculptures that once adorned the Acropolis.
Haitians leery of 2nd election round amid political violence;
NM police looking for suspects involved in killing at Denny’s; Greener diet reduces dairy cows’ methane gas burps
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama’s plan to increase oversight of banks and other financial institutions met with skepticism on Capitol Hill on Thursday, where senators sharply questioned whether it was enough to prevent another economic meltdown.
TOURS, France — A French court convicted a woman of murdering three of her newborn children and sentenced her Thursday to eight years in prison.TOURS, France — A French court convicted a woman of murdering three of her newborn children and sentenced her Thursday to eight years in prison.
BEIJING — The first time director and movie buff Cui Zi’en tried to hold a gay and lesbian film festival in 2001, it was shut down by police before it even opened. When he tried to organize a gay cultural festival in 2005, five dozen police officers swarmed the venue, closing it.
Hundreds of thousands wear black, defy country's leader and government
TEHRAN, Iran — Hundreds of thousands of protesters wearing black and carrying candles filled the streets of Tehran again Thursday, joining opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi to mourn demonstrators killed in clashes over Iran’s disputed election.
At least 24 others killed, extreme Islamic group claims responsibility
NAIROBI, Kenya — Somalia’s national security minister and at least 24 other people were killed in a suicide attack Thursday, and an extremist Islamic group with alleged links to al-Qaida claimed responsibility.
NASA aims for unmanned moon rocket launch Thursday; Janitor gets 6 years in prison for Tenn. nuclear parts theft; New images show evidence of ancient Martian lake, beach; Okla. Man not full of bologna, assaulted for 76-cent sandwich
BERLIN — It’s past midnight in downtown Berlin, and the prostitutes pace in front of the Hackescher Markt’s stores. Signs of a slow economy are everywhere — a sportswear store offers 40 percent markdowns, and bars advertise discounted drinks.
MONTPELIER, Vt. — Accommodating weather and a boost in the number of maple trees tapped are being credited for a bumper 2009 maple syrup crop.
City in southern China imposes one pooch limit on households; Belfast church shelters Roma victims of ethnic mob violence
Obama signs same-sex benefit memo, critics call it pandering; Senator apologizes for affair, resigns GOP leadership role
HOUSTON — Gov. Rick Perry signed a bill Tuesday giving a tax break to 40,000 small businesses.
YEKATERINBURG, Russia — Russia welcomed Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Tuesday on his first trip abroad since his bitterly disputed re-election, a show of support for a leader facing massive protests at home and questions from the West about the legitimacy of the vote count
ISLAMABAD — Pakistan’s military chief denounced terrorists as enemies of the country and Islam, but warned his officers to avoid killing civilians as they widen their operations against the Taliban.
Group: Gay bias killings highest since 1999, visibility a factor; New US climate report dire, but offers some hope
TEHRAN, Iran — In a massive outpouring reminiscent of the Islamic Revolution three decades ago, hundreds of thousands of Iranians streamed through the capital Monday, and the fist-waving protesters denounced President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s claim to victory in a disputed election.
EL PASO — The Supreme Court on Monday refused to get involved in local Texas governments’ fight against hundreds of miles of fencing along the U.S.-Mexico border.
SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea’s president ordered his top security officials Sunday to deal “resolutely and squarely” with new North Korean warnings of a nuclear war on the eve of his U.S. visit. In Washington, Vice President Joe Biden said “God only knows” what North Korea wants from the latest showdown.
NASA repairing gas line leak on space shuttle fuel tank;
Hearing to air mistakes with VA hospital equipment
GENEVA — The World Health Organization is gearing up to declare a swine flu pandemic, a move that could trigger both the large-scale production of vaccines and questions about why the step was delayed for weeks as the virus continued to spread.
President eager to sign measure giving FDA authority to regulate
WASHINGTON — The Senate struck a historic blow against smoking in America on Thursday, voting overwhelmingly to give regulators new power to limit nicotine in the cigarettes that kill nearly a half-million people a year, to drastically curtail ads that glorify tobacco and to ban flavored products aimed at spreading the habit to young people.
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Undertaking a new and aggressive push to enact health reform this year, President Barack Obama bluntly challenged Republican critics on Thursday to put forward their own plan to expand coverage to the uninsured and help struggling families afford care.
CIA: bin Laden still in Pakistan, country’s offensive progresses;
Netanyahu faces disappointed Obama, own hawkish coalition
BAGHDAD — A car bomb blew up Wednesday in a packed outdoor food market in one of the most peaceful areas of Iraq’s Shiite south, killing about 30 people and wounding dozens more.
WASHINGTON — An 88-year-old gunman with a violent and virulently anti-Semitic past opened fire with a rifle inside the crowded U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum on Wednesday, fatally wounding a security guard before being shot himself by other officers, authorities said.
Russian Prime Minister says he’s okay with nixing nukes; Island nation Palau to take Chinese Muslim detainees
Video shows deputy constable Tase combative elderly woman; Weak dollar, inflation hedging push oil to $71.79 per barrel
GARNER, N.C. — A blast at a Slim Jim meat products plant Tuesday blew workers off their feet, ripped the building’s roof off its supports and critically burned four people.
CAMP LEATHERNECK, Afghanistan — Newly arrived U.S. forces in southern Afghanistan will target insurgents crossing into the country from Pakistan and be a “game-changer” in a region long dominated by the Taliban, a top commander said Tuesday.
MOGADISHU, Somalia — Somalis are experiencing near-daily atrocities, including rape, the shelling of civilian areas and fighting that has forced more than 100,000 to flee their homes since May, the U.N. refugee agency said Tuesday.
After converter box delay, TV finally goes digital Friday;
Georgia Tech student to hear verdict in terror case today
SEOUL, South Korea — The sentencing of two American journalists to 12 years’ hard labor in North Korea on Monday sets the stage for possible negotiations with the reclusive nation for their release — perhaps involving an envoy from the United States.
BEIJING — China is requiring personal computers sold in the country to carry software that blocks online pornography and other Web sites, potentially giving one of the world’s most sophisticated censorship regimes even more control over the Internet.
Series of small earthquakes felt in North Central Texas; FBI director defends use of informants in mosques
TEHRAN, Iran — It’s just a two-sentence text message bouncing among young Iranian voters. But it carries some big hopes.
Gun battle between Mexican Army and drug gang kills 16; Five Americans arrested in Green Zone murder probe
BEIJING — In Tiananmen Square, police were ready to pounce at the first sign of protest. In Hong Kong, a sea of candles flickered in the hands of tens of thousands who vented their grief and anger.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — The tone of respect was set from the opening lines of President Barack Obama’s address to the Muslim world.
Officer closer to facing charges in contoversial subway shooting; Outspoken governor to accept $700 million in federal stimulus; Charges dropped in mysterious roadway death of a black man
MADRID — British naturalist Sir David Attenborough won Spain’s notable Prince of Asturias social sciences prize Thursday for his “great contributions to the defense of life and conservation of our planet.”
VASSALBORO, Maine — A deliberately set fire destroyed a topless coffee shop early Wednesday, just hours after the owner talked with local officials about making the business more like a strip club, investigators said.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — Opening a mission to write a new chapter on Islam and the West, President Barack Obama consulted Wednesday with the Saudi king “in the place where Islam began,” prelude to a high-stakes speech in Egypt meant to ease long-held Muslim grievances against the United States.
New netbook computers drop Windows and Linux for Android;
Bad weather hampers Brazilian investigation of deadly crash
NEW YORK — Royal Dutch Shell is preparing for a federal trial this summer where it would face allegations that it played a role in the executions of activist Ken Saro-Wiwa and other civilians by Nigeria’s former military regime.
KABUL — Eleven Taliban suicide bombers struck government buildings Tuesday in a bold, daylong assault in eastern Afghanistan, sparking running gunbattles with U.S. and Afghan forces that killed 20 people and wounded three Americans, officials said.
Jury convicts man of plotting to assist al-Qaida recruitment; Senate considers options for financing health care; Officials allow Wisconsin fire evacuees to go home
Islamic militia clash with Western-backed forces, leaving more than 35 dead
MOGADISHU, Somalia — Mortars and machine-gun fire rocked the Somali capital Sunday, leveling homes and a mosque in renewed violence that has killed at least 35 people over the weekend as pro-government Islamist fighters clashed with gunmen who want to topple the Western-backed government, officials said.
Woman’s cocaine marriage results in 2-year-sentence; Military flyby of New York canceled for short notice
American soldier shoots, kills 5 comrades at Camp Liberty; Declassified reports: Afghan militants use white phosphorus
WASHINGTON — Zoos in the U.S., Panama and Mexico are deploying researchers in Central America to develop new ways to fight a fungus blamed for wiping out dozens of frog and amphibian species as part of a project announced Monday.
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — The bodies were laid out in haphazard rows in the mud, waiting to be buried. Some were covered with mats or sheets, photographs showed. One young boy was stripped to his waist, his head wrapped in a bloody bandage.
Statement says at least 180 militants killed in Pakistan; Pelosi sits down with Iraqi prime minister in one-day trip; Pope encourages Middle East Christians at mass in Jordan; Three passengers on US-based flight bring swine flu to Japan
CAMP LEATHERNECK, Afghanistan — Thousands of U.S. troops are being rushed to Afghanistan without the equipment they will need to fight an emboldened Taliban, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates and military officials said Thursday.
CORIMATA DA CIMA, Brazil — The dirt road that runs in front of her house is a river. Her fields of rice and manioc lie ruined underwater. And with water seeping into her mud-brick, thatched-roof home, Maria do Remedio Santos knows it’s time to join her
neighbors.
It’s a dog-eat-dog desert island after community maroons strays
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama declared he got the commitments he wanted Wednesday from the leaders of Pakistan and Afghanistan to more aggressively fight Taliban and al-Qaida militants who are gaining power and sowing violence in their countries.
SAO PAULO — Brazil rushed aid Wednesday by air, over land and through rapidly rising waters to scores of cities and towns isolated by floods that have killed at least 32 and left nearly 200,000 homeless.
MINEOLA, N.Y. — Wal-Mart agreed Wednesday to pay nearly $2 million and improve safety at its 92 New York stores as part of a deal with prosecutors that avoids criminal charges in the trampling death of a temporary worker last year.
CLEVELAND — John Demjanjuk, branded a Nazi death camp guard by the U.S. government asked for the Supreme Court on Wednesday to stop his deportation to Germany where an arrest warrant accusing him of 29,000 counts of accessory to murder during World War II waits.
AUGUSTA, Maine — New England states signaled an increasing willingness to sanction gay marriage on Wednesday as Maine legalized the practice and the New Hampshire Legislature voted to do the same.
LONDON — Scientists unveiled on Tuesday what they hope will be one of the world’s fastest biofuel vehicles, powered by waste from chocolate factories and made partly from plant fibers.
Texas officials announce first US citizen death from swine flu McALLEN — Texas health officials on Tuesday announced the first death of a U.S. resident with swine flu, and said she was a 33-year-old schoolteacher who had recently given birth to a healthy baby.
WASHINGTON — Bush administration lawyers who approved harsh interrogation techniques of terror suspects should not face criminal charges, Justice Department investigators say in a draft report that recommends two of the three attorneys face possible professional sanctions.
BILGE, Turkey — Victims of a deadly assault on an engagement ceremony in Turkey’s mostly Kurdish southeast were buried side by side Tuesday, and authorities detained eight armed suspects accused of killing the betrothed couple, whose wedding they opposed, along with relatives and friends.
BAGHDAD — Iraq’s government Monday ruled out allowing U.S. combat troops to remain in Iraqi cities after the June 30 deadline for their withdrawal, despite concern that Iraqi forces cannot cope with the security challenge following a resurgence of
bombings in recent weeks.
Rice tells fourth graders United States didn’t torture; 81 unusual projects each awarded $100,000 by Gates; Wall Street rally erases S&P 500 losses for 2009
KATMANDU, Nepal — Nepal’s prime minister fired the army chief Sunday after a struggle over admitting former Maoist rebel fighters to the military, sparking mass protests and jeopardizing the survival of the country’s first elected government.
Committee members discuss Supreme Court replacement expectations
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama’s search to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice David Souter should extend beyond the current roster of federal judges, senators from both political parties said Sunday.
Health officials look to avoid blame as swine flu spreads; Supermarket mogul expected to claim Panama presidency
Unidentified driver detained after speeding into crowds at parade
APELDOORN, Netherlands — A Dutch driver careened through police barriers and plowed into a crowd of merrymakers cheering their popular queen Thursday in a premeditated assault on the royal family that killed five bystanders and injured 12, authorities said.
RALEIGH, N.C. — A North Carolina congresswoman said Thursday she chose her words poorly when she called claims that a Wyoming college student was murdered because he was gay a “hoax.”
CAIRO — An 8-year-old Saudi girl has divorced her middle-aged husband after her father forced her to marry him last year in exchange for about $13,000, her lawyer said Thursday.
Rebels identify suspected ‘human shields’ as family; UN group renames flu after Egypt slaughters pigs
BAGHDAD — Twin car bombs ravaged a popular shopping area in Baghdad’s biggest Shiite district Wednesday, killing at least 41 people in another powerful strike by suspected Sunni insurgents.
BERLIN — Massive ice chunksare crumbling away from a shelf in the western Antarctic Peninsula, researchers said Wednesday, warning that 1,300 square miles of ice — an area larger than Rhode Island — was in danger of breaking off in coming weeks.
DETROIT — Italian automaker Fiat Group SpA will sign a partnership agreement with Chrysler LLC by Thursday as negotiations continue to keep the struggling automaker alive without filing for bankruptcy protection, according to three people briefed on the deal.
WASHINGTON — The Geneva-based World Health Organization raised its alert level on Wednesday for the fast-spreading swine flu to its next-to-highest notch, signaling a global pandemic could be imminent
SOCHI, Russia — The Kremlin favorite won an overwhelming victory in the mayoral election in Sochi, the Russian city that will host the 2014 Winter Olympics, an election official said Monday. An opposition candidate called the vote a fraud and vowed to
challenge the result.
Craigslist killing suspect cannot afford attorney; 91 disability supporters arrested at White House; Planes near Ground Zero spark outrage from mayor
GENEVA — Canada became the third country to confirm human cases of swine flu Sunday as global health officials considered whether to raise the global pandemic alert level.
FORT WORTH — Multiple airlines are waiving change fees, but have not canceled flights for passengers flying through Mexico because of an outbreak of swine flu.
Police: Convenience store robber dressed like ninja
BAGHDAD — Suicide bomb blasts tore through crowds waiting for food aid in central Baghdad and inside a roadside restaurant filled with Iranian pilgrims Thursday, killing at least 78 people in Iraq’s deadliest day in more than a year.
Former Nebraska teacher faces prison time for student affair; Bristol Palin’s former boyfriend announces possible custody suit; 12-year-old boy faces charges for murder of infant brother
China exerts pressure on Obama not to meet Dalai Lama on visit; Somali men stand trial in Kenya for attacking Liberian freighter; North Korea decides to detain two indicted US journalists
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — The more than 100,000 civilians pouring out of Sri Lanka’s war zone have included people with untreated blast, mine and gunshot wounds — prompting the U.N. chief on Thursday to order an expert team to assess the “rapidly deteriorating situation.”
WASHINGTON — The chief financial officer of troubled mortgage giant Freddie Mac was found dead in his basement early Wednesday morning in what police said was a suicide. David Kellermann, 41, apparently hanged himself, said a law enforcement official familiar with the investigation.
Quan Cosby’s professional baseball career is long over. Now it’s time for his professional football career to begin.
Obama visits Iowa town to introduce energy plan; Top seats at new Yankee Stadium prove unpopular
Investigation continues
in mass polo horse deaths;
Texas teens may need
doctor’s note for fake bake;
Surviving Somali teen pirate will be tried as an adult
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Tens of thousands of civilians trapped in Sri Lanka’s northern war zone face a “catastrophic” situation, the Red Cross said Tuesday, amid fears that a final assault against the Tamil Tiger rebels would lead to a dramatic rise in casualties.
BAGHDAD — Three cars bedecked in flowers and ribbons swerve around blast walls and honk through police checkpoints before screeching to a halt outside a Baghdad hotel. A brass band runs up to a shining sedan as the bride, struggling with her gown, emerges.
GENEVA — Dozens of Western diplomats walked out of a U.N. conference and a pair of rainbow-wigged protesters threw clown noses at Iran’s president Monday when the hard-line leader called Israel the “most cruel and repressive racist regime.”
North, South Korea discuss industrial complex concerns; US, Netherlands to boycott UN anti-racism conference
Design team works to create hospital gowns that cover more; Fearing favoritism, Michigan mayor asks for speeding ticket
One of five towers to be built at WTC site could be delayed until 2030
NEW YORK — Construction of several ground zero office towers could be put off for decades because of the failing real estate market, the site’s owners said Thursday, citing an analysis that projected one skyscraper might not be built and occupied until 35 years after Sept. 11.
World’s largest democracy begins month of elections; Russia ends anti-terrorist campaign in Chechnya; Wild Slovenian bear enjoys sunny day in busy city park
Source of huge scholarship donations remains secret; Military policy toward gays under review, Gates says; Perry’s Tax Day secession comment draws criticism
KABUL — Dozens of young women braved crowds of bearded men screaming “dogs!” Wednesday to protest an Afghan law that lets husbands demand sex from their wives. Some of the men picked up small stones and pelted the women.
Pirate gang announces plans to target American vessels; Iran clones goat in ongoing push to be regional science hub
Republicans speak out against Homeland Security assessment; US keeps eye on drug cartels moving to Central America
North Korea restarts nuclear program, ceases cooperation;
Bolivian president ends strike after congress enables reelection
Appeals court delays alleged Nazi’s extradition to Germany
Two women face federal charges for $1 million life-insurance scam
TEHRAN, Iran — Iran said Tuesday that its national security court put an American journalist on trial behind closed doors on allegations she spied for the U.S. — a charge Washington calls baseless.
SAN JOSE, Calif. — As the economy sheds jobs, community colleges across the country are reporting a surge of unemployed workers enrolling in courses that offer training for “green-collar” jobs.
Obama allowing travel, money transfers to Cuba; Woman suspected of murder may be charged with rape; Goldman Sachs earns $1.66B in first three months of 2009; AP poll: Most taxpayers plan to use tax refunds on bills; Jury finds Phil Spector guilty of second-degree murder
Student activists arrested after calling for removal of university’s president
NEW YORK — New School University president Bob Kerrey has told the New York Post that the occupation of a campus building by a band of activists was “illegal” and “not a legitimate protest.”
WASHINGTON — Stopping the flow of money and weapons from the United States into Mexico is critical to dealing with the violent drug cartels creating havoc on the border, the Mexican ambassador to the U.S. said Sunday.
MOMBASA, Kenya — U.S. Navy snipers opened fire and killed three pirates holding an American captain at gunpoint, delivering the skipper unharmed and ending a five-day high-seas hostage drama on Easter Sunday.
As protests continue, Thailand announces state of emergency; Conservation group locates new orangutan population
Chinese-made drywall sparks worry about fumes, sickness;
Lower level of violence encourages middle class to invest in new vehicles
BAGHDAD — BMWs, Nissans, Hyundais and even military-style Hummers are now weaving around the shabby, smoke-belching wrecks and donkey carts that have clogged the streets over two decades of sanctions and war.
President of Fiji dismantles government, assumes control; Paparazzi claim body guards opened fire outside wedding
Customs agents sieze more than 4 tons of weed in El Paso; Customs agents sieze more than 4 tons of weed in El Paso; Obama hosts dinner marking important Jewish holiday
NAIROBI, Kenya — The American crew of a hijacked U.S.-flagged ship retook control of the vessel from Somali pirates Wednesday, but the captain was still being held hostage in a lifeboat hundreds of miles off the Horn of Africa, crew members said.
Funerals begin for earthquake victims throughout central Italy; American journalist in Iran accused of spying for US; Castro tells Congress members he wants to rebuild relationship
Obama says US will participate in weapon discussions with Iran; Search continues for suspects in murder of 8-year-old girl
BAGHDAD — Flying unannounced into a still-dangerous war zone, President Barack Obama told U.S. troops and Iraqi officials alike Tuesday that it is time to phase out America’s combat role in a conflict he opposed as a candidate and has vowed to end as commander in chief.
Somali pirates hijack five vessels with new strategy; Afghan government reviews law affecting married women; Israeli police shoot Palestinian driver during home demolition
Vermont first state to legalize gay marriage without courts; California man faces jail time for selling minor into marriage; Canadian flight student steals plane for suicide attempt
ANKARA, Turkey — Declaring the U.S. “is not and never will be at war with Islam,” President Barack Obama worked Monday to mend frayed ties with NATO ally Turkey and improve relations with the larger Muslim world.
L’AQUILA, Italy — Rescue workers using bare hands and buckets searched frantically for students believed buried in a wrecked dormitory after Italy’s deadliest quake in nearly three decades struck the medieval city before dawn Monday, killing more than 150 people, injuring 1,500 and leaving tens of thousands homeless.
Taliban warns they will increase attacks if US does not halt missiles
ISLAMABAD — A suicide bombing at a crowded Shiite mosque south of Pakistan’s capital killed 22 people Sunday, the latest evidence of crmbling security in the U.S.-allied nation, well beyond the Afghan border region, where al-Quida and Taliban fighters thrive.
Volunteers provide secure watch as amphibians make annual migration
NEW HAVEN, Vt. — The black salamander with yellow spots sat on the roadside in the dark, ready to make a go of it.
Obama calls for push to rid world of nuclear weapons; N. Korea launches rocket despite others’ warning; France, Germany remain unsure about troop increase;
KABUL — A new Afghan law makes it legal for men to rape their wives, human rights groups and some Afghan lawmakers said Thursday, accusing President Hamid Karzai of signing the legislation to bolster his re-election prospects.
BAT AYIN, West Bank — A Palestinian killed an Israeli teenager with a pickax and seriously injured a 7-year-old boy in a rampage through a West Bank Jewish settlement Thursday, posing an early test for the country’s new hard-line government.
Blagojevich, associates indicted for pension fund corruption; Texas House approves tax on adult-themed businesses; Jury awards $1 to professor fired for Nazi-9/11 comparison
I feel bad for the current generation. I’m not much older, but those few years have made a huge difference in how I experienced my teens and early 20s.
LONDON — Chanting G-20 protesters clashed with riot police in central London on Wednesday, overwhelming police lines, vandalizing the Bank of England and smashing windows at the Royal Bank of Scotland.
Iran denies report’s claims of diplomatic talks with US; North Korea claims US spying on rocket launch site; Threats on US lead to attack on Taliban-linked hide-out
Senate votes to raise funding for border security, Pakistan; N.Y. election to remain undecided for two weeks
LONDON — Desperate but divided on ways to lift their nations from economic misery, world leaders converged for an emergency summit Tuesday, holding scant hopes of finding a magic-bullet solution for the crisis that brought them hurrying to London.
New Israeli leader takes office, denies Palestinian statehood; Taliban chief threatens attacks on Washington, White House
Immigration court to reconsider Obama’s aunt’s bid for asylum; Fraternity members face charges after death of hazing victim
SEOUL, South Korea — Japanese, South Korean and U.S. missile-destroying ships set sail to monitor North Korea’s imminent rocket launch, as Pyongyang stoked tensions Monday by detaining a South Korean worker for allegedly denouncing the North’s political system.
Official: Space junk likely cause of unusual night sky; Obama sets tough deadline, seeks to reassure buyers; Sisters to be buried with brother who killed them; One-pill wonder: ‘Polypill’ combines 5 heart drugs
DENVER — A coyote ambling into a Chicago sandwich shop or taking up residence in New York’s Central Park understandably creates a stir. But even here on the high plains of Colorado, where the animals are part of the landscape and figure prominently in local lore, people are being taken aback by increasing coyote encounters.
US, Iraqi troops confront Sunni militants in two days of fighting; Afghanistan’s president has positive outlook on US strategy
Space shuttle completes 13-day trip to space station; Obama may see reluctance in Europe on US priorities; Heavy snow storms cause power loss, deaths in Kansas
FARGO, N.D. — Thousands of North Dakotans stacked sandbags around the clock to protect the state’s largest city from the rising Red River, expected to reach a record level on Saturday. Across the state, Bismarck breathed easier as the Missouri River fell 2 feet, limiting the flooding.
Proposed UK rule changes could allow abortion ads; French workers kidnap 3M executive in layoff protests
Bobcat bites, terrorizes bar patrons in Arizona; Mortgage rates sink to lowest level since 1971; States consider drug tests for welfare recipients
MEXICO CITY — Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Wednesday that America’s “insatiable” demand for illegal drugs and its inability to stop weapon flow into Mexico are fueling an alarming spike in violence along the U.S.-Mexican border.
Congress’ possible budget plan could lead to crucial legislation; Air Force fighter jet crashes
in Southern California desert; Postal Service asks Congress for aid during financial hardship; Scientists find meteorite that gives glance at planet formation
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama claimed early progress Tuesday night in his dogged campaign to lead the nation out of economic chaos and declared that despite obstacles ahead, “we’re moving in the right direction.”
China blocks YouTube over video; government calls video fake; Labor Party brings moderate voice to new Israeli government
Proposed sin tax increases spark consumer outrage; Red Cross honors pet parrot for helping save young girl
KHARTOUM — Sudan’s president traveled to Eritrea on Monday, choosing one of Africa’s most politically isolated nations for his first trip abroad since an international court sought his arrest on charges of war crimes in Darfur.
MEXICO CITY — Mexico’s government on Monday offered $2 million to anyone who offered information leading to the arrest of 24 top drug lords in a public challenge to the cartels’ violent grip on the country.
Dow jumps nearly 500 points; home sales show surprise gain; Investigators look into plane weight in crash that killed 14
Cheaper birth control prices could return to the University Health Services Pharmacy — if pharmaceutical companies are willing to make the first move.
OAKLAND, Calif. — An Oakland police officer shot during a traffic stop died Sunday, bringing the number of officers killed to four on the deadliest day in the department’s history, police said.
Protesters object to AIG bonuses with visits to executives’ homes; Natasha Richardson’s coffin arrives at actress’s N.Y. home
Pope expresses sympathies for women killed in stamped; Police station attack leads to arrest of Tibetan monks
COPENHAGEN, Denmark — Hundreds of leading scientists warned that global warming is accelerating beyond the worst predictions and threatening to trigger “irreversible” climate shifts on the planet.
Benedict criticizes aides, suggests they could have searched Internet for info
VATICAN CITY — Pope Benedict XVI has made an unusual public acknowledgment of Vatican mistakes and turmoil in his church over an outreach to ultraconservatives that led to his lifting the excommunication of a Holocaust-denying bishop.
Joaquin Phoenix leaps off stage to attack heckler at show; Religious leaders neither thrilled nor upset by Obama; State commission bans Mexico travel for Texas health workers; Cancer-afflicted sea lion killed to save threatened salmon
Obama’s budget could make birth control more affordable
ISLAMABAD — Pakistan rounded up hundreds of opposition activists Wednesday and banned protests in two provinces in an attempt to thwart an anti-government march on the capital, saying it would not allow “the law of the jungle” to cause instability.
WINNENDEN, Germany — A 17-year-old wielding a Beretta 9 mm pistol burst into classrooms at his former high school Wednesday and gunned down students — some of whom died with their pencils still in hand — in a rampage that ended with 15 dead before he took his own life, authorities said.
Obama approves earmarked $410 billion spending package; Bristol Palin ends engagement with father of newborn; Three states seek legislation to prohibit stem cell research
Worldwide, thousands of protesters march in response to speech
DHARMSALA, India — Life for Tibetans under Chinese rule has been “hell on earth,” the Dalai Lama said Tuesday, attacking Beijing in a speech to mark 50 years since the failed uprising that forced him into exile.
Baghdad suicide bombing adds to Sunni insurgency concerns; 9/11 architects say role in Twin Towers attack was honorable; Policeman dies after being shot by Irish Republican Army rebels
Madoff to plead guilty, could receive up to 150 years in jail; China claims harrassed U.S. ship was not in international seas
STOCKHOLM — A canny chimpanzee who calmly collected a stash of rocks and then hurled them at zoo visitors in fits of rage has confirmed that apes can plan ahead just like humans, a Swedish study said Monday.
BELFAST, Northern Ireland — British security chiefs appealed Monday for public help to catch the Irish Republican Army dissidents responsible for gunning down two soldiers — a hunt that challenges Catholics to inform on their own as never before.
BAGHDAD — About 12,000 U.S. soldiers will leave Iraq by September, officials said Sunday, hours after a Baghdad suicide bomber killed about 30 people in a chilling reminder of the nation’s still-shaky security.
Jim Suhr
MARYVILLE, Ill. — A pastor shot and killed during his Sunday sermon deflected the first of the gunman’s four rounds with a Bible, spraying a confetti of paper into the air during a horrifying scene that congregants initially thought was a skit, police said.
2 A&M students shot, killed;victim’s boyfriend arreste; Millionaire leaves fortune to university where he ate
Obama appoints three people to senior Treasury positions; Madoff to meet with investors he is accused of scamming; Obama seeks to offer Mexico assistance to resolve drug wars
Palestinian PM resigns to assist in initiation of deal with Hamas; Northern Ireland killings assured to not slow down peace process; Clinton completes second trip abroad with visit to Turkey
SAN FRANCISCO — As thousands demonstrated outside, California Supreme Court justices weighed Thursday whether voters’ decision to ban same-sex marriage was a denial of fundamental rights or within what one justice called the people’s “very broad powers” to amend the state constitution.
Grammy-nominated rapper speaks to Nation of Islam; States experience budget pain despite federal stimulus; Joint Chiefs chairman says Iran could now make a bomb
Foreclosues continue to rise throughout entire country; Obama emphasizes need for health care reform
Car bomb explodes during morning rush at Iraqi marke; Gorbachev gives harsh opinion of Putin’s United Russia party
THE HAGUE, Netherlands — The president of Sudan became a wanted man Wednesday when the International Criminal Court charged him with war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur — its first action against a sitting head of state and one that could set the stage for more world leaders to be indicted.
Clinton blames Iran for rising tension in the Middle East. Police search for gunmen linked to Sri Lankan cricket tream attack.
Search continues for three missing in Gulf of Mexico. Supreme Court denies limits on suits opposing drugmakers.
Woman calls 911 three times due to a lack of McNuggets; Cheesed-off parent assaults chain restaurant’s mascot
NEW ORLEANS — A federal judge made an initial ruling Tuesday in favor of a Louisiana university being sued by a Christian evangelist who claims he was threatened with arrest if he didn’t stop speaking on campus.
ZAMZAM CAMP, Sudan — The tall 14-year-old’s parents were killed when government soldiers swept into his hometown in Darfur to chase out rebels. Then Arab militias went after the survivors. That’s when the teenager fled atop a truck piled with mattresses and pots.
JERUSALEM — The United States will dispatch two emissaries to Syria for “preliminary conversations” aimed at warming relations with an Arab adversary accused of supporting terrorism, seeking weapons of mass destruction, facilitating the insurgency in neighboring Iraq and balking at talking peace with Israel, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Tuesday.
Obama’s tax increases meet congressional opposition; Burris no longer faces calls from Democrats to resign; Citigroup launches program to aid struggling customers; Companies, investors store oil as demand plummets
LONDON — World stock markets tumbled Monday, with the Dow slumping below 7,000 for the first time in more than 11 years after insurer American International Group Inc. reported a staggering $61.7 billion quarterly loss and stoked renewed concerns about the health of the U.
Scientists fishing for fossils find oldest brain in fish. WASHINGTON — A 300-million-year-old fossilized brain has been discovered by researchers studying a type of fish that once lived in what is now Kansas and Oklahoma. “Fossilized brains are unusual, and this is by far the oldest known example,” said John Maisey, curator in the division of paleontology at the American Museum of Natural History in New York.
Millions tuned into President Barack Obama’s speech to congress last week as he addressed the economic downturn.
WASHINGTON — Breathtaking in its scope and ambition, President Barack Obama’s agenda for the economy, health care and energy now goes to a Congress unaccustomed to resolving knotty issues and buffeted by powerful interests that oppose parts of his plan.
