YOGYAKARTA, Indonesia (Reuters) - At least 49 people died but scores escaped after an Indonesian passenger jet overshot the runway and burst into flames on landing in the cultural capital of Yogyakarta on Wednesday.

TEHRAN (Reuters) - An earthquake measuring 4.8 on the Richter scale hit an area in western Iran on Wednesday, injuring 35 people, the official news agency IRNA reported.

SEOUL (Reuters) - The prospects of a thaw between North Korea and its bitterest foes brightened further on Wednesday as it went into talks with Japan after a meeting in New York that the United States' envoy described as 'very good'.

AP - An Indonesian jetliner carrying 140 people burst into flames as it landed on Java island Wednesday, trapping a number of people inside the burning plane, the airline and witnesses said.

AP - As if 16 wins in a row, 23 straight home wins and a clinched playoff berth weren't enough, Jason Terry provided something extra for one fan Tuesday night — a smooch. Terry apologized for diving into an elderly woman by giving her a kiss after the play, then returned to help the Dallas Mavericks finish off a milestone-filled, 102-89 victory over the New Jersey Nets.

Reuters - At least 49 people died but scores escaped after an Indonesian passenger jet overshot the runway and burst into flames on landing in the cultural capital of Yogyakarta on Wednesday.

Reuters - An earthquake measuring 4.8 on the Richter scale hit an area in western Iran on Wednesday, injuring 35 people, the official news agency IRNA reported.

Reuters - The prospects of a thaw between North Korea and its bitterest foes brightened further on Wednesday as it went into talks with Japan after a meeting in New York that the United States' envoy described as 'very good.'

AFP - A Boeing 737-400 passenger jet burst into flames when it landed at Yogyakarta in central Indonesia on Wednesday, killing at least 49 people and leaving dozens more burnt and wounded, officials said.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - No one is likely to face criminal charges for actually leaking CIA secrets even after a U.S. jury found a former top aide to Vice President Dick Cheney guilty of lying and obstructing a probe into the affair.

JAKARTA (Reuters) - Garuda Airlines said on Wednesday that 21 passengers and one crew member died in a crash of one of its planes in Yogyakarta, contradicting a government official who gave a figure of 49 deaths earlier.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Insurgents ambushed Shi'ite Muslim pilgrims in southern Baghdad on Wednesday, killing five and wounding 10, a police source said, the day after scores of pilgrims died in a string of attacks.

HANOI (Reuters) - The prospects of a thaw between North Korea and its foes brightened on Wednesday as it held talks with Japan in Hanoi, one day after a meeting in New York that a U.S. envoy described as 'very good'.

AP - Former White House aide I. Lewis 'Scooter' Libby's conviction capped a four-year, politically charged investigation but did not seal Libby's fate or resolve some of the lingering questions in the CIA leak case.

AP - Two suicide bombers turned a procession of Shiite pilgrims into a blood-drenched stampede Tuesday, killing scores with a first blast and then claiming more lives among fleeing crowds. At least 114 were killed amid a wave of deadly strikes against Shiites heading for a solemn religious ritual.

AP - Daimler-Benz AG paid $36 billion for the company in 1998, but industry analysts now place its value at anywhere from nothing to $13.7 billion.

Reuters - No one is likely to face criminal charges for actually leaking CIA secrets even after a U.S. jury found a former top aide to Vice President Dick Cheney guilty of lying and obstructing a probe into the affair.

Reuters - Garuda Airlines said on Wednesday that 21 passengers and one crew member died in a crash of one of its planes in Yogyakarta, contradicting a government official who gave a figure of 49 deaths earlier.

Reuters - Insurgents ambushed Shi'ite Muslim pilgrims in southern Baghdad on Wednesday, killing five and wounding 10, a police source said, the day after scores of pilgrims died in a string of attacks.

Reuters - The prospects of a thaw between North Korea and its foes brightened on Wednesday as it held talks with Japan in Hanoi, one day after a meeting in New York that a U.S. envoy described as 'very good.'

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - No one is likely to face criminal charges for actually leaking CIA secrets even after a U.S. jury found a former top aide to Vice President Dick Cheney guilty of lying and obstructing a probe into the affair.

YOGYAKARTA, Indonesia (Reuters) - Twenty-two people died but scores escaped after an Indonesian passenger jet overshot the runway and burst into flames on landing in the cultural capital of Yogyakarta on Wednesday.

KERBALA, Iraq (Reuters) - Thousands of Shi'ite pilgrims defied bombers and gunmen to flock to the holy city of Kerbala on Wednesday, the day after scores were killed in a string of attacks.

TEHRAN (Reuters) - The head of the Iranian nuclear program said any attack on the country's atomic facilities would not extinguish the knowledge gained by young Iranian scientists, Iran's ISNA news agency reported.

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's stability could be threatened if the government tried to curb smoking, a senior official said on Wednesday at a discussion of the annual meeting of parliament.

AP - A packed jetliner burst into flames Wednesday as it landed on Java island, killing 21 people, but more than 110 other people escaped the burning wreckage, many with severe burns, the airline and witnesses said.

AP - Attacks on Shiite pilgrims showed no sign of easing Wednesday with at least 11 people killed by bombs and gunfire as they streamed toward a Muslim shrine ahead of a weekend holiday.

AP - Millions of people across the nation wished and waited as officials worked to determine who, if anyone, won a record $370 million Mega Millions jackpot.

Reuters - No one is likely to face criminal charges for actually leaking CIA secrets even after a U.S. jury found a former top aide to Vice President Dick Cheney guilty of lying and obstructing a probe into the affair.

Reuters - Twenty-two people died but scores escaped after an Indonesian passenger jet overshot the runway and burst into flames on landing in the cultural capital of Yogyakarta on Wednesday.

Reuters - Thousands of Shi'ite pilgrims defied bombers and gunmen to flock to the holy city of Kerbala on Wednesday, the day after scores were killed in a string of attacks.

Reuters - The head of the Iranian nuclear program said any attack on the country's atomic facilities would not extinguish the knowledge gained by young Iranian scientists, Iran's ISNA news agency reported.

Reuters - China's stability could be threatened if the government tried to curb smoking, a senior official said on Wednesday at a discussion of the annual meeting of parliament.

AFP - The United States on Tuesday wrapped up initial landmark talks with North Korea on normalization of ties, optimistic that the Stalinist state will stay on track in disbanding its nuclear arms program.

YOGYAKARTA, Indonesia (Reuters) - An Indonesian passenger jet overshot the runway and burst into flames on Wednesday as it landed in the cultural capital of Yogyakarta, but most of the 140 people on board survived.

KABUL (Reuters) - Afghan soldiers have captured a Taliban leader who tried to flee a security operation in the south dressed in a burqa, NATO said on Wednesday.

KHARTOUM (Reuters) - Washington issued a damning human rights report on Sudan, saying genocide in Darfur continued and blaming both government and rebel forces for attacks in the remote region.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Communist rule of Cuba should end when ailing leader Fidel Castro dies, President Bush said as he prepared for a Latin American tour this week.

AP - U.S. stocks headed for a moderately lower opening Wednesday, one day after Wall Street had sharp gains following a week of mostly heavy selling. Overseas markets, which have held greater sway than normal on Wall Street in the last week, offered a mixed picture to U.S. investors.

Reuters - An Indonesian passenger jet overshot the runway and burst into flames on Wednesday as it landed in the cultural capital of Yogyakarta, but most of the 140 people on board survived.

Reuters - Washington issued a damning human rights report on Sudan, saying genocide in Darfur continued and blaming both government and rebel forces for attacks in the remote region.

Reuters - Communist rule of Cuba should end when ailing leader Fidel Castro dies, President Bush said as he prepared for a Latin American tour this week.

Reuters - Afghan soldiers have captured a Taliban leader who tried to flee a security operation in the south dressed in a burqa, NATO said on Wednesday.

AFP - An Indonesian airliner with more than 130 people aboard burst into flames and shot off the runway Wednesday after landing in Yogyakarta city, killing at least 23 people, officials said.

AFP - North Korea pulled out of afternoon talks with Japan aimed at normalising bilateral ties here Wednesday, without giving a reason or saying whether further meetings would be held.

YOGYAKARTA, Indonesia (Reuters) - An Indonesian passenger jet overshot the runway and burst into flames on Wednesday as it landed in the cultural capital of Yogyakarta, but most of the 140 people on board survived.

BELFAST (Reuters) - Northern Ireland voted on Wednesday in an election that could allow the return of a government shared between Protestants and Catholics and help cement a lasting political settlement after decades of conflict.

HANOI (Reuters) - Japan and North Korea will resume talks on Thursday toward establishing diplomatic relations after discord over Japanese abducted by Pyongyang suspended the first day of discussions, Japan's chief negotiator said.

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Two U.S. citizens hospitalized in Moscow at the weekend are suffering from suspected thallium poisoning, the U.S. embassy said on Wednesday.

KHARTOUM (Reuters) - Washington issued a damning human rights report on Sudan, saying genocide in Darfur continued and blaming both government and rebel forces for attacks in the remote region.

AP - At least two people woke up Wednesday on their way to becoming millionaires.

AP - Ernest Gallo, who parlayed $5,900 and a wine recipe from a public library into the world's largest winemaking empire, has died at his home in Modesto at the age of 97.

AP - U.S. stocks appeared headed for a moderately lower opening Wednesday, one day after Wall Street had sharp gains following a week of mostly heavy selling. Overseas markets, which have held greater sway than normal on Wall Street in the last week, offered a mixed picture to U.S. investors.

AP - A Turkish court ordered access to YouTube's Web site blocked on Wednesday, after a prosecutor recommended the ban because of videos allegedly insulting the founder of modern Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.

AP - George Michael, who was arrested after police found him slumped over the steering wheel of his car in an intersection in north London last October, will face an additional charge, a prosecutor said Wednesday.

AP - Captain America has undertaken his last mission — at least for now. The venerable superhero is killed in the issue of his namesake comic that hit stands Wednesday, the Daily News reported.

AP - With nearly six weeks left on the NBA schedule, the Dallas Mavericks already are in the playoffs. Their 16th consecutive win and 23rd straight at home, a 102-89 decision over New Jersey on Tuesday night, clinched a postseason berth after just 60 games. Dallas has won 51 of them.

Reuters - An Indonesian passenger jet overshot the runway and burst into flames on Wednesday as it landed in the cultural capital of Yogyakarta, but most of the 140 people on board survived.

Reuters - Northern Ireland voted on Wednesday in an election that could allow the return of a government shared between Protestants and Catholics and help cement a lasting political settlement after decades of conflict.

Reuters - Japan and North Korea will resume talks on Thursday toward establishing diplomatic relations after discord over Japanese abducted by Pyongyang suspended the first day of discussions, Japan's chief negotiator said.

Reuters - More than 30 Vermont towns passed resolutions on Tuesday seeking to impeach President Bush, while at least 16 towns in the tiny New England state called on Washington to withdraw U.S. troops from Iraq.

Reuters - Two U.S. citizens hospitalized in Moscow at the weekend are suffering from suspected thallium poisoning, the U.S. embassy said on Wednesday.

AFP - Israeli troops firing guns and grenades stormed Palestinian military intelligence headquarters in Ramallah on Wednesday, seizing more than 50 men, Palestinian security sources said.

KERBALA, Iraq (Reuters) - More than a million Shi'ite Muslim pilgrims poured into Iraq's holy city of Kerbala on Wednesday, defying insurgents who killed 155 people in two days in attacks blamed by the government on Sunni militants.

HANOI (Reuters) - Japan and North Korea salvaged their first diplomatic talks in more than a year on Wednesday after negotiations were suspended over discord about Pyongyang's abduction of Japanese citizens.

BOSTON (Reuters) - Federal officials detained 350 suspected illegal immigrants at a Massachusetts factory that made supplies for the U.S. military in one of the biggest such raids in New England, authorities said on Wednesday.

AMMAN (Reuters) - Jordan began on Wednesday the trial of three Islamists accused of plotting to assassinate U.S. President George W. Bush when he visited the kingdom last year.

AP - Stocks moved sideways Wednesday as investors tried to determine whether the previous session's rally had legs and would continue or whether the pessimism that pressed investors into selling for much of the past week would win out.

AP - George Michael, who was arrested after police found him slumped over the steering wheel of his car in an intersection in north London last October, will face an additional charge, a prosecutor said Wednesday.

AP - Lance Mackey held the lead in the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race for just a few hours and most of that time he was asleep. Then, Four-time champions Martin Buser and Jeff King breezed through the Nikolai checkpoint and snatched the lead away. The two arrived early Wednesday in Ophir, near the halfway point of the 1,100-mile race, behind Zack Steer, 33, of Sheep Mountain, who has run the race twice with a high finish of 14th place.

Reuters - More than a million Shi'ite Muslim pilgrims poured into Iraq's holy city of Kerbala on Wednesday, defying insurgents who killed 155 people in two days in attacks blamed by the government on Sunni militants.

Reuters - Japan and North Korea salvaged their first diplomatic talks in more than a year on Wednesday after negotiations were suspended over discord about Pyongyang's abduction of Japanese citizens.

Reuters - Federal officials detained 350 suspected illegal immigrants at a Massachusetts factory that made supplies for the U.S. military in one of the biggest such raids in New England, authorities said on Wednesday.

Reuters - Jordan began on Wednesday the trial of three Islamists accused of plotting to assassinate U.S. President George W. Bush when he visited the kingdom last year.

AFP - An Indonesian airliner with more than 130 people aboard burst into flames and shot off the runway Wednesday after landing in Yogyakarta city, killing at least 21 people, officials said.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House offered support on Wednesday for Vice President Dick Cheney, a powerful proponent of the Iraq war, after the conviction of his top aide dealt a fresh blow to Cheney's political reputation and raised new questions about his influence.

VIENNA (Reuters) - European powers urged Iran on Wednesday to embrace a U.N. idea of a 'timeout' from nuclear activity, saying sanctions they sponsored against Tehran would be simultaneously suspended.

KHARTOUM (Reuters) - Sudan's government is paralyzing the humanitarian operation in Darfur with a complex web of bureaucratic obstructions which could cause massive loss of life, U.S. envoy Andrew Natsios said on Wednesday.

AP - An Ohio man whose $3,200 credit card debt mushroomed to $10,700 with interest and fees told his story Wednesday to senators who denounced the industry for confusing billing practices and shifting interest rates.

AP - A suicide bomber killed more than 30 people Wednesday in a cafe northeast of Baghdad, and three American soldiers died when a roadside bomb exploded northwest of the capital, authorities said.

AP - Attorneys for convicted former vice presidential aide I. Lewis 'Scooter' Libby began working on a request for a new trial Wednesday as the Bush White House tried to knock down speculation about a possible pardon in the CIA leak case.

AP - Stocks moved sideways Wednesday as investors tried to determine whether the previous session's rally had legs and would continue or whether the pessimism that pressed investors into selling for much of the past week would win out.

AP - Rosie O'Donnell says she began being treated for depression after the Columbine school shootings and hangs upside down for up to a half-hour a day to improve her mental state.

AP - Lance Mackey snatched back the lead in the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, speeding through Ophir on Wednesday as other teams rested.

Reuters - The White House offered support on Wednesday for Vice President Dick Cheney, a powerful proponent of the Iraq war, after the conviction of his top aide dealt a fresh blow to Cheney's political reputation and raised new questions about his influence.

Reuters - European powers urged Iran on Wednesday to embrace a U.N. idea of a 'timeout' from nuclear activity, saying sanctions they sponsored against Tehran would be simultaneously suspended.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A painstaking scan of the DNA of tumor cells shows hundreds of previously unsuspected genes are involved in cancer, researchers said on Wednesday in a finding that offers new ways to fight the disease.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States left open the possibility on Wednesday that U.S. diplomats could meet one-on-one with Iranian officials on the sidelines of a conference of Iraq's neighbors in Baghdad this weekend.

CHICAGO (Reuters) - A 17-year-old boy shot and wounded his ex-girlfriend at a central Michigan high school on Wednesday before fatally shooting himself in the head, police said.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. senators vowed on Wednesday to move forward with legislation to legalize the importation of cheaper prescription drugs from certain countries, despite resistance from regulators and drugmakers.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - King Abdullah of Jordan urged the United States on Wednesday to exert new leadership in the Middle East and said the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is still the core problem.

HOUSTON (Reuters) - Astronaut Lisa Nowak was fired by NASA on Wednesday, little more than a month after she was arrested on charges that she tried to kidnap a woman she regarded as romantic rival for the affections of a space shuttle pilot.

KANSAS CITY, Missouri (Reuters) - A federal grand jury has indicted a now-defunct Islamic charity and five men for illegally transferring funds to Iraq and stealing U.S. government grant money, prosecutors said on Wednesday.

AP - A suicide attacker blew himself up in a cafe northeast of the capital Wednesday, killing 30 people and wounding dozens, and a powerful bomb killed three American soldiers trying to clear explosives from a highway near Baghdad.

AP - A sex offender was found guilty Wednesday of kidnapping and raping a 9-year-old girl and burying her alive in a case that led to a crackdown around the country on people convicted of sex crimes.

AP - Astronaut Lisa Nowak was fired from NASA on Wednesday, a month after she was charged with trying to kidnap a woman she regarded as her romantic rival for the affections of a space shuttle pilot.

AP - Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates told Congress on Wednesday that overhauls of the nation's schools and immigration laws are urgently needed to keep jobs from going overseas. 'The U.S. cannot maintain its economic leadership unless our work force consists of people who have the knowledge and skills needed to drive innovation,' Gates told the Senate committee that oversees labor and education issues.

AP - President Bush said Wednesday the bipartisan panel he named to investigate problems at the nation's military and veterans hospitals would work to restore confidence in the system of caring for wounded troops.

AP - A top Taliban commander said Wednesday the group has 4,000 fighters bracing to rebuff NATO's largest-ever offensive in northern Afghanistan, now in its second day. Suicide bombers are ready, land mines have been planted and helicopters will be targeted, Mullah Abdul Qassim, the top Taliban commander in Helmand province told The Associated Press.

AP - The next time you take a Thai Airways flight to China, a passenger with a wingspan of 9.2 feet and a taste for rotting carcasses may also be on board. The country's national carrier announced Wednesday that it will transport a juvenile cinereous vulture to Beijing on March 21 to help return the rare bird to its natural environment in Mongolia.

AP - Stocks fell slightly but showed more signs of stability Wednesday as investors sifted through new economic data and found little reason to resume last week's heavy selling pace.

AP - Former major league relief pitcher John Rocker told ESPN Radio on Wednesday he never bought human growth hormone with a prescription.

Reuters - A painstaking scan of the DNA of tumor cells shows hundreds of previously unsuspected genes are involved in cancer, researchers said on Wednesday in a finding that offers new ways to fight the disease.

Reuters - The United States left open the possibility on Wednesday that U.S. diplomats could meet one-on-one with Iranian officials on the sidelines of a conference of Iraq's neighbors in Baghdad this weekend.

Reuters - A 17-year-old boy shot and wounded his ex-girlfriend at a central Michigan high school on Wednesday before fatally shooting himself in the head, police said.

Reuters - U.S. senators vowed on Wednesday to move forward with legislation to legalize the importation of cheaper prescription drugs from certain countries, despite resistance from regulators and drugmakers.

Reuters - King Abdullah of Jordan urged the United States on Wednesday to exert new leadership in the Middle East and said the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is still the core problem.

Reuters - Astronaut Lisa Nowak was fired by NASA on Wednesday, little more than a month after she was arrested on charges that she tried to kidnap a woman she regarded as romantic rival for the affections of a space shuttle pilot.

AFP - Northern Ireland went to the polls Wednesday in a make-or-break shot at building a lasting power-sharing administration between Protestants and Catholics.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Defense Secretary Robert Gates said on Wednesday he did not view China as a strategic adversary of the United States despite Beijing's growing military budget.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - States from Alabama to Wyoming collected such low fees from major polluters that they may have shortchanged efforts to fight air pollution by up to $50 million, an environmental group reported on Wednesday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - In God We Trust. In machines? Not so much.

AP - A Georgia truck driver stepped forward Wednesday to claim half of a $390 million jackpot, the richest lottery prize in U.S. history. 'I'm going to do a lot of fishing,' Ed Nabors, 52, of Rocky Face, Ga., about 90 miles north of Atlanta, said in a deep Southern drawl.

AP - The Pentagon has approved a request by the new U.S. commander in Iraq for an extra 2,200 military police to help deal with an anticipated increase in detainees during the Baghdad security crackdown, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Wednesday.

AP - An Indian tribe fastened a massive glass-bottomed walkway to the edge of the Grand Canyon on Wednesday as part of an ambitious tourism center that has angered environmentalists and some tribal members.

AP - When John Cornwell graduated from Duke University last year, he landed a job as software engineer in Atlanta but soon found himself longing for his college lifestyle. So the engineering graduate built himself a reminder of life on campus: a refrigerator that can toss a can of beer to his couch with the click of a remote control.

Reuters - Defense Secretary Robert Gates said on Wednesday he did not view China as a strategic adversary of the United States despite Beijing's growing military budget.

Reuters - States from Alabama to Wyoming collected such low fees from major polluters that they may have shortchanged efforts to fight air pollution by up to $50 million, an environmental group reported on Wednesday.

AFP - Northern Ireland's polling stations closed Wednesday after a day of voting aimed at triggering one last shot at creating a power-sharing administration between Protestants and Catholics.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democratic leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives have tentatively settled on a timetable and conditions for withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq, which they hope to attach to a $100 billion Iraq war spending bill, senior lawmakers said on Wednesday.

AP - A suicide attacker blew himself up in a cafe northeast of the capital Wednesday, killing 30 people as a wave of violence left 90 Iraqis dead throughout the country.

AP - Faith Hill and Tim McGraw will return this summer for another go-round of their hugely successful Soul2Soul tour. 'This is why we get into this business,' McGraw said Wednesday in announcing the shows with Hill. 'To be on stage and sing in front of thousands of people.'

AP - When John Cornwell graduated from Duke University last year, he landed a job as software engineer in Atlanta but soon found himself longing for his college lifestyle. So the engineering graduate built himself a reminder of life on campus: a refrigerator that can toss a can of beer to his couch with the click of a remote control.

Reuters - Democratic leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives have tentatively settled on a timetable and conditions for withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq, which they hope to attach to a $100 billion Iraq war spending bill, senior lawmakers said on Wednesday.

AFP - Indonesia and Australia will work together to investigate Wednesday's Garuda Indonesia airliner inferno, which killed 21 people, a minister said.

PHOENIX (Reuters) - Police in Arizona arrested a former member of the U.S. Navy on charges of spying and providing material support to terrorists, authorities said on Wednesday.

BEIJING (Reuters) - China accused the United States of hypocrisy on Thursday in its annual response to Washington's criticism of Beijing's human rights record, saying it had no right to blacken the name of other countries.

AP - Senate Democrats are threatening to withhold delivery of jet fighter planes to Pakistan if it does not intensify its campaign against terrorists.

AP - A woman who went into a vegetative state in November of 2000 awoke this week for three days, spoke with her family and a local television station before slipping back on Wednesday. 'I'm fine,' Christa Lilly told her mother on Sunday — her first words in eight months. She has awakened four other times for briefer periods.

AP - Attempts to do a movie stunt landed one man in the hospital with burned genitals and another facing criminal charges. The men were trying to do a stunt from one of the 'Jackass' movies, in which a character lights his genitals on fire.

AP - LeBron James scored a season-high 41 points, leading the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 101-97 overtime victory over the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday night.

Reuters - Police in Arizona arrested a former member of the U.S. Navy on charges of spying and providing material support to terrorists, authorities said on Wednesday.

Reuters - China accused the United States of hypocrisy on Thursday in its annual response to Washington's criticism of Beijing's human rights record, saying it had no right to blacken the name of other countries.

AFP - The top US commander in Iraq has requested 2,200 more US military police to oversee people detained in the ongoing crackdown in Baghdad, US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Wednesday.