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AP Top News at 8:10 p.m. EST -Sunday, December 27, 2009

Security reviews under way after airliner attack

WASHINGTON (AP) - Investigators piecing together a brazen attempt to bring down a trans-Atlantic airliner said Sunday the suspect tucked a small bag holding his deadly concoction on his body, using an explosive that would have been easily detected with the right airport equipment. His success in smuggling and partially igniting the material on Friday's flight to Detroit prompted the Obama administration to promise a sweeping review of aviation security.

Bomb suspect came from elite family, best schools

LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) - As a member of an uppercrust Nigerian family, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab received the best schooling, from the elite British International School in West Africa to the vaunted University College London. But the education he wanted was of a different sort: Nigerian officials say his interest in extremist Islam prompted his father to warn U.S. authorities. As Abdulmutallab was being escorted in handcuffs off the Detroit-bound airliner he attempted to blow up on Christmas Day, he told U.S. officials that he had sought an extremist education at an Islamist hotbed in Yemen.

House backers of public insurance option may yield

WASHINGTON (AP) - Two House Democrats who favor a government insurance plan, a central element of health care legislation passed in their chamber, acknowledged Sunday it might have to be sacrificed as negotiators work out a final agreement with the Senate. Rep. James Clyburn of South Carolina, the No. 3 Democrat in the House and one who had appealed to President Barack Obama not to yield on the public plan, set out conditions for yielding himself.

At least 5 killed in Iran protests

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Iranian security forces fired on stone-throwing protesters in the center of the capital Sunday in one of the bloodiest confrontations in months, opposition Web sites and witnesses said. At least five people were killed. Some accounts of the violence in Tehran were vivid and detailed, but they could not be independently confirmed because of government restrictions on media coverage. Police, who denied using firearms, said dozens of officers were injured and more than 300 protesters were arrested.

Airliner plot raises fears about al-Qaida in Yemen

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) - A Nigerian man's claim that his attempt to blow up a U.S. plane originated with al-Qaida's network inside Yemen deepened concerns that instability in the Middle Eastern country is providing the terror group with a base to train and recruit militants for operations against the West and the U.S. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab has been charged with trying to destroy a Detroit-bound Northwest Airlines flight on Christmas day in a botched attempt to detonate explosives. The 23-year-old claimed to have received training and instructions from al-Qaida operatives in Yemen, a U.S. law enforcement official said on condition of anonymity because the investigation was still ongoing.

Thailand moves to send Hmong back to Laos

PHETCHABUN, Thailand (AP) - Thailand sent army troops with shields and batons to evict some 4,000 ethnic Hmong from a refugee camp Monday and send them back to Laos despite concerns they will be persecuted by the Laotian government. The Thai government claims most of the Hmong are economic migrants who entered the country illegally and have no claims to refugee status, and says it has assurances from Laos that the Hmong will be well-treated.

Percy Sutton, Harlem political pioneer, dies at 89

NEW YORK (AP) - Percy Sutton, the pioneering civil rights attorney who represented Malcolm X before launching successful careers as a political power broker and media mogul, has died. He was 89. Marissa Shorenstein, a spokeswoman for Gov. David Paterson, confirmed that Sutton died Saturday. She did not know the cause. His daughter, Cheryl Sutton, declined to comment Saturday when reached by phone at her New York City home.

Merry Xmas in Hollywood: Box-office record falls

NEW YORK (AP) - It was a memorable and merry Christmas in Hollywood as moviegoers shattered box-office records, responding in droves to a diverse array of high-profile releases over the holiday weekend. The estimated $278 million in weekend box-office revenue broke the previous record of roughly $253 million set in July 2008, the weekend "The Dark Knight" was released.

Jets end Colts' pursuit of perfection 29-15

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - The Indianapolis Colts kept saying a perfect season didn't matter. Apparently it didn't. Coach Jim Caldwell pulled Peyton Manning and a handful of other starters for the previously unbeaten Colts in the third quarter, and the Jets took advantage by rallying for a 29-15 victory that ended the NFL's longest regular-season winning streak at 23 games.

Meyer expects to be leading Gators in '10

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Florida coach Urban Meyer changed his mind Sunday and said he was taking an indefinite leave of absence instead of resigning. Despite ongoing concerns with his health, he expects to be on the sideline leading the Gators when next season opens. "I do in my gut believe that will happen," Meyer said at a Sugar Bowl news conference.

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