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WASHINGTON (AP) -- More than two-thirds of the Army National Guard's 34 brigades are not combat ready, mostly because of equipment shortages that will cost up to $21 billion to correct, the top National Guard general said Tuesday. Lt. Gen. H. Steven Blum spoke to a group defense reporters after Army officials, analysts and members of Congress disclosed that two-thirds of the active Army's brigade ...

HELENA, Montana (AP) -- A nephew of Sen. Max Baucus serving in the Marines was killed in Iraq during the weekend, the senator's office said Tuesday. Cpl. Phillip E. Baucus, 28, died Saturday during combat operations in Anbar province, the Department of Defense said. It did not immediately release further information. In a statement, Baucus, D-Montana, said the family was "devastated by the ...

HAVANA, Cuba (CNN) -- Fidel Castro's health situation is "stable" and he is in "good spirits," according to a message attributed to him and read on Cuban television Tuesday evening. The message provided little detail about the medical condition that prompted Castro to temporarily cede power to his brother, Raul, on Monday. Blaming intestinal surgery, Cuban television reported the handover Monday night, the first time Castro has ceded control of the island nation in 47 years ...

LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- The conflict in the Middle East, as well as others involving Muslim extremists, revolve around "modernization within Islam" and whether the Western system of values can "beat theirs," British Prime Minister Tony Blair said in a speech Tuesday. Speaking to the Los Angeles World Affairs Council, Blair went on to say that the struggle was between moderate, benign values versus the hatred and intolerance of fundamentalism. "Even the issue  ...

By Michelle Nichols NEW YORK (Reuters) - A potentially deadly heatwave struck parts of the eastern United States on Tuesday with the mercury threatening to top 100 F (38 C), but power grid operators said the increased demand could be met. The heatwave is moving across the country from California, which suffered through more than two weeks of triple-digit temperatures that killed at least 136 people and caused power failures. Meteorologists forecast 100 degree Fahrenheit temperatures for New Y ...

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Los Angeles, London, New York, Seoul and 18 other cities joined forces on Tuesday in a global warming project aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Launched by former President Bill Clinton's foundation, the initiative will allow cities to pool their purchasing power and lower the price of energy-saving products and provide technical assistance to help them become mo ...

By Afif Diab BEIRUT (Reuters) - Israeli airborne commandos battled guerrillas near a Hizbollah-run hospital in eastern Lebanon on Wednesday, and officials in the Jewish state said the 23-day-old war could run for at least another week. Lebanese security sources said Israeli soldiers had landed by helicopter near the Hizbollah stronghold of Baalbek in the eastern Bekaa valley as aircraft launched several strikes in the region. An Israeli army spokesman declined to comment. Three weeks after th ...

Nursery nurses and teaching assistants in many English schools now work longer hours for the same pay and are treated "deplorably", a union is to hear. Nursery nurse Georgina Smith will tell the Professional Association of Teachers that many support staff have had a dramatic change in conditions. Their pay is now based on the number of hours worked and they have to work longer to equal their previous salary. At the same time, they are also being asked to take on more responsibilities. Delega ...

Three British soldiers have been killed after a vehicle patrol was ambushed by militants in southern Afghanistan. Two of the soldiers killed were from the Household Cavalry Regiment and the other was from 7 Parachute Regiment Royal Horse Artillery. A fourth soldier was seriously injured in the incident in the north of Helmand province, the Ministry of Defence said. UK and Canadian-led Nato troops assumed control of military operations in the area from US-led forces on Monday. The attack bri ...

Cuban leader Fidel Castro says he is in a stable condition and good spirits following surgery, according a statement read on Cuban TV. "I feel perfectly fine," Mr Castro was quoted as saying. On Monday he handed power temporarily to his brother Raul, to recover from his treatment for internal bleeding. Earlier the Cuban leader, who turns 80 this month, was quoted as saying that a punishing schedule in recent weeks had affected his health. It is not clear whether he is in hospital or recover ...