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AP Top News at 2:41 p.m. EST - November 29

Iran approves building 10 enrichment sites

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Iran approved plans Sunday to build 10 new uranium enrichment facilities, a dramatic expansion that represented a slap to the U.N. nuclear watchdog, days after it demanded Tehran stop construction on one plant and halt all enrichment activities. Iran's defiance will likely heighten tensions with the West, which has signaled it is running out of patience with Iran's continuing enrichment and its balking at a U.N. deal aimed at ensuring Tehran cannot build a nuclear weapon in the near-term future. The U.S. and its allies have hinted at new U.N. sanctions if Iran does not respond.

Official: 4 police officers shot dead in Wash.

TACOMA, Wash. (AP) - Four police officers were shot and killed Sunday morning as they sat working on their laptops at a Washington state coffeehouse in what authorities called a targeted ambush. Pierce County Sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer said officers were looking forone male suspect who fled on foot, but haven't ruled out an accomplice.

For 3rd time, Woods cancels meeting with police

WINDERMERE, Fla. (AP) - Tiger Woods says the car crash that sent him to the hospital is his fault and has become embarrassing to him and his family, and for the third straight day canceled a meeting with state troopers. Sgt. Kim Montes of the Florida Highway Patrol said Woods' lawyer did not reschedule the meeting.

UAE to back banks amid Dubai meltdown

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) - The United Arab Emirates has pledged to stand behind foreign and domestic banks in the country, offering additional money while extolling the strength of the Gulf nation's financial sector as world markets brace for a potential day of reckoning Monday over Dubai's crushing debt. The UAE's immediate priority was arguably to avert any run, however unlikely, on banks by panicked depositors. But the promise of cheap funds also signaled to global investors that the country's federal government - backed by oil money - will do what it can to limit the fallout from its indebted emirate's woes.

Senator says Afghan forces, not US, key to success

WASHINGTON (AP) - The leading Senate Democrat on military matters said Sunday that President Barack Obama's anticipated plan for significantly expanding U.S. troop levels in Afghanistan must show how those reinforcements will help increase the size of the Afghan security forces. Sen. Carl Levin, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said that more Afghan army and police are central to succeeding in the 8-year-oldwar and more U.S. trainers and equipment can help meet that goal. But it's unclear, Levin said, what role tens of thousands additional combat troops will play and Obama has to make a compelling case during a national address he's scheduled to give Tuesday night from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y.

AP Impact: For-profit colleges haul in gov't aid

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - Students aren't the only ones benefiting from the billions of new dollars Washington is spending on college aid for the poor. An Associated Press analysis shows surging proportions of both low-income students and the recently boosted government money that follows them are ending up at for-profit schools, from local career colleges to giant publicly traded chains such as the University of Phoenix, Kaplan and Devry.

Turbulence ahead: Senate opens health care debate

WASHINGTON (AP) - The 60 votes aren't there any more. With the Senate set to begin debate Monday on health care overhaul, the all-hands-on-deck Democratic coalition that allowed the bill to advance is fracturing already. Yet majority Democrats will need 60 votes again to finish.

Swiss ban mosque minarets in surprise vote

GENEVA (AP) - Swiss voters overwhelmingly approved a constitutional ban on minarets on Sunday, barring construction of the iconic mosque towers in a surprise vote that put Switzerland at the forefront of a European backlash against a growing Muslim population. Muslim groups in Switzerland and abroad condemned the vote as biased and anti-Islamic. Business groups said the decision hurt Switzerland's international standing and could damage relations with Muslim nations and wealthy investors who bank, travel and shop there.

Employers play Dr. Mom to limit swine flu impact

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) - Big businesses are spending serious time and money trying to limit the swine flu pandemic's impact on operations, from bankrolling video on good hygiene to training employees to cover for co-workers with critical jobs. Companies from health insurer UnitedHealth Group Inc. to beverage can maker Ball Corp. are arranging for employees with flu symptoms or sick family members to work from home where possible, holding fewer in-person meetings, even discouraging handshakes. And hand sanitizers, disinfectant wipes and tissues are at the ready everywhere as employers make keeping workers healthy their first line of defense.

Exec: Obama dinner crashers shopping interview

NEW YORK (AP) - The couple who crashed President Barack Obama's first state dinner are peddling their story to broadcast networks for hundreds of thousands of dollars, a television executive says. The executive, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the network does not publicly discuss bookings, told The Associated Press that representatives for Michaele and Tareq Salahi contacted networks to urge them to "get their bids in" for an interview. The executive said the Virginia couple was looking for a payment in the mid-six figures range.

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