At least 38 people are dead and more than 70 injured after two female suicide attackers hit Moscow's busiest underground metro in coordinated rush-hour attacks on Monday morning, according to The Moscow Times.
The bombs were filled with bolts and iron rods, according to Federal Security Service director Alexander Bortnikov, making the injured in grave condition.
"We will find and destroy them all," Russian President Dmitry Mededev said.
No rebel group has taken credit for the attacks, but after identifying fragments of the two females, Interfax claimed the bodies resembled that of North Caucasus natives in Chechnya, according to the Moscow Times.
Past suicide bombings in Moscow have been blamed on Islamic rebels who fight for their independence from Russia in Chechnya, according to the BBC.
A Chechen rebel leader had recently promised to create a war in Russia's cities after President Medvedev declared an end to Moscow's "anti-terrorism operations," according to the BBC.
The first bomb ripped through a carriage of the train at Lubyanka just before 8 a.m. The second explosion, only six stops away, hit Park Kultury a little after 8:30 a.m.
"I smelled burning plastic and heard cries of 'let the wounded through,'" Alevtina Rogatova, a 23-year-old student who was on the train at Park Kultury, told the Associated Press.
The first bomb at Lubyanka station had the equivalent force of 4kg of TNT, according to security services; the second bomb was equivalent to 1.5-2kg of TNT.
President Barack Obama called Medvedev to offer his condolences and to promise a united effort in the fight against terrorism, according to the Times.
Russian leaders said Tuesday will be a day for mourning, and the masterminds behind the bombing will be "destroyed."
March 2010 Archives
A Minneapolis gangster was charged on Friday for the murder of a 20-year-old he shot on March 17.
Brandon Lewis, 20, was charged with second-degree murder after he was accused of gunning down James King Jr. at the intersection of Clinton Avenue South and East Lake Street just before 6:30 p.m., according to Myfox news.
According to witness statements, Lewis made a U-turn on his bicycle, rode up to King with a smirk on his face, said "What up, cuz?" and shot him twice; one bullet lodged near his heart, and another entered near his lower back, according to the Star Tribune.
Police discovered that Lewis is a member of the Rolling 30s Bloods gang, according to the Tribune, and remains locked in the Hennepin County Jail on a $1 million bail.
King's sister, Latesha hayes, saw Lewis shoot King, according to the Tribune.
King had a few run-ins with the law, but he had just enrolled at Rochester Community and Technical College, according to Janessia Hayes, King's younger sister.
I looked at the obituary The Associated Press wrote about my cousin, Terry Lynch, who died in Afghanistan on June 29, 2009.
AP quoted the Rev. David Reichling who was the family priest and spoke at Terry's funeral. They also quoted heavily from Mark Johnson, a neighbor and close family friend, who stood up and gave a long and heart-filled speech about the man Terry was.
The Press did not use a standard lead. The lead starts off light-hearted about friends and family who gathered at the Mass, but by the second paragraph, the standard lead is visible.
The light-hearted lead works REALLY well. As a family member, I'm really glad the journalist did not treat Terry's obituary like a blocky resume. He or she did not list a bunch of facts about Terry. He or she filled the sentence space with light-hearted quotes while telling who Terry was.
The Pentagon announced new criteria to make discharging gays in the U.S. military harder on Thursday saying the move was an issue of common sense and decency, the Inquirer reported.
Robert Gates, Defense Secretary, said the changes allow a "fairer" approach to the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" law that requires gays to quiet their sexual orientation or endure expulsion from the military.
New measures only allow for high-ranking officers to initiate and oversee discharge cases, according to the BBC.
The new measures also discourage hearsay, and it eliminates third party gossip by requiring third party's information be given under oath.
"I believe these changes represent an important improvement, in the way the current law is put into practice, above all by providing a greater measure of common sense and common decency, to a process for handling what are difficult and complex issues for all involved," Mr Gates said, a quote pulled from the BBC.
The changes are set to take effect immediately, Gates added.
Prince Charles visited Afghanistan on Thursday to pay tribute to British troops and to discuss the country's next move in the conflict, according to the NZ Herald.
His trip was kept a secret for security reasons; the prince visited military bases in Helmand, and he laid a memorial wreath in honor of the fallen soldiers and had an opportunity to witness the happenings of a frontline hospital, the Herald reported.
"I am thrilled to have this opportunity after what is the fourth attempt, I think, to get to Afghanistan. It's a great joy to be able to get here and see some of you at least who I know do so much unbelievable work here," the price was quoted saying by the Herald
The prince said he was proud of what the troops were doing in Afghanistan and paid tribute to the relatives of soldiers, according to the BBC.
"As a parent, you worry the whole time...for everyone left behind it's ghastly," a quote pulled from the BBC.
Prince Charles met Gen Stanley McChrystal, the commander of U.S. and NATO troops, along with the Afghan District Governor Gulab Mangal.
He flew out of Afghanistan Thursday afternoon.
President Barack Obama signed his milestone healthcare bill into law at a White House ceremony on Tuesday.
"We have just now enshrined, as soon as I sign this bill, the core principle that everybody should have some basic security when it comes to their health care," Obama said, a quote pulled from the NY Times.
The new bill will allow approximately 32 million uninsured Americans healthcare.
Republicans oppose the bill on the basis that it is too costly, the BBC reported; however, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office estimated the bill would reduce the federal deficit by $138 billion in over a decade.
The fight is not over yet. Republicans said they vow to repeal the bill in the Senate, and reconciliation is a way for lawmakers to add changes in a federal policy set by Congress but has a limit of 20 hours for debate.
NY Times quoted John Boehner, the Republican leader, who said Tuesday was no day to celebrate. "President Obama is abandoning our founding principle that government governs best when it governs closest to the people."
Democrats still have to convince Americans of the healthcare benefits of the bill, according to the Times.
A University of Minnesota student was sexually assaulted in Minneapolis early Thursday near the University campus, the MN Daily reported.
Three men in a dark green mini van grabbed the student who was walking in the Marcy-Holmes area at Fourth Street Southeast and 10th Avenue Southeast, police told the Star Tribune; the men sexually assaulted her as they drove around and dropped her off in the same area.
Police will get surveillance camera footage Monday, the Daily reported; however, a University Inn employee said she doubted the footage would be useful because the cameras only have a clear view of the building's parking lot and alley.
The suspects are black, between the ages of 25 and 30, with short curly hair, according to the Tribune. They spoke English but also spoke in a foreign language with an East African accent, according to police.
One suspect had crooked teeth and wore a red zip-up sweatshirt and blue jeans, while the second suspect was unshaven with a dark blue hooded sweatshirt, blue jeans and black boots. The third suspect wore a dark blue T-shirt, blue jeans and gray and white tennis shoes.
Police are seeking help; anyone who has information should call the Minneapolis police at 612-673-TIPS.
Two people were shot and wounded in Minneapolis on Saturday night, the Star Tribune reported.
Kierra Wesson, 19, of Brooklyn Center was shot in the buttocks and Edward T. Baker, 23, of Minneapolis was shot in the arm just before 11 p.m., according to the Pioneer Press.
Minneapolis Police Department spokesman Sgt. William Palmer said the two were in a glass-enclosed stairwell of an apartment building when the shots came from outside. The accident took place on Sander Drive, a small street between 31st and 33rd Avenues S., just north of Highway 62, the Tribune reported.
At least one of the victims went to the Hennepin County Medical Center, according to the Tribune, but a hospital spokeswoman did not have information as of Sunday.
Police said no suspects were in custody.
Three armed robbers are still at large after they broke into a California home on Wednesday and threatened the parents of a 7-year-old who immediately called for help.
The 7-year-old, identified only as Carlos, locked himself and his sister in the bathroom and called the police, according to the BBC.
Monique Patino, the 911 dispatcher on the other end of the call, heard Carlos' say,
"There's some guys they're going to kill my mom and dad. Can you come please? Bring some cops, a lot of them. Can you come really fast? Hurry up."
"I felt the fear from the phone," Patino said at a police press conference, and she made the decision that even if it was a prank call she was going to send the police.
"Only a little bit," Carlos said when asked if he was afraid, the Hindu news reported
Investigators accused a former neo-Nazi man in Sweden for instigating the theft of an infamous Auschwitz death camp sign last December.
Anders Hogstrom, 34, was arrested in February after the "Arbeit Macht Frei" sign was stolen. He will be expedited to Poland for trial with one condition, that he serve his prison sentence in Sweden if convicted.
Hogstrom said he was acting as a middle man between the five Polish men who were arrested for the theft of the sign and an English-speaking buyer, according to CBC.
Hogstrom told BBC reporters that as soon as he knew the sign was stolen, he contacted the police.
"I have [in] no way committed a crime. On the contrary, I have made sure this sign could be returned," Hogstrom told the Associated Press.
The sign was recovered shortly after it was stolen, cut into three pieces. A replica replaced the actual sign and may stay in its place because the original may be too fragile to endure weather conditions, officials said.
Outrage erupted in Israel, Poland and around the world after the sign's theft. The sign, which in German means "Work sets you free," symbolizes the atrocities of Nazi Germany, according to the BBC.
Millions of people, 90 percent Jews, were murdered in Auschwitz after the Nazis occupied Poland during WWII.
Vice President Joe Biden went to Israel Monday to assist new discussions between Israelis and Palestinians, according to USA Today.
Vice President Biden and his wife traveled to Israel on Monday to discuss the "full range of bilateral and regional issues," according to a statement pulled from Biden's office.
Israel and the Palestinians have agreed to hold indirect talks; however, Israel's decision to build in Beitar Illit, a Jewish settlement in the West Bank, has added new strain to the already fragile talks between the two.
Palestinian leaders in the West Bank demanded a stop be put to the settlement building as a prerequisite to re-engaging talks.
Israel declared that the building was set to go up before the talks of a moratorium were established.
The U.S. pressured the Israeli government to pause their building, but Israel refused to stop building in East Jerusalem.
Israel is building in the location where Palestinians said they want to build their future capital, according to the BBC.
Israel welcomed the Vice President, but said his visit "has no genuine intention to advance the peace process," the group's settlement expert, Hagit Ofran, told AP.
As of now, all West Bank settlements, which include East Jerusalem, are considered illegal under international law.
However, Israel disputes this.
A six-hour standoff ended after police shot tear gas into a Shoreview home where an armed man barricaded himself in Monday morning.
SWAT and police were called to the 4400 block of Chatsworth St., N. Monday morning where the armed man locked himself inside a home, threatening to kill himself and police, according to My fox.
SWAT members from the Ramsey County Sheriff's Office fired tear gas in the townhouse and arrested the man shortly after 2 p.m.
Nearby homes were evacuated when the standoff began, according to the Star Tribune.
Authorities got to the home after a neighbor called the police saying an argument between the armed man and a woman had taken place.
The woman was locked out of the house and was on the deck while her boyfriend was in the home, suicidal, with a gun, according to the tribune.
Officers tried to call the man, but he did not answer; they resorted to tear gas.
A former Chisholm police officer shot and killed one man while injuring two others in a Chisholm bar Saturday night.
The suspect, a former Chisholm police officer, went to Jim's Sports Club Bar and Grill to confront his ex-wife when he unloaded five rounds toward his ex-wife who was sitting at the victims' table.
Edward Walberg, 40, died because of his injuries sustained on Saturday night, police said, while Cale Nelson, 29, was shot twice and is "fighting for his life" at St. Mary's Medical Center in Duluth, according to Andy Skoogman, a spokesman for the Minnesota Department of Public Safety.
Larry Elj, 38, was wounded in the shooting but was released from Fairview University Medical Center in Hibbing, all three men where from Chisholm.
The suspect went to the bar to confront his wife. He went to her table twice before being pinned down on the third time approaching her. He left the bar and returned with a gun and fired five rounds, the WCCO reported.
Mayor Miachael Jugovich (JOO'-goh-vitch) is praising Ryan Simonson, a 27-year-old bystander at the bar, who stopped the gunman from injuring more by smashing the gunman over the head with a chair, according to the Star Tribune.
Simonson said he is not sure what provoked him to attack the gunman, but he said he knew his friends were in trouble.
I compared the news report FOX gave about Obama's press conference on the economy's financial crisis.
Bret Beier started off by telling the major points Obama covered: unemployment, healthcare and the war.
For the most part, Beier went in chronological order with what Obama mentioned.
I would say it was comparable to a research paper.
Beier provided a thesis with three points Obama brought up, so in the report, he followed, in choronological order, the points he gave in the lead: first, unemployment, then healthcare, etc.
That is similar to what I did with the first lady speech. In my lead, I told readers what they would be reading, then I followed Obama as she mention the four pillars to successfully eliminating childhood obesity.
However, in Tim Harrowers book, he mentions that going in chronological order is not necessary, but for certain stories it may be best.
I think he called it the Martini glass style, which is best for chronology to explain how events unfolded, but for speeches, unless necessary for the story, the reporter does not have to present the speech in chronological order.
However, that is most often what I have seen.
Tens of Thousands of protesters went out in Madrid's streets Sunday to protest a bill that will make it easier for women to receive an abortion, according to the BBC.
"Get out of here and let the children live," demonstrators chanted as they called on the socialist government's equality minister Bibiana Aido to resign, reported France 24.
The bill passed through parliament and allows women to get an abortion up to 14 weeks into her pregnancy.
As it is, a woman can only terminate her pregnancy under specific circumstances, including rape, fetal abnormalities or physical danger to the mother's health and life, according to the BBC.
The new bill is expected to come into existence in July.
A series of ethical issues have the Catholic right pitted against the government, which legalized gay marriage and made divorce easier, according to the BBC.
Socialst Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said the only difference with this bill is that women will not be sent to jail or threatened with jail time for terminating her pregnancy.
Children should not be responsible if their parents do not want them. Parents should have thought about that aspect before, Marta Puig told AP news reporters.
Female Marines at Camp Pendleton, Calif., will be sent to Helmand Province next month in an attempt to win over the hearts and minds of Afghan women, according to the NY Times.
The Marines have spent time in "cultural awareness" classes, coached on the do's and don'ts of dealing with the Afghan villagers:
Do not approach Afghan women and fire off questions. As an ice breaker, play with the children and do not let the interpreter dominate the conversation, the instructor told the women.
Next month the first-ever "female engagement teams" will go with men on Helmand Province patrols and meet women in their homes, figure out their need for aid and gain intelligence.
These women are not naïve about the dangers ahead, reported the Times, half of them have been overseas.
"We all know that what you expect is not usually what it's going to end up being," Sgt. Melissa Hernandez, 35, said, a quote pulled from the Times.
Women are not allowed in ground combat, their training prepares them for worst-case scenarios--attacks and ambushes, reported Signonsandiego.
"And one more thing: 'If you have a pony tail,' said Marina Kielpinski, the instructor, 'let it go out the back of your helmet so people can see you're a woman.'"
A 6-year-old girl was hit and killed by a sport-utility vehicle Friday night after she wandered into traffic on Interstate 35W in Burnsville.
Kallie Palmer was thought to be at a friend's house before she was hit in the southbound lanes of 35W close to McAndrews Road, State Patrol Lt. Eric Roeske told the Associated Press.
Roeske said they are not sure what led the young girl onto the Interstate. To make her way onto 35W, Palmer had to climb a waist-high on an adult chain-link fence.
The young girl's family lives close to 35W.
A Cold Spring man and a passenger were in the SUV; they are uninjured, the Star Tribune reported.
At least 14 people were killed in Baghdad during Iraq's first day of voting in its parliamentary elections on Thursday, according to the NY Times.
Suicide bombers attacked two different polling stations.
The first bomber attacked a station in Mansur where three soldiers were killed and 15 more were wounded, according to the Times.
Less than an hour later, a bomber blew himself up in central Baghdad and killed at least four while wounding 10 others.
Agence France-Presse news agency said a mortar was fired at a polling stations, but missed and hit a busy market. The mortar killed four children and wounded 23, according to the BBC, a roadside booby-trap caused the blast.
Insurgents threaten to disrupt the elections.
"Terrorists wanted to hamper the elections, thus they started to blow themselves up in the streets," Deputy Interior Minister Ayden Khalid Qader said, a quote pulled from the BBC.
A majority of Iraqis go to the polls on Sunday, reported the Times, and the election is a key component to allowing the U.S. to reduce its military presence in the coming months.
A mother who thought she was going to lose her unborn baby after being T-boned by a drunk driver near Edmund Avenue and Victoria Street in St. Paul said she forgives the driver.
Danyel Anderson, 23, was eight months pregnant when David Hardaway, 30, hit the vehicle she was in on Aug. 12.
Anderson went to the hospital with two collapsed lungs and had a cesarean delivery, according to the Pioneer Press.
Her baby was deprived of oxygen and suffered "acute brain damage," a quote pulled from the Tribune.
Anderson said she has no hatred toward Hardaway. "No one else can judge you but the man above," Hardaway told the Press.
A Ramsey County District Judge sentenced Hardaway to more than four years in prison on Thursday after he pleaded guilty in January to five counts of criminal vehicular operation, according to the Tribune.
