GAZA (Reuters) - Israeli troops edged closer to the heart of Gaza City on Wednesday morning and international organizations expressed growing concern about the plight of children trapped in the offensive.

AP - With his world crumbling around him, investment adviser Marcus Schrenker opted for a bailout. However, his plan to escape personal turmoil was short-lived.

AP - Kobe Bryant sank a 3-pointer with 27 seconds left and scored 33 points, and the Los Angeles Lakers beat the undermanned Houston Rockets 105-100 on Tuesday night.

Reuters - Israeli troops edged closer to the heart of Gaza City on Wednesday morning and international organizations expressed growing concern about the plight of children trapped in the offensive.

GAZA (Reuters) - Rockets fired from Lebanon struck Israel on Wednesday for the second time in a week while its Gaza offensive ground on, but there was no immediate sign the incident would escalate into wider violence.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Pentagon official overseeing the tribunals for Guantanamo Bay detainees has concluded that the U.S. military tortured a Saudi national who allegedly planned to participate in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, The Washington Post reported on Wednesday.

PARIS/DETROIT (Reuters) - Chrysler is in talks to sell key assets to Renault-Nissan and auto supplier Magna according to people with knowledge of the discussions, though the French automaker on Wednesday denied such talks were under way.

MOSCOW/KIEV (Reuters) - Russia and Ukraine face another day of sparring over gas supplies on Wednesday and two European Union states launched fresh diplomacy to end a dispute that has left their economies without Russian gas for one week.

AP - President-elect Barack Obama eventually will gain access to the second half of the $700 billion financial bailout fund — politics notwithstanding and more likely sooner than later.

AP - A Capitol Hill grilling is likely for Timothy Geithner, President-elect Barack Obama's pick to head the Treasury Department, after public revelations he failed to pay $34,000 in taxes several years ago.

AP - A missing pilot's three-day run from authorities — and personal and financial ruin — ended when authorities found him inside an isolated campground tent, bleeding from his wrist after an apparent suicide attempt.

AP - Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton smoothly took on policy questions, from the acute to the arcane, in a gentle job interview to be the nation's top diplomat, but could not dispel tougher questions about whether her husband's charity work poses an ethical conflict.

Reuters - Rockets fired from Lebanon struck Israel on Wednesday for the second time in a week while its Gaza offensive ground on, but there was no immediate sign the incident would escalate into wider violence.

Reuters - The Pentagon official overseeing the tribunals for Guantanamo Bay detainees has concluded that the U.S. military tortured a Saudi national who allegedly planned to participate in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, The Washington Post reported on Wednesday.

Reuters - Chrysler is in talks to sell key assets to Renault-Nissan and auto supplier Magna according to people with knowledge of the discussions, though the French automaker on Wednesday denied such talks were under way.

AFP - EU leaders kept up pressure Wednesday on Russia and Ukraine to resolve their gas dispute after an attempt to resume transit supply failed to deliver gas to European consumers.

DETROIT/PARIS (Reuters) - Struggling U.S. automaker Chrysler is in talks to sell assets to Renault-Nissan and parts supplier Magna, sources with knowledge of the discussions have told Reuters, though the French automaker Wednesday denied such talks were under way.

MOSCOW/KIEV (Reuters) - Russia and Ukraine faced another day of sparring over gas supplies on Wednesday and two European Union states, cut off for a freezing week by the row, launched missions to plead for Russian gas flow to be restored.

MIAMI (Reuters) - U.S. marshals have arrested a pilot accused of parachuting out of his plane and letting it crash in an apparent attempt to avoid financial fraud prosecution by faking his death, an investigator said late on Tuesday.

AP - Militants in Lebanon sent rockets crashing into northern Israel on Wednesday, while Israeli aircraft pounded a Gaza cemetery, Hamas weapons positions and tunnels used for smuggling, witnesses and the military said Wednesday.

AP - The head of Ukraine's gas company says it will not resume deliveries of Russian gas to Europe on Wednesday and blames conditions set by Russia's Gazprom.

AP - The original financial supermarket is dead. Citigroup signaled the end of a decade-long experiment to create one-stop shopping for financial services — everything from consumer loans to investment banking — with Tuesday's announcement that it was merging its Smith Barney brokerage into a joint venture with Morgan Stanley.

AP - In an ironic, surreal scene, impeached Gov. Rod Blagojevich will preside briefly over the chamber that holds his political future in its hands.

AP - Paula Abdul, declaring her loyalty to 'American Idol,' denied criticizing the Fox TV series over airtime given to an alleged stalker.

AP - Dwight Howard had 25 points and 15 rebounds, and the Orlando Magic made an NBA-record 23 3-pointers Tuesday night in a 139-107 victory over the Sacramento Kings.

Reuters - Struggling U.S. automaker Chrysler is in talks to sell assets to Renault-Nissan and parts supplier Magna, sources with knowledge of the discussions have told Reuters, though the French automaker Wednesday denied such talks were under way.

Reuters - Russia and Ukraine faced another day of sparring over gas supplies on Wednesday and two European Union states, cut off for a freezing week by the row, launched missions to plead for Russian gas flow to be restored.

Reuters - U.S. marshals have arrested a pilot accused of parachuting out of his plane and letting it crash in an apparent attempt to avoid financial fraud prosecution by faking his death, an investigator said late on Tuesday.

AFP - Israeli troops battled Palestinian gunmen on Wednesday in Gaza, where nearly 1,000 people have now been killed in the war on Hamas, and rockets slammed into northern Israel from Lebanon for the second time in less than a week.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Citigroup Inc agreed to merge its Smith Barney brokerage with Morgan Stanley's wealth management unit on Tuesday, and is expected to make further asset sales to raise capital and to isolate toxic assets from the rest of the bank.

MIAMI (Reuters) - U.S. marshals have arrested a pilot accused of parachuting out of his plane and letting it crash in an apparent attempt to avoid financial fraud prosecution by faking his death, an investigator said late on Tuesday.

AP - Militants in Lebanon sent rockets crashing into northern Israel on Wednesday, the second such attack in a week, and Israel responded by firing artillery across the border as diplomatic efforts to end the military offensive in Gaza intensified.

AP - Al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden has issued a new audiotape urging Muslims to launch a jihad, or holy war, to stop the Israeli offensive in Gaza.

AP - The leaders of several gas-starved European nations traveled to Ukraine and Russia on Wednesday, pressing them to restore supplies as the EU threatened both with legal action for halting energy deliveries in the midst of winter.

AP - The original financial supermarket is dead. Citigroup signaled the end of a decade-long experiment to create one-stop shopping for financial services — everything from consumer loans to investment banking — with Tuesday's announcement that it was merging its Smith Barney brokerage into a joint venture with Morgan Stanley.

AP - Dwight Howard had 25 points and 15 rebounds, and the Orlando Magic made an NBA-record 23 3-pointers Tuesday night in a 139-107 victory over the Sacramento Kings.

Reuters - U.S. marshals have arrested a pilot accused of parachuting out of his plane and letting it crash in an apparent attempt to avoid financial fraud prosecution by faking his death, an investigator said late on Tuesday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Sales at retailers fell 2.7 percent in December, government data showed on Wednesday, as a deteriorating economic climate forced consumers to cut back on spending during the key holiday period.

GAZA (Reuters) - International efforts to stop the Gaza war intensified on Wednesday and Israel pressed its demand that Hamas not be allowed to rearm under a ceasefire, sending warplanes to drop bunker-busting bombs on smuggling tunnels.

TORONTO (Reuters) - Nortel Networks Corp, North America's biggest maker of telephone equipment, filed for bankruptcy protection on Wednesday, as the global economic downturn further erodes its once high-flying business.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Accused swindler Bernard Madoff will be back in court on Wednesday as U.S. prosecutors again try to persuade a judge to end his house arrest at his luxury apartment and toss him in jail.

MOSCOW/KIEV (Reuters) - Russia and Ukraine wrangled over gas supplies again on Wednesday and two European Union states, cut off by the row for a freezing week, launched missions to plead for Russian gas flow to be restored.

AP - Retail sales plunged far more than expected in December, a record sixth straight monthly decline as consumers were battered by a recession, a severe credit crisis and soaring job losses, none of which are likely to ease anytime soon.

AP - An investment manager who staged a plane crash to evade the law was barely conscious and muttered the word 'die' when federal agents found him bleeding from a slashed wrist, an investigator said Wednesday.

AP - Guerrillas in Lebanon rocketed northern Israel on Wednesday for the second time in a week, drawing Israeli artillery fire and threatening to drag the Jewish state into a second front as diplomatic efforts to broker a truce in Gaza intensified.

AP - Saudi Arabia's most senior cleric was quoted Wednesday as saying it is permissible for 10-year-old girls to marry and those who think they're too young are doing the girls an injustice.

AP - Jennifer Hudson will make her first public appearance since the killings of her mother, brother and nephew during sports' grandest event — the Super Bowl.

Reuters - Sales at retailers fell 2.7 percent in December, government data showed on Wednesday, as a deteriorating economic climate forced consumers to cut back on spending during the key holiday period.

Reuters - International efforts to stop the Gaza war intensified on Wednesday and Israel pressed its demand that Hamas not be allowed to rearm under a ceasefire, sending warplanes to drop bunker-busting bombs on smuggling tunnels.

Reuters - Nortel Networks Corp, North America's biggest maker of telephone equipment, filed for bankruptcy protection on Wednesday, as the global economic downturn further erodes its once high-flying business.

Reuters - Accused swindler Bernard Madoff will be back in court on Wednesday as U.S. prosecutors again try to persuade a judge to end his house arrest at his luxury apartment and toss him in jail.

AFP - Israel bombed smuggling tunnels and battled fighters in Gaza streets on Wednesday as UN chief Ban Ki-moon arrived in the region seeking to end the war on Hamas that has killed nearly 1,000 people.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate Finance Committee said on Wednesday it would hold a confirmation hearing for U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on January 21 after a panel member objected to a previously planned hearing on Friday.

GAZA (Reuters) - The Palestinian death toll in Israel's Gaza offensive topped 1,000 on Wednesday, the Hamas-run Health Ministry said, while Egyptian mediators pressed both sides for a ceasefire to stop nearly three weeks of bloodshed.

DETROIT (Reuters) - Chrysler LLC Vice Chairman Tom LaSorda said on Wednesday that the No. 3 U.S. automaker would not sell an individual brand like Jeep, but would pursue deals to sell off tooling for models going out of production, or even licensing production of current models.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Citigroup Inc shares tumbled Wednesday as investors and analysts worried about whether the bank can be profitable and function effectively as it unravels its business model.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States and other traditional human rights champions must retake leadership of a global agenda that has been hijacked by 'spoiler' states like China, Egypt and Russia, a rights group said on Wednesday.

AP - Arctic air extended its grip Wednesday with below-zero temperatures stretching from Montana to northern New England and frost nipping the Gulf Coast.

AP - Egypt and Hamas were negotiating a proposal for a 10-day cease-fire in Gaza, officials said Wednesday, as the Palestinian death toll in the war passed 1,000 and smoke from Israeli airstrikes rose over Gaza City's devastated streets.

AP - The president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia expects the economy to slowly start recovering in the second half of 2009 and inflation to remain below 2 percent over the next year.

AP - Coast Guard officials say two people died and four were rescued after their 18-foot boat capsized Wednesday in cold and choppy waters on the Chesapeake Bay.

Reuters - The U.S. Senate Finance Committee said on Wednesday it would hold a confirmation hearing for U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on January 21 after a panel member objected to a previously planned hearing on Friday.

Reuters - The Palestinian death toll in Israel's Gaza offensive topped 1,000 on Wednesday, the Hamas-run Health Ministry said, while Egyptian mediators pressed both sides for a ceasefire to stop nearly three weeks of bloodshed.

Reuters - Chrysler LLC Vice Chairman Tom LaSorda said on Wednesday that the No. 3 U.S. automaker would not sell an individual brand like Jeep, but would pursue deals to sell off tooling for models going out of production, or even licensing production of current models.

Reuters - Citigroup Inc shares tumbled Wednesday as investors and analysts worried about whether the bank can be profitable and function effectively as it unravels its business model.

AFP - Israel's war on Hamas in Gaza has now killed more than 1,000 people, medics said on Wednesday, as hopes were raised that Hamas may accept a ceasefire to end the offensive in the Palestinian territory.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate Finance Committee said on Wednesday it would hold a confirmation hearing for U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on January 21 after a panel member objected to a previously planned hearing on Friday.

TORONTO (Reuters) - Nortel Networks Corp, North America's biggest telephone equipment maker, filed for bankruptcy on Wednesday, hoping to save a once high-flying business whose decade-long decline has accelerated with the global economic crisis.

GAZA (Reuters) - Hamas officials were negotiating a ceasefire on Wednesday as Israeli forces kept up the pressure on the Islamists in the Gaza Strip, where the Palestinian death toll rose above 1,000 after 19 days of air and ground attacks.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Citigroup Inc faced growing uncertainty on Wednesday about whether it could ever function well, leading investors to drive its shares down below $5.00, to their lowest level since the bank won a government rescue in November.

MIAMI (Reuters) - The fate of former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega was placed in the hands of a U.S. appeals court on Wednesday, as he fought another round to avoid extradition on money laundering charges in France.

AP - Two people died and four others were being treated at area hospitals after their 18-foot aluminum boat capsized in cold and choppy Chesapeake Bay waters Wednesday, police said.

AP - Plaxico Burress told police that he had no knowledge of a 2005 shooting incident in the Bronx in which two people were seen firing off rounds from a sport-utility truck the New York Giants star borrowed from a dealer.

Reuters - Nortel Networks Corp, North America's biggest telephone equipment maker, filed for bankruptcy on Wednesday, hoping to save a once high-flying business whose decade-long decline has accelerated with the global economic crisis.

Reuters - Hamas officials were negotiating a ceasefire on Wednesday as Israeli forces kept up the pressure on the Islamists in the Gaza Strip, where the Palestinian death toll rose above 1,000 after 19 days of air and ground attacks.

Reuters - Citigroup Inc faced growing uncertainty on Wednesday about whether it could ever function well, leading investors to drive its shares down below $5.00, to their lowest level since the bank won a government rescue in November.

Reuters - The fate of former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega was placed in the hands of a U.S. appeals court on Wednesday, as he fought another round to avoid extradition on money laundering charges in France.

AFP - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday called for a summit of states hit by the gas crisis as Russia accused Ukraine of holding Europe 'hostage' by blocking efforts to resume gas supplies.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Aides to President-elect Barack Obama tried to shore up support among Senate Republicans on Wednesday for releasing $350 billion in Wall Street bailout funds, as a leading Democrat in the House of Representatives predicted that Congress was unlikely to stand in the way.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Army, already strained by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, will likely deploy more soldiers in the next 18 months, the service's top general said on Wednesday.

TORONTO (Reuters) - Nortel Networks Corp, North America's biggest telephone equipment maker, filed for bankruptcy on Wednesday, hoping to save a once highflying business whose decade-long decline has accelerated with the global economic crisis.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Accused swindler Bernard Madoff will be back in court on Wednesday as U.S. prosecutors again try to persuade a judge to end the house arrest at his luxury apartment and toss him in jail.

DETROIT (Reuters) - Chrysler LLC ruled out selling an individual brand or plant but said on Wednesday it would look to sell equipment and could license production of some of its current models to other automakers as it works to shore up its cash position after a $4 billion government bailout.

AP - Disgraced money manager Bernard Madoff has won the latest round in his battle with prosecutors over his bail package. A judge allowed Madoff to remain free Wednesday, turning back an appeal by federal prosecutors. The judge said that prosecutors failed to make a compelling argument that he's a flight risk or a danger to the community — the two main requirements for bail decisions.

AP - The director of Israel's foreign ministry is on his way to Washington to discuss a possible American role in security on the border between Egypt and the Gaza Strip.

AP - President-elect Barack Obama called disclosures about Treasury choice Timothy Geithner's tax problems an embarrassment Wednesday but said Geithner's 'innocent mistake' shouldn't keep him from confirmation as the new administration's top official in urgent efforts to revive the economy.

AP - Arctic air extended its grip Wednesday with below-zero temperatures stretching from Montana to northern New England and frost nipping the Gulf Coast. A few ski areas in Vermont and northern Minnesota closed for the day because of the cold — 38 below zero at International Falls, with the wind chill during the night estimated at 50 below.

AP - An investment manager who apparently staged a plane crash to evade personal and financial ruin was barely conscious and muttered the word 'die' when federal agents found him bleeding from a slashed wrist, an investigator said Wednesday.

AP - Days after checking himself into a Los Angeles hospital for pneumonia, Patrick Swayze says his condition is improving. The 56-year-old actor, who is battling pancreatic cancer, tells People magazine: 'I am alive and plan on continuing to stay that way. ... I am almost in the clear.'

AP - Call it confidence, or maybe foolishness. A day after allegedly robbing a woman of her purse, a 19-year-old man walked into a Milwaukee police station to inquire about the arrest of his 18-year-old girlfriend for an alleged robbery.

Reuters - A U.S. Senate panel on Wednesday delayed a hearing on Timothy Geithner, President-elect Barack Obama's choice to head the Treasury Department, amid controversy over back taxes and the immigration status of a former housekeeper.

Reuters - Aides to President-elect Barack Obama tried to shore up support among Senate Republicans on Wednesday for releasing $350 billion in Wall Street bailout funds, as a leading Democrat in the House of Representatives predicted that Congress was unlikely to stand in the way.

Reuters - The U.S. Army, already strained by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, will likely deploy more soldiers in the next 18 months, the service's top general said on Wednesday.

Reuters - Nortel Networks Corp, North America's biggest telephone equipment maker, filed for bankruptcy on Wednesday, hoping to save a once highflying business whose decade-long decline has accelerated with the global economic crisis.

Reuters - Accused swindler Bernard Madoff can remain out on bail and under house arrest, a U.S. judge ruled on Wednesday, rejecting a government appeal to send him to jail.

Reuters - Chrysler LLC ruled out selling an individual brand or plant but said on Wednesday it would look to sell equipment and could license production of some of its current models to other automakers as it works to shore up its cash position after a $4 billion government bailout.

AFP - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday called for a summit of states hit by the gas crisis as Russia accused Ukraine of holding Europe 'hostage' by blocking efforts to resume gas supplies.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs will take a medical leave of absence from his post till the end of June because his health problems turned out to be 'more complex than originally thought,' he said Wednesday, surprising investors.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Accused swindler Bernard Madoff can remain out on bail and under house arrest, a U.S. judge ruled on Wednesday, rejecting a government appeal to send him to jail.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A 21-year-old citizen of Chad who has been held for seven years at the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba must be released, a federal judge ruled on Wednesday.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Citigroup Inc faced growing uncertainty on Wednesday about whether it will rebound from punishing losses, as investors drove the stock below $5, its lowest level since a government rescue in November.

AP - The cold wave that stunned the nation's midsection expanded into the Northeast on Wednesday with subzero temperatures and biting wind that kept even some winter sports fans at home. The wind chill hit 33 below zero during the night at Massena, N.Y., and the National Weather Service predicted actual temperatures nearly that low in parts of the region by Thursday night.

AP - Egypt and Hamas are close to a deal for a 10-day cease-fire between Israel and the Palestinian militant group in Gaza, where the death toll from the Israeli offensive exceeded 1,000, officials said Wednesday.

AP - Freshly returned from a tour of war zones and global hotspots, Vice President-elect Joe Biden told President-elect Barack Obama on Wednesday that 'things are going to get tougher' in Afghanistan.

AP - Federal authorities have charged an Indiana money manager with faking a distress call from the air and intentionally wrecking his plane. U.S. Marshals spokesman Scott Wilson said the charges were filed against 38-year-old Marcus Schrenker Wednesday afternoon.

AP - In 2005, an Army captain in Iraq asked for a mental health evaluation for one of his soldiers, a private first class from North Carolina who was known to put the muzzle of his weapon in his mouth.

AP - Scrawl on the patient with a permanent marker to show where the surgeon should cut. Ask the person's name to make sure you have the right patient. Count sponges to make sure you didn't leave any inside the body. Doctors worldwide who followed a checklist of steps like these cut the death rate from surgery almost in half and complications by more than a third in a large international study of how to avoid blatant operating room mistakes.

AP - Ricardo Montalban, the Mexican-born actor who became a star in splashy MGM musicals and later as the wish-fulfilling Mr. Roarke in TV's 'Fantasy Island,' died Wednesday morning at his home, a city councilman said. He was 88. Montalban's death was announced at a city council meeting by president Eric Garcetti, who represents the district where the actor lived. Garcetti did not give a cause of death.

AP - Wildlife officials said a rhesus monkey known to throw feces when mad is on the loose in Tampa Bay. Authorities have been trying to capture the primate since Tuesday afternoon, but it managed to evade a bucket truck and tranquilizer dart.

Reuters - Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs will take a medical leave of absence from his post till the end of June because his health problems turned out to be 'more complex than originally thought,' he said Wednesday, surprising investors.

Reuters - A 21-year-old citizen of Chad who has been held for seven years at the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba must be released, a federal judge ruled on Wednesday.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Apple Inc Chief Executive Steve Jobs will take a medical leave of absence till end-June because of health problems 'more complex' than he thought, stunning investors and sending its shares down 10 percent on the prospect of the company without its visionary leader.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Accused swindler Bernard Madoff was allowed to stay in his Manhattan penthouse and out of jail on Wednesday, as regulators chased down one of his top associates and investors worldwide sued over their losses.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The official overseeing tribunals for Guantanamo Bay inmates has said the U.S. military tortured a Saudi man accused of planning to take part in the September 11, 2001, attacks, prompting calls for his release.

GAZA (Reuters) - Israeli tanks and artillery submitted Gaza city to relentless shelling early on Thursday, despite signs of progress in the international effort to bring about a ceasefire to the 20-day conflict.

AP - Hours after impeached Gov. Rod Blagojevich convened a new Illinois Senate and urged lawmakers to 'find the truth,' senators took the first steps Wednesday toward a trial to determine whether the governor is ousted from office for corruption and abuse of power.

AP - Bernard Madoff returned to court in a bulletproof vest Wednesday and won another round in his fight to stay out of jail. But a larger issue loomed over the court: negotiations for a potential plea deal. Bail fights such as this usually carry motivations that are never stated on the court record, and the securities fraud case against Madoff appears laden with them.

Reuters - Apple Inc Chief Executive Steve Jobs will take a medical leave of absence till end-June because of health problems 'more complex' than he thought, stunning investors and sending its shares down 10 percent on the prospect of the company without its visionary leader.

Reuters - Accused swindler Bernard Madoff was allowed to stay in his Manhattan penthouse and out of jail on Wednesday, as regulators chased down one of his top associates and investors worldwide sued over their losses.

Reuters - The official overseeing tribunals for Guantanamo Bay inmates has said the U.S. military tortured a Saudi man accused of planning to take part in the September 11, 2001, attacks, prompting calls for his release.

Reuters - Israeli tanks and artillery submitted Gaza city to relentless shelling early on Thursday, despite signs of progress in the international effort to bring about a ceasefire to the 20-day conflict.

AFP - Israel carried out fresh air raids across Gaza on Thursday and ground troops waged more street battles as its war entered entered a 20th day and the death toll passed 1,000 despite hopes of a truce.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President-elect Barack Obama on Wednesday predicted that Timothy Geithner, his pick for Treasury secretary, would win Senate approval despite a controversy over back taxes and the immigration status of a former housekeeper.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President-elect Barack Obama's aides indicated that $350 billion in remaining financial bailout aid would not be used for ailing industries in other sectors, Republican senators said on Wednesday, adding such assurances could boost support for the plan.

GAZA (Reuters) - Israeli tanks and artillery pounded Gaza city in a relentless barrage of shelling on Thursday, despite some signs of progress in the international effort to bring about a ceasefire to the 20-day conflict.

AP - President-elect Barack Obama would spend the remaining $350 billion of a financial bailout fund on expanded lending and reduced foreclosures and would not use the money to help other industries, lawmakers said Wednesday after discussions with Obama emissaries.

AP - Police say a New Jersey man posed as a female animal doctor, ran an illegal veterinary practice and set up a phony rescue agency that may have duped pet lovers out of thousands of dollars. Vineland police arrested 26-year-old Daniel C. Tyce on Friday and charged him with practicing medicine without a license. He is being held on $10,000 bail.

AP - Some baseball owners say it may be time to reconsider a salary cap after the New York Yankees spent nearly a half-billion dollars on free agents during a recession that may cause some teams to retrench. 'I would ask, if it's such a bad idea, what sport doesn't have a salary cap other than us?' Milwaukee Brewers owner Mark Attanasio said Wednesday.

Reuters - Apple Inc chief and tech visionary Steve Jobs will take a leave of absence till end-June because of health problems 'more complex' than thought, backtracking on reassurances, stunning investors and sending its shares skidding 10 percent on Wednesday.

Reuters - U.S. President-elect Barack Obama on Wednesday predicted that Timothy Geithner, his pick for Treasury secretary, would win Senate approval despite a controversy over back taxes and the immigration status of a former housekeeper.

Reuters - President-elect Barack Obama's aides indicated that $350 billion in remaining financial bailout aid would not be used for ailing industries in other sectors, Republican senators said on Wednesday, adding such assurances could boost support for the plan.

Reuters - Israeli tanks and artillery pounded Gaza city in a relentless barrage of shelling on Thursday, despite some signs of progress in the international effort to bring about a ceasefire to the 20-day conflict.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An economic stimulus bill being crafted by Democratic leaders in the U.S. Congress and aides to President-elect Barack Obama will cost about $850 billion, according to a government source.

AP - Asian stocks tumbled Thursday, with benchmarks in Japan and Hong Kong dropping 4 percent or more, on gloomy U.S. holiday sales and renewed concerns about the banking industry.

AFP - Israel carried out more air raids Thursday across Gaza and ground troops waged more street battles as its war entered a 20th day and the death toll passed 1,000 despite hopes of a truce.

AFP - Russia and Ukraine appeared Thursday to be moving towards holding a government-level meeting to resolve their gas dispute which has left much of Europe without heat for over a week.