Investigators assess threat of bombing tied to 9/11 anniversary
WASHINGTON — Counterterrorism officials on Thursday were assessing a new report of a threat of an attack in New York City or Washington using a car or truck bomb, timed to the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, according to several officials briefed on the matter.
Lee sets sights on Appalachians
The mountainous regions of the eastern United States may not appear to be a likely target for a tropical storm, but the remnants of tropical storm Lee will bring trouble to the area. Slow moving Lee delivered over a foot of rain to some places along the Gulf Coast when it was a tropical storm. Now the moisture associated with it will track along the Appalachian mountains from Georgia to New Hampshire and drop over 6 inches of rain in many places along the way.
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NEW DELHI — One of India’s most powerful mining barons, whose political clout and wealth have made him a controversial national figure, was arrested Monday as investigators raided his offices and seized about $1 million in cash and more than 66 pounds of gold.
GOP presidential candidate hopefuls vie for Tea Party support
COLUMBIA, S.C. — The leading Republican presidential candidates spent Labor Day declaring their fealty to limited government as they sought to demonstrate credibility with a Tea Party movement that has seized the political energy of their party.
Iran offers inspectors ‘full supervision’ of nuclear program
WASHINGTON — Iran on Monday made its first counterproposal in two years to ease the confrontation with the West over its nuclear program, offering to allow international inspectors “full supervision” of the country’s nuclear activities for the next five years, but on the condition that the mounting sanctions against Iran are lifted.
Syria lets Red Cross visit prison as crackdown on protestors continues
BEIRUT — Syria opened its main prison in Damascus Monday to a delegation from the International Committee of the Red Cross for the first time since the uprising started in mid-March, amid hopes the move could begin to reveal the fate of thousands of political detainees.
Police accounts favor Mubarak in Egypt trial
CAIRO — The criminal prosecution of former President Hosni Mubarak stumbled badly Monday after four senior police officials denied that he had ordered Egyptian security forces to use live ammunition against demonstrators challenging his rule.
Discovery of zinc- and bromine-laden Mars rock excites scientists
It has been driving on and off for more than seven years, but this month it reached its new destination. Opportunity, a small exploratory rover that landed on Mars in 2004, has trundled to a crater called Endeavour.
In Irene’s Wake, Katia Strengthens
Just days after Hurricane Irene killed at least 54 people and caused widespread flooding in the northeast United States, another tropical cyclone is brewing in the tropical Atlantic Ocean. Tropical Storm Katia, which last night was downgraded from hurricane status, is expected to reattain that status today, and is forecast to intensify in the next few days as it moves westward toward the North American continent. In fact, Katia could become a major hurricane by early next week. Whether or Katia will threaten the U.S. will depend on the strength of the subtropical ridge several days out, which will dictate whether the storm turns to the north, or continues westward toward land. Still, Katia will not begin to near land for more than a week.
Libyan rebels extend deadline for Gadhafi forces to surrender
TRIPOLI, Libya — The Libyan rebels’ transitional government on Thursday extended by a week its ultimatum demanding the surrender of the loyalists of Moammar Gadhafi who control his hometown, Surt. Also Thursday, the fugitive Libyan leader released an audio recording proclaiming that Surt was now the Libyan capital.
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When AT&T agreed to buy T-Mobile USA in March, the deal looked like a happy fate for a company that had been losing customers and facing declining sales.
U.S. is set to sue a dozen big banks over mortgages
The federal agency that oversees the mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is set to file suits against more than a dozen big banks, accusing them of misrepresenting the quality of mortgage securities they assembled and sold at the height of the housing bubble, and seeking billions of dollars in compensation.
India and Pakistan exchange fire in Kashmir
NEW DELHI — Indian and Pakistani troops exchanged fire over the border that divides the disputed province of Kashmir late Wednesday night, military officials in both countries said Thursday.
Obama taps jobs expert as top economic adviser
WASHINGTON — In tapping Alan B. Krueger on Monday to chair the Council of Economic Advisers, President Barack Obama has picked an economist well known for his studies of labor markets just as the president is about to announce a renewed push for job-creation policies as early as next week.
Gadhafi wife and relatives leave Libya for Algeria
TRIPOLI, Libya — Algeria said Monday that it had allowed a two-vehicle caravan of Moammar Gadhafi’s relatives, including his second wife and three of his children, into the country. The flight of his relatives provided powerful new evidence of surrender by the Gadhafi clan as rebels consolidated their hold on Tripoli, the capital.
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Battered by a weak economy, the nation’s biggest banks are cutting jobs, consolidating businesses and scrambling for new sources of income in anticipation of a fundamentally altered financial landscape requiring leaner operations.
Wikileaks leaves names of diplomatic sources in cables
WASHINGTON — In a shift of tactics that has alarmed U.S. officials, the antisecrecy organization WikiLeaks has published on the Web nearly 134,000 leaked diplomatic cables in recent days, more than six times the total disclosed publicly since the posting of the leaked State Department documents began in November.
Finance Minister chosen as Japan’s next prime minister
TOKYO — Japan’s governing party elected Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda to become the next prime minister on Monday, choosing a relative political unknown to lead this shaken nation’s recovery from the tsunami and nuclear accident in March, and revive its moribund economy.
Airlines resume service after storm, but snarls remain
Under clear skies, airlines that serve the New York City area and other Northeastern cities started to return their planes to service Monday, but many warned that travelers whose plans were thrown into disarray by Hurricane Irene could still face scheduling problems and delays through the week.
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MOSCOW — President Dmitry Medvedev on Monday set a Dec. 4 date for a parliamentary election that will almost certainly be dominated by the ruling United Russia party and will set the stage for a presidential election early next year.