AP sources: Report reveals CIA methods

WASHINGTON (AP) - As the Justice Department considers whether to investigate alleged harsh interrogation practices sanctioned by the Bush administration, sources say a soon-to-be-released report by the CIA's inspector general reveals that agency interrogators conducted mock executions of terror suspects. These latest allegations are contained in a 2004 report that has been kept secret and is to be released next week, two congressional officials told The Associated Press. They spoke late Friday on condition of anonymity because the report has not yet been cleared for release.

Taliban cut off fingers of 2 Afghan voters

KABUL (AP) — Taliban militants cut off the ink-stained fingers of two Afghan voters in the militant south during the presidential election, the country's top election monitoring group said Saturday. Two voters who had dipped their index fingers in purple ink — a fraud prevention measure — were attacked in Kandahar province shortly after voting Thursday, said Nader Nadery, the head of the Free and Fair Election Foundation of Afghanistan. Kandahar is the spiritual birthplace of the Taliban.

Libya's Gadhafi welcomes home Lockerbie bomber

TRIPOLI, Libya (AP) - Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi welcomed home the only man convicted of the 1988 Lockerbie bombing that killed 270 people with a hug and praised Scotland for releasing him. Abdel Baset al-Megrahi returned to Libya Thursday after Scottish officials announced he was being freed on compassionate grounds because he is suffering from terminal prostate cancer. The decision to free al-Megrahi has been met with condemnation by many of the victims' families and the U.S. which has called for him to be put under house arrest.

Tropical storm warning issued for Mass. coastline

HAMILTON, Bermuda (AP) - A tropical storm warning was issued for the Massachusetts coast Saturday as waves from Hurricane Bill pounded Bermuda and people from Florida to New England braced for high surf and rip currents from the storm. Bill continued to swirl over the open waters of the Atlantic as a Category 2 storm with maximum sustained winds of 105 mph (165 kph). The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said it could regain intensity over the weekend as its center passes between Bermuda and the eastern U.S. seaboard.

Ex-model's breast implants were key to body's ID

BUENA PARK, Calif. (AP) — The remains of a former model whose killing set off an international manhunt for a reality television star were so badly mutilated that investigators had to use the serial numbers on her breast implants to identify her. The man charged with Jasmine Fiore's murder, reality TV show contestant Ryan Alexander Jenkins, has been on the run since reporting her missing the evening of Aug. 15. Her nude body had been found that morning, stuffed in a bloodstained suitcase in a trash bin in Buena Park, an Orange County city about 20 miles southeast of Los Angeles, but authorities wouldn't be able to identify her for a few more days.

Conservatives mull future after ELCA lifts gay ban

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - Even though the Rev. Mark Chavez believes the leaders of his church made a decision in direct contradiction of the Bible by lifting a ban on sexually active, monogamous gays and lesbians as clergy, he said he's staying with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America. "I'm not leaving," Chavez said Friday night, promising an effort to keep the church moving even further toward what he sees as an embrace of behavior condemned by Scripture.

Greeting card threats, wiretaps led DEA to cartel

WASHINGTON (AP) - Federal agents hunting leaders of a multibillion-dollar Mexican drug cartel began their case with crumbs: a fake container of corn chips and a threat scrawled on a Hallmark greeting card. It took two years of sleuthing before top U.S. law enforcement officials were able to gather in Washington this week to announce a slew of ambitious indictments, targeting criminal leaders who oversee mass amounts of cocaine and heroin flowing into American cities.

2 Koreas hold high-level talks; 1st in 2 years

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Top South and North Korean officials in charge of inter-Korean relations held talks Saturday for the first time in nearly two years amid a series of conciliatory moves by North Korea after months of tensions on the divided peninsula. Unification Minister Hyun In-taek met visiting North Korean spy chief Kim Yang Gon, who also handles inter-Korean matters, ministry spokeswoman Lee Jong-joo said. She said the meeting lasted about 80 minutes, buthad no further details.

Top Marine checks troops in 2 wars

CAMP RAMADI, Iraq (AP) - The top U.S. Marine is checking on troops in one war zone as he gets ready to send more to the next. Gen. James Conway, commandant of the Marine Corps, visited Iraq this week on his way to Afghanistan, where the United States is considering adding more troops. Many of the fresh-faced Marines who met Conway are serving their first combat mission - and already are looking forward to the next battle.

Favre shaky but Vikings beat Chiefs in his debut

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - Brett Favre jogged onto the turf to a chorus of cheers and a hero's welcome - the kind of reception he's grown used to over 18 brilliant seasons in his Hall of Fame career. There was one major difference this time around.

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