The Mississippi Legislature convened for a special session Tuesday to begin work in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina . Gov. Haley Barbour addressed lawmakers at the session and challenged...

The European Commission Tuesday withdrew 68 pieces of pending legislation as part of its initiative to cut back on regulatory restrictions on EU businesses. A review committee led by EU Enterprise and...

White House spokesperson Scott McClellan said Tuesday that President Bush is close to completing the process of picking the next Supreme Court nominee. According to McClellan, the President has met with 50 Senators, including all but one...

The trial of 16 former Parmalat directors and executives, including the company's founder and former chairman Calisto Tanzi , is set to open in Milan Wednesday, nearly two years after massive accounting...

In a televised interview Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated he foresaw no major changes to the Russian Constitution while he was in office. Putin's statement comes after proposed legislation that would...

Belgian Foreign Minister Karel de Gucht has formally asked that Guy Theunis, a Belgian priest, be brought to Belgium to face trial for his alleged role in the Rwandan genocide . Earlier this month, Theunis...

Missouri Judge Charles Atwell has issued a further temporary restraining order against Missouri's abortion law , the second TRO to be issued since the law was signed eleven days ago. Atwell said a provision allowing...

The European Parliament Tuesday Tuesday a joint proposal by several EU governments to retain phone and e-mail data for up to three years for use in anti-terror investigations. The parliament said the proposal from Britain,...

Influential Shiite cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani has denied reports that he will issue a fatwa , or religious edict, telling Shiite Muslims to vote "yes" in the upcoming referendum on the Iraqi constitution [English translation;...

Four merchant groups have filed an antitrust lawsuit against Visa , Mastercard , and dozens of major banks, over interchange fees, which retailers pay to issuing banks to receive payment for transactions involving the banks' cards. The...