Nation & World
Myanmar leader making landmark White House visit
WASHINGTON — Former general Thein Sein on Monday becomes the first Myanmar president to be welcomed to the White House in almost 47 years, crowning a dramatic diplomatic rehabilitation for his nation after years of international isolation.
Oklahoma tornado death toll estimate cut in half
Crews dig through night after deadly Okla. twister
Search-and-rescue crews worked through the night after a monstrous tornado barreled through the Oklahoma City suburbs, demolishing an elementary school and reducing homes to piles of splintered wood. At least 24 people were killed, including at least seven children, and those numbers were expected to climb.
Honeybees in Croatia trained to find land mines
ZAGREB, Croatia -- Mirjana Filipovic is still haunted by the land mine blast that killed her boyfriend and blew off her left leg while on a fishing trip nearly a decade ago. It happened in a field that was supposedly de-mined.
Syrian troops push into strategic town
U.S,, Russia trying to get opposing sides to attend talks
BEIRUT — Syrian troops pushed into a rebel-held town near the Lebanese border on Sunday, fighting house to house and bombing from the air as President Bashar Assad tried to strengthen his grip on a strategic strip of land running from the capital to the Mediterranean coast.
Small Florida city wonders who won Powerball jackpot
ZEPHYRHILLS, Fla. — Some lucky person walked into a Publix supermarket in suburban Florida over the past few days and bought a ticket now worth an estimated $590.5 million -- the highest Powerball jackpot in history.
Tornadoes level homes in Okla.; one killed, at least 21 injured
EDMOND, Okla. — Authorities say a tornado that severely damaged a mobile home park southeast of Oklahoma City killed a 79-year-old man whose body was found in an open area of the neighborhood.
Official: Virginia driver that drove into parade likely had medical condition
DAMASCUS, Va. — Authorities believe the driver who plowed into dozens of hikers marching in a Virginia mountain town parade suffered from a medical condition and did not cause the crash intentionally, an emergency official said Sunday.
Weeklong traffic mess possible after Conn. derailment
BRIDGEPORT, Conn. — Traffic in southwest Connecticut could be a mess for as much as a week until service is restored to the commuter rail line affected by a derailment that injured scores of passengers, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy warned Sunday.
For youth, mental illness is familiar
Study finds 8.3% suffer for half of any given month
WASHINGTON — Go to a busy street in your community and count the next 25 adolescents who walk, bike, skateboard, stroll or saunter past. Odds are that two (8.3 percent to be exact) would own up to having experienced 14 or more days in the last month that he or she considered "mentally unhealthy," according to a comprehensive report on the mental health of American youth issued last week.
Powerball fever pays off for one
DES MOINES, Iowa -- It's all about the odds.With four out of every five possible combinations of Powerball numbers in play Saturday, someone was almost sure to have won the game's highest jackpot, a windfall of hundreds of millions of dollars -- and that's after taxes. Saturday night's winning numbers were 10, 13, 14, 22 and 52, with a Powerball of 11.
Obama officials learned of IRS probe during 2012 campaign
Ousted IRS chief claims no laws were broken
WASHINGTON -- Senior Treasury officials were made aware in June 2012 that investigators were looking into complaints from Tea Party groups that they were being harassed by the Internal Revenue Service, a Treasury inspector general said Friday, disclosing that Obama administration officials knew there was a probe during the heat of the presidential campaign.
Bombs targeting Sunnis kill at least 76 in Iraq
BAGHDAD — Bombs struck Sunni areas in Baghdad and surrounding areas Friday, killing at least 76 people in the deadliest day in Iraq in more than eight months, officials said, as a spike in violence has raised fears the country could be on the path to a new round of sectarian bloodshed.
Canada abuzz over purported crack video of mayor
TORONTO — A video purportedly of Toronto Mayor Rob Ford smoking crack has caused an uproar in Canada. Ford on Friday called the allegations "ridiculous."The video has not been released publicly, and there is no way to verify whether it is authentic. Reports by gossip website Gawker and the Toronto Star said it was taken by a man who claimed he had sold crack to Ford. The Associated Press hasn't seen the video.
Sailor killed in SEALs training accident at Fort Knox
Seven people injured when Humvee overturns
A U.S. sailor was killed and seven people were injured in a training exercise for SEAL forces in Fort Knox, Ky., officials said Friday.
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