AFP - Tanks and warplanes pounded Gaza City before dawn on Sunday, hours after Israel warned it would escalate its war on Hamas targets, as the death toll in the 16-day-old conflict passed 850.

AP - Israeli defense officials say an investigation by the military has concluded that an errant Israeli mortar shell was behind a deadly strike near a U.N. school in Gaza last week.

AFP - Israeli troops and armour pushed deeper into Gaza's main city on Sunday, sending panicked Palestinian civilians into flight, after Israel warned it would step up its war on Hamas which remained defiant.

AFP - Russia and Ukraine prepared on Sunday to restart gas supplies to the European Union after a deal was signed on deploying international monitors to help adjudicate in Moscow and Kiev's gas conflict.

GAZA (Reuters) - Israeli forces edged into the Gaza Strip's most populous area on Sunday, killing at least 14 Palestinian guerrillas and 12 civilians in an offensive stepped up in defiance of international calls for a ceasefire.

AP - Israeli troops battled Palestinian gunmen in a suburb of Gaza City Sunday in one of the fiercest ground battles so far as Israel's military inched toward Gaza's population centers and residents braced for an expansion of the offensive.

AP - Congress is considering whether to set aside more than 2 million acres in nine states as wilderness in an early showdown that threatens to derail pledges by Senate leaders to work cooperatively as a new administration takes office.

AP - Out of power, Republicans appear to be retreating to familiar old ground. They're becoming deficit hawks again.

AP - Teams of EU monitors traveled to gas pumping stations along Ukraine's extensive pipeline network Sunday, as Russia prepared to resume natural gas shipments through Ukraine to Europe.

Reuters - Israeli forces edged into the Gaza Strip's most populous area on Sunday, killing at least 14 Palestinian guerrillas and 12 civilians in an offensive stepped up in defiance of international calls for a ceasefire.

AFP - Israeli troops and Hamas fighters battled on Sunday in some of their heaviest clashes yet as Israel said it is nearing the goals of its war and the defiant Islamists vowed to fight on.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President-elect Barack Obama urged a revamping of the government's $700 billion financial bailout, saying in an interview broadcast on Sunday it had to increase the flow of credit to families and businesses.

AP - President-elect Barack Obama wants more transparency and strict guidelines for using the second $350 billion of the bailout fund Congress approved last fall to stabilize the nation's financial system.

AP - Lawmakers, Muslim groups and the Pakistani public criticized Prince Harry Sunday after a British newspaper published video footage of him using offensive and racist language.

Reuters - President-elect Barack Obama urged a revamping of the government's $700 billion financial bailout, saying in an interview broadcast on Sunday it had to increase the flow of credit to families and businesses.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Morgan Stanley could pay $2 billion to $3 billion or more for a controlling stake in Citigroup Inc.'s Smith Barney retail brokerage business, two people familiar with the matter said.

Reuters - Morgan Stanley could pay $2 billion to $3 billion or more for a controlling stake in Citigroup Inc.'s Smith Barney retail brokerage business, two people familiar with the matter said.

AFP - Israel indicated for the first time on Sunday that an end was in sight to its war on Hamas, amid some of the heaviest clashes of an offensive that has killed nearly 900 people in the Gaza Strip.

DETROIT (Reuters) - Hyundai Motor Co took car-of-the-year award at the Detroit auto show on Sunday, marking a major step for the South Korean automaker in its push to produce a more upscale, mass-market vehicle for U.S. consumers.

AP - Israeli troops made their deepest advance into the Gaza Strip's most heavily populated area on Sunday, encountering increasingly fierce resistance from Islamic Hamas fighters as they warned civilians to stay clear of the battle zone.

AP - A Turkish court formally arrested 12 more people Sunday for ties to an alleged secularist plot by ultranationalists to bring down the Islamic-rooted government, bringing the total of people implicated in the case to more than 100.

AP - It was just a rehearsal for the real thing.

Reuters - Hyundai Motor Co took car-of-the-year award at the Detroit auto show on Sunday, marking a major step for the South Korean automaker in its push to produce a more upscale, mass-market vehicle for U.S. consumers.

AFP - Russia on Sunday said a deal to resume gas supplies to the European Union through pipelines in Ukraine had been delayed as swathes of central Europe and the Balkans remained without heating.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Government efforts to prop up U.S. banks and savings institutions have only partly cushioned the blow from what may have been the industry's worst three-month period since 1990.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Roland Burris said on Sunday he will return to Washington this week to pursue being sworn in to fill President-elect Barack Obama's vacant Senate seat before Obama is inaugurated as president on January 20.

AP - Israel's chief military spokesman says the army has begun sending reserve units into the Gaza Strip.

AP - Barack Obama wants to make it easier to monitor how the second $350 billion installment of the financial bailout is spent and says homeowners and small businesses should get some help.

AP - An Ohio distributor says it has recalled two brands of its peanut butter after an open container tested positive for salmonella bacteria.

AP - Vice President-elect Joe Biden promised U.S. support for Afghanistan's struggle against terrorism, drugs and corruption, in surprise visit Sunday to a dangerous Taliban-stronghold area of Afghanistan.

Reuters - Government efforts to prop up U.S. banks and savings institutions have only partly cushioned the blow from what may have been the industry's worst three-month period since 1990.

Reuters - Roland Burris said on Sunday he will return to Washington this week to pursue being sworn in to fill President-elect Barack Obama's vacant Senate seat before Obama is inaugurated as president on January 20.

GAZA (Reuters) - Israeli forces pushed into the Gaza Strip's most populous area on Sunday, killing at least 31 Palestinians on the 16th day of a devastating offensive Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said was close to achieving its aims.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President George W. Bush said on Sunday he thought his father, the former president, is a 'nut' to plan to celebrate his 85th birthday with another sky-dive.

AP - Human Rights Watch said Sunday that Israel's military has fired artillery shells with the incendiary agent white phosphorus into Gaza and a doctor there said the chemical was suspected in the case of 10 burn victims who had skin peeling off their faces and bodies.

AP - In a rare Sunday session, the Senate advanced legislation that would set aside more than 2 million acres in nine states as wilderness. Majority Democrats assembled more than enough votes to overcome GOP stalling tactics in an early showdown for the new Congress.

AP - When George W. Bush lifts off in his helicopter on Inauguration Day, leaving Washington to make way for Barack Obama, he may not be the only thing disappearing into the horizon.

AP - A ninja, or at least someone dressed like one, is lurking in the shadows of Palm Beach County.

AP - Tim Tebow is coming back. The Florida quarterback told a crowd celebrating the school's latest national title Sunday he wants to lead the Gators to another championship.

Reuters - Israeli forces pushed into the Gaza Strip's most populous area on Sunday, killing at least 31 Palestinians on the 16th day of a devastating offensive Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said was close to achieving its aims.

Reuters - U.S. President-elect Barack Obama vowed to retool a $700 billion financial rescue plan to save more families from foreclosure, and his aides met congressional leaders on Sunday to chart fresh spending measures to restore a fragile economy.

Reuters - President George W. Bush said on Sunday he thought his father, the former president, is a 'nut' to plan to celebrate his 85th birthday with another sky-dive.

AFP - Israel began pouring reservists into heavy clashes across the Gaza Strip on Sunday as the death toll from its war on Hamas approached 900 and officials indicated that the end may be in sight.

GAZA (Reuters) - Israel threw reservists into battle in the Gaza Strip on Sunday and at least 31 Palestinians were killed on the 16th day of a devastating offensive Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said was close to achieving its aims.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President-elect Barack Obama vowed to retool a $700 billion financial rescue plan to save more families from foreclosure, and his aides met congressional leaders on Sunday to chart fresh spending measures to restore a fragile economy.

AP - Israeli ground forces made their deepest foray yet Sunday into Gaza's most populated area, with tanks rolling into residential neighborhoods and infantry fighting urban warfare in streets and buildings with Hamas militants who kept up their rocketing of southern Israel.

AP - A weekend winter storm blanketed parts of the Midwest and Northeast with up to a foot of snow, causing a 59-vehicle pileup and at least four traffic fatalities.

AP - The average national price of gasoline rose nearly 12 cents in the past three weeks, marking the first price hike after six months of steady decreases, according to a national survey released Sunday.

AP - Donovan McNabb made all the big plays that Eli Manning did not, and the Philadelphia Eagles eliminated the Super Bowl champion New York Giants 23-11 Sunday to reach the NFC title game for the fifth time in eight seasons.

Reuters - Israel threw reservists into battle in the Gaza Strip on Sunday and at least 31 Palestinians were killed on the 16th day of a devastating offensive Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said was close to achieving its aims.

Reuters - President-elect Barack Obama vowed to restructure a financial rescue plan to save more U.S. families from home foreclosures, as he considered on Sunday whether to seek additional funds from a $700 billion bailout program.

Reuters - Automakers put on a brave face at the world's biggest auto show on Sunday, with the sales outlook bleak for the coming year and fabled firms struggling for survival despite massive government aid.

AFP - An EU-brokered accord on terms for Russia to resume gas supply to Europe collapsed Sunday when Russia accused Ukraine of secretly altering the deal and declared it null and void.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President-elect Barack Obama vowed to restructure a financial rescue plan to save more U.S. families from home foreclosures, as he considered on Sunday whether to seek additional funds from a $700 billion bailout program.

DETROIT (Reuters) - Automakers put on a brave face at the world's biggest auto show on Sunday, with the sales outlook bleak for the coming year and fabled firms struggling for survival despite massive government aid.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President George W. Bush said on Sunday he thought his father, the former president, is a 'nut' to plan to celebrate his 85th birthday with another sky-dive.

AP - Human Rights Watch said Sunday that Israel's military has fired artillery shells with the incendiary agent white phosphorus into Gaza and a doctor there said the chemical was suspected in the case of 10 burn victims who had skin peeling off their faces and bodies.

AP - Senate Democrats prepared Sunday to answer a request for the remaining $350 billion in financial industry bailout funds as the Bush administration and President-elect Obama undertook a tag-team effort to obtain the money from reluctant lawmakers.

AP - We're different, and our new stuff is really good. In a nutshell, that's what General Motors, Ford and Chrysler tried to tell consumers — and taxpayers — Sunday as they rolled out an array of new vehicles at the North American International Auto Show.

AP - The carpet's rolled out, the winners are safely tucked in sealed envelopes and the wine is under chill. It's been two years since the stars came out for a Golden Globes ceremony, and they wasted no time making their way back Sunday night, trickling in early for the show. Even the weather cooperated, lighting up the scene with sunshine and 80 degree temperatures after several days of damp and cool had gripped greater Los Angeles.

Reuters - Israeli leaders trying to find a knockout blow for Hamas militants defying a 17-day-old assault on the Gaza Strip have thrown army reservists into battle.

Reuters - President George W. Bush said on Sunday he thought his father, the former president, is a 'nut' to plan to celebrate his 85th birthday with another sky-dive.

AFP - Israel poured reservists into the Gaza Strip on Monday as heavy clashes brought the death toll from its war on Hamas to 900 even as officials said that an end to the fighting might be in sight.

GAZA (Reuters) - Israeli leaders trying to find a knockout blow for Hamas militants defying a 17-day-old assault on the Gaza Strip have thrown army reservists into battle.

BEVERLY HILLS (Reuters) - A pair of British actresses and the late Heath Ledger in his villainous role as the Joker in Batman movie 'The Dark Knight' won key Golden Globe awards on Sunday as the Hollywood honors reached their midpoint.

AP - Heath Ledger won the supporting-actor Golden Globe on Sunday nearly a year after his death, earning the prize for his diabolical turn as the Joker in the Batman blockbuster 'The Dark Knight.'

AP - Fittingly enough, the Pittsburgh Steelers brought back the home-field advantage to the NFL playoffs. Now they get to stay at home for the AFC championship game, and against the rival they dislike more than any other.

AP - Donovan McNabb made all the big plays that Eli Manning did not, and the Philadelphia Eagles eliminated the Super Bowl champion New York Giants 23-11 Sunday to reach the NFC title game for the fifth time in eight seasons.

Reuters - A pair of British actresses and the late Heath Ledger in his villainous role as the Joker in Batman movie 'The Dark Knight' won key Golden Globe awards on Sunday as the Hollywood honors reached their midpoint.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Citigroup Inc was closer to a deal on Sunday to join its Smith Barney business with Morgan Stanley's brokerage operation in a move that would create the world's largest retail brokerage.

BEVERLY HILLS (Reuters) - Rags-to-riches tale 'Slumdog Millionaire' hit the jackpot at the Golden Globes on Sunday, winning four of the coveted awards including best film drama to give it a leg up in Hollywood's race for Oscars.

AP - 'Slumdog Millionaire' lived up to its underdog theme at Sunday's Golden Globes, sweeping all four of its categories, including best drama and director for Danny Boyle.

AP - There is a home-field advantage in the NFL playoffs after all, and it belongs to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Reuters - Citigroup Inc was closer to a deal on Sunday to join its Smith Barney business with Morgan Stanley's brokerage operation in a move that would create the world's largest retail brokerage.

Reuters - Rags-to-riches tale 'Slumdog Millionaire' hit the jackpot at the Golden Globes on Sunday, winning four of the coveted awards including best film drama to give it a leg up in Hollywood's race for Oscars.