3 U.S. soldiers killed

3 U.S. soldiers killed

KABUL — Taliban militants detonated a bomb and opened fire on a vehicle carrying U.S. soldiers Thursday, killing three of them, as President Barack Obama said he did not want to keep American troops in Afghanistan longer than necessary.

The ambush took place not far from the main U.S. base in Bagram, just north of the capital Kabul. It was the third strike by insurgents in the region in less than a week, part of a surge in violence eight years after the U.S. invaded to oust the Taliban regime.

Obama made the remarks in Egypt in a speech aimed at healing relations between the United States and Muslims. He said he did not want to establish permanent bases or keep troops in Afghanistan but that both were currently needed to fight extremists intent on killing as many Americans as they can.

Call for Brown to resign

LONDON — Prime Minister Gordon Brown was dealt a devastating blow to his leadership late Thursday when one of his most ambitious ministers resigned — hours after Britain voted in European elections — and called on him to step down.

Work and Pensions Secretary James Purnell became the fifth minister to abandon Brown’s Cabinet in recent days. Purnell called on the prime minister to resign for the good of the Labour party in a resignation letter seen by The Associated Press.

Purnell was the first of the five ministers to openly criticize Brown and ask him to step down.

Sotomayor papers released

WASHINGTON — Judge Sonia Sotomayor, already facing controversy for a 2001 speech on the virtue of having “a wise Latina” as a judge, made similar comments in a series of speeches released Thursday.

She said the nation is “deeply confused” about the proper role of race and ethnic identity, and she insisted her identity as a Hispanic woman shapes her life and her work in court. “A wise Latina” would reach a “better conclusion” than a white male, she said on several occasions.

Since her nomination, conservative activists have cited the comment as evidence she would rule based on her ethnic identity.

The speeches were among a thick file, including court opinions and financial documents, that the White House sent to the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday.

IRS targets tax preparers

WASHINGTON — The IRS wants to start regulating paid tax preparers used by more than half the nation’s taxpayers in an effort to reduce fraud and errors.

New rules could require education and training as well as licensing for people who get paid to prepare returns, IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman said Thursday.

“In most states, anyone can charge to prepare tax returns regardless of training, education, experience, skill, licensing or registration,” Shulman told reporters. “Virtually anyone can set up a tax-return business.”

Shulman said most tax preparers provide quality work, but some are poorly trained or unscrupulous. The IRS, however, can’t say how many fall into either group because the agency doesn’t track the number of complaints filed against tax preparers or their outcomes, according to a report issued in February by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.

Triplet has triplets

DETROIT — A Michigan woman who’s one-third of a set of triplets is celebrating the birth of her own three babies.

Amber Ali delivered Amir, Armann and Amari Whitaker on May 26 at Sinai-Grace Hospital in Detroit. The 23-year-old woman tells The Detroit News she’s relieved the boys arrived safely.

The children remain hospitalized, and Ali says she’s looking forward to playing with them. She says: “It’s going to be fun.”

No word on 2 journalists

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea stayed silent today about the fate of two U.S. journalists who were supposed to go on trial a day earlier on charges they entered the country illegally and engaged in “hostile acts” — allegations that could draw a 10-year sentence in a labor camp.

Laura Ling and Euna Lee, reporters for former Vice President Al Gore’s California-based Current TV, were arrested March 17 near the North Korean border while on a reporting trip to China.

Their trial began in the communist country’s highest court at a time of mounting tensions on the Korean peninsula after the regime’s provocative May 25 nuclear test.

As the United Nations and Washington discussed how to punish the regime for its defiance, there were fears the women could become political pawns in the standoff with Pyongyang.

Combined dispatches