12 Afghan civilians killed after bus hits roadside bomb

KABUL — A roadside bomb blast in southern Afghanistan has killed 12 civilians.

McCain takes on uphill fight to kill $2.5 billion for additional C-17 cargo jets

WASHINGTON — While ceding some ground to President Obama on high-profile weapons cuts, lawmakers are cutting money for training and spare parts to pay for other weapons Obama doesn’t want and their own pet projects.

NATO leader agrees that troop decision should follow strategy review in Afghanistan

WASHINGTON — As the White House began Tuesday to debate in earnest the increasingly unpopular Afghanistan war, NATO’s secretary-general said President Barack Obama is right to delay troop decisions until a possibly revamped approach is devised.

US official: Clinton says Karzai government must earn Afghans’ trust by addressing fraud claim

NEW YORK — Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Monday that Afghan President Hamid Karzai’s government must earn the trust of the Afghan people by addressing claims of serious fraud in last month’s elections.

Venezuela’s Chavez praises Gadhafi, both leaders sign declaration condemning terrorism

PORLAMAR, Venezuela — Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi signed a declaration Monday night decrying what they call attempts by powerful Western countries to equate struggles against colonialism with terrorism.

Al-Qaida’s Zawahri calls Obama a ‘fraud’ for failing to stop Israel’s settlements

CAIRO — Al-Qaida’s deputy leader on Monday seized upon President Barack Obama failure to bring about a freeze in Israeli settlement construction in the West Bank and called him a “fraud” in a new audio message.

Merkel wins 2nd term, new coalition in German election; rival Steinmeier crushed

BERLIN — German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Sunday won the center-right majority that eluded her four years ago — nudging Europe’s biggest economic power to the right as it claws its way out of a deep recession.

Officials: Suspected US missile strike on Taliban base kills 6 militants in NW Pakistan

DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan — A missile killed six Taliban fighters in northwest Pakistan on Tuesday, intelligence officials said, apparently the latest strike in a covert U.S. program that American officials are considering intensifying.

NATO’s secretary-general: Obama right to do ’strategy first, then resources’ for Afghanistan

WASHINGTON — NATO’s secretary-general said Tuesday President Barack Obama is right to decide strategy first, then resources for Afghanistan and said he’s confident that U.S. and allied troops will remain “as long as it takes.”

NATO’s secretary general says more Afghan training and equipment needed for conflict

WASHINGTON — NATO’s secretary general on Monday said “things are going to have to change” in Afghanistan for the United States and its international allies to win the stalemated war.

Suspected US missile kills 6 in Pakistan, third attack in 24 hours

ISLAMABAD — A suspected U.S. missile attack killed six alleged militants in Pakistan just over the border from Afghanistan on Wednesday, intelligence officials said, the third such strike on the al-Qaida and Taliban stronghold in 24 hours.

2 Uzbeks from Guantanamo prison arrive in Ireland; Amnesty asks other EU nations to do more

DUBLIN — Two Uzbeks imprisoned since 2002 in the Guantanamo Bay prison have arrived in Ireland, and Amnesty International is appealing to other European Union nations to deliver on pledges to give new homes to U.S. terror detainees.

Afghan Cabinet minister escapes bombing that kills 4; Taliban claim responsibility

KABUL — An explosion targeting Afghanistan’s energy minister outside a girls school killed four civilians in the country’s far west, police said. A Taliban official claimed responsibility for the Sunday morning blast.

Suicide blasts that killed 17 in NW Pakistan a reminder of the Taliban’s ability to strike

ISLAMABAD — The suicide blasts that rocked northwest Pakistan over the weekend signal the Taliban remain a threat despite intensified military operations and unmanned drone attacks targeting the group’s leaders, analysts said Sunday.

Billionaire clown Guy Laliberte boards Russian Soyuz craft for flight to space station

BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan — Billionaire entertainer Guy Laliberte has been greeted by a raucous crowds of friends and family during preparations for his Soyuz rocket trip to the International Space Station.

6 NATO troops killed in Afghanistan; energy minister escapes bombing

KABUL — A suicide car bomb explosion targeting Afghanistan’s energy minister killed four civilians Sunday, while attacks and a violent storm killed six international troops, including three French and two American forces, officials said.

Pentagon chief rejects Afghan withdrawal timelines, says defeat would be ‘huge setback’ to US

WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Robert Gates is pushing back against liberal calls for withdrawal timelines from Afghanistan, saying it’s a mistake to set a deadline to end U.S. military action and a defeat would be disastrous for the U.S.

30 Afghan civilians killed after bus hits roadside bomb near Kandahar

KABUL — Officials say the civilian death toll in a roadside bomb blast in southern Afghanistan has reached 30.

Correction: Germany Election story

BERLIN — In a Sept. 24 story about national elections in Germany, The Associated Press erroneously gave Chancellor Angela Merkel’s age as 54. Merkel, who was born July 17, 1954, is 55.

Final rallies held before German vote; Islamic militants threaten retribution for Afghanistan

BERLIN — Ignoring threats by Islamic militants, Chancellor Angela Merkel and her main rival held their final political rallies Saturday before Germany’s national election, focusing on the key domestic issues of jobs and economic recovery.

Living among the Afghans: Special Forces troops move into town, build ties with locals

NILI, Afghanistan — The soldiers hesitated as the mullah preached, unsure if they would be welcome at the celebration of one of Islam’s highest holidays.

German politicans hold final rallies as Islamic militants threaten retribution for Afghanistan

BERLIN — German political parties held their final campaign rallies before Sunday’s national election, mindful of new warnings by Islamic militants that they would exact retribution for the country’s presence in Afghanistan.

Afghan civilian deaths reach record high ahead of election; UN warns more could follow

KABUL — Rising violence ahead of Afghanistan’s disputed presidential election made August the deadliest month of the year for civilians, the U.N. said, warning in a new report that attacks could spike again when the final vote results are announced.

Suicide car bombing hits Pakistan’s main northwestern city; 4 killed, dozens wounded

PESHAWAR, Pakistan — Police say a car bomb has detonated in a commercial district in Pakistan’s main northwestern city, killing four people and wounding dozens of others.

Suicide car bomber hits police station, killing at least 6, wounding 67 in NW Pakistan

PESHAWAR, Pakistan — A suicide bomber rammed his explosive-laden car into a police station Saturday, killing at least six people and wounding almost 70, a sign that insurgents still have the power to strike despite a major military offensive in Pakistan’s northwest.

VA to issue emergency checks up to $3,000 to Iraq, Afghanistan vets waiting for benefits

WASHINGTON — The Veterans Affairs Department said Friday it would begin issuing emergency checks of up to $3,000 to Iraq and Afghanistan veterans whose payments under the new GI Bill have been delayed.

Obama says he understands Americans are war-weary, says he’s considering next move

PITTSBURGH — President Barack Obama says he understands that Americans are tiring of the war in Afghanistan, and he said he is examining whether the U.S. is pursuing the right strategy there.

Pentagon military chief flies to Europe to talk of troop needs with commander in Afghan war

WASHINGTON — The Pentagon’s top military officer flew to Europe to talk to the commander in the Afghanistan war Friday about how many troops he needs to turn around the faltering campaign.

PTSD, depression, alcohol land more veterans in UK criminal justice system than Afghanistan

LONDON — Depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and substance abuse are behind an alarming rise in the number of former British soldiers ending up in prison, a report says — and more veterans have had tangles with the law than there are British troops in Afghanistan.

5 new American deaths come as debate over Afghan war intensifies in US

KABUL — Five U.S. troops died in attacks in southern Afghanistan, military officials said Friday, adding to this year’s record death toll as American public support is dwindling for operations in the country that once hosted Osama bin Laden.