KABUL (AP) ― France’s plans to withdraw its combat troops from Afghanistan a year early drew harsh words Saturday in the Afghan capital, with critics accusing French President Nicolas Sarkozy of putting domestic politics ahead of Afghans’ safety.A wider proposal by Sarkozy for NATO to hand over all security to Afghans by the end of next year also came under fire, with one Afghan lawmaker saying it would be “a big mistake” that would leave security forces unprepared to fight the Taliban insurgenc

LIMA (AP) ― A fire swept through a two-story private rehabilitation center for addicts in a poor part of Peru’s capital Saturday, killing 27 people and critically injuring five as firefighters punched holes through walls to rescue residents locked inside.The “Christ is Love” center for drug and alcohol addicts was unlicensed and overcrowded and its residents were apparently kept inside “like prisoners,” Health Minister Alberto Tejada told the Associated Press.Authorities said 26 people died at t

HAVANA (AP) ― Cuba’s Communist Party closed the first day of its national conference Saturday with declarations of support for the burgeoning private-sector class, tough talk on corruption and vows to be attentive to islanders’ complaints.But there were no concrete resolutions on President Raul Castro’s call for political term limits or word on leadership changes during the closed-door gathering, a two-day follow-up to last April’s historic party summit where delegates opened up long-shut doors

WASHINGTON (AP) ― Just how rich is Mitt Romney? Add up the wealth of the last eight presidents, from Richard Nixon to Barack Obama. Then double that number. Now you’re in Romney territory.He would be among the richest presidents in American history if elected ― probably in the top four.He couldn’t top George Washington who, with nearly 24,000 hectares and more than 300 slaves, is considered the big daddy of presidential wealth. After that, it gets complicated, depending on how you rate Thomas Je

WASHINGTON (UPI) -- Federal agents say they are investigating a picture on the Internet allegedly showing Arizona men holding guns and a bullet-ridden image of President Obama.The picture allegedly displayed seven young men with four of them holding up two assault rifles, a revolver and a bolt-actio

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- Protesters from Occupy DC, facing a clampdown on their encampment Monday, stripped down for a topless street party Saturday outside a black-tie gala for Washington's biggest movers and shakers.President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle topped the guest list for the 99th ga

NEW YORK (AP) -- Twitter, a tool of choice for dissidents and activists around the world, found itself the target of global outrage Friday after unveiling plans to allow country-specific censorship of tweets that might break local laws.It was a stunning role reversal for a youthful company that prid

   FRANKFURT (AP) -- U.S. ratings agency Fitch says it is downgrading the credit ratings of five countries that use the euro, including economic heavyweights Italy and Spain.   The downgraded countries _ also including Belgium, Cyprus, and Slovenia _ faced financial and economic

PARIS (AP) ― European plane and arms manufacturer EADS NV named Tom Enders its new CEO on Thursday, saying the German will take over later this year from Louis Gallois.EADS, a German-French conglomerate, is a hallmark of European manufacturing. As the parent company of plane maker Airbus, it competes fiercely with U.S.-based Boeing.The German and French states closely monitor its management, both to ensure the balance of power between the two countries and as a matter of promoting European manuf

NEW YORK (AP) ― AT&T Inc. is still the home of the iPhone. It activated 7.6 million of them in the latest quarter, accounting for one out of every five iPhones sold globally.And AT&T remains heavily dependent on the iPhone to gain and keep customers, despite a vow by CEO Randall Stephenson a year ago to “very aggressively” market competing smartphones in 2011. That vow came in the wake AT&T’s loss of an exclusive right to sell the iPhone in the U.S.The iPhone accounted for about 80 percent of th

CHICAGO (AFP) ― British oil giant BP must cover some of the eventual claims against rig owner Transocean arising from the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, a U.S. judge ruled Thursday, with any bill set to run into billions of dollars.The mixed ruling found BP must indemnify the Swiss drilling rig operator from “compensatory damages” related to the 2010 spill even if the pollution and its impacts are the result of Transocean’s “gross negligence.”But BP does not need to cover any punitive damages or civi