CHUBERI, Georgia – The Russian troops sprawled on top of the tanks in a 135-vehicle convoy looked relaxed, with bandannas on their heads rather than helmets. Some smoked, one ate a chunk of watermelon. Many drivers had slung flak jackets over vehicle windows. Georgians on the side of the road …

CANBERRA, Australia – Australia’s prime minister came under fire at home Friday over a playful salute he gave U.S. President George W. Bush at a NATO summit, which critics said seemed to suggest Australian subservience to Washington. Australian television repeatedly broadcast videos of the gesture Thursday on the sidelines of …

LOS ANGELES – “At a political event, he goes out as a politician and says what he has to say as a politician,” Reverend Jeremiah Wright told Bill Moyers in their well-publicized interview last week. “I continue to be a pastor. He’s a politician. I’m a pastor.” As my mother …

CHICO, Calif. – Authorities say a crude bomb containing fish hooks and BBs packed inside a plastic bottle exploded this weekend at a Northern California junior high school. No one was injured. Police found the homemade device Sunday night on the basketball court of Bidwell Junior High School. Chico Police …

NEW DELHI – An elephant rampaged through a Hindu temple in southern India on Wednesday, killing three people, including one of its handlers, police said. Television footage showed the adult male elephant charging through the temple compound. It knocked down a thatched awning, tried to batter its way through a …

NEW YORK – Recently sworn-in U.S. citizen Craig Ferguson is being embraced by his new countrymen: The late-night comic hit a ratings milestone last week with his first victory over NBC’s Conan O’Brien. The CBS “Late Late Show” averaged more viewers than O’Brien’s “Late Night” (1.88 million to 1.77 million) …

BAGHDAD – Clashes spread from the Sadr City district to another Shiite militia stronghold in Baghdad on Sunday as fighting left at least six people dead, including two children, officials said. The gunbattles occurred hours after anti-U.S. cleric Muqtada al-Sadr warned he will declare war if the government does not …

MILWAUKEE – A 14,500-year-old woolly mammoth skeleton dug up in 1994 has been unveiled at the Milwaukee Public Museum, giving locals a glimpse of perhaps the most intact specimen discovered in North America. Few paleontological specimens are as complete as the Hebior mammoth. The skeleton lacks a rib as well …

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – An insurance agency owner charged with killing a state Department of Insurance employee investigating his business won’t face the death penalty, prosecutors said Thursday. Prosecutors didn’t explain the decision that was revealed during a court hearing for Michael Howell, 40, who is charged with murder in the …

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Ready for the latest in spa pampering? Prepare to dunk your tootsies in a tank of water and let tiny carp nibble away. Fish pedicures are creating something of a splash in the D.C. area, where a northern Virginia spa has been offering them for the past …