Hamas agrees to 5-hour cease-fire Posted: 16 Jul 2014 04:03 PM PDT Islamist group accepted a temporary, U.N.-requested Gaza truce on humanitarian grounds.
|
Obama may extend high-stakes nuclear talks with Iran Posted: 16 Jul 2014 03:23 PM PDT Hunting for a badly needed second-term foreign policy victory, President Barack Obama strongly suggested on Wednesday that he will seek to extend negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program past their initial July 20 target date for a comprehensive deal.
|
What Christie's 'judge problem' could mean for conservatives Posted: 16 Jul 2014 02:17 PM PDT Social conservatives are skeptical about New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie after he reappointed a liberal judge to the New Jersey Supreme Court. |
FBI warns that driverless cars could be used for evil Posted: The recent debut of new autonomous models from Google, Cadillac, and Audi may have you dreaming of someday putting a self-driving car in your garage. Alas, the FBI has a warning for you: An idling driverless car is a devil's playground.
|
EU toughens sanctions against Russia Posted: 16 Jul 2014 02:59 PM PDT EU leaders also requested no new financing deals between European Investment Bank, Moscow.
|
CDC director admits shortcomings at germ labs Posted: 16 Jul 2014 01:09 PM PDT The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention acknowledged Wednesday that systemic safety problems have for years plagued federal public health laboratories that handle dangerous germs such as anthrax and bird flu.
|
U.S. Justice Dept. says investigating lost IRS emails Posted: 16 Jul 2014 03:19 PM PDT The U.S. Justice Department on Wednesday confirmed it is investigating the loss of Internal Revenue Service emails being sought by congressional Republicans in an inquiry over tax scrutiny of conservative political groups. In written testimony to be delivered to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, Deputy Attorney General James Cole said the probe "includes investigating the circumstances of the lost emails" from the computer of Lois Lerner, a retired IRS official. Last month, the IRS acknowledged losing some of Lerner's emails to a computer hard-drive failure, an incident that has rekindled Republican outrage in the long-running controversy over IRS targeting of conservative political groups. A Justice Department official said there had been no determination of whether the probe was criminal in nature.
|
US, Europe escalate economic sanctions on Russia Posted: 16 Jul 2014 04:47 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — Struggling to defuse the persistent crisis in Ukraine, both the U.S. and European Union imposed new economic sanctions on Russia Wednesday, with President Barack Obama declaring that Russian leaders must see that their actions supporting rebels "have consequences."
|
Nowhere to go for Gaza civilians urged to evacuate Posted: 16 Jul 2014 01:24 PM PDT GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — The text message was as urgent as it was unwelcome: The Israeli army advised Mouin Ghaffir to leave his home quickly or risk being killed in airstrikes against Hamas rocket squads.
|
Dems seek gains with women in birth control loss Posted: 16 Jul 2014 02:07 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Democrats suffered what looked like a difficult setback on birth control Wednesday, but they hope it pays big political dividends in November.
|
Studies see new risks for cholesterol drug niacin Posted: 16 Jul 2014 04:53 PM PDT New details from two studies reveal more side effects from niacin, a drug that hundreds of thousands of Americans take for cholesterol problems and general heart health. Some prominent doctors say the drug now seems too risky for routine use.
|
Fox bid for Time Warner sparks content merger race Posted: 16 Jul 2014 02:57 PM PDT LOS ANGELES (AP) — Even though Rupert Murdoch's $76 billion bid for rival media giant Time Warner Inc. has been rejected, that doesn't mean how you watch TV shows and movies will stop changing any time soon.
|
What happens to your online accounts when you die? Posted: 16 Jul 2014 04:06 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — You've probably decided who gets the house or that family heirloom up in the attic when you die. But what about your email account and all those photos stored online?
|
Urban warfare feared in Ukraine fighting Posted: 16 Jul 2014 03:04 PM PDT KIEV, Ukraine (AP) — Insurgents bade tearful farewells Wednesday as they loaded their families onto Russia-bound buses and began hunkering down for what could be the next phase in Ukraine's conflict: bloody urban warfare.
|
Texas woman who sent ricin gets 18 years in prison Posted: 16 Jul 2014 02:01 PM PDT TEXARKANA, Texas (AP) — A Texas actress who tried to blame her husband after sending ricin-laced letters to officials including President Barack Obama was sentenced Wednesday to 18 years in prison.
|
Buzz Aldrin: Where were you when I walked on moon? Posted: 16 Jul 2014 01:37 PM PDT CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (AP) — On July 20, 1969, Buzz Aldrin was "out of town" when the world united and rejoiced in a way never seen before or since.
|
Iran nuke talks likely to be extended past July 20 Posted: 16 Jul 2014 03:36 PM PDT VIENNA (AP) — Facing stubborn disputes on the terms of a deal, Iran and six world powers have tentatively decided to adjourn their nuclear talks two days early but plan to extend them past their planned July 20 end date, diplomats said Wednesday.
|
After 12 hours, passengers exit from stalled casino boat Posted: 16 Jul 2014 03:45 PM PDT TYBEE ISLAND, Ga. (AP) — After 16 hours stuck at sea, passengers stranded on a casino boat that ran aground off Georgia's coast were ferried to shore Wednesday aboard two Coast Guard cutters.
|
U.S. toughens sanctions against Russia Posted: 16 Jul 2014 03:16 PM PDT Meanwhile, the West continues to grapple for a way to quell an insurgency in Ukraine.
|
Bomb hoax shuts down University of Louisiana campus Posted: 16 Jul 2014 01:44 PM PDT Louisiana State Police say the bomb threat that shut down the University of Louisiana at Lafayette for a day was a hoax.
|
Israel agrees to temporary cease-fire Posted: 16 Jul 2014 12:05 PM PDT Israel has accepted a proposed 6-hour humanitarian cessation of hostilities in Gaza.
|
U.S. escalating sanctions against Russia Posted: 16 Jul 2014 02:17 PM PDT Meanwhile, the West continues to grapple for a way to quell an insurgency in Ukraine.
|
Assad declares victory, push to topple him elusive Posted: 16 Jul 2014 12:25 PM PDT In a lavish ceremony, a smiling and confident President Bashar Assad was sworn in for a third seven-year term on Wednesday, praising his supporters for "defeating the dirty war" and denouncing insurgents who have "failed in trying to brainwash you or break your will."
|
California death penalty ruled unconstitutional Posted: 16 Jul 2014 04:03 PM PDT By Sharon Bernstein SACRAMENTO Calif. (Reuters) - California's system for imposing and carrying out the death penalty is so long and drawn-out that it amounts to cruel and unusual punishment and thus is unconstitutional, a federal judge ruled on Wednesday. Ruling in the case of Ernest Dewayne Jones, who was condemned to death in 1995 and has yet to be executed, Judge Cormac J. Carney of the U.S. Central District of California said that to take "nearly a generation" to decide on Jones' appeals was unconstitutional. As part of the ruling, Carney vacated the death penalty sentence in Jones' case. "The dysfunctional administration of California's death penalty system has resulted, and will continue to result, in an inordinate and unpredictable period of delay," Carney wrote in his opinion, filed on Wednesday.
|
Funerals being held for slain family near Houston Posted: 16 Jul 2014 12:25 PM PDT Six white caskets containing the bodies of a suburban Houston couple and four of their five children were wheeled into a church for funeral services Wednesday, not far from where the family was gunned down at their home a week ago.
|
FBI: 3 cartel members accused of abducting S.C. man Posted: 16 Jul 2014 12:33 PM PDT Three men affiliated with a Mexican drug cartel kidnapped a South Carolina man and held him for ransom for nearly a week in a dispute over $200,000 in marijuana, authorities said Wednesday.
|
Senate GOP blocks birth control bill Posted: 16 Jul 2014 11:56 AM PDT The bill aims to restore free contraception when employers object on religious grounds.
|
DA claims Hernandez fiancee lied to grand jury Posted: 16 Jul 2014 11:27 AM PDT Prosecutors have spelled out what they say is evidence that the fiancee of former New England Patriot Aaron Hernandez lied to the grand jury that indicted him on a murder charge, including comments she made about a box she discarded at Hernandez's direction.
|
U.S. nurse refuses to force-feed Guantanamo inmates Posted: 16 Jul 2014 11:12 AM PDT A U.S. Navy nurse has refused to take part in force-feeding Guantanamo inmates on hunger strike, the first time a medical officer has openly objected to the practice, the Pentagon said Wednesday. The male nurse, whose name has not been disclosed, was part of a medical team at the US-run prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba that feeds detainees by inserting a tube up their nose, down the throat and into the stomach. "This nurse did not want to take part in the enteral feeding and has since been assigned to other duties," spokesman Colonel Steven Warren told reporters. Pentagon officials said another medical officer previously had declined to participate in an unspecified procedure but that case did not involve tube feedings.
|
Dutch liable for 300 Srebrenica deaths, court says Posted: 16 Jul 2014 09:48 AM PDT THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — A court on Wednesday ordered the Netherlands to compensate the families of more than 300 Bosnian Muslims killed after Dutch troops handed them over to Bosnian Serb forces in 1995, in a ruling that could make countries more leery to contribute troops to peacekeeping missions.
|
Typhoon Rammasun kills 20 in Philippines Posted: 16 Jul 2014 09:24 AM PDT A typhoon blew out of the northern Philippines, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.
|
Lines break in attempts to tow stalled casino boat carrying 123 Posted: 16 Jul 2014 11:14 AM PDT Authorities say they've tried several times to tow a casino boat that ran aground off Georgia's coast, but the attempts failed when the tow lines broke.
|
Court lifts stay of execution for Missouri death row inmate Posted: 16 Jul 2014 03:36 PM PDT A federal appeals court has vacated a stay of execution for a Missouri death row inmate, and the case is now heading to the U.S. Supreme Court.
|
U.N. says AIDS could be beaten by 2030 Posted: 16 Jul 2014 09:34 AM PDT New HIV infections fell by over a third in a decade, raising hope of vanquishing disease in about 15 years.
|
Israeli shell said to kill 4 children Posted: 16 Jul 2014 08:27 AM PDT Another was critically wounded on a Gaza beach by Israeli naval gunboat shell, Palestinian health official said.
|
Hooker pleads not guilty in Google exec's drug death Posted: 16 Jul 2014 08:46 AM PDT SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (AP) — A high-priced prostitute accused of leaving a Google executive to die on his yacht in California after shooting him up with a fatal hit of heroin has pleaded not guilty to manslaughter and heroin charges.
|
Photo of Michelle Obama evokes civil rights struggle Posted: 16 Jul 2014 06:44 AM PDT While touring the Brown v. Board of Education National Historic site, first lady Michelle Obama was photographed under a sign bearing a stark reminder of school segregation.
|
123 people on gambling boat stuck on Georgia rocks Posted: 16 Jul 2014 09:51 AM PDT SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — A casino boat ran aground on rocks off the coast of Georgia overnight and remained stranded hours after daybreak Wednesday, with Coast Guard crews awaiting high tide to attempt to remove the 123 people aboard.
|
Ex-Taliban POW Bergdahl lawyers up Posted: 16 Jul 2014 02:01 PM PDT Bergdahl Likely to Leave the Military When Able, Lawyer Says
|
Numerous lapses at CDC prior to live anthrax release Posted: 16 Jul 2014 10:14 AM PDT By David Morgan WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers on Wednesday faulted a "dangerous pattern" of safety lapses at government laboratories handling deadly pathogens such as anthrax and avian flu, calling for an overhaul of controls at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Members of a House Energy and Commerce Committee subcommittee cited new information on breaches previously unreported by CDC, which is under scrutiny for the potential exposure of more than 80 lab workers to live anthrax bacteria in June. The criticism, equally shared by Democratic and Republican lawmakers, was directed at CDC Director Dr. Thomas Frieden at a hearing. The incidents at the CDC's Atlanta campus have sparked fresh concerns over the lack of independent oversight of potentially dangerous research nationwide, even as the number of labs doing such work has surged in recent years.
|