BEIJING (Reuters) - North Korea and the United States have resolved a dispute over $25 million frozen at a Macau bank, U.S. officials said, clearing a major obstacle to six-party talks on nuclear disarmament that resumed on Monday.

AP - Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee say the Bush administration needs to be more straightforward about the White House's role in the dismissals of eight federal prosecutors.

AP - White House leaders warn that House Democrats' plan to pull troops from Iraq is unlikely to become law and sure to threaten national security if it did. Despite those bleak warnings, the House seems ready to approve its bill this week.

Reuters - North Korea and the United States have resolved a dispute over $25 million frozen at a Macau bank, U.S. officials said, clearing a major obstacle to six-party talks on nuclear disarmament that resumed on Monday.

AFP - US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Sunday it was too soon to know whether the US troop "surge" in Iraq is making progress, as the White House fended off heavy pressure to wind up the war four years after it began.

KABUL (Reuters) - A U.S. embassy convoy was hit by a suicide car bomber in the Afghan capital of Kabul on Monday, resulting in the deaths of some people, police said.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Only 18 percent of Iraqis have confidence in U.S.-led forces and about 86 percent are concerned about someone in their household being a victim of violence, according to a survey published by the BBC on Monday.

AP - The United States and North Korea have resolved a dispute over $25 million in frozen North Korean funds, clearing the way for progress in dismantling the North's nuclear programs, U.S. officials said Monday.

AP - A car bomb exploded next to a U.S. Embassy convoy on a busy road in Kabul on Monday, setting an embassy SUV on fire, officials said.

AP - With the skies and runways clear, US Airways struggled to accommodate a backlog of weary travelers stranded at Philadelphia International Airport days after a paralyzing ice storm struck the Northeast.

AP - Al Horford and the defending champion Florida Gators are headed back to the round of 16, three wins from a shot at a second straight NCAA title. They'll have one less high-seeded opponent standing in their way after Wisconsin was sent home Sunday by a UNLV squad led by the father-son duo of Lon and Kevin Kruger.

Reuters - A U.S. embassy convoy was hit by a suicide car bomber in the Afghan capital of Kabul on Monday, resulting in the deaths of some people, police said.

Reuters - Only 18 percent of Iraqis have confidence in U.S.-led forces and about 86 percent are concerned about someone in their household being a victim of violence, according to a survey published by the BBC on Monday.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Only 18 percent of Iraqis have confidence in U.S.-led forces, a new poll showed on Monday, as President Bush faced anti-war protests at home four years after the invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein.

GAZA (Reuters) - A year-old diplomatic boycott of the Palestinian government eased on Monday when Norway's deputy foreign minister met in Gaza with Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas.

LONDON (Reuters) - A U.S. collector who bought an Andy Warhol portrait of Marilyn Monroe in 1962 for $250 is offering the painting for sale in May and can expect to fetch over $15 million, auctioneers Christie's said on Monday.

Reuters - Only 18 percent of Iraqis have confidence in U.S.-led forces, a new poll showed on Monday, as President Bush faced anti-war protests at home four years after the invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein.

Reuters - The U.S. Supreme Court considers on Monday its first major dispute on student free-speech rights in nearly 20 years, a case about the power of school authorities to censor what they viewed as a pro-drug message at a school-sponsored event.

Reuters - A year-old diplomatic boycott of the Palestinian government eased on Monday when Norway's deputy foreign minister met in Gaza with Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Only 18 percent of Iraqis have confidence in U.S.-led forces, a new poll showed on Monday, four years after the invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein.

BEIJING (Reuters) - U.S. envoy Christopher Hill said on Monday six-party talks on North Korea needed to move on to details of its nuclear weapons program, now a dispute over $25 million frozen at a Macau bank had been resolved.

KARACHI (Reuters) - The lawyer of an Islamist militant sentenced to hang in Pakistan for his role in the 2002 murder of U.S. reporter Daniel Pearl said on Monday he would use a top al Qaeda militant's confession to support an appeal.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Former U.S. Balkans peace broker Richard Holbrooke said on Monday that violence could explode in Kosovo as early as next month if Russia stalls a U.N. plan to give the breakaway Serbian province independence.

GAZA (Reuters) - An explosion ripped through the house of an Islamic Jihad member in the Gaza Strip on Monday, killing him and wounding at least nine people, hospital workers and residents said.

AP - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Monday staunchly defended going to war in Iraq, but acknowledged the Bush administration likely erred by failing initially to send enough troops to quell the civil strife that followed the overthrow of Saddam Hussein.

AP - Three police officers surrendered Monday to face charges in the shooting that killed a groom on his wedding day.

AP - A methane gas explosion in a Siberian coal mine on Monday killed at least nine miners, a Russian emergency official said.

AP - The optimism that helped sustain Iraqis during the first few years of the war has dissolved into widespread fear, anger and distress amid unrelenting violence, a survey found.

AP - U.S. stocks moved toward a higher opening Monday as Wall Street tried to bounce back from a losing week and as stocks in Asia and Europe posted gains.

AP - AOL is offering users of its AIM instant messaging service new capabilities to see where people on their buddy lists are physically located.

AP - Naomi Campbell is known for her fashion poses on the catwalk, not her cleaning skills. But for five days, beginning Monday morning, the 36-year-old supermodel was expected to push a broom or mop at a Manhattan garage to fulfill her sentence for community service for throwing a cell phone at her maid over a pair of missing jeans.

Reuters - U.S. envoy Christopher Hill said on Monday six-party talks on North Korea needed to move on to details of its nuclear weapons program, now a dispute over $25 million frozen at a Macau bank had been resolved.

Reuters - The lawyer of an Islamist militant sentenced to hang in Pakistan for his role in the 2002 murder of U.S. reporter Daniel Pearl said on Monday he would use a top al Qaeda militant's confession to support an appeal.

Reuters - Former U.S. Balkans peace broker Richard Holbrooke said on Monday that violence could explode in Kosovo as early as next month if Russia stalls a U.N. plan to give the breakaway Serbian province independence.

Reuters - A U.S. collector who bought an Andy Warhol portrait of Marilyn Monroe in 1962 for $250 is offering the painting for sale in May and can expect to fetch over $15 million, auctioneers Christie's said on Monday.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The United States must act to cap its emissions of greenhouse gases and join the fight against climate change or risk losing global leadership, a former CIA director said in a report released on Monday.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Karen Jackson would be the first to admit her desk looks like a disaster area.

GAZA (Reuters) - The armed wing of Hamas said it carried out its first attacks on Monday against Israel since a shaky November truce in the Gaza Strip, shooting a utility worker near the border and firing two mortar bombs at soldiers.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Bush will make a statement on Monday on the fourth anniversary of the Iraq war after holding a videoconference with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, the White House said.

AP - President Bush marked the fourth anniversary of the war in Iraq on Monday as the White House tried to counter Democratic attempts to force a withdrawal of U.S. troops.

AP - Three police officers surrendered Monday to face charges in a shooting that killed an unarmed groom on his wedding day.

AP - A methane gas explosion ripped through a Siberian coal mine Monday, killing at least 25 miners and sending rescuers scrambling to evacuate more than 100 left underground, government and emergency officials said.

AP - A suicide car bomber attacked a three-vehicle U.S. Embassy convoy on a notoriously dangerous road in the Afghan capital on Monday, killing an Afghan teenager and wounding five embassy security personnel, officials said.

AP - Airport lines were still long Monday but getting back to normal in as US Airways tried to recover from a paralyzing ice storm that stranded thousands of travelers in Northeast cities over the weekend.

AP - Stocks rose Monday as Wall Street joined overseas stock markets in riding a wave of merger news to bounce back from a losing week.

Reuters - Four in five Iraqis have little or no confidence in U.S.-led forces and most think their presence is making security worse, but despite that only about a third want them to leave now, a poll showed on Monday.

Reuters - The United States must act to cap its emissions of greenhouse gases and join the fight against climate change or risk losing global leadership, a former CIA director said in a report released on Monday.

Reuters - Karen Jackson would be the first to admit her desk looks like a disaster area.

AFP - A series of coordinated car bombs and mortar attacks have killed 15 people and wounded dozens more in the ethnically-volatile Iraqi oil hub of Kirkuk on Monday.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Two police officers were charged with manslaughter and a third for reckless endangerment in the firing 50 of shots at three unarmed black men, killing one on his wedding day, prosecutors said on Monday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - One of Pentagon's top al Qaeda suspects said he planned the 2000 attack on the USS Cole and was the link between Osama bin Laden and a group that bombed the U.S. Embassy in Kenya in 1998, according to a hearing transcript released on Monday.

DETROIT (Reuters) - With bidding stalled on some of the least desirable residences in Detroit's collapsing housing market, even the fast-talking auctioneer was feeling the stress.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Police arrested several anti-war protests outside the New York Stock Exchange on Monday after they lay in front of the entrance to mark the fourth anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq.

AP - With Democrats pushing for an end to the Iraq war now entering its fifth year, President Bush pleaded for more patience Monday, saying success is possible but 'will take months, not days or weeks.'

AP - Waleed Mohammed bin Attash, long suspected of plotting the bombing of the USS Cole, confessed to planning the attack during a hearing at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, according to a Pentagon transcript released Monday.

AP - A methane gas explosion ripped through a Siberian coal mine Monday, killing at least 61 miners among nearly 200 working underground, government and emergency officials said.

AP - Banana company Chiquita Brands International admitted in federal court Monday that, for years, it paid Colombian terrorists to protect its most profitable banana-growing operation.

AP - A first-class passenger on a flight from Delhi to London awoke find the corpse of a woman who had died in the economy cabin being placed in a seat next to him, British Airways said Monday.

Reuters - Two police officers were charged with manslaughter and a third for reckless endangerment in the firing 50 of shots at three unarmed black men, killing one on his wedding day, prosecutors said on Monday.

Reuters - One of Pentagon's top al Qaeda suspects said he planned the 2000 attack on the USS Cole and was the link between Osama bin Laden and a group that bombed the U.S. Embassy in Kenya in 1998, according to a hearing transcript released on Monday.

Reuters - With bidding stalled on some of the least desirable residences in Detroit's collapsing housing market, even the fast-talking auctioneer was feeling the stress.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Marking the fourth anniversary of the Iraq war, President George W. Bush warned skeptical Americans on Monday that a swift troop withdrawal would have 'devastating' consequences for U.S. security.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A suspected al Qaeda member said he planned the 2000 attack on the USS Cole and was the link between Osama bin Laden and a group that bombed the U.S. Embassy in Kenya in 1998, according to a transcript released on Monday of a hearing at Guantanamo Bay.

MOSCOW (Reuters) - At least 71 people were killed by a methane blast at a Russian coal mine on Monday, an official at the local rescue operation headquarters told Reuters.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Saddam Hussein's former vice president, Taha Yassin Ramadan, will be hanged on Tuesday for crimes against humanity, according to legal sources who said his lawyers had been summoned on Monday evening.

BEIJING (Reuters) - U.S. envoy Christopher Hill said on Monday talks on scrapping North Korea's nuclear weapons program had overcome an impasse over frozen bank accounts and now needed to map out steps toward disarmament.

AP - A methane gas explosion ripped through a Siberian coal mine Monday, killing at least 61 miners among nearly 200 working underground in one of the deadliest mining accidents in Russia in the past decade.

Reuters - Marking the fourth anniversary of the Iraq war, President George W. Bush warned skeptical Americans on Monday that a swift troop withdrawal would have "devastating" consequences for U.S. security.

Reuters - A suspected al Qaeda member said he planned the 2000 attack on the USS Cole and was the link between Osama bin Laden and a group that bombed the U.S. Embassy in Kenya in 1998, according to a transcript released on Monday of a hearing at Guantanamo Bay.

Reuters - At least 71 people were killed by a methane blast at a Russian coal mine on Monday, an official at the local rescue operation headquarters told Reuters.

Reuters - Saddam Hussein's former vice president, Taha Yassin Ramadan, will be hanged on Tuesday for crimes against humanity, according to legal sources who said his lawyers had been summoned on Monday evening.

Reuters - U.S. envoy Christopher Hill said on Monday talks on scrapping North Korea's nuclear weapons program had overcome an impasse over frozen bank accounts and now needed to map out steps toward disarmament.

AFP - US President George W. Bush warned Monday it was too soon for US troops in Iraq to "pack up and go home" as the war slid into its fifth year clouded by pessimism and political angst on the home front.

AFP - A devastating gas explosion tore through a Siberian coal mine Monday, killing at least 61 miners, officials said, as emergency workers raced to rescue dozens still trapped underground.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - In its first major student free-speech rights case in almost 20 years, U.S. Supreme Court justices struggled on Monday with how far schools can go in censoring students.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Striking a subdued tone on the fourth anniversary of the Iraq war, President George W. Bush pleaded for patience on Monday and warned skeptical Americans of dire consequences of a swift troop withdrawal.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Two New York police officers were charged with manslaughter and a third with reckless endangerment on Monday in the firing of 50 shots at three unarmed black men that killed a groom on his wedding day.

ULYANOVSKAYA MINE, Russia (Reuters) - A methane explosion killed 75 people in a Siberian coal mine on Monday in the deadliest accident in Russia's mining industry in at least a decade, rescuers said.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - At least two of the health care proposals being presented to Congress would cover all or nearly all of the Americans who lack health insurance, and many would lower spending, too, according to an independent report released on Monday.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Jury selection began on Monday in the murder trial of pioneering rock producer Phil Spector, who came to court in Los Angeles sporting a new blond, Beatles-style shag and smiling broadly as he made his way past photographers.

AP - A Yemeni portrayed as an al-Qaida operative and a member of a terrorist family confessed to plotting the bombings of the USS Cole and two U.S. embassies in Africa, killing hundreds, according to a Pentagon transcript of a Guantanamo Bay hearing.

AP - Cheryl Burke, two-time champion on ABC's 'Dancing With the Stars,' says she doesn't feel any pressure to bring home another disco-ball trophy as the fourth season premiered Monday.

AP - Stocks spiked higher Monday as Wall Street joined overseas markets in riding a wave of merger news to bounce back from a losing week. The Dow Jones industrials rose 115 points.

AP - Miami Dolphins linebacker Joey Porter was accused of punching Cincinnati Bengals offensive lineman Levi Jones after police said the players exchanged trash talk at a casino blackjack table.

Reuters - In its first major student free-speech rights case in almost 20 years, U.S. Supreme Court justices struggled on Monday with how far schools can go in censoring students.

Reuters - Striking a subdued tone on the fourth anniversary of the Iraq war, President George W. Bush pleaded for patience on Monday and warned skeptical Americans of dire consequences of a swift troop withdrawal.

Reuters - Two New York police officers were charged with manslaughter and a third with reckless endangerment on Monday in the firing of 50 shots at three unarmed black men that killed a groom on his wedding day.

Reuters - A methane explosion killed 75 people in a Siberian coal mine on Monday in the deadliest accident in Russia's mining industry in at least a decade, rescuers said.

Reuters - At least two of the health care proposals being presented to Congress would cover all or nearly all of the Americans who lack health insurance, and many would lower spending, too, according to an independent report released on Monday.

AFP - A devastating gas explosion tore through a Siberian coal mine Monday, killing at least 75 miners, Russian officials said, as emergency workers raced to rescue dozens still trapped underground.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Striking a subdued tone on the fourth anniversary of the Iraq war, President George W. Bush pleaded for patience on Monday and warned skeptical Americans of dire consequences of a swift troop withdrawal.

ULYANOVSKAYA MINE, Russia (Reuters) - A methane explosion killed 78 people in a Siberian coal mine on Monday in the deadliest accident in Russia's mining industry in at least a decade, rescuers said.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - At least two of the health care proposals being presented to Congress would cover all or nearly all of the Americans who lack health insurance, and many would lower spending, too, according to an independent report released on Monday.

AP - The Iraq war lumbered into its fifth year Monday with President Bush pleading for patience to let his revised battle plan work and Congress' new Democratic leaders retorting that no patience remains.

AP - A Yemeni portrayed as an al-Qaida operative and a member of a terrorist family confessed to plotting the bombings of the USS Cole and two U.S. embassies in Africa, killing hundreds, according to a Pentagon transcript of a Guantanamo Bay hearing.

AP - The Iraqi government asked U.S. authorities for custody of Saddam Hussein's former deputy to hang him at dawn Tuesday, the fourth anniversary of the start of the U.S.-led war in Iraq.

AP - Attorney General Alberto Gonzales' hold on his job grew more uncertain Monday as the Senate debated removing his authority to unilaterally name U.S. attorneys and the White House said it merely hoped he would survive the tumult.

AP - Nuthatches appear to have learned to understand a foreign language — chickadee. It's not unusual for one animal to react to the alarm call of another, but nuthatches seem to go beyond that — interpreting the type of alarm and what sort of predator poses a threat. When a chickadee sees a predator, it issues warning call — a soft 'seet' for a flying hawk, owl or falcon, or a loud 'chick-a-dee-dee-dee' for a perched predator.

AP - Duct tape's success at curing warts may have been overstated, according to a new study that raises doubts about the tape's effectiveness as a cheap, painless treatment. The tape supposedly works by irritating the skin and stimulating the body's immune system to attack the virus that causes warts. It earned a place in the medicine cabinet in 2002, when a small study showed it to be effective on children and young adults.

AP - Stocks spiked higher Monday as Wall Street joined overseas markets in riding a wave of merger news to bounce back from a losing week. The Dow Jones industrials rose 115 points.

Reuters - Striking a subdued tone on the fourth anniversary of the Iraq war, President George W. Bush pleaded for patience on Monday and warned skeptical Americans of dire consequences of a swift troop withdrawal.

Reuters - A methane explosion killed 78 people in a Siberian coal mine on Monday in the deadliest accident in Russia's mining industry in at least a decade, rescuers said.

AFP - A devastating gas explosion tore through a Siberian coal mine Monday, killing at least 78 miners, Russian officials said, as emergency workers raced to rescue dozens still trapped underground.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Two New York police officers were charged with manslaughter and a third with reckless endangerment on Monday in the firing of 50 shots at three unarmed black men that killed a groom on his wedding day.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Police arrested more than 100 Iraq war protesters in San Francisco and New York City on Monday as the nation marked the fourth anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq.

AP - The Iraqi government asked U.S. authorities for custody of Saddam Hussein's former deputy to hang him at dawn Tuesday, the fourth anniversary of the start of the U.S.-led war in Iraq.

AP - State Farm Fire & Casualty Co. will re-examine more than 35,000 policyholder claims filed after Hurricane Katrina and 'make millions of dollars available' for additional payments, Mississippi Insurance Commissioner George Dale said Monday.

AP - New York Islanders forward Chris Simon, suspended a league-record 25 games for a vicious on-ice hit, will not face criminal charges.

Reuters - Two New York police officers were charged with manslaughter and a third with reckless endangerment on Monday in the firing of 50 shots at three unarmed black men that killed a groom on his wedding day.

Reuters - Police arrested more than 100 Iraq war protesters in San Francisco and New York City on Monday as the nation marked the fourth anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq.

ULYANOVSKAYA MINE, Russia (Reuters) - Rescuers raced on Tuesday to try and save more than 30 miners still trapped in a Siberian coal mine after Russia's deadliest mining accident for a decade killed 78 people.

CHICAGO (Reuters) - A U.S. soldier was sentenced to 10 years in prison on Monday after a court-martial found him guilty of killing three Iraqi detainees who were freed and told to run before being shot, officials at Fort Campbell in Kentucky said.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Just 15 minutes a day of kicking around a ball or swimming might be enough to keep children from becoming obese, British and U.S. researchers said on Monday.

AP - The former deputy in Saddam Hussein's government was hanged before dawn Tuesday for the killings of 148 Shiites, an official with the prime minister's office said.

AP - The Miss USA pageant gears up to name a new queen this week in a live televised competition that organizers say will spotlight how reigning titleholder Tara Conner nearly lost her crown and ended up in rehab.

Reuters - Rescuers raced on Tuesday to try and save more than 30 miners still trapped in a Siberian coal mine after Russia's deadliest mining accident for a decade killed 78 people.

Reuters - A U.S. soldier was sentenced to 10 years in prison on Monday after a court-martial found him guilty of killing three Iraqi detainees who were freed and told to run before being shot, officials at Fort Campbell in Kentucky said.

AFP - US President George W. Bush pleaded for patience Monday as the Iraq war entered its fifth year under a cloud of pessimism and a push in Congress to set a timetable for a US troop pullout.

DUBAI (Reuters) - Saddam Hussein's former vice president Taha Yassin Ramadan was executed in Baghdad on Tuesday, Ramadan's son told Al Jazeera television.

AP - Heather Mills stepped up and showed she can dance on a prosthetic leg. Gracefully. Mills' appearance on 'Dancing With the Stars' on Monday night had been eagerly awaited, amid public speculation that she might experience trouble.

AP - Jaromir Jagr looked for teammate Michael Nylander — and luckily found defenseman Rob Scuderi. Jagr snapped his longest scoring drought of the season Monday night when his pass for Nylander clipped off Scuderi's stick and slipped into the net with 33.8 seconds left in the New York Rangers' 2-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Reuters - Saddam Hussein's former vice president Taha Yassin Ramadan was executed in Baghdad on Tuesday, Ramadan's son told Al Jazeera television.

AFP - North Korea on Tuesday accused Japan of trying to sabotage this week's six-party nuclear talks in Beijing and said it does not need the aid which Tokyo has pledged to withhold.