Police: Bone is that of missing girl, 10

Police: Bone is that of missing girl, 10

HICKORY, N.C.

Grim police trying to solve the disappearance of a 10-year-old North Carolina girl confirmed Friday what they’ve long suspected: The freckle-faced child with a prosthetic leg and bone cancer is dead.

But the mystery of how Zahra Baker perished deepened as authorities gave a terse briefing, revealing that one of her bones was found five miles away from other remains they believe belonged to the girl.

Zahra’s stepmother, Elisa Baker, is in jail, charged with trying to throw off investigators with a bogus ransom note. Zahra’s father, Adam Baker, has been arrested on charges unrelated to her disappearance and is free on bail.

200 students admit cheating at UCF

ORLANDO, Fla.

About 200 students at the University of Central Florida in Orlando have come forward in a cheating scandal.

Nearly 600 students had to retake a midterm this week for a senior-level business course after the instructor, Richard Quinn, was tipped off to the cheating. When Quinn confronted the class, he said any students who turned themselves in before the makeup test could take an ethics seminar and remain in the class.

The university hasn’t made a final decision about what to do with 15 students who they believe cheated but did not confess.

Pirates hijack ship, Chinese officials say

BEIJING

China says pirates have hijacked a cargo ship with 29 Chinese sailors aboard in the Arabian Sea.

An official with the China Marine Rescue Center says the Panama-flagged ship Yuan Xiang was attacked Friday night.

The state-run Xinhua News Agency says the Ningbo Hongyuan Ship Management Company reported the pirate attack to the rescue center and said the pirates were taking the ship toward Somalia.

Iraqis hurt in attack arrive in Rome

ROME

Twenty-six Iraqis who were injured in a militant attack on one of Baghdad’s main Catholic churches arrived in Rome for treatment Friday, airlifted by the Italian military at the request of the Vatican.

Sixty-eight people were killed when militants stormed Our Lady of Salvation Church on Oct. 31 during Sunday Mass.

Mayor vetoes ban on kids’-meal toys

SAN FRANCISCO

San Francisco’s mayor has vetoed legislation that would ban toys from fast-food children’s meals, though it’s still expected to become law.

Earlier this week, city supervisors passed the measure, which prevents toy giveaways for meals that don’t meet nutritional guidelines.

The supervisors’ 8-3 vote is enough to override Friday’s veto by Mayor Gavin Newsom.

Newsom says that although the ban has good intentions, it’s parents — not politicians — who should decide what their children eat.

Murkowski feels confident of vote

JUNEAU, Alaska

Sen. Lisa Murkowski maintained a healthy 90 percent of the write-in vote in the Alaska Senate race Friday, even as election officials threw out a number of oddball entries such as “Donald Duck,” “Elmo” and “Revolt.”

Murkowski said she feels “pretty good about the direction” the vote count is headed and expressed confidence that she’ll pull off an improbable write-in victory over Republican nominee Joe Miller.

Associated Press