Reuters: Top News

Sotomayor hearing opens Supreme Court debate

Sun, 12 Jul 2009 12:28:36 -0400

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Sonia Sotomayor looks almost certain to emerge from Senate hearings this week poised to become the first Hispanic member of the U.S. Supreme Court.

Cheney hid CIA program from Congress: senator

Sun, 12 Jul 2009 14:31:32 -0400

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The CIA withheld information from Congress about a secret counterterrorism program on orders from former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney, a U.S. senator said on Sunday amid calls for an investigation.

U.S. top prosecutor considering torture investigation

Sun, 12 Jul 2009 13:42:27 -0400

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is considering whether to appoint a criminal prosecutor to investigate the Bush administration's interrogation practices involving the CIA, and is expected to make a decision in a few weeks, a Justice Department official said on Sunday.

Two U.S. soldiers killed, Afghan war heats up

Sun, 12 Jul 2009 17:50:18 -0400

KABUL (Reuters) - A roadside bomb killed two U.S. Marines in southern Afghanistan, the U.S. military said on Sunday, the latest deaths in an escalation of violence that has put pressure on coalition leaders over their war strategy.

Lawmakers reject tax to pay for health reform

Sun, 12 Jul 2009 15:55:15 -0400

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers on Sunday criticized a plan to raise taxes on the wealthy to pay for a $1 trillion healthcare overhaul and warned Congress was unlikely to meet President Barack Obama's goal of passing the measure by August.

Heavy security in China's Xinjiang, stability urged

Sun, 12 Jul 2009 11:19:52 -0400

URUMQI, China (Reuters) - An uneasy calm returned on Sunday to China's riot-hit Urumqi where 184 people died in ethnic violence a week ago, though the official tally of dead could rise, a regional official indicated.

Crew climbs into space shuttle for launch

Sun, 12 Jul 2009 16:42:21 -0400

CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (Reuters) - The shuttle Endeavour astronauts scrambled aboard their spaceship on Sunday, hoping to break a string of launch delays and begin a 16-day mission to deliver a Japanese-built porch to the International Space Station.

Bayer says Alzheimer test shown to work in study

Sun, 12 Jul 2009 10:21:20 -0400

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Bayer's Alzheimer's disease (AD) marker florbetaben was shown to help detect the illness in eight out of 10 cases in a Phase II study, possibly offering a way to diagnose early onset.

Iraqi forces not seeking U.S. help in urban combat

Sun, 12 Jul 2009 14:53:37 -0400

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi forces have not called for U.S. help in urban combat since June 30, when U.S. combat troops withdrew from city and town centers under a bilateral security agreement, a senior U.S. official said.

Azeri blogger detained, oil major presses case

Sun, 12 Jul 2009 15:20:20 -0400

LONDON (Reuters) - An opposition blogger in Azerbaijan has been remanded in custody pending trial on hooliganism charges, prompting protests from his employer, oil major BP Plc, a media rights group said on its website.