Top Stories


Unemployment claims fall, but still elevated
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New claims for unemployment benefits slipped last week, but stayed at a stubbornly high level that underscored the labor market recovery was having trouble gaining traction.

BP spill cases head to court as Shell counts cost
LONDON/WILMINGTON, Delaware (Reuters) - The tide of lawsuits unleashed by BP's oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico breaks into an Idaho courtroom on Thursday, just as the company's rivals are counting the...

Special Report: A Mississippi Yankee in BP's battered court
HATTIESBURG, Mississippi (Reuters) - Bob Dudley is not one to wear his disappointment on his sleeve.

Second U.S. sailor's remains found in Afghanistan
KABUL (Reuters) - The body of a second U.S. sailor who went missing in Afghanistan last week has been recovered, an Afghan police chief said on Thursday.

Heavy rains delay salvage of crashed Pakistan plane
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Heavy monsoon rains in Islamabad on Thursday hampered recovery efforts at the site of a Pakistani plane crash that killed all 152 people on board a day earlier, a senior police o...



World Headlines
Arabs back direct peace talks when Abbas sees fit
CAIRO (Reuters) - The Arab League said on Thursday it would back face-to-face peace talks between the Palestinians and Israel when the Palestinians believe the time is right.

French mother confesses to killing eight babies
DOUAI/PARIS (Reuters) - A 47-year-old French woman confessed to suffocating eight new-born children and hiding her babies' bodies, a prosecutor said on Thursday, in what experts declared as the countr...

Suspected Nazi guard charged over 430,000 killings
BERLIN (Reuters) - Prosecutors in Germany have charged a suspected Nazi camp guard with helping to kill 430,000 Jews in the Holocaust and personally shooting 10 others.

Gunmen and bombs kill at least 12 in Iraq
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Attackers killed at least 12 people and wounded 31 in a series of shootings and explosions across Iraq on Thursday, security and hospital sources said.

South Americans try to end Venezuela-Colombia rift
QUITO (Reuters) - South American foreign ministers meet in Ecuador on Thursday to discuss broken ties between Venezuela and Colombia, with sparks likely over the two Andean nations' clashing plans to ...

US Headlines
Special Report: A Mississippi Yankee in BP's battered court
HATTIESBURG, Mississippi (Reuters) - Bob Dudley is not one to wear his disappointment on his sleeve.

Unemployment claims fall, but still elevated
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New claims for unemployment benefits slipped last week, but stayed at a stubbornly high level that underscored the labor market recovery was having trouble gaining traction.

Key parts of Arizona anti-immigration law blocked
PHOENIX (Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Wednesday blocked key parts of Arizona's tough new immigration law hours before it was to take effect, handing a victory to the Obama administration as it tries to ...

N.Y. subpoenas MetLife, Prudential on soldier death benefits
NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York's attorney general has subpoenaed MetLife Inc and Prudential Financial Inc as part of a probe into whether life insurers are defrauding families of deceased military pers...

Obama seeks to mend rift with black community
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama sought on Thursday to repair damage to his relationship with the black community caused by his administration's firing of an African-American government o...



Sports
Nationals put rookie pitcher Strasburg on disabled list
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Washington Nationals rookie right-hander Stephen Strasburg has been placed on the 15-day disabled list because of stiffness in his pitching shoulder, the team said Thursday.

Briggs talks big after confirming Vitali Klitschko fight
LONDON (Reuters) - Shannon Briggs is looking forward to ending the career of WBC heavyweight champion Vitali Klitschko after announcing on Thursday that he will fight the Ukranian on October 16.

Magic extend coach Van Gundy's contract for two seasons
MIAMI (Reuters) - The Orlando Magic, hoping to return to the NBA Finals for the second time in three seasons, gave coach Stan Van Gundy a contract extension that will keep him with the team through th...

Oakland pitcher Sheets ruled out for season
DALLAS (Reuters) - Oakland Athletics pitcher Ben Sheets has been ruled out for the rest of the season because of a torn flexor tendon in his right elbow, the team said Wednesday.

Raiders' McClain becomes highest draft pick to sign contract
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Linebacker Rolando McClain became the highest pick in April's NFL Draft to sign a contract when he agreed to terms with the Oakland Raiders.