Officer: Americans jailed in Haiti tried taking other kids

U.S. missionaries in Haiti who face kidnapping charges for trying to take 33 children out of the country made an earlier attempt to take kids, says a Haitian police officer.

Toyota recalls more than 400,000 cars

Toyota's president apologized Tuesday as he announced the global recall of more than 400,000 of the automaker's 2010 hybrid models, including the Prius.

Murtha dies after surgery complications

Rep. John Murtha died as a result of recent gallbladder surgery complications that arose from doctors accidentally nicking Murtha's intestines, a source told CNN.

Crew checks shuttle for damage

As they head toward a rendezvous with the international space station, crew members of the space shuttle Endeavour are checking for any signs of damage after Monday's early morning launch.

Police: Iraq vet abused daughter

An Iraq war veteran has been charged with assault on suspicion of abusing his daughter, whose head he allegedly held in water to get her to recite the ABCs, according to police in Yelm, Washington.

Sources: Taliban leader Mehsud dead

Pakistani Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud is dead, three Taliban sources said Tuesday.

Ripples of Dubai killing spread

A man was murdered in his Dubai hotel room by a hit squad that operated with European passports, police say. Sounds like the plot of a novel, but this is reality and the hunt is on for the killers of top Hamas official Mahmoud al-Mabhouh.

Elizabeth Smart kidnapper pleads guilty

A woman convicted in the 2002 kidnapping of Utah teenager Elizabeth Smart pleaded guilty in the attempted kidnapping of Smart's cousin a month later, court officials said Monday.

3 shot during New Orleans celebration

Three people were shot amid celebrations surrounding the New Orleans Saints' Super Bowl win, police said Monday.

Up to 20 more inches of snow for D.C.

A second round of snow is heading toward Washington, D.C., and surrounding cities, where residents are still digging out after a record-setting blizzard.

Toyota in global recall of Prius

Toyota recalls thousands of its flagship Prius cars worldwide over braking problems, in the latest blow to the carmaker.

Iran 'ups nuclear fuel enriching'

Iran has begun the process of enriching uranium to 20% at its plant at Natanz in defiance of the West, state media says.

Smartphones to get even smarter

A quantum physics trick is set to give smartphones and hand-held devices pressure-sensitive switches and screens.

Tymoshenko bloc 'contests result'

Members of Yulia Tymoshenko's bloc say it will contest the conduct of Ukraine's presidential vote after her reported defeat.

Charges over Philippines massacre

The Philippines charges 196 people with murder over a pre-election massacre which left 57 people dead.

India refinery 'threatens locals'

An alumina refinery in east India run by a UK-based firm causes pollution threatening the health of locals, a rights group says.

Jackson doctor appears in court

Michael Jackson's doctor, Conrad Murray, denies a charge of involuntary manslaughter over the singer's death.

Chinese quake activist sentenced

An activist who questioned why so many died in a huge quake in China in 2008 is jailed for five years for subversion.

Fertile forties pregnancy warning

Experts fear older women are ditching contraception in the mistaken belief that fertility inevitably wanes at a certain age.

Sword lord - swallower sets world record with 18 blades

An Australian performance artist sets a world record by swallowing 18 swords at the same time.

Robinho was not up to it - Bowen

Mark Bowen, Manchester City's former assistant manager, says Robinho "massively underperformed" at Manchester City.

India v South Africa live score

India take on South Africa in the first Test at Nagpur.

How should the world react to Iran?

The West pushes for 'strong sanctions' over Iran's uranium plans. What is your reaction?

BBC World News

Open plan

Why surprise plays little part in latest Afghan operation

Poll quandary

Will Ukraine PM Yulia Tymoshenko challenge outcome?

'I thought I'd die'

Hero pilot on the Heathrow crash landing

Biswas on India

Why doesn't Bollywood take a stand?

Chance encounter

Metropolitan Police Commander Ali Dizaei's downfall

Hewitt on Europe

Is the euro being stretched to breaking point?

Swiss bank UBS returns to profit

Swiss bank UBS reports its first quarterly profit for a year, helped by lower costs and a large tax credit

Nissan reports return to profit

Japanese carmaker Nissan has reported a return to profit for the last three months of 2009.

Ex-Merrill boss takes over at CIT

The former chief executive of Merrill Lynch, John Thain, was at the heart of the bonus row - now he has a new job as boss of US lender CIT.

Online safety for five-year-olds

Children as young as five are being targeted in a safety campaign launched as part of EU Internet Safety Day.

China shuts down hacking website

Three people are arrested as China's largest training website for hackers is shut down, state media reports.

Toyota recalls 437,000 Priuses, hybrids globally

TOKYO (AP) -- Toyota says it is recalling about 437,000 Prius and other hybrid vehicles worldwide to fix brake problems - the latest in a string of embarrassing safety lapses at the world's largest automaker....

GOP wary of pitfalls in Obama's health care summit

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Even as Republicans publicly welcome President Barack Obama's call for a bipartisan confab on health care, some privately worry that he might be laying a trap to portray their ideas as flimsy....

Another major storm headed to snowy Mid-Atlantic

WASHINGTON (AP) -- A second major storm in less than a week was blowing Tuesday toward the Mid-Atlantic region, where plows still hadn't touched some roads, utility workers were struggling to restore power and shovels were in short supply....

Iran to stop enrichment if given nuclear fuel

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) -- The head of the Iran's atomic agency said Iran would not enrich uranium to a higher level if the West provides the fuel it needs for the Tehran research reactor....

Pa. Dem Murtha remembered as military advocate

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) -- Rep. John Murtha, who said the Bush administration's handling of the war in Iraq was based on "flawed policy wrapped in illusion" and called for a withdrawal of U.S. troops there, is being remembered as an advocate on Capitol Hill for those serving in military uniform....

Astronauts inspect shuttle on way to space station

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) -- Endeavour's astronauts inspected their ship early Tuesday for any launch damage as they raced toward a 200-mile-high rendezvous with the International Space Station....

Vote on NLRB nominee first test of GOP's new power

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Republicans' first test of their new Senate clout could come in a vote to block President Barack Obama's choice of a union attorney for a seat on the National Labor Relations Board....

Jackson hearing mirrors past for family

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- The scene was eerily familiar, Katherine Jackson and her family walking grimly into a courtroom, occupying a special family row, demonstrating their love for their beloved son and sibling, Michael....

Rapper Lil Wayne to be sentenced in NYC gun case

NEW YORK (AP) -- Little more than a week ago, Lil Wayne was reinforcing his place in rap's pantheon with a commanding performance at the Grammy Awards ceremony. His latest album, "Rebirth," was officially released Feb. 2....

Parade to give another jolt of Saints euphoria

NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- Another jolt of Saints euphoria is on tap for New Orleans Tuesday when the Super Bowl champs board floats borrowed from Mardi Gras krewes for a victory parade through the grateful city....

Iran moves closer to nuke warhead capacity

Iran moves closer to being able to produce nuclear warheads with formal notification that it will enrich uranium to higher levels.

World Blog: Did 'pandering' cost U.S. lives at Afghan base?

Why did eight American soldiers die defending an remote outpost the U.S. military no longer wanted to hold? NBC News' Richard Engel reports from Kabul.

Haiti awash in Christian aid, evangelism

The drama on the sidelines of Haiti's earthquake, in which 10 American missionaries were arrested trying to take children out of the country, was a fiasco waiting to happen. By Kari Huus.

N. Korea’s Kim reiterates disarmament pledge

China's Xinhua News Agency says that North Korean leader Kim Jong Il has reiterated his country's promise to achieve a denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.

Recovery effort revives China’s quake zone

China is showing off the results of its massive drive to rebuild its own quake zone  22 months after a 7.9-magnitude temblor struck and devastated the region and left at least 90,000 dead.

Mexico arrests 2 reputed leaders of drug gang

Mexican authorities on Monday arrested two suspected leaders of a brutal drug trafficking gang that terrorized the border city of Tijuana for several years, a U.S. official said.

Spring rains threaten Haitian survivors

In Haiti's devastated capital city, early spring rains threaten to cause landslides and bring about health problems in the makeshift camps where more than 500,000 people are living.

NATO: Afghans to play big role in offensive

Thousands of Afghan soldiers and police will join U.S. and NATO troops in an offensive in southern Afghanistan, playing their biggest role in any joint operation of the Afghan war.

Magnitude 5.7 quake rattles southern Mexico

A magnitude 5.7-earthquake shook southern Mexico near the Oaxaca coast Monday, setting off evacuation alarms and swaying buildings as far away as Mexico City.

Yanukovych apparent victor in Ukrainian vote

Opposition leader Viktor Yanukovych emerges as the apparent winner in Ukraine's presidential contest, with a lead of almost three percentage points with about 99 percent of ballots counted.

Pakistan: 6 held in plot to attack Americans

Authorities arrest six suspected Taliban militants with a suicide vest and hand grenades allegedly on their way to attack a five-star hotel and kill Americans, police say.

Mexico troops find 12 tons of pot in truck

Mexican soldiers seize more than 12 tons of marijuana found beneath a false floor of a tractor trailer.

Tel Aviv man accused of enslaving women

An Israeli man has been jailed, suspected by police of enslaving a cult-like harem of at least 17 women and 37 children.

Chinese police shut down hacker training op

Police in central China have shut down a hacker training operation that openly recruited thousands of members online and provided them with cyberattack lessons and malicious software, state media said Monday.

McItaly burger controversial in home country

Italy's agriculture minister defended his sponsorship of McDonald's new all-Italian burger Monday amid criticism that he is selling out to a multinational corporation.

Egypt arrests top 3 opposition leaders

The No. 2 leader of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood and two other top figures are arrested in a sweep targeting members of the nation's most powerful opposition group.

Bad malaria pills raise drug resistance fears

High rates of the most effective type of malaria-fighting drugs sold in three African countries are poor quality  raising fears of increased drug resistance to a killer disease.

Body found in landing gear of N.Y.-Tokyo flight

A body was found inside a wheel well of a Delta Air Lines plane after it landed in Tokyo from New York, and Japanese authorities Monday were trying to identify the man.

Alligator kills 11-year-old girl in Brazil

Authorities say an alligator killed an 11-year-old girl as she swam with friends in a river in northeastern Brazil.

Wild West motif lightens mood at Afghan base

The lore of the Wild West and the hard reality of southern Afghanistan share a few things in common: danger, men with guns and desert wilderness

Taliban: We won’t fight GIs ‘face-to-face’

Taliban fighters plan to disguise themselves as civilians during a looming NATO offensive in southern Afghanistan, a militant commander told NBC News.

Political ally: Sri Lankan presidential candidate arrested on sedition charges

A political ally says Sri Lanka's former army chief and presidential candidate has been arrested on sedition charges.

Heavy snow paralyzes parts of Bulgaria, Romania

Heavy snowfall has seriously disrupted transport in Bulgaria and neighboring Romania, blocking highways and leaving cars stranded in snow.

Observation deck of world’s tallest tower closed

Tourists headed for the observation deck of the world's tallest tower were left disappointed and confused Monday after the owner of Dubai's Burj Khalifa unexpectedly cut off public access to the building because of electrical problems.

17 soldiers dead, 53 rescued in Kashmir avalanche

A massive avalanche plowed into an Indian army training center at a ski resort town in Indian-controlled Kashmir on Monday, killing 17 soldiers and critically injuring 17 others.

Britain’s ITV fined over killing rat on TV show

British broadcaster ITV pleaded guilty to animal cruelty and was fined by an Australian court Monday after a rat was killed and eaten on the reality TV show "I'm a Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here."

Gulp! Sword artist’s record is hard to swallow

Chayne Hultgren, an Australian performance artist, set a new Guinness World Record Monday by simultaneously swallowing 18 swords, each nearly as long as two and a half rulers.

100 Homes Threatened by Weakened Dam in Northern California

Iran Test-Fires Another 'Top Secret' Missile

Moussaoui Juror Falls Ill; Deliberations to Resume Friday

DHS Press Secretary Arrested on Child Seduction Charges

Duke Lacrosse Coach Resigns Amid Rape Flap

Saddam Dodges Questions From Prosecutors

Video Claims to Show Insurgents Dragging Burning Body of U.S

Kidnapped Brothers Killed in Venezuela

French Unions: Repeal Labor Law in 10 Days, or Else

Three Arrested, Man Shot in 'Baby Shower Gone Bad'

PM Says New Hamas Government Is Broke

Late-Season Snowfall Strikes East Coast

NATO to Afghan assault villagers: keep heads down (Reuters)

Defiant Iran starts uranium enrichment to 20% (AFP)

Toyota adds new Prius to global recall list (Reuters)

Pa. Dem Murtha remembered as military advocate (AP)

Taiwan drops request for U.S. military subs: source (Reuters)

Iran says starts work on making 20 percent nuclear fuel (Reuters)

Iran to stop enrichment if given nuclear fuel (AP)

Jackson hearing mirrors past for family (AP)

Rapper Lil Wayne to be sentenced in NYC gun case (AP)

GOP wary of pitfalls in Obama's health care summit (AP)

Vote on NLRB nominee first test of GOP's new power (AP)

Toyota recalls 437,000 Priuses, hybrids globally (AP)

Another major storm headed to snowy Mid-Atlantic (AP)

Parade to give another jolt of Saints euphoria (AP)

Toyota announces mass hybrid vehicle recall (AFP)

Astronauts inspect shuttle on way to space station (AP)

Obama's healthcare summit sets stage for end-game (Reuters)

Weather closes government offices a second day (Reuters)

John Murtha, defense appropriations chair, dies (Reuters)

U.S. missionary in Haiti says trusts God to free her (Reuters)