Yahoo! News: Top Stories
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                  as of Wed, 15 Feb 2006 15:23:22 GMT

    House Probe Blasts Katrina Preparation (AP)

AP - The deaths and suffering of thousands of Hurricane Katrina's
 victims might have been avoided if the government had heeded lessons
 from the 2001 terror attacks and taken a proactive stance toward
 disaster preparedness, a House inquiry concludes.

    Pakistani Cartoon Protests Largest Yet (AP)

AP - Gunfire and rioting erupted Wednesday as more than 70,000 people
 joined Pakistan's biggest protest yet against Prophet Muhammad
 cartoons, burning movie theaters, a KFC restaurant and a South
 Korean-run bus station. Three people died and dozens were injured in
 two cities, police and witnesses said.

    Bernanke: Economy Back on Track After Lull (AP)

AP - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, delivering his first
 economic report to Congress on Wednesday, declared that the economy has
 snapped smartly out of an end-of-year lull, although inflation and
 other risks remain. He left the door open to higher interest rates in
 the future.

    Feds to Quiz Internet Companies on China (AP)

AP - Four U.S. Internet companies eager for a foothold in China face
 hard questions from lawmakers worried that the communist regime is
 using American technology to crush political dissent.

    Rising tide of border crime and violence (The Christian Science
     Monitor)

The Christian Science Monitor - First came an armed standoff between
 Texas lawmen and drug smugglers disguised as Mexican soldiers. Next,
 federal officials seized a stockpile of heavy-duty weaponry - assault
 rifles, hand grenades, and improvised explosive devices - along the Rio
 Grande. Then a Mexican police reporter was critically wounded after
 intruders fired more than 60 rounds into the newspaper's offices.

    Man Shot by Cheney to Remain Hospitalized (AP)

AP - The lawyer shot by Vice President Dick Cheney during a hunting
 accident is expected to stay in the hospital for about a week after
 suffering a mild heart attack when a shotgun pellet in his chest
 traveled to his heart.

    Hayek Helps Groups Aiding Battered Women (AP)

AP - Hollywood actress Salma Hayek has made donations to groups aiding
 battered women in her native Mexico, calling domestic violence a
 problem that touches every corner of the globe.

    Rufus the Bull Terrier America's Top Dog (AP)

AP - Rufus won by a head. A colored bull terrier became America's top
 dog Tuesday night, winning Best in Show at the Westminster Kennel Club,
 thanks to his most prominent feature.

    Scorpion Queen and Centipede King Marry (AP)

AP - The couple with a soft spot for creepy crawlers -- Thailand's
 Scorpion Queen and Centipede King -- held their Valentine's Day's
 wedding Tuesday at a haunted house.

    Dorfmeister Wins Downhill; Kildow Eighth (AP)

AP - Michaela Dorfmeister raced for elusive gold. Lindsey Kildow raced
 through excruciating pain. The Austrian's long-sought victory and the
 American's inspiring eighth-place finish in the Olympic women's
 downhill brightened a windy, gloomy day in the Italian Alps on
 Wednesday.

    Rice says Iran in "open defiance" (Reuters)

Reuters - "They have now crossed a point where they are in open
 defiance" of the international community, she told the U.S. Senate
 Foreign Relations Committee.

    Hamas makes first parliamentary appointments (Reuters)

Reuters - Hamas made its first parliamentary appointments on Wednesday
 as Israel prepared to decide on its strategy toward the Palestinians
 after the Islamic militant group takes up the reins of power.

    Three die in Pakistan cartoon riots (Reuters)

Reuters - Three people died and outlets of a Norwegian phone firm, a
 U.S. fast food restaurant and banks were set ablaze in Pakistan on
 Wednesday in renewed violence against cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad.

    Top Democrats urge Cheney come forward on shooting (Reuters)

Reuters - Vice President Dick Cheney should publicly explain his
 shooting of a Texas lawyer in a hunting accident, top congressional
 Democrats said on Wednesday after a White House meeting that included
 Cheney.

    Bush wants extra $75 mln to spur Iran democracy (Reuters)

Reuters - President George W. Bush will ask Congress to authorize an
 extra $75 million to help the United States spur democracy in its
 adversary Iran, a senior State Department official said on Wednesday.

    Australian broadcaster shows Abu Ghraib abuse pictures (AFP)

AFP - Australian public broadcaster SBS showed what it said were
 previously unpublished photographs of the abuse of prisoners in Iraq's
 notorious Abu Ghraib prison by US soldiers.

    Europe scrambles as bird flu spreads further (AFP)

AFP - European experts scrambled to hammer out a response to a
 fast-developing bird flu threat, as the lethal H5N1 strain spread into
 Germany, the latest country to be hit by the virus in days.

    Three more dead as Pakistan cartoon riots spiral (AFP)

AFP - Fresh protests against cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed have
 engulfed Pakistan, leaving Western businesses in flames and three
 people dead, including an eight-year-old boy.

    Haiti vote count marred by fraud claims, protests, delays (AFP)

AFP - Eight days after the international community hailed Haiti's
 election, the painfully slow vote count remains bogged down by claims
 of fraud, protests and delays.

    Schoolchildren blown up in Baghdad blast (AFP)

AFP - Three Iraqi children were killed by a roadside bomb near their
 school in a wave of explosive violence in Baghdad that claimed a total
 of 11 lives, police said.

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