NEW YORK – A federal judge has extended an order that freezes the assets of money manager Bernard Madoff in his massive fraud case. Judge Louis Stanton signed an order late Thursday approving agreements by the 70-year-old Madoff to surrender control of his assets. As a result, a hearing scheduled …

HOUSTON – Hurricane Ike created a wave of price spikes at gas stations across the country Saturday. Fears that the massive storm would cut off supply lent to wide disparities in prices state by state, and even block by block. Ike, coming two weeks after Hurricane Gustav, struck the Texas …

Anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr is planning to disarm the Mahdi Army by turning the militia into a civic and social service organization, a significant strategic shift, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal. In a brochure obtained by the paper and confirmed by Sheikh Salah al-Obeidi, Sadr’s …

SALT LAKE CITY – A Las Vegas man who devised a calendar that features shirtless Mormon missionaries is facing a disciplinary hearing and possible excommunication because of the project. A lifetime member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Chad Hardy was summoned by letter to a Sunday …

LONDON – Britain has honored Australian singer Kylie Minogue for her services to music. The 40-year-old pop star received an Officer of the Order of the British Empire, or OBE, from Prince Charles during a ceremony Thursday at Buckingham Palace in London. She was lauded for a career that spans …

ROME – Premier Romano Prodi announced emergency measures Tuesday to deal with Naples’ garbage crisis including three new incinerators and that other Italian regions might be able to help dispose of the trash. Prodi also named a new trash commissioner, tapping a former national police chief to deal with the …

he trouble begins… now! Does John’s My Word make your blood boil? Click here to listen live to The John Gibson Show on FOX News Radio (weekdays, 6-9 p.m. ET). It’s your chance to call in and argue with John! I have received comments regarding remarks I made on my …

N’DJAMENA, Chad – Darfur’s most powerful rebel group has initialed a truce with the Sudanese government, officials said Saturday, marking the rebel group’s return to peace talks aimed at ending the Darfur conflict. The truce between the rebel Justice and Equality Movement and the Sudanese government takes effect immediately, said …

TEHRAN, Iran – Iran on Tuesday criticized the U.S. move to boost the defensive missiles system in Gulf Arab countries against potential strikes by Tehran, calling it a political ploy to increase American military presence in the region. Parliament speaker Ali Larijani said upgrading the missile defense systems in the …

About 16 percent of Americans between the ages of 14 and 49 are infected with genital herpes, making it one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases, U.S. health officials said. Black women had the highest rate of infection at 48 percent and women were nearly twice likely as men …