Senate votes to delay briefing on Afghanistan

Senate votes to delay briefing on Afghanistan

WASHINGTON — The Senate voted Thursday to delay a face-to-face briefing from the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, who hours earlier had warned that al-Qaida terrorists could regain ground there if a new war plan isn’t adopted soon.

Democrats rejected the call by one of the Senate’s most hawkish Republicans to force Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal to personally explain his war strategy by Nov. 15.

Without McChrystal’s testimony, “We don’t have any input into the decision-making process,” Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., complained before the 59-40 party-line vote. “I mean, this is bizarre.”

Research: Most babies will live to be 100

LONDON — Most babies born in rich countries this century will eventually make it to their 100th birthday, new research says.

Danish experts say that since the 20th century, people in developed countries are living about three decades longer than in the past. Surprisingly, the trend shows little sign of slowing down.

In an article published today in the medical journal Lancet, the researchers write that the process of aging may be “modifiable.”

Indonesia death toll climbs

PADANG, Indonesia — Across this coastal provincial capital, hardest hit by the latest earthquake to devastate Indonesia, mourners, survivors and rescue workers clawed through the rubble.

As the death toll climbed Thursday — to 1,100 by one U.N. estimate — many looked for survivors, with thousands of people missing and feared trapped in the wreckage of shattered buildings.

Wednesday’s 7.6-magnitude earthquake started at sea and quickly rippled through Sumatra, the westernmost island in the Indonesian archipelago.

Government figures put the number of dead at 777, with at least 440 people seriously injured. John Holmes, the U.N.’s humanitarian chief, set the death toll at 1,100, and the number was expected to grow.

Samoa tsunami aftermath

APIA, Samoa — Convoys of military vehicles brought food, water and medicine to the tsunami-stricken Samoas on Thursday as victims wandered through what was left of their villages with tales of being trapped underwater, watching young children drown and hoisting elderly parents above the waves.

The death toll rose to 160 as grim-faced islanders gathered under a traditional meetinghouse to hear a Samoan government minister discuss a plan for a mass funeral and burial Tuesday. Samoans traditionally bury their loved ones near their homes, but that could be impractical because many of their villages have been wiped out.

The dead from Tuesday’s earthquake and tsunami include 120 in Samoa, 31 in American Samoa and nine in Tonga. Samoan police commander Lilo Maiava said the search for bodies could continue three more weeks.

Elizabeth Smart testifies

SALT LAKE CITY — Taking the stand for the first time since she was snatched from her girlhood bedroom seven years ago, Elizabeth Smart testified Thursday that her captor raped her three or four times a day, kept her tied up with a cable around her leg, and threatened to kill her if she tried to escape.

Asked by a prosecutor to describe Brian David Mitchell, the self-described prophet accused of holding her captive for nine months, Smart replied: “Evil, wicked, manipulative, stinky, slimy, greedy, selfish, not spiritual, not religious, not close to God.”

Smart, now a 21-year-old college student, gave her horrifying account in federal court as part of a proceeding over whether Mitchell is mentally competent to stand trial.

The 55-year-old, one-time street preacher has been behind bars since 2003 — mostly in a state mental hospital — but has yet to stand trial. Twice he has been ruled mentally incompetent in state court.

Obama moves to ban texting while driving

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration said Thursday it will seek to ban text messaging by interstate bus drivers and truckers and push states to pass their own laws against driving cars while distracted.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said the administration also would move to put restrictions on cell-phone use by rail operators, truck drivers and interstate bus drivers.

As a first step, LaHood said President Barack Obama signed an executive order late Wednesday banning all federal workers from texting while driving on government business, driving government vehicles or using government equipment.

Associated Press