WASHINGTON – A federal judge on Friday set former White House aide I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby‘s trial date in the CIA leak case for January 2007, two months after the midterm congressional elections. The trial for Libby, who faces perjury and obstruction of justice charges, will begin with jury selection …

HOUSTON – The next three government witnesses in the fraud and conspiracy trial of former Enron Corp. chiefs Kenneth Lay and Jeffrey Skilling are hardly household names but may still deliver testimony that is devastating to the defendants. They include two government cooperators — one who pleaded guilty to insider …

KABUL, Afghanistan – Avalanches in northeast Afghanistan have killed at least 18 people and destroyed dozens of homes in the past week, a provincial governor said Wednesday. In neighboring Tajikistan, rescuers Wednesday recovered the bodies of six more avalanche victims, raising the death toll there to 18, an official said. …

BAGHDAD, Iraq – Car bombs and gunmen killed more than 20 people on Saturday across Iraq, including an American soldier, as the government said insurgency-related violence cost the country’s vital oil industry about $6.25 billion in damage and lost revenue last year. British and Iraqi authorities, meanwhile, confirmed that two …

NEW YORK – A combination of moderate inflation and falling oil prices energized Wall Street Wednesday, sending stocks higher as investors grew optimistic about an end to the Federal Reserve’s interest rate hikes. The core rate of inflation, which excludes energy and food, rose by a tame 0.2 percent in …

WASHINGTON – The largest U.S. long-distance carriers cooperated with the National Security Agency‘s wiretapping of international calls without warrants, according to a published report Monday that cited unnamed telecommunications executives and intelligence officials. MCI, Sprint and AT&T grant access to their systems without warrants or court orders, and provide call-routing …

Thousands of Web sites in Denmark and Europe have been hacked and defaced in apparent retaliation for the publication of cartoons satirizing the Prophet Mohammed. According to Zone-H.org, an outfit that tracks server intrusions worldwide, more than 600 attacks against Web servers in Denmark have been recorded. Servers in Israel …

AVOIDING ACCIDENTS IN THE FIELD: — Be aware of holes created by roots of downed trees. — Keep gun unloaded when climbing over fallen trees or debris. — Be especially careful when visibility poor. — Don’t use fallen or leaning tree for deer stands. (Source: www.ext.vt.edu/pubs/disaster/490-318/490-318.html) TEN COMMANDMENTS OF GUN …

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia – Cambodia’s population of Irrawaddy dolphins could vanish within a decade unless strict enforcement is undertaken to protect the endangered species, a conservation official warned Wednesday. Phai Somany, senior officer of the Cambodian Mekong Dolphin Conservation Project, raised the alarm after receiving news about the deaths of …

SALEM, Ore. – The Oregon Supreme Court upheld on Thursday a $79.5 million punitive damages award to the family of an Oregon smoker who died of lung cancer, saying the amount isn’t excessive given the “reprehensible” conduct of tobacco giant Philip Morris in marketing cigarettes. The decision upholds a lower …