Protesters shot dead in Kashmir

At least 11 people were killed and many injured when security forces in Indian-administered Kashmir opened fire on stone-throwing Muslim protesters.

Thousands defied a curfew in Srinagar and other towns in the mainly Muslim Kashmir valley for a second day. One person died in clashes in Jammu region.

The curfew was imposed ahead of the burial of a senior separatist who died after police opened fire on Monday.

AFP secures seven of 15 villages in NCotabato

MANILA, Philippines - The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Tuesday said seven of 15 villages in North Cotabato have been cleared of Moro rebels.

Eastern Mindanao Command spokesman Major Armand Rico said the cleared villages are Dunguan in Aleosan; Baliki, Upper Labas and Lagindingan in Midsayap; Cabpangi in Pigcawayan; Barangay Gayonga in Northern Kabuntalan; and Gumaga in Libungan.

The rebel-occupied areas are Bagolibas, Dualing and Pagangan in Aleosan; Central Labas in Midsayap; Lower Labas and Matindigin in Pigcawayan; and Bualan and Kulambong in Pikit.

Philippine rebels say peace deal on shaky ground

JOLO, PHILIPPINES -- Efforts to revive a landmark peace deal could collapse if renewed fighting between government forces and Muslim rebels spreads in the southern Philippines, the guerrillas warned Tuesday.

Skirmishes between Philippine troops and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front continued in the southern region of Mindanao as government forces drove rebels from Christian villages that the guerrillas seized last week.

As many as 160,000 people have fled the fighting. Police say renegades led by rebel commander Ameril Umbra Kato looted and burned down homes, took land by force and killed livestock in at least 15 villages.

The rebels have killed three members of a family who were taken hostage Monday, police said.

Three die over 'wounded honour' in German ice cream parlour shooting
German police say that "wounded honour" between Turks may have been to blame for a shootout that left three people dead and a fourth critically injured.

But Roland Desch, of the Hesse state authorities in western Germany, said that other people connected to the dispute they suspect triggered the killings were still at large, and he could not rule out more violence.

He said police were working to "prevent any further clashes".

Local reports suggested that fights over informal betting ring dues may have sparked the attack, but police indications of "wounded honour" could also suggest that a female relation of one of the groups may have been involved.

Germany is frequently hit by so called "honour killings" over breaches of conservative social norms in the Turkish community.

Man fatally shoots Ark. Dem. chairman at party HQ

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — A man recently fired from a Target store barged into the Arkansas Democratic headquarters Wednesday and fatally shot the state party chairman before speeding off in his pickup. Police later shot and killed the suspect after a 30-mile chase.

Police identified the suspect as 50-year-old Timothy Dale Johnson of Searcy, a town about 50 miles northeast of Little Rock. They said that moments after the shooting, Johnson pointed a handgun at a worker at the nearby Arkansas Baptist headquarters. An official there said he told the worker, "I lost my job."

Chairman Bill Gwatney died four hours after the shooting. The 48-year-old former state senator had been planning to travel to the Democratic National Convention later this month as a superdelegate. He had backed Hillary Rodham Clinton but endorsed Barack Obama after she dropped out of the race.
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Witnesses said the gunman entered the party offices shortly before noon and said he wanted to see Gwatney.

"He said he was interested in volunteering, but that was obviously a lie," said 17-year-old party volunteer Sam Higginbotham. He said that when the suspect was refused a meeting with Gwatney, he pushed past employees to reach the chairman's office.

Little Rock police spokesman Lt. Terry Hastings said the suspect and Gwatney introduced themselves to one another, at which time the suspect "pulled out a handgun and shot Gwatney several times." Hastings didn't say what the two discussed, but said their discussion was not a heated one.

California wildfires scorch state, federal budgets

SACRAMENTO (AP) - Faced with thousands of wildfires, California is struggling with what could be its most expensive wildfire season ever. Governor Schwarzenegger asked President Bush today to declare the state a disaster area in part because of the almost $300 million the state has spent fighting fires in just the past six weeks.

The money spent so far in 2008 is more than the state spent to fight fires in 9 of the previous 10 years.

Officials are scrambling to cover fire costs, with the state already facing a severe budget shortfall. One suggestion is to slap homeowners with a natural disaster charge.

Firefighters have battled more than 2,000 blazes this year, most sparked by a June 21 lightning storm. At the height of that battle, California was blazing through $13 million a day.

Fire costs are expected to rise during the upcoming Santa Ana season, when hot winds fan Southern California's fires.

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Finally, here's something that looks to be good news:


USDA Raises Corn Estimates on 'Ideal' Weather
USDA increases corn production estimates on improved weather, forecasts lower prices

After months of rising food prices, there may be some relief coming with farmers on track to produce the second largest corn crop and fourth largest soybean crop in history.

In its first estimates this year based on field visits and farmer surveys, the U.S. Department of Agriculture sharply raised its estimate Tuesday of corn production and said "nearly ideal" weather has helped Midwestern farmers recover from June's devastating floods.

That recovery eventually may lead to lower prices for corn and soybeans, which in turn could provide some relief to meat producers who use the grains for animal feed.