Why Africa backs French in Mali

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Obama to take first of two oaths of office Sunday

WASHINGTON: Barack Obama will Sunday be sworn in to shoulder the power and burden of the US presidency for a second term, launching two days of inaugural rituals darkened by domestic discord and crises abroad.Democrat Obama, 51, will swear to faithfully execute the office of president at a low-key ceremony in the Blue Room of the White House, to comply with the US Constitution, which dictates...

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Algerian standoff ends; 23 hostages dead

(CBS News) LONDON - Four days after it started, the standoff between Algerian forces and al Qaeda-linked militants in the Sahara Desert is over. Algerian special forces stormed a remote natural gas complex where hundreds of workers had been held captive. Algerian officials say 23 hostages are dead, including one American. About 32 militants are reported to have been killed. Some of the hostages...

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Algeria Hostage Crisis Over, One American Dead

After the Algerian military's final assault on terrorists holding hostages at a gas complex, the four-day hostage crisis is over, but apparently with additional loss of life among the foreign hostages.One American, Fred Buttaccio of Texas, has been confirmed dead by the U.S. State Department. Two more U.S. hostages remain unaccounted for, with growing concern among U.S. officials...

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U.S. 'needs tougher child labor rules'

Cristina Traina says in his second term, Obama must address weaknesses in child farm labor standards STORY HIGHLIGHTSCristina Traina: Obama should strengthen child farm labor standardsShe says Labor Dept. rules allow kids to work long hours for little pay on commercial farmsShe says Obama administration scrapped Labor Dept. chief's proposal for tightening rulesShe says Labor Dept. must fix lax standards...

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Cycling: 'I want to compete again,' Armstrong says

  LOS ANGELES: Disgraced US cyclist Lance Armstrong said in an interview aired Friday that he wants to take part in competitive sports again, even after being banned for doping and stripped of his honors."Hell, yes. I'm a competitor. It's what I've done my whole life. I love to train. I love to race," Armstrong told Oprah Winfrey. "Not the Tour de France, but there's a lot of other...

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At least one American dead in Algerian hostage crisis

Updated at 6:41 p.m. ET An American in the Algerian hostage standoff in the Algerian desert has been killed, CBS News has learned. Fredrick Buttaccio from Katy, Texas near Houston, was an employee of the oil company BP. It is unknown how he died, but U.S. government sources tell CBS News his body has been recovered and his family has been notified. Meanwhile, a U.S. military plane has landed...

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Armstrong's Lowest Point Was Quitting Livestrong

Lance Armstrong, 41, said tonight that the lowest point in his fall from grace and the top of the cycling world came when his cancer charity, Livestrong, asked him to consider stepping down.After the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency released a report in October 2012 alleging Armstrong doped throughout his reign as Tour de France champion, Armstrong said a second installment of an interview...

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American among those killed in Algeria hostage crisis

STORY HIGHLIGHTSNEW: 18 attackers "neutralized," Algerian Press Service reportsAlgeria says 12 hostages were killed in the wake of a military operationTerrorists are "entrenched" in a gas refinery with captives, APS saysThe U.S. rejects a reported prisoner exchange offer voiced by a jihadist spokesman(CNN) -- After three days of chaos, drama and an unknown number of deaths, Algerian special forces...

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Why U.S. needs tougher child labor rules

Cristina Traina says in his second term, Obama must address weaknesses in child farm labor standards STORY HIGHLIGHTSCristina Traina: Obama should strengthen child farm labor standardsShe says Labor Dept. rules allow kids to work long hours for little pay on commercial farmsShe says Obama administration scrapped Labor Dept. chief's proposal for tightening rulesShe says Labor Dept. must fix lax standards...

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Cycling: "One big lie" Armstrong says of 7 drug-fuelled Tours

LOS ANGELES: Lance Armstrong admitted his seven Tour de France titles were fuelled by an array of drugs, reversing years of denials in a televised interview with Oprah Winfrey broadcast Thursday.Attempting to explain his drug-tainted past, Armstrong sat down with Winfrey for his first interview since being stripped last year of his record seven Tour titles and banned from sport for life.It...

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Manti Te'o kept girlfriend myth alive after revelation

SOUTH BEND, Ind. Not once but twice after he supposedly discovered his online girlfriend of three years never even existed, Notre Dame All-American linebacker Manti Te'o perpetuated the heartbreaking story about her death. 13 PhotosManti Te'oAn Associated Press review of news coverage found that the Heisman Trophy runner-up talked about his doomed love in a Web interview on Dec. 8 and again in...

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Lance Armstrong Confesses to Doping

Lance Armstrong, formerly cycling's most decorated champion and considered one of America's greatest athletes, confessed to cheating for at least a decade, admitting on Thursday that he owed all seven of his Tour de France titles and the millions of dollars in endorsements that followed to his use of illicit performance-enhancing drugs.After years of denying that he had taken...

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Prepare for 'bad news' in hostage crisis, official says

STORY HIGHLIGHTSNEW: A Belfast man says his brother had explosives around his neck when he escaped Islamist militants take Algerian and foreign hostages at a gas plant in AlgeriaBritish, Norwegian, U.S. and Japanese citizens are among those held hostage "There are still hostages, and there are still terrorists," a senior U.S. official says (CNN) -- British Prime Minister David Cameron warned his compatriots...

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NRA's paranoid fantasy undemocratic

STORY HIGHLIGHTSPaul Waldman: Obama announced gun curbs; gun advocates said it'll be tyrannyNRA ad calling Obama "elitist" because his kids get protection is not sane view, he saysHe says some gun advocates urge resistance to duly authorized law enforcementWaldman: Freedom is guaranteed by law, not gun ownersEditor's note: Paul Waldman is a contributing editor at the American Prospect and the author...

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Football: Hodgson eyes long-awaited England glory

LONDON: As the Football Association begins its 150th anniversary year, England manager Roy Hodgson has challenged his players to provide the ultimate celebration by at least putting themselves in contention to end almost half a century without a trophy.Hodgson is the latest in a string of managers charged with ending England's wait for a first major honour since their lone World Cup final...

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