WASHINGTON – Reflecting the American divide over immigration, protesters on both sides stood a few feet from each other near the Capitol shouting chants and exchanging accusations of racism. The protesters were kept apart Friday by helmeted police officers who stood inside a ring of yellow police tape. A Minuteman …

WASHINGTON – The planned opening of the Capitol visitor center, already more than a year behind schedule, might be pushed back again due to holdups on major safety systems and other unknowns, according to a government watchdog agency. Construction on the 580,000-square-foot addition has accelerated, but “the proposed opening dates …

ARROYO GRANDE, Calif. – You and I invest in a world where truth is a rare commodity, where guidance from our leaders is all too often misleading propaganda. Today we are not merely skeptical of what we hear, distrustful of everything, fearful of some unknown next shoe dropping … we …

The first signs of Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia among older people may be physical rather than mental, new research suggests. The findings are a strong indicator that physical and mental performance among the elderly are interconnected, researcher Eric B. Larson, MD, tells WebMD. “If we expect the …

NABLUS, West Bank – Israeli troops raided a village in the West Bank on Sunday, killing five Palestinians, including a militant Israel blamed for several suicide bombings that have killed dozens of Israelis, officials said. In a separate raid in a nearby West Bank town, troops killed a Palestinian intelligence …

NUKU’ALOFA, Tonga – A magnitude 5.8 earthquake Wednesday morning disrupted a simulated tsunami warning drill on the remote South Pacific nation of Tonga, an official said. The quake rattled Tonga early Wednesday at the same time that emergency authorities on the country’s islands were broadcasting simulated alerts as part of …

WASHINGTON – The United States will not negotiate directly with Iran on its nuclear program, President Bush’s spokesman said Wednesday, although he left open the door for talks if Tehran proves it has permanently stopped all nuclear weapons activities. “Until they do that, there is going to be no change …

CAIRO, Egypt – The leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq railed against Shiites in a four-hour-long audiotape harangue posted on the Web Friday, saying that militias are raping women and killing Sunnis and that the community must ignore calls for reconciliation and fight. The tape by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi appeared …

HOUSTON – The DNA division of the Houston Police Department‘s crime lab, closed for more than three years because of concerns over flawed testing, is set to reopen, city officials said. The division was shut down in 2002 after an independent audit revealed the use of unqualified personnel, inadequate facilities …

WASHINGTON – The decision to press ahead with the launch of space shuttle Discovery next month without fixing the foam problem came down to whether six months would be too long to wait for repairs, NASA’s chief engineer said Wednesday. Chief Engineer Christopher Scolese said that during a meeting of …