WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New U.S. claims for unemployment benefits fell more than expected last week to a two-month low, while the trade deficit narrowed sharply in July, hopeful signs for the stuttering economic recovery. The data on Thursday helped to calm fears of a sharp slowdown in growth and ...

GAINESVILLE, Florida (Reuters) - President Barack Obama warned on Thursday that an obscure U.S. Christian pastor's plan to burn the Koran could provoke al Qaeda suicide bombings, as international pressure mounted on Washington to step in. "This is a recruitment bonanza for al Qaeda," ...

A group of 24 marines, operating within a 25-nation coalition to combat piracy along the east cost of Africa, took control of the ship, Magellan Star, from nine pirates. No casualties or injuries were reported.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New U.S. reforms are poised to dramatically shift the nation's healthcare spending, not only curbing Medicare costs but also pumping more money toward the private sector as roughly 32 million people gain coverage. Although the law has little impact on overall healthcare ...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Nine years after the September 11 attacks, visible progress is finally being made toward rebuilding the World Trade Center site known as Ground Zero. Delays from political, security and financing concerns have dominated the public image of the roughly $11 billion project in ...

The three-judge panel of the appeals court said in a brief order that it put on hold the judge's ban to give it sufficient opportunity to consider the merits of the administration's emergency request for a stay. U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth last month ruled that the research violated U.S. ...

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran will release on Saturday one of three detained American citizens accused of espionage, an official told Reuters on Thursday. Shane Bauer, Sarah Shourd and Josh Fattal were detained near Iran's border with Iraq at the end of July 2009. Their families say the three were on a ...

BP's Gulf of Mexico oil spill has raised concerns globally about the dangers of drilling in ever-deeper waters. North Sea producers are fighting to convince the British government that the UK does not need a moratorium on drilling, like the one imposed in the U.S. by President Barack Obama, ...

Mayor Richard Daley's surprise decision not to seek re-election on February 22 leaves the door open for Emanuel, who has played a major role in shaping Obama's agenda but has also long coveted the Chicago mayorship. Obama made clear in a television interview aired on Thursday that if Emanuel ...

"This is a recruitment bonanza for al Qaeda," Obama said in an interview with ABC's "Good Morning America" program. "You could have serious violence in places like Pakistan or Afghanistan. This could increase the recruitment of individuals who would be willing to blow ...