BAGHDAD, Iraq – A prominent Sunni Arab tribal leader who provided fighters to help battle Al Qaeda in western Iraq was assassinated Sunday in Baghdad, police said. Sheik Osama al-Jadaan died in a hail of bullets as he was driving in the city’s Mansour district, according to police Lt. Maitham …

BAGHDAD – Editor’s note: U.S. Army Capt. Dan Sukman is serving a one-year deployment to Iraq. For previous entries and his bio, see the Soldier’s Diary archives. April 30, 2006 Nothing really exciting to write about over the past couple of days, so I figured I would spend some time …

Okay, so what if Barry Bonds surpasses Babe Ruth on the all-time home run list. Big deal, you might say. But it is a big deal. We’re talking 714 home runs, one of the most venerated milestones in all of sports compiled by an enduring American icon. To a baseball …

WASHINGTON – An environmental group sued the Bush administration Tuesday over new rules to boost gas mileage requirements for sport utility vehicles and pickup trucks, saying the regulations do not go far enough. The Sierra Club, which filed the lawsuit, joined 10 states and other environmental groups in challenging the …

NEW CITY, N.Y. – A laborer who raped and murdered a suburban homemaker in her bedroom after being hired to clean a backyard deck was sentenced Monday to life in prison without the chance of parole. Douglas Herrera Castellanos’ sentencing came on what would have been the 13th wedding anniversary …

EVANSTON, Ill. – Northwestern University‘s women’s soccer team, which was suspended indefinitely after photographs of alleged hazing appeared on the Internet, has issued an apology for the “negative attention, press and controversy” it caused the school. “We fully accept responsibility for our behavior and understand the magnitude and severity of …

CHICAGO – Democratic Sen. Barack Obama has repeatedly said he doesn’t plan to run for president in two years. Yet the freshman senator from Illinois says that if he did, he’s already picked a late-night talk show host to appear on the ticket with him. How does Obama-O’Brien ’08 sound? …

SAO PAULO, Brazil – Lawmakers sought Thursday to question an imprisoned gang leader suspected of having ordered the onslaught of violence that killed nearly 200 people in and around Brazil’s largest city last month. Marcos Willians Herbas Camacho, known as Marcola, heads the First Capital Command, one of Brazil’s most …

LOS ANGELES – Sayonara. Rest in peace. Main Street investors had their brief moment in the sun, 15 minutes of fame. Now it’s back to the dust bin of history. The Wall Street juggernaut’s in control, and America’s 95 million investors are relegated to a footnote in market history, like …

NEW YORK – Though she famously sang about wanting “No More Drama” in her own life, Mary J. Blige is about to be transplanted into a world of crime, scheming, back-stabbing and scandal. She’s taping an appearance on ABC‘s “One Life to Live.” The 35-year-old R&B diva, whose latest album, …