Officials: Germans, Brit behind plot

Officials: Germans, Brit behind plot

ISLAMABAD

Eight Germans and two British brothers are at the heart of an al-Qaida-linked terror plot against European cities, but the plan is still in its early stages, with the suspects calling acquaintances in Europe to plan logistics, a Pakistani intelligence official said Thursday. One of the Britons died in a recent CIA missile strike, he said.

The revelations underscore the role of Pakistan as a haven for many would-be Islamist militants with foreign ties, a worrying prospect for Western countries who face additional challenges when tracking terror suspects among citizens who have passports and easier access to their shores.

Pakistan, Britain and Germany are tracking the suspects and intercepting their phone calls, the official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to release the information to the media.

Boehner urges legislative reform

WASHINGTON

Jettisoning partisan campaign-season rhetoric, if only for a moment, House Republican leader John Boehner said Thursday that both parties bear the blame for “dysfunction in Congress” and urged lawmakers to adopt a cut-as-you-go-rule to curb their appetite for spending on new federal programs.

The Ohio Republican spoke hours after engineering a final partisan, pre- election showdown on the House floor, and one senior Democrat, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, swiftly denounced him as an agent of “gridlock and failure.”

Storm drenches East Coast; 4 killed

RALEIGH, N.C.

A massive rainstorm drenched the East Coast from the Carolinas to Maine on Thursday, causing at least four deaths, flooding roads and washing away months of dry weather.

The worst of the rain fell in North Carolina, where Jacksonville picked up 12 inches — nearly a quarter of its typical annual rainfall — in six hours. Four people, including two children, were killed when the sport-utility vehicle they were traveling in skidded off a rain-slicked highway and tumbled into a ditch filled with water, North Carolina troopers said.

Carter lands in DC after hospital stay

WASHINGTON

Former President Jimmy Carter landed in Washington on Thursday after spending two nights in an Ohio hospital recovering from a viral infection that doctors say likely gave him stomach problems.

Carter, wearing a dark blazer, landed in a small, private jet at Reagan National Airport just before 3 p.m. Thursday. He walked down the steps from the plane onto the runway and stepped into an SUV that immediately drove away. An airport police car escorted his SUV and two others from the airport.

Doctors advised Carter, who turns 86 today, to remain at MetroHealth Medical Center in Cleveland after he was rushed from an airplane to the emergency room Tuesday morning with an upset stomach.

N. Korea publishes photos of Kim’s son

SEOUL, South Korea

North Korea introduced its heir apparent to the world Thursday, a chubby-faced young man with a serious expression, combed-back hair cut high and tight on the sides and wearing a communist-style black suit.

State media published the first official images of Kim Jong Un, the youngest son of leader Kim Jong Il who appears destined to inherit control of the impoverished, nuclear-armed state.

Associated Press