Yahoo! News: Top Stories
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                  as of Thu, 20 Oct 2005 12:26:37 GMT

    Wilma Weakens Slightly, but Roars Ahead (AP)

AP - Hurricane Wilma weakened slightly Thursday as it roared toward
 Mexico's Yucatan peninsula and southern Florida, an "extremely
 dangerous" storm that already has killed 13 people and forced the
 evacuation of tens of thousands from Honduras to the Florida Keys.

    Bush Likely to Have More Praise for Abbas (AP)

AP - The last time President Bush had Mahmoud Abbas to the White House,
 he heaped praise on the Palestinian leader as a courageous democratic
 reformer.

    Rove, Libby Discussed CIA Operative (AP)

AP - Prosecutors have gathered evidence that top White House aides Karl
 Rove and I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby exchanged information about their
 contacts with reporters regarding Valerie Plame in the days just before
 the CIA officer's cover was blown.

    U.S., Afghans Probe Alleged Desecration (AP)

AP - The U.S. military and the Afghan government said Thursday they will
 investigate a TV report that claimed U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan
 burned the bodies of two Taliban fighters and taunted other Islamic
 militants. The U.S. military said it found the report "repugnant."

    Arab League chief begins tough Iraq mission (Reuters)

Reuters - Arab League chief Amr Moussa, who has said Iraq is on the
 verge of civil war, began his first postwar visit to Baghdad on
 Thursday on what officials say is a mission to promote national
 reconciliation.

    House Votes to Ban Obesity Blame Lawsuits (AP)

AP - The Republican-controlled House voted Wednesday to shield fast-food
 chains from lawsuits that blame them for making people fat.

    Ford Motor Co. Reports 3Q Loss of $284M (AP)

AP - Ford Motor Co. reported a third-quarter loss of $284 million on
 Thursday, dragged down by its North American division where it lost
 more than $1 billion. Its shares slipped in premarket trading.

    One Ticket Wins $340M Jackpot in Ore. (AP)

AP - A ticket sold in Oregon matched all six numbers drawn in
 Wednesday's Powerball game to win the $340 million jackpot.

    Michael Jackson Called for Jury Service (AP)

AP - Authorities want Michael Jackson back in court -- this time as a
 juror. Jackson received a jury summons at his Neverland Valley Ranch,
 four months after he was acquitted of child molestation charges.

    Astros Beat Cardinals, Win First Pennant (AP)

AP - Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte grabbed the champagne, went right
 for Roy Oswalt and showed the Houston Astros how to celebrate a trip to
 the World Series. Experts at this from their days with the Yankees,
 Clemens and Pettitte drenched their fellow ace in a bath of bubbly,
 pouring one bottle on his head, another down his back.

    Hurricane Wilma spurs Mexico, Florida exodus (Reuters)

Reuters - MIAMI (Reuters)- Hurricane Wilma, which weakened to a still
 fierce Category 4 storm after breaking intensity records in the
 Caribbean Sea, prompted widespread evacuations as it approached the
 Yucatan Peninsula on Thursday.

    Bird flu flares in Asia, kills another person (Reuters)

Reuters - Bird flu has taken another human life, officials said on
 Thursday -- a 48-year-old Thai man who was the 67th person known to
 have been killed by a virus steadily creeping into Europe and toward
 Africa.

    Bush expected to pressure Abbas on militants (Reuters)

Reuters - U.S. President George W. Bush is expected to pressure
 Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Thursday to do more to end
 militant attacks against Israeli targets now that Israel has withdrawn
 from the Gaza Strip.

    Rumsfeld urges Chinese clarity on missile build-up (Reuters)

Reuters - China needs to provide wary neighbors a clear explanation of
 its missile build-up, U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said on
 Thursday, the final day of visit to Beijing.

    Roadside bomb kills three US soldiers in Iraq (Reuters)

Reuters - A roadside bomb attack on a U.S. convoy has killed three
 American soldiers in Iraq, the U.S. military said on Thursday.

    California Students Are Still Struggling (Los Angeles Times)

Los Angeles Times - WASHINGTON -- Despite slight gains in math scores,
 California fourth- and eighth-grade students rank among the lowest
 nationally in mathematics and reading, test results released Wednesday
 showed.

    Cheney, CIA Long at Odds (Los Angeles Times)

Los Angeles Times - WASHINGTON -- For more than a decade, Dick Cheney
 has tussled with the CIA, first as secretary of Defense and later as
 vice president. Now that long and tortured history forms the backdrop
 of a federal probe into who named an undercover agency officer -- an
 inquiry that is centering in part on Cheney's office.

    Hunt for Tax Cheats Is Curbed by Governor (Los Angeles Times)

Los Angeles Times - SACRAMENTO -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is putting
 the brakes on efforts to give state investigators more tools to hunt
 tax evaders, following a period of aggressive enforcement that has
 generated billions of dollars for California coffers.

    Defiant Hussein, Co-Defendants Plead Not Guilty, Win Trial Delay
     (Los Angeles Times)

Los Angeles Times - BAGHDAD -- An imperious, defiant Saddam Hussein
 waged a theatrical struggle to control the opening of his murder trial
 Wednesday, sparring repeatedly with the chief judge and challenging the
 legitimacy of the Iraqi court. He and seven former aides then pleaded
 not guilty and won a 40-day postponement of the proceedings.

    'I Will Eat Your Dollars' (Los Angeles Times)

Los Angeles Times - FESTAC, Nigeria -- As patient as fishermen, the
 young men toil day and night, trawling for replies to the e-mails they
 shoot to strangers half a world away.

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