worldheadlines

Zimbabwe police detained US and British diplomats Thursday in a dramatic confrontation at a roadblock following what the government described as a gathering at the home of an opposition supporter.
The convoy of three vehicles was initially stopped at a checkpoint in the Bindura region before making a getaway and then later pulled over again, US embassy officials said.
"The police forced them...

U.S. Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne and Air Force Chief of Staff Michael Moseley intend to resign, a congressional source told Reuters on Thursday.
The resignations come after a series of concerns about recent Air Force matters, including a controversial award of a contract for the Air Force's elite Thunderbirds flying group and the service's mistaken shipment of fuses for nuclear missiles to Taiwan in 2006, the source...

The accused al Qaeda mastermind of the September 11 attacks stood in a U.S. military court on Thursday, sang a chant of praise to Allah and said he would welcome the death penalty.
"This is what I wish, to be martyred," Pakistani captive Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the highest-ranking al Qaeda operative in U.S. custody, told the Guantanamo war crimes court.
He and four accused co-conspirators appeared in court...

The United Nations Security Council got a firsthand look Thursday at the conflict in Darfur, which has killed some 300,000 people, forced 2.5 million to flee their homes, and shows no sign of a political solution.
Facing one of the world's worst humanitarian crises, the council delegation met with officials from the...

Two astronauts stepped outside the international space station Thursday for a spacewalk to spruce up the orbiting outpost's newest room — a $1 billion Japanese lab.
In the early part of their excursion, space shuttle Discovery crew members Michael Fossum and Ronald Garan Jr. set up two TV cameras around the Kibo lab's robotic arm. Japanese flight controllers were to test the...

Democrats gave final approval on Thursday of a budget blueprint for 2009 that rewards domestic agencies and the Pentagon with generous budget increases while leaving wrenching decisions about curbing Medicare costs and increasing taxes to the next president.
The House approved the $3.1 trillion budget plan by a 214-210 vote; senators passed the measure Wednesday. The nonbinding measure does not go to...

Democrats gave final approval on Thursday of a budget blueprint for 2009 that rewards domestic agencies and the Pentagon with generous budget increases while leaving wrenching decisions about curbing Medicare costs and increasing taxes to the next president.
The House approved the $3.1 trillion budget plan by a 214-210 vote; senators passed the measure Wednesday. The nonbinding measure does not go to...

The hot dispute between John McCain and Barack Obama about the wisdom of talking to Iran appears likely to retain its heat through the presidential campaign and enliven it.
The importance of Iran to the future of the Middle East and to U.S. and Israeli security is the big reason.
Whether or not...

Barack Obama is reveling in his newfound status as likely Democratic nominee but cautioning that he has work to do against Republican John McCain.
He opened an event in southwestern Virginia saying: "I'm here to report that my faith has paid off and I stand before you as the Democratic nominee for...

Some of Hillary Rodham Clinton's biggest backers from New York rallied around Barack Obama Thursday as she signaled her candidacy was ending. The likely Democratic nominee said he won't be hurried into a decision on whether to make her his running mate.
Clinton, in an e-mail to supporters, said she "will be speaking on Saturday about how together we can rally the...

Acting swiftly as his party's presumed presidential nominee, Barack Obama is keeping Howard Dean at the helm of the Democratic National Committee, while bringing in one of his top strategists to oversee the party's operations.
The campaign also announced that the DNC will no longer accept donations from lobbyists and political action...

Verizon Wireless said on Thursday it would buy rural mobile service provider Alltel Corp for $28.1 billion including debt, which would vault it to first place in the U.S. market ahead of AT&T Inc (T.N).
Under terms of the deal, Verizon Wireless would acquire the equity of Alltel for $5.9 billion...

What would an Apple developers conference be without rumors? The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco, beginning Monday, is no exception.
One persistent rumor is that the conference will see the announcement of a much-awaited 3G iPhone. Certainly, the iPhone is a major part of the conference, with nearly a third of all sessions devoted to the popular mobile device. Apple...

Federal officials unsealed two indictments Thursday charging Broadcom co-founder Henry T. Nicholas III with conspiracy and securities fraud relating to stock options backdating, as well as numerous drug charges.
The indictments allege a total of 25 counts against Nicholas, including conspiracy, securities fraud, false certification of financial reports, filing false statements with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, wire fraud and conspiracy...

PRESCOTT, Ariz. - The rejection from Air Midwest came swiftly on a one-page fax. The carrier couldn't afford to fly to the mountain community of Prescott anymore, officials said. The city would simply have to find a new tenant for its tiny airport.
"Everything was going fine -- then, bam -- the airline is gone,'' Mayor Jack Wilson said with a sigh....