AP – An Indonesian volcano that was quiet for four centuries shot a new, powerful burst of hot ash more than 10,000 feet (three kilometers) in the air Friday, sending frightened residents fleeing to safety for the second time this week.
AP – Stark differences exist between the oil platform fire in the Gulf of Mexico and the blast that led to the massive BP spill. Mostly notably, no one was killed and no crude was gushing into the water, but the distinctions don’t end there.
AP – Soldiers killed at least 25 suspected cartel members Thursday in a raid and gunbattle in a Mexican state near the U.S. border that has become one of the most dangerous battlegrounds in the country’s drug war.
AP – The last ferry left for the mainland and coastal residents hunkered down at home as Hurricane Earl closed in with 105 mph winds early Friday on North Carolina’s dangerously exposed Outer Banks, the first and perhaps most destructive stop on the storm’s projected journey up the Eastern Seaboard.
Time.com – Amid the catastrophes, the country’s religious minorities are under assault — and one group has allegedly been denied official assistance
AP – Utah was wavering between stifling defense and play sloppy enough to blow an 11-point lead before Brian Blechen saved the Utes.
AP – Investigators have identified the owner of a trunk in which the mummified remains of two babies were found, bringing them a step closer to solving the intriguing international mystery.
AP – Japan approved fresh economic sanctions against Iran on Friday after the United Nations asked Tokyo to tighten restrictions against Tehran over its controversial nuclear enrichment program, an official said.
AFP – The European Union pressed China on Friday to back up its words with action and do more to stem the flow of Chinese-made counterfeit goods into Europe and around the world.
AP – A French skyscraper climber nicknamed “Spider-Man” pleaded not guilty Friday to charges related to his bare-handed climb up a 57-story building in downtown Sydney.
AP – A Malaysian man pleaded guilty to wildlife smuggling after his bag bursting with 95 live boa constrictors broke open on a luggage conveyer belt at Kuala Lumpur International Airport, an official said Friday.
Reuters – American rock band Guns N’ Roses incurred the wrath of a crowd in Ireland after showing up almost an hour late — and then left the stage after being pelted with plastic glasses.
HealthDay – THURSDAY, Sept. 2 (HealthDay News) — Many Americans have skewed
perceptions when it comes to their weight, often believing they are
thinner than they really are, even when the scales are shouting otherwise,
a new poll finds.
AP – President Felipe Calderon tried to rally frustrated Mexicans behind his increasingly bloody drug war Thursday, saying he knows violence has surged under his watch, but arguing that it is the price of confronting powerful and brutal cartels.
AP – The Dallas Cowboys are going into the season feeling a lot better about kicker David Buehler.
AFP – A fresh batch of US unemployment figures will on Friday provide Americans with a crucial litmus test for the sputtering economic recovery and President Barack Obama’s policies.
AP – One of two known survivors of a drug gang’s massacre in northern Mexico of 72 undocumented Central and South American migrants said in an interview broadcast Thursday that they were killed because they refused to work for the traffickers.
AP – An electoral official accused President Hugo Chavez and his allies of breaking campaign laws by using state-run media to berate rivals and praise friends ahead of this month’s legislative elections.
Reuters – China on Friday offered a rare glimpse into its foreign exchange reserves, confirming that they are overwhelmingly allocated in dollars, while a central banker said the mountain of cash could face depreciation risks.
AP – Dolphins have been herded into a cove as part of an annual hunt in the Japanese seaside town made famous by an Oscar-winning documentary about their slaughter, conservationist group Sea Shepherd said Friday. A town official said none were killed.
AFP – Farmers in eastern China are grappling with an explosion in the population of wild boars, who are destroying crops and upsetting the ecological balance, state media said on Friday.
AP – Suspected leftist rebels killed 14 police officers and wounded seven in an ambush of a five-truck convoy in southern Colombia, a police commander said Thursday.
Time.com – Nine weeks before the midterm elections, Barack Obama finds himself on the wrong side of the polls. Where did all that adoration go — and is a Republican sweep next?
AP – Members of the original funk band War say they can’t be friends with PepsiCo.
AP – Twentieth Century Fox’s “Machete” is set to slice up the competition as director Robert Rodriguez’s star-studded extravaganza will likely dominate the weekend with a Friday through Monday total of around $16 million.
