Officials: 88-year-old white supremacist charged with murder in Holocaust museum shooting

WASHINGTON — An 88-year-old white supremacist has been charged with murder for killing the security guard who had opened the door to let him into the U.S. Holocaust Memorial and Museum, officials said Thursday.

Son of Dead Sea Scrolls scholar accused in NYC of stealing IDs to discredit dad’s rivals

NEW YORK — A New York City lawyer whose father is a scholar of the Dead Sea Scrolls has been accused of stealing the identities of academics to discredit his father’s rivals.

Philly police: Men who caused horrific crash had long rap sheets; woman, 3 kids killed

PHILADELPHIA — Police in Philadelphia say two men with lengthy criminal records were fleeing police when they caused an accident in which a car jumped a curb, slammed into a crowd, and killed four people, including an infant two days short of her first birthday.

Iraqi government says 1 of 5 US contractors detained in Iraq released

BAGHDAD — Three American contractors detained during an investigation into the slaying of another American have been ordered released, but two others remain in custody on drug charges, the Iraqi government said Thursday.

Constellation Energy appeals ruling by Maryland regulators over EdF deal

BALTIMORE — Power company Constellation Energy has appealed a ruling by Maryland regulators that they have the right to approve its proposed $4.5 billion sale of half its nuclear power business to French nuclear company EdF.

For US officer in north Baghdad district, pullout from the city brings loss of leverage

BAGHDAD — The American captain was visibly irritated as local officials pressed him to move his vehicles away from the meeting place to allow traffic to pass. Finally, he walked out of the meeting — and none of the Iraqis asked why.

Bermuda accepts 4 Chinese Muslims detained at Guantanamo, angering Britain, China

WASHINGTON — Four Chinese Muslims detained at Guantanamo Bay prison were freed Thursday and resettled in Bermuda, sparking complaints from China and Britain even as the Obama administration tried to iron out details for sending more detainees to the Pacific island of Palau.

US Authorities: Suspected Holocaust Museum gunman to be charged with murder

WASHINGTON — An 88-year-old white supremacist has been charged with murder for killing the security guard who had opened the door to let him into the U.S. Holocaust Memorial and Museum, officials said Thursday.

Gunmen toss grenade at taco stand in central Mexico, killing 2

MORELIA, Mexico — Gunmen tossed a fragmentation grenade and fired on a crowded taco stand Thursday in the central Mexican city of Uruapan, killing a police officer and a 15-year-old boy. Four others were injured.

Maryland regulators say proposed Constellation-EdF deal requires their approval

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Maryland regulators ruled Thursday that they have the right to sign off on French nuclear power company EdF’s plan to buy half of Constellation Energy’s nuclear power business for $4.5 billion, rejecting the companies’ arguments that approval by the regulators was not necessary. Constellation Energy immediately appealed the decision.

Continental Airlines CEO says business travelers hold key to airline industry recovery

DALLAS — Continental Airlines Inc. is pressing its corporate customers to step up their travel because business traffic holds the key to recovery in the slumping airline industry, Chief Executive Larry Kellner said Thursday.

Lawmakers seek to force regional airlines to fix problems with pilot training, fatigue

WASHINGTON — Members of Congress said Thursday they will try to force regional airlines to fix problems with pilot training and fatigue highlighted by an investigation into an air crash in upstate New York in February.

WHO tells members a global outbreak of swine flu has begun _ 1st pandemic in 41 years

GENEVA — Swine flu is now formally a pandemic, a declaration by U.N. health officials that will speed vaccine production and spur government spending to combat the first global flu epidemic in 41 years. Thursday’s announcement by the World Health Organization doesn’t mean the virus is any more lethal — only that its spread is considered unstoppable.

Southwest Airlines CEO says June traffic looking weaker than May, no sign of turnaround

DALLAS — The chief executive of Southwest Airlines said Thursday that June looks weaker than May, judging by a key measure of revenue, and he doesn’t yet see signs of a turnaround.

Fighting in Pakistan’s northwest intensifies, more than 60 militants killed

ISLAMABAD — Pakistani troops and militants battled near the edge of the top Taliban commander’s stronghold Thursday as violence in the country’s volatile northwest spread and intensified, with multiple battles killing scores of insurgents.

Libya’s Gadhafi attacks US in speech, urges world to look at reasons behind terrorism

ROME — Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi urged the world Thursday to understand what motivates terrorists, and likened the 1986 U.S. strikes on Libya to Osama bin Laden’s terror attacks.

Lawmakers see improved prospects for creation of government representing Native Hawaiians

WASHINGTON — Granting Native Hawaiians the chance to form their own government, like those established by many of the nation’s 562 American Indian tribes and Alaska Natives, would break new ground and eventually be ruled unconstitutional, critics of the proposal said Thursday.

Auto task force: ‘Reasonable scenarios’ where taxpayers might get car bailout money back

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama’s auto task force told skeptical lawmakers Wednesday the government had no plans to pump more dollars into General Motors and Chrysler and that the public had a “reasonable probability” of getting its money back.

Auto task force: ‘Reasonable scenarios’ where taxpayers might get car bailout money back

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama’s auto task force told skeptical lawmakers Wednesday the government had no plans to pump more dollars into General Motors and Chrysler and that the public had a “reasonable probability” of getting its money back.

Family of abducted Bihar businessman wants CBI probe

PATNA - The family of abducted Bihar businessman Satyendra Kumar Singh, who the police say has been killed, has now demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the matter. They have also asked for the arrest of Janata Dal-United (JD-U) leader Vijay Krishna and his son Chanakya, the main accused in the case.

Police clueless on recovery of 100 human skulls in Aligarh

ALIGARH - A fortnight after nearly 100 human skulls were discovered by street urchins in a dried-up pond here, the Uttar Pradesh police are still to come up with a credible explanation for the mystery.

WHO gets ready to declare a swine flu pandemic after quizzing countries about their outbreaks

GENEVA — The World Health Organization is gearing up to declare a swine flu pandemic, a move that could trigger both the large-scale production of vaccines and questions about why the step was delayed for weeks as the virus continued to spread.

Zimbabwe’s PM urges US to continue support as country transitions toward democracy

WASHINGTON — Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai is urging the United States to support his government despite abuses by his coalition partner, President Robert Mugabe.

Head of Ohio gift certificate company that sold across US says economy reason for bankruptcy

DAYTON, Ohio — CertifiChecks Inc., which sold gift certificates to thousands of businesses and individuals around the country before filing for bankruptcy, fell victim to the economic downturn and dramatic falloff in sales, the company’s president said Wednesday.

Judge denies Delphi request to conduct deal with Platinum through a private sale

NEW YORK — A bankruptcy judge said Wednesday that a formal sale process needs to be put in place in order to ensure that the potential sale of Delphi’s assets results in the greatest possible return for the auto supplier’s stakeholders.

Senate bill takes aim at dissolvable tobacco; critics call smoke-free product ‘tobacco candy’

WASHINGTON — They’re the newest smoke-free tobacco products — dissolvable pellets or strips that don’t require users to chew or even spit. Sold in shiny plastic cases, the products melt in your mouth like breath mints.

White House says Obama saddened by shooting at Holocaust museum, worried about injuries

WASHINGTON — The White House says President Barack Obama was saddened by a shooting at the Holocaust museum near the White House and is concerned about a guard who was reportedly injured.

Prisoners, guards: Virginia women’s prison segregated masculine-looking inmates to curb sex

TROY, Va. — For more than a year, Virginia’s largest women’s prison rounded up inmates who had loose-fitting clothes, short hair or otherwise masculine looks, sending them to a unit officers derisively dubbed the “butch wing,” prisoners and guards say.

Search crews recover 3 bodies from Slim Jim plant wreckage after NC explosion; victims named

GARNER, N.C. — Search teams recovered three bodies from the unstable wreckage of a Slim Jim snack factory Wednesday, one day after an explosion knocked down parts of the roof and an exterior wall.

Gay Texas mayor runs for border to be with illegal immigrant partner; many face similar choice

SAN ANGELO, Texas — The mayor of this West Texas sheep ranching town offered a stunning explanation when he suddenly resigned: He was in love with a man who was an illegal immigrant and had gone to Mexico.