DES MOINES, Iowa – Three students who were arrested for allegedly planning to carry out a pre-Christmas break attack on students and staff at a southeast Iowa high school had access to guns and communicated through coded letters, an official said Wednesday. While the students had access to the weapons, …

BALTIMORE – Electricity usage hit record highs, municipalities tried to protect their elderly residents and tourists sought out air-conditioned attractions as a heat wave that has baked the mid-Atlantic region extended to a fourth day Thursday. The region was eagerly anticipating a break, however, with temperatures on Friday expected to …

SEATTLE – A man accused of storming Seattle’s Jewish Federation offices, killing one woman and wounding five others in a fit of rage over U.S. foreign policy, pleaded not guilty Tuesday to murder and other charges. Naveed Afzal Haq, 30, had indicated in court last week that he wanted to …

CHARLESTON, S.C. – Almost 20 percent of the female cadets at The Citadel last spring reported they had been sexually assaulted since enrolling at the military college, according to results of a survey released by the school Wednesday. About 4 percent of the male cadets also reported being sexually assaulted …

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia – Leaders of the Group of Eight major industrial countries on Sunday recommended a two-week extension for a deadline aimed at breaking the impasse over long-stalled global trade negotiations. “We welcome the decision to ask the WTO director general to consult members intensively in order to promote …

SACRAMENTO – Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s image and job rating appear to be rebounding with voters, according to a new poll released Tuesday that shows the Republican governor leading Democratic state Treasurer Phil Angelides by 8 percentage points. The Field Poll found 45 percent of likely voters surveyed favored Schwarzenegger, with …

TOKYO – The number of Japanese living beyond 100 has almost quadrupled in the past 10 years, with the once-exclusive centenarian club expected to surpass 28,000 this year, the government said Friday. The Health Ministry said Japan was likely to have 28,395 citizens aged 100 years or older at the …

LONDON – Seven junior members of Prime Minister Tony Blair ‘s government resigned Wednesday to protest his refusal to leave office as calls for the British leader to announce when he will step aside gained momentum. The rebellion in Blair’s Labour Party flared despite strong hints by senior ministers that …

WASHINGTON – Whistle-blowers tipped off the government to $1.3 billion worth of fraud cases over the last year, largely at hospitals or other health care providers, the Justice Department said Tuesday. In all, the department recovered $3.1 billion in settlements — what prosecutors said was a record amount — from …

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti – A new Amnesty International report condemns rampant sexual violence against Haitian girls and says it often goes unpunished. The document says most of the 238 rapes reported between January 2007 and June 2008 involved girls under age 18. Some were infants. The London-based human rights group says …