story

BEIJING – Chinese President Hu Jintao (search) departed Friday for a rare summit with North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong Il (search), ahead of planned six-nation talks on the North’s nuclear program. Hu’s trip comes amid U.S. pressure for Beijing to do more to get its communist ally North Korea to …

NEW YORK – An American woman who has served the United Nations for 25 years has been locked in a bitter struggle with the organization’s leadership for the past 18 months over sexual harassment allegations. Cynthia Brzak (search) says she was sexually assaulted by Ruud Lubbers (search), the former U.N. …

CAMBRIA, Calif. – An earthquake shook central California early Saturday about five miles northeast of San Simeon, home to Hearst Castle. The magnitude-4.2 temblor hit at 5:17 a.m., according to a preliminary report from the U.S. Geological Survey. Sgt. Rex Reece of the San Luis Obispo County sheriff’s Cambria station …

SAN FRANCISCO – EBay Inc. (EBAY), the world’s largest online auction site, Wednesday posted a 40 percent rise in quarterly net profit and raised its outlook, but shares fell as investors were looking for more. The results, excluding one-time items, were within the range of Wall Street expectations, as growth …

AUSTIN, Texas – Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers, who once owned a .45-caliber revolver (search), is not licensed to carry a concealed handgun in Texas. State officials refused Monday to reveal whether she has ever been licensed. Miers’ brother gave her the Smith & Wesson (search) handgun when he was …

LONDON – Britain and Croatia confirmed cases of bird flu on Friday as countries around the world scrambled to put in place measures to prevent the spread of the virus. In Croatia, the Agriculture Ministry (search) said the country’s first cases of bird flu were confirmed in six swans found …

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil – Brazilians soundly rejected a proposal to ban the sale of guns in a national referendum Sunday, striking down the bid to stem one of the world’s highest firearm murder rates following a campaign that drew parallels to the U.S. gun control debate. Brazil (search) has …

BUCHAREST, Romania – Romania’s Agriculture Ministry said Saturday that British lab tests had confirmed the H5N1 (search) strain of Bird flu had been found in Romania. Agriculture Ministry spokesman Adrian Tibu said agriculture, veterinary officials were holding an emergency meeting Saturday morning with Interior Ministry officials and local leader to …

TOLEDO, Ohio – Police began receiving word midweek that gangs were going to descend on a neighborhood where a riot erupted over a planned march by a white supremacist group, but the resulting disturbance was worse than expected, the police chief said Sunday. The riot broke out Saturday when protesters …

QAIM, Iraq – A U.S. offensive aimed at Al Qaeda (search) in Iraq insurgents in western Iraq entered its third day Monday, with airstrikes in a town on the banks of the Euphrates River (search), witnesses said. At least 36 militants have died since the fighting began, officials said. No …