WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A deputy to Paul Wolfowitz urged the World Bank chief on Wednesday to resign in the interests of the institution during a meeting of the bank's management, sources who participated in the meeting said.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Weakening sales tax collections may foreshadow a potential downturn in U.S. state budgets, which have been riding high in recent years on a strong economy and generally robust tax receipts, a report said on Thursday.

AP - Doctors and scientists from the University of Washington will get a glimpse of what it would be like to do remote surgery in space when a portable medical robot they created will be tested next month in an underwater environment designed by NASA to simulate zero gravity.

Reuters - Weakening sales tax collections may foreshadow a potential downturn in U.S. state budgets, which have been riding high in recent years on a strong economy and generally robust tax receipts, a report said on Thursday.

BLACKSBURG, Virginia (Reuters) - Students expressed disgust and disbelief at photos and a rage-filled video diatribe sent to a television network by the gunman who massacred 32 people at Virginia Tech university.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, facing bipartisan calls to resign, makes a possible make-or-break appearance on Thursday before a congressional panel investigating the firing of U.S. prosecutors.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wilbur-Ellis Co. said on Thursday it was voluntarily recalling all lots of a rice protein concentrate its feed division had shipped to pet-food manufacturers.

AP - Two days after the worst killing spree in modern U.S. history, the shooter again assaulted Virginia Tech — though this time it was in videos and photographs.

AP - Attorney General Alberto Gonzales was to be summoned to a Capitol Hill showdown Thursday as he fights to save his job in the face of calls for his ouster over the bungled firings of eight U.S. attorneys that Democrats say were driven by party politics.

AP - The Supreme Court's endorsement of the first federal curbs on an abortion procedure in a generation suggests that even with Democrats in control of Congress, efforts to preserve abortion rights may be losing ground.

Reuters - Students expressed disgust and disbelief at photos and a rage-filled video diatribe sent to a television network by the gunman who massacred 32 people at Virginia Tech university.

Reuters - U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, facing bipartisan calls to resign, makes a possible make-or-break appearance on Thursday before a congressional panel investigating the firing of U.S. prosecutors.

Reuters - Wilbur-Ellis Co. said on Thursday it was voluntarily recalling all lots of a rice protein concentrate its feed division had shipped to pet-food manufacturers.

AFP - Facing calls to step down, US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales testifies Thursday before lawmakers on the sacking of eight federal prosecutors, amid charges he led a White House political purge.

KABUL (Reuters) - Afghan government forces have retaken a major road the Taliban seized northeast of Kabul during the heaviest fighting close to the capital since the Islamists were ousted in 2001, an official said on Thursday.

SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea will urge North Korea on Thursday to start shutting down its nuclear reactor, using massive rice aid for its impoverished neighbor as an incentive.

KABUL (Reuters) - Taliban insurgents are deliberately targeting Afghan civilians in order to instill fear and exert control over the population, the rights group Amnesty International said on Thursday.

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Children in Sudan are press-ganged, coerced to join armed groups, raped and used as forced labor or sex slaves, according to a new report by humanitarian groups.

AP - Grieving relatives retrieved bodies from hospital morgues Thursday, and passers-by gawked at the giant crater left by a market bomb in one of four attacks that killed 183 people on the bloodiest day since the U.S. troop increase began nine weeks ago.

AP - Japan is set to launch its first lunar orbiter this summer, but exploring the moon is just part of the mission.

Reuters - Afghan government forces have retaken a major road the Taliban seized northeast of Kabul during the heaviest fighting close to the capital since the Islamists were ousted in 2001, an official said on Thursday.

Reuters - South Korea will urge North Korea on Thursday to start shutting down its nuclear reactor, using massive rice aid for its impoverished neighbor as an incentive.

Reuters - Taliban insurgents are deliberately targeting Afghan civilians in order to instill fear and exert control over the population, the rights group Amnesty International said on Thursday.

Reuters - Children in Sudan are press-ganged, coerced to join armed groups, raped and used as forced labor or sex slaves, according to a new report by humanitarian groups.

AFP - South Korean mass-killer Cho Seung-Hui cast himself as a martyr in a hate-filled manifesto that included photos of him brandishing the guns used to mow down at least 30 classmates and teachers on a US campus.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A suicide car bomber killed 10 people in Baghdad on Thursday, a day after militants killed almost 200 in the capital's bloodiest day since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, despite a security crackdown.

KABUL (Reuters) - U.S. and Afghan troops killed about 24 Taliban in a seven-hour battle in the southern province of Helmand, the U.S. military said on Thursday.

BORDEAUX (Reuters) - Simultaneous explosions occurred overnight in three towns in the southwest of France near the Spanish border, causing some damage to buildings but no casualties, a police source said on Thursday.

SEOUL (Reuters) - Talks between the Koreas stalled before they started on Thursday, with the two sides arguing whether rice aid topped closure of a nuclear reactor.

AP - Two days after the worst killing spree in modern U.S. history, videos and photographs of an armed Cho Seung-Hui stunned the university community where he killed 32 people before committing suicide Monday.

AP - Stocks pointed to a lower opening Thursday, as investors appeared poised to take profits ahead of key earnings reports and a day after the Dow Jones industrials reached a new all-time high.

AP - Mark Buehrle had one of the best nights of his career, pitching the first no-hitter of the season.

Reuters - A suicide car bomber killed 10 people in Baghdad on Thursday, a day after militants killed almost 200 in the capital's bloodiest day since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, despite a security crackdown.

Reuters - U.S. and Afghan troops killed about 24 Taliban in a seven-hour battle in the southern province of Helmand, the U.S. military said on Thursday.

Reuters - Simultaneous explosions occurred overnight in three towns in the southwest of France near the Spanish border, causing some damage to buildings but no casualties, a police source said on Thursday.

Reuters - Talks between the Koreas stalled before they started on Thursday, with the two sides arguing whether rice aid topped closure of a nuclear reactor.

AFP - Nigeria's presidential election, threatened with an opposition boycott, will take place as planned on Saturday, an official with the electoral commission said Thursday.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates arrived in Baghdad on Thursday on an unannounced visit, planning to urge Iraq's political leaders to speed up reconciliation efforts.

OSLO (Reuters) - The world will have to axe greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent by 2050, more deeply than planned, to have an even chance of curbing global warming in line with European Union goals, researchers said on Thursday.

KABUL (Reuters) - U.S. and Afghan troops killed about 24 Taliban in a battle in the Afghan south, the U.S. military said on Thursday, while government forces pushed the Taliban back from a road they had captured near Kabul.

SEOUL (Reuters) - Talks between the Koreas stalled before they started on Thursday, with the two sides arguing whether rice aid topped closure of a nuclear reactor.

BORDEAUX, France (Reuters) - Simultaneous explosions occurred overnight in two towns in the southwest of France near the Spanish border, causing some damage to buildings but no casualties, a police source said on Thursday.

AP - Defense Secretary Robert Gates slipped into Iraq Thursday to warn Iraqi leaders that the U.S. commitment to a military buildup there is not open-ended.

AP - Sanjaya Malakar, the singer who horrified and captivated millions in his improbable 'American Idol' run, was finally voted off the show Wednesday night. When the result was announced, Malakar wiped away tears and got a big hug from LaKisha Jones, the next lowest vote-getter. 'I'm fine,' he told Ryan Seacrest. 'It was an amazing experience.'

AP - U.S. stocks pointed to a sharply lower opening Thursday, a day after the Dow Jones industrials closed at a new high, as investors abroad sold off stocks amid concerns the country's economy might be growing too quickly.

AP - The New York Rangers are the first team to reach the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Rangers completed a four-game sweep last night by scoring the last three goals of a 4-2 triumph over the Atlanta Thrashers.

Reuters - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates arrived in Baghdad on Thursday on an unannounced visit, planning to urge Iraq's political leaders to speed up reconciliation efforts.

Reuters - The world will have to axe greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent by 2050, more deeply than planned, to have an even chance of curbing global warming in line with European Union goals, researchers said on Thursday.

Reuters - U.S. and Afghan troops killed about 24 Taliban in a battle in the Afghan south, the U.S. military said on Thursday, while government forces pushed the Taliban back from a road they had captured near Kabul.

Reuters - Talks between the Koreas stalled before they started on Thursday, with the two sides arguing whether rice aid topped closure of a nuclear reactor.

BLACKSBURG, Virginia (Reuters) - A videotaped diatribe by the Virginia Tech gunman shocked students and mesmerized television viewers, but police said on Thursday it yielded little value for the investigation of the campus massacre.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates arrived in Baghdad on Thursday to tell Iraq's leaders the United States wanted faster progress in reconciliation efforts, a day after bombs killed nearly 200 people in the city.

OSLO (Reuters) - The world will have to axe greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent by 2050, more deeply than planned, to have an even chance of curbing global warming in line with European Union goals, researchers said on Thursday.

KABUL (Reuters) - U.S. and Afghan troops killed about 24 Taliban in a battle in the Afghan south, the U.S. military said on Thursday, while government forces said they recaptured a road near Kabul.

BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's celebrity polar bear cub Knut has received an anonymous death threat, causing alarm at Berlin Zoo on Thursday and prompting heightened security.

Mark John

PARIS (Reuters) - Quentin Tarantino leads the U.S. challenge at the Cannes Film Festival this year, taking his movie 'Death Proof' into the main competition where he will face heavyweight compatriots the Coen Brothers and Gus Van Sant.

AP - The disturbing manifest and videos of Cho Seung-Hui delivering a snarling tirade about rich 'brats' and their 'hedonistic needs' had some marginal value to police, but they didn't add much that investigators didn't already know, officials said Thursday.

AP - His job in jeopardy, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales insisted Thursday he played only a small role in the dismissal of eight federal prosecutors. Skeptical senators reacted with disbelief.

AP - A suicide bomber breached Baghdad's heavy security presence again Thursday, killing a dozen people in a mostly Shiite district a day after more than 230 people died in one of the war's deadliest episodes of violence.

AP - Flu vaccine manufacturers expect to have a record 132 million doses ready for the 2007-2008 flu season, and there could be even more available if a fifth company joins their ranks, officials said Thursday.

AP - Stocks fell in early trading Thursday, a day after the Dow Jones industrials closed at a new high, as investors juggled upbeat economic data, divergent earnings reports and a pullback in Chinese stocks.

AP - The Columbus Blue Jackets fired president and general manager Doug MacLean, whose teams did not come within 19 points of the playoffs in the franchise's six seasons.

Reuters - A videotaped diatribe by the Virginia Tech gunman shocked students and mesmerized television viewers, but police said on Thursday it yielded little value for the investigation of the campus massacre.

Reuters - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates arrived in Baghdad on Thursday to tell Iraq's leaders the United States wanted faster progress in reconciliation efforts, a day after bombs killed nearly 200 people in the city.

Reuters - U.S. and Afghan troops killed about 24 Taliban in a battle in the Afghan south, the U.S. military said on Thursday, while government forces said they recaptured a road near Kabul.

Reuters - Quentin Tarantino leads the U.S. challenge at the Cannes Film Festival this year, taking his movie "Death Proof" into the main competition where he will face heavyweight compatriots the Coen Brothers and Gus Van Sant.

Reuters - NATO allies urged the United States on Thursday to ensure its planned anti-missile shield could one day be broadened to cover the whole of Europe but did not commit themselves to joining the project.

AFP - Nigerians vote Saturday in landmark polls that should see power transfer between two civilian presidents for the first time, despite widespread violence and the threat of an opposition boycott.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, his job possibly on the line, told skeptical lawmakers on Thursday that 'nothing improper occurred' in his firing of federal prosecutors last year but he acknowledged the process was flawed.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The United States won backing from allies for its planned missile shield system at talks at NATO on Thursday, but Russia remained unconvinced the shield was needed to preempt attacks from rogue states, officials said.

ATLANTA (Reuters) - The United States is expected to have at least 127 million flu-vaccine doses on hand for this year's influenza season -- the most ever, companies told the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday.

AP - Long before he boiled over, Virginia Tech gunman Cho Seung-Hui was picked on, pushed around and laughed at over his shyness and the strange way he talked when he was a schoolboy in the Washington suburbs, former classmates say.

AP - Defense Secretary Robert Gates slipped into Iraq Thursday to warn Iraqi leaders that the U.S. commitment to a military buildup there is not open-ended.

AP - Stocks nudged higher Thursday, struggling to resume a modest upward trend as investors juggled upbeat economic data, divergent earnings reports and a pullback in Chinese stocks.

AP - The popular online hangout MySpace entered the news business Thursday with a feature that lets its users determine what items other members see.

Reuters - Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, his job possibly on the line, told skeptical lawmakers on Thursday that "nothing improper occurred" in his firing of federal prosecutors last year but he acknowledged the process was flawed.

Reuters - The United States won backing from allies for its planned missile shield system at talks at NATO on Thursday, but Russia remained unconvinced the shield was needed to preempt attacks from rogue states, officials said.

Reuters - Germany's celebrity polar bear cub Knut has received an anonymous death threat, causing alarm at Berlin Zoo on Thursday and prompting heightened security.

AFP - The two main Nigerian opposition parties said Thursday that they would not carry out a threatened boycott of Saturday's presidential election.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Schools in Yuba City, California, were ordered into a 'lockdown' on Thursday after the county sheriff warned a man had threatened to go on a killing spree in locals schools.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said on Thursday he told President George W. Bush the Iraq war was lost and the recent U.S. troop increase had accomplished nothing.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The United States reassured allies over its planned missile shield system at talks at NATO on Thursday, but failed to allay Russian suspicions that the shield was a strategic threat to Moscow.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates urged Iraqi political leaders to step up reconciliation efforts on Thursday, saying they had to accept Washington could not make an open-ended commitment with troops and support.

HOUSTON (Reuters) - Anti-Castro Cuban exile Luis Posada Carriles, wanted in Cuba and Venezuela for the 1976 bombing of a Cuban airliner and awaiting U.S. trial on immigration charges, has been released on bail, federal officials said on Thursday.

AP - Attorney General Alberto Gonzales confronted a fresh call for his resignation Thursday as he struggled to survive a bipartisan Senate challenge to his credibility in the case of eight fired prosecutors.

AP - A Sunni insurgent coalition posted Web videos on Thursday naming the head of al-Qaida in Iraq as 'minister of war' and showing the execution of 20 men it said were members of the Iraqi military and security forces.

AP - Flu vaccine manufacturers expect to have a record 132 million doses ready for the 2007-2008 flu season, and even more could be available if a fifth company joins their ranks, officials said Thursday.

AP - Stocks traded flat Thursday, struggling to resume a modest upward trend as investors juggled upbeat economic data, divergent earnings reports and a pullback in Chinese stocks.

AP - The Columbus Blue Jackets fired president and general manager Doug MacLean, whose teams didn't come close to making the playoffs in the franchise's six seasons.

Reuters - Schools in Yuba City, California were ordered into a "lock-down" on Thursday after police warned a man had threatened to go on a killing spree in locals schools.

Reuters - U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said on Thursday he told President George W. Bush the Iraq war was lost and the recent U.S. troop increase had accomplished nothing.

Reuters - The United States reassured allies over its planned missile shield system at talks at NATO on Thursday, but failed to allay Russian suspicions that the shield was a strategic threat to Moscow.

Reuters - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates urged Iraqi political leaders to step up reconciliation efforts on Thursday, saying they had to accept Washington could not make an open-ended commitment with troops and support.

Reuters - Anti-Castro Cuban exile Luis Posada Carriles, wanted in Cuba and Venezuela for the 1976 bombing of a Cuban airliner and awaiting U.S. trial on immigration charges, has been released on bail, federal officials said on Thursday.

AFP - US Defence Secretary Robert Gates held talks with top US commanders after he flew into Iraq on Thursday, a day after bombers killed more than 200 people in a savage blow to an American security plan.

AFP - Columbine High School will close its doors to students on the eighth anniversary of the 1999 massacre on Friday, which comes just five days after the Virginia Tech tragedy.

BLACKSBURG, Virginia (Reuters) - A videotaped diatribe by the Virginia Tech gunman shocked victims' families and mesmerized television viewers, but police said on Thursday it yielded little for their investigation of the campus massacre.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, facing new calls to resign, told skeptical U.S. lawmakers on Thursday that 'nothing improper occurred' in his mass firing of federal prosecutors last year, but acknowledged the process was flawed.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Schools in Yuba City, California, were ordered into a 'lockdown' on Thursday after the county sheriff warned a man had threatened to go on a killing spree inspired by Monday's mass murder at Virginia Tech.

TIPP CITY, Ohio (Reuters) - President George W. Bush and U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid debated from afar on Thursday whether the Iraq war had turned into Vietnam as they sought the upper hand in a battle over war funding.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican 2008 presidential hopeful John McCain crooned the words 'Bomb Iran' to a Beach Boys' tune in joking response to a question about any possible U.S. attack over Tehran's suspected nuclear weapons program.

HOUSTON (Reuters) - Anti-Castro Cuban exile Luis Posada Carriles, wanted in Cuba and Venezuela for the 1976 bombing of a Cuban airliner, got out of jail on Thursday and headed to Miami pending trial in Texas on immigration charges.

AP - Long before he boiled over, Virginia Tech gunman Cho Seung-Hui was pushed around and laughed at as a schoolboy in suburban Washington because of his shyness and the strange, mumbly way he talked, former classmates say.

AP - Attorney General Alberto Gonzales confronted a fresh Republican call for his resignation Thursday as he struggled to survive a withering, bipartisan Senate attack on his credibility in the case of eight fired prosecutors.

AP - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates landed in Baghdad on Thursday to deliver a sharp message to Iraqi political leaders: The U.S. military's commitment to the war is not open-ended.

AP - A suicide bomber breached Baghdad's heavy security presence again Thursday, killing a dozen people in a mostly Shiite district a day after more than 230 people died in one of the war's deadliest episodes of violence.

AP - Rep. John Doolittle, whose house was searched by the FBI in an influence-peddling investigation, said Thursday he will step down temporarily from the House Appropriations Committee.

AP - Flu vaccine manufacturers expect to have a record 132 million doses ready for the 2007-2008 flu season, and even more could be available if a fifth company joins their ranks, officials said Thursday.

AP - Sanjaya Malakar said Wednesday he did it his way on 'American Idol' and he'll take the same approach to a career that he hopes will encompass music, acting, modeling and whatever else comes his way.

AP - Google Inc.'s first-quarter profit rose 69 percent, maintaining the online search leader's penchant for blowing past analyst estimates.

AP - Alex Rodriguez did it again. Rodriguez hit a three-run, two-out homer that capped a comeback from a four-run deficit in the ninth inning, giving the New York Yankees an 8-6 victory over the Cleveland Indians on Thursday that completed a three-game sweep.

Reuters - A videotaped diatribe by the Virginia Tech gunman shocked victims' families and mesmerized television viewers, but police said on Thursday it yielded little for their investigation of the campus massacre.

Reuters - U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, facing new calls to resign, told skeptical U.S. lawmakers on Thursday that "nothing improper occurred" in his mass firing of federal prosecutors last year, but acknowledged the process was flawed.

Reuters - Schools in Yuba City, California, were ordered into a "lockdown" on Thursday after the county sheriff warned a man had threatened to go on a killing spree inspired by Monday's mass murder at Virginia Tech.

Reuters - President George W. Bush and U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid debated from afar on Thursday whether the Iraq war had turned into Vietnam as they sought the upper hand in a battle over war funding.

Reuters - Republican 2008 presidential hopeful John McCain crooned the words "Bomb Iran" to a Beach Boys' tune in joking response to a question about any possible U.S. attack over Tehran's suspected nuclear weapons program.

Reuters - Anti-Castro Cuban exile Luis Posada Carriles, wanted in Cuba and Venezuela for the 1976 bombing of a Cuban airliner, got out of jail on Thursday and headed to Miami pending trial in Texas on immigration charges.

AFP - US university officials faced a barrage of questions on Thursday over whether a student with a history of mental problems and stalking should have been allowed to remain in school.

AFP - Nigeria's main opposition parties said on Thursday they will participate in Saturday's presidential election, despite an earlier boycott threat, but the spectre of political violence still hangs over the ballot.

YUBA CITY, California (Reuters) - Officials locked classroom doors, lowered shades and kept 12,000 school children inside on Thursday in Yuba City, California after a man threatened to go on a killing spree inspired by Monday's mass murder at Virginia Tech.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A chemical linked to a huge U.S. pet food recall has been found in another ingredient used to make products for dogs and cats, U.S health officials and an agricultural company said on Thursday.

TIPP CITY, Ohio (Reuters) - President George W. Bush and fellow Republicans struggled on Thursday with comparisons between the U.S. wars in Iraq and Vietnam as the Senate's top Democrat declared the Iraq lost.

CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela launched a Zeppelin on Thursday to patrol Caracas, seeking to fight crime in one of Latin America's most dangerous cities but also raising fears that President Hugo Chavez could be turning into Big Brother.

AP - Attorney General Alberto Gonzales struggled Thursday to convince skeptical senators he did nothing improper in firing eight federal prosecutors, losing ground as a second senator from his own party joined the calls for his resignation.

AP - In high school, Cho Seung-Hui almost never opened his mouth. When he finally did, his classmates laughed, pointed at him and said: 'Go back to China.'

AP - Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Thursday the war in Iraq is 'lost,' triggering an angry backlash by Republicans who said the top Democrat had turned his back on the troops.

AP - A preacher's wife who claimed her husband abused her was convicted Thursday of voluntary manslaughter for shooting him.

AP - Eight months ago, the mere possibility that a gunman was headed to Virginia Tech was enough for school officials to cancel classes and order a campus-wide lockdown. This week, the response was much different: Authorities waited more than two hours to alert the school's nearly 26,000 students that two of their classmates had been shot dead in a dormitory.

AP - Iranian engineers began filling a new dam Thursday as archaeologists warned that its reservoir will flood newly discovered antiquities and could damage Iran's grandest site, the ancient Persian capital of Persepolis.

AP - Joe Nacchio, a former AT&T executive tapped to transform Qwest Communications into a major telecommunications competitor, was convicted Thursday of 19 of 42 insider trading charges after one-time top executives described his relentless drive to meet revenue projections without revealing financial risks.

Reuters - The Pentagon's inspector general looked into the Defense Department's 2003 order for a contractor to hire the girlfriend of then-Pentagon No. 2 Paul Wolfowitz, but found no violation to warrant a deeper probe, defense officials said on Thursday.

Reuters - Officials locked classroom doors, lowered shades and kept 12,000 school children inside on Thursday in Yuba City, California after a man threatened to go on a killing spree inspired by Monday's mass murder at Virginia Tech.

Reuters - A chemical linked to a huge U.S. pet food recall has been found in another ingredient used to make products for dogs and cats, U.S health officials and an agricultural company said on Thursday.

Reuters - President George W. Bush and fellow Republicans struggled on Thursday with comparisons between the U.S. wars in Iraq and Vietnam as the Senate's top Democrat declared the Iraq lost.

Reuters - Venezuela launched a Zeppelin on Thursday to patrol Caracas, seeking to fight crime in one of Latin America's most dangerous cities but also raising fears that President Hugo Chavez could be turning into Big Brother.

AFP - Virginia's governor named an independent panel on Thursday to look into the massacre at a state university as school officials defended their handling of the troubled student.

YUBA CITY, California (Reuters) - Teachers locked classroom doors, lowered shades and kept nearly 22,000 school children inside all day on Thursday in two northern California cities after a man threatened to go on a killing spree inspired by Monday's mass murder at Virginia Tech.

AP - Attorney General Alberto Gonzales struggled Thursday to convince skeptical senators he did nothing improper in firing eight federal prosecutors, losing ground as a second senator from his own party joined the calls for his resignation.

AP - Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Thursday the war in Iraq is 'lost,' triggering an angry backlash by Republicans, who said the top Democrat had turned his back on the troops.

AP - Promoting the concept of good global citizenship, former President Clinton implored black leaders Thursday to take better care of their health, reduce their use of energy and recognize the promises and peril of globalization.

AP - The festering bad blood between movie-star exes Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger erupted Thursday when an angry phone message from Baldwin to his daughter was made public. On the recording, Baldwin can be heard admonishing his 11-year-old, Ireland, 'You are a rude, thoughtless little pig.'

AP - Top NFL prospects Calvin Johnson, Gaines Adams and Amobi Okoye reportedly admitted to marijuana use during interviews with teams in February.

Reuters - Teachers locked classroom doors, lowered shades and kept nearly 22,000 school children inside all day on Thursday in two northern California cities after a man threatened to go on a killing spree inspired by Monday's mass murder at Virginia Tech.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A chemical linked to a huge U.S. pet food recall has been found in another ingredient used to make products for dogs and cats, U.S health officials and an agricultural company said on Thursday.

TOKYO (Reuters) - An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.7 jolted islands off Japan's southernmost prefecture of Okinawa on Friday, the Japan Meteorological Agency said, but there were no reports of injuries or damage.

AP - Beluga whales have long delighted residents and tourists alike when spotted swimming the silty waters off Alaska's biggest city, but now the gregarious white whales are in danger of becoming extinct.

AP - The Ottawa Senators brought a decisive end to Sidney Crosby's teenage years in the NHL. Ray Emery made 20 saves for his first playoff shutout, leading Ottawa to a 3-0 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday night to win their first-round series in five games. Dany Heatley, Antoine Vermette and Chris Kelly scored second-period goals.

Reuters - World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz canceled an appearance at a major health conference on Thursday as the bank's board discussed an escalating controversy over the promotion of his girlfriend.

Reuters - A chemical linked to a huge U.S. pet food recall has been found in another ingredient used to make products for dogs and cats, U.S health officials and an agricultural company said on Thursday.