World News
Gaza civilian toll rises; diplomats seek truce (AP)
AP - GAZA CITY, Gaza — Israel ignored mounting international calls for a cease-fire Monday and said it won't stop its crippling 10-day assault until "peace and tranquility" are achieved in southern Israeli towns in the line of Palestinian rocket fire.
Death certificate: Travolta son killed by seizure (AP)
AP - Jett Travolta's body shows no sign of head trauma and his death certificate says he was killed by a seizure, an undertaker said Monday, after doctors performed an autopsy on the 16-year-old son of the U.S actor.
Wanted: Border monitors to oversee Gaza truce (AP)
AP - The contours of a cease-fire deal between Israel and Hamas are emerging, with diplomacy focusing on international guarantees, including foreign border monitors to oversee any agreement.
US inaugurates $700 million embassy in Iraq (AP)
AP - The United States inaugurated its largest embassy ever on Monday, a fortress-like compound in the heart of the Green Zone — and the most visible sign of what U.S. officials call a new chapter in relations between America and a more sovereign Iraq.
Gaza hospital overwhelmed by dead, wounded (AP)
AP - Wailing in grief, Salah Samouni banged his head against a wall inside the hospital morgue where the bodies of his three young nephews lay on the floor Monday.
Marks & Spencer to shed 1,000 jobs: report (AFP)
AFP - Clothing-to-food retailer Marks & Spencer is set to axe more than 1,000 jobs, The Times reported Tuesday, bringing further gloom to the British high street as it struggles under the weight of the downturn.
US military deaths in Iraq war at 4,221 (AP)
AP - As of Monday, Jan. 5, 2009, at least 4,221 members of the U.S. military had died in the Iraq war since it began in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count.
Guatemalan mudslide kills 35, injures 15 (AP)
AP - Rescuers dug through tons of mud late Monday in search of more victims of a massive landslide that buried a long stretch of highway in northern Guatemala, killing at least 35 coffee workers and travelers using the road.
Pirates attack French vessel off Nigerian coast (AP)
AP - Pirates hijacked a French boat and took its nine crew members hostage in the latest attack in some of the world's most dangerous waters off oil-rich southern Nigeria, the boat's owner said Monday.
Thailand blocks 2,300 websites for insulting monarchy (AFP)
AFP - Thai authorities have blocked 2,300 websites for allegedly insulting the country's revered monarchy and are waiting for court approval to restrict another 400, the government said Tuesday.
Australia wife charged for setting husband on fire (AP)
AP - An Australian woman has been charged with murder after allegedly setting her husband's genitals on fire because she thought he was having an affair.