US expected to give rebels more aid

US expected to give rebels more aid

WASHINGTON

The Obama administration is expected to give Syrian rebels broader nonlethal military assistance, including body armor and night-vision goggles, while stopping short of providing weapons to forces fighting Syrian President Bashar Assad.

The timing and scope of the stepped-up aid package is unclear. President Barack Obama has not given final approval, and an announcement is not imminent, according to a senior administration official, who requested anonymity because the official was not authorized to discuss the internal deliberations.

Gunman holding firefighters is killed

SUWANEE, Ga.

A gunman who was having financial problems held four firefighters for hours in a suburban Atlanta home, demanding his cable and power be turned back on, before being shot dead when SWAT members stormed the house, authorities said Wednesday. The hostages had cuts and bruises from explosions officers set off to distract the gunman before moving in, but they will be fine, a fire official said.

Earlier Wednesday, five firefighters responded to what seemed like a routine medical call and eventually were taken hostage by an unidentified suspect inside the house, police said. The gunman released one of the firefighters to move a firetruck but held the other four.

Study: Antibiotics are overprescribed

NEW YORK

U.S. doctors are prescribing enough antibiotics to give them to 4 out of 5 Americans every year, an alarming pace that suggests they are being overused, a new government study finds.

Overuse is one reason antibiotics are losing their punch, making infections harder to treat. The report released Wednesday gives the first detailed look at usage of these medicines in every state and finds it highest in the South and Appalachia.

There is no scientific consensus on an appropriate level of antibiotic prescribing. But some experts said the new study’s results are disturbing.

IVF pioneer dies

LONDON

Robert Edwards, a Nobel laureate from Britain whose pioneering in-vitro fertilization research led to the first test-tube baby and has since brought millions of people into the world, died Wednesday at age 87.

The University of Cambridge, where he was a professor, said Edwards passed away peacefully in his sleep at his home just outside Cambridge.

Together with Dr. Patrick Steptoe, Edwards developed in-vitro fertilization, or IVF, which resulted in the birth in 1978 of the world’s first test- tube baby, Louise Brown.

Uruguay approves same-sex marriage

MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay

Uruguayan lawmakers voted Wednesday to legalize gay marriage, making the South American country the third in the Americas to do so.

Supporters of the law, who had filled the public seats in the Senate, erupted in celebration when the results were announced. The bill received the backing of 71 members of the 92-seat chamber.

President Jose Mujica’s ruling Broad Front majority, which backed the law, is expected to put it into effect within 10 days.

Whereas some other countries have carved out new territory for gay and lesbian couples without affecting heterosexual marrieds, Uruguay is creating a single set of rules for all people, gay or straight. Instead of the words “husband and wife” in marriage contracts, it refers to the gender-neutral “contracting parties.”

Associated Press