India train accident kills dozens
HYDERABAD, India (AP) — Officials in southern India say at least 25 people were killed when a passenger train rammed into a parked freight train and caught fire.
It took rescue workers about six hours to pull some 70 survivors out of the twisted and smoldering wreckage. The local police chief says 16 people trapped inside burned to death.
JOPLIN TORNADO-ANNIVERSARY
UPDATE: Joplin commemorates anniversary of deadly tornado
JOPLIN, Mo. (AP) — It's a bittersweet day as residents of Joplin, Mo., pause to remember the 161 people killed in a tornado a year ago and look ahead as ground is broken for three replacement buildings, including the city's only public high school.
Gov. Jay Nixon joined President Barack Obama last night as Joplin High School graduation speakers.
IRAN-NUCLEAR
UN nuclear chief says deal with Iran reached
VIENNA (AP) — The chief of the U.N. nuclear agency says he has reached a deal with Iran on probing suspected work on nuclear weapons and adds that the agreement will "be signed quite soon. "
Yukiya Amano says some details still need to be worked out. But he tells reporters that Iranian officials say that those will not stand in the way of signing the deal.
Amano spoke today on return from Tehran, after talks on resuming a long-stalled probe into suspicions that Iran secretly worked on developing nuclear weapons.
The investigation has been stalled for more than four years, with Iran saying it has never carried out such experiments. Iran denies that it is interested in nuclear weapons, saying it wants nuclear power only to generate energy.
KOREAS-NUCLEAR
NKorea threatens to keep building nuclear program
PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) — North Korea is warning that it will keep developing its nuclear program if the United States continues to "stifle" the country.
A Foreign Ministry spokesman made no direct threat today of a nuclear test but said North Korea feels compelled to strengthen its "nuclear deterrent" in the face of U.S. hostility.
However, the spokesman said North Korea is open to dialogue to resolve the standoff.
The statement carried by the state-run Korean Central News Agency was a response to a warning by the Group of Eight nations of more sanctions if North Korea conducts provocative acts.
There is concern that North Korea may carry out a nuclear test after a failed attempt to launch a long-range rocket last month. The North insists it was a peaceful bid to send a satellite into space.
TURKEY-US-ARMED DRONES
Turkey says US favorable to sale of armed drones
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkish President Abdullah Gul says the U.S. administration is trying to convince the U.S. Congress to allow the sale of armed drones to Turkey.
Turkey wants to buy the drones to help its fight against autonomy-seeking Kurdish rebels. But analysts say some Congress members may oppose sales to Turkey due to its tense relations with Israel.
A botched attack in December — in which the military acting on intelligence from unarmed drones killed 34 smugglers it mistook for the rebels — is likely to further complicate sales.
Gul met President Barack Obama on the sidelines of a NATO summit in Chicago late Monday.
The state-run Anadolu Agency quoted Gul as telling Turkish reporters after the meeting that Obama's administration is favorable to the sale.
PRIVATE SPACE
Private rocket blasts off for space station
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — A commercial rocket has blasted off with a load of supplies for the International Space Station.
The SpaceX company's Falcon 9 rocket took flight at 3:44 a.m. today from Cape Canaveral, opening a new era of spaceflight. It carried a capsule named Dragon that is packed with 1,000 pounds of space station provisions.
This is the first time a private business has launched a vessel to the space station. That's something only major governments have done — until now.
The real test comes Thursday when the Dragon gets close to the space station. It will undergo practice maneuvers from more than a mile out. If all goes well, the docking will occur Friday.
NASA and SpaceX stress that this is a demonstration flight.
WORLD ECONOMY
OECD warns risk of 'severe recession' in Eurozone
PARIS (AP) — The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's top economist says the 17-country eurozone risks falling into a "severe recession" and called on governments and Europe's central bank to act quickly to stop the slowdown spilling over into the global economy.
OECD Chief Economist Pier Carlo Padoan says the eurozone is "close to" the possible scenario of a 2 percent economic contraction this year that the Paris-based think tank laid out as its worst-case scenario last November.
Padoan's comments come as the OECD releases its twice-yearly global economic outlook. The organization now forecasts a longer and deeper contraction in the eurozone than in its November report, with the eurozone economy expected to shrink in 2012, and only manage a feeble recovery in 2013.
YEMEN
After massacre, somber Yemen marks National Day
SANAA, Yemen (AP) — In deep shock, Yemen is marking the 22nd anniversary of its unification, a day after a deadly suicide bombing killed nearly 100 soldiers during a rehearsal for a military parade in the heart of the capital Sanaa.
A smaller, symbolic parade was still held at a high-security location inside Sanaa's Aviation Academy today to mark Yemen's National Day.
President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi attended the ceremony, sitting behind a bulletproof glass shield with his armored car parked nearby. The program was cut short from three hours to one and only cadets from the police and aviation academies participated.
Al-Qaida has claimed responsibility for Monday's attack, saying it was a revenge for a U.S.-backed offensive against the terror network in southern Yemen.
EDWARDS TRIAL
Jury at Edwards trial to deliberate for 3rd day
GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) — The jury at the trial of former presidential candidate John Edwards is set to deliberate his fate for a third day.
The jurors ended their talks Monday shortly after requesting access to a second set of exhibits they wanted for a closer look, including a handwritten note from Rachel "Bunny" Mellon. The 101-year-old heiress provided most of the nearly $1 million in secret payments prosecutors say Edwards used to help hide his pregnant mistress as he sought the Democratic presidential nomination in 2008.
The jury began its deliberations Friday after nearly four weeks of testimony in the case. Edwards has pleaded not guilty to six felony counts related to campaign finance violations. He faces up to 30 years in prison and $1.5 million in fines if convicted on all counts.
SERIAL STABBINGS
Mich. jury close to finish line in stabbings trial
FLINT, Mich. (AP) — A jury in Michigan is returning for closing arguments and deliberations today in the fatal stabbing of a 49-year-old man, the last Michigan attack linked to a knifing spree two summers ago.
Three mental health experts testifying for prosecutors say Elias Abuelazam (A'-boo-LAH'-zuhm) was not mentally ill and can be held criminally responsible for the death of Arnold Minor. A psychiatrist for the defense offered a very different opinion.
The jury will hear closing arguments and get instructions from a judge Tuesday. Police said the victim's blood was found in Abuelazam's car and inside his luggage.
Fourteen people were stabbed in and around Flint in summer 2010, and five died. Abuelazam is charged in nine of those stabbings, including three deaths. He's charged with attempted murder in Toledo, Ohio.
SEARCHING FOR SIERRA
Man arrested in case of missing Calif. teen
MORGAN HILL, Calif. (AP) — Authorities say they have arrested a man in the disappearance of a Northern California teenager more than two months ago.
Santa Clara County Sheriff's identified the suspect as 21-year-old Antolin Garcia-Torres. He was arrested late Monday at a Safeway store in Morgan Hill, and authorities say he is responsible for 15-year-old Sierra LaMar's disappearance.
Sierra hasn't been seen or heard from since she left her home in Morgan Hill to go to school on the morning of March 16. Authorities believe she was kidnapped while walking to a school bus stop.
Volunteers and sheriff's officials have continued searches of the fields and open spaces near and around Morgan Hill, as well as reservoirs in the area.
Garcia-Torres was arrested on suspicion of murder and kidnapping. Additional information was not immediately available.
Facebook
Remembering Robin Gibb
