Iraq PM must form new government

Iraq PM must form new government

BAGHDAD

Incumbent Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki cemented his grip on power Thursday, bringing an end to nearly nine months of political deadlock after he was asked to form the next government. He now faces the daunting task of bringing together Iraq’s Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish factions in a government that can overcome enduring tensions as the country struggles to develop its economy and prevent a resurgence of violence as the last American troops are due to leave by the end of next year.

3 teens rescued after 50 days at sea

WELLINGTON, New Zealand

Three teenagers survived 50 days adrift in a tiny boat in the South Pacific by drinking rainwater and eating raw fish and a seagull before being rescued by a passing trawler, a senior crewman on the fishing vessel said. The trio — Samuel Pelesa and Filo Filo, both 15, and Edward Nasau, 14 — had been given up for dead on their coral atoll in the Tokelau islands, where a memorial service took place for them after extensive searches failed to find them.

Kung Fu Panda stars at parade

NEW YORK

A high-kicking Kung Fu Panda and a diary-toting Wimpy Kid joined the giant balloon lineup as the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade unfolded Thursday, drawing tens of thousands of spectators to the annual extravaganza on a chilly, overcast morning.

As millions more watched the live broadcast on television, revelers gathered nationwide for other parades in cities such as Detroit, Chicago and Philadelphia. The parades headline observances across the nation that also feature football and family dinners with too much food on the table.

In his weekly radio and Internet address, President Barack Obama called on Americans to help one another through tough times.

“This is not the hardest Thanksgiving America has ever faced,” Obama said. “But as long as many members of our American family are hurting, we’ve got to look out for one another.”

Mayor with ties to cartel goes missing

SAN CRISTOBAL DE LAS CASAS, Mexico

The mayor and mayor-elect of a southern town disappeared after Mexico’s army detained members of the municipal police force and other local officials on suspicion they were working for a drug cartel, authorities said Thursday.

Ciro Diaz Sanchez, mayor of Pueblo Nuevo Solistahuacan, and Pedro Bautista, who was slated to succeed him next month, went missing Wednesday. That was just days after soldiers rounded up nearly half the town’s police force and two city-hall officials thought to belong to a gang allied with the Zetas, the cartel that controls much of the state of Chiapas, which borders Guatemala.

Suit: Woman fired after starting rehab

MILWAUKEE

A little more than two years into her employment as a risk manager with a major construction firm, Lynne Kossow told her bosses in May 2009 that she had relapsed into alcoholism after 14 years of sobriety and would immediately seek treatment.

Against the advice of hospital staff and her treating physician, Kossow said, she signed releases giving Michels Corp.’s employee- assistance program broad access to her medical records.

Still, she was fired in June 2009 and now has sued Michels, claiming the company violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by terminating her on the basis of her condition.

Combined dispatches