3 children die in mobile-home fire

3 children die in mobile-home fire

HOUMA, La.

A mobile-home fire in Louisiana killed three children and injured seven others early Christmas Day, fire officials said.

Two brothers, age 12 and 11, and their 13-year-old sister died at the Whispering Oaks Trailer Park in Houma, said District Chief Lance LaMarca of the state fire marshal’s office.

Another sibling, the children’s parents and four other children were taken to a Baton Rouge burn unit, LaMarca said.

The trailer was engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived about 2:30 a.m. Wednesday, Houma Fire Inspector Mike Millet said.

Egypt: Brotherhood is terrorist group

CAIRO

Egypt’s military-backed interim government declared the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist organization Wednesday, intensifying its campaign of arrests and prosecutions targeting its members and tightening the noose on the group’s network of charities and businesses.

The unprecedented executive decision likely ends any chance of reconciliation between the government and the 85-year-old Brotherhood, still Egypt’s most- organized political group. It marks a stunning reversal of fortunes for the long-outlawed organization that saw member Mohammed Morsi reach Egypt’s highest office in the country’s first democratic election, only to be ousted in a popularly backed military coup in July.

Bill seeks to boost foreign adoptions

washington

Amid partisan conflict in Congress, dozens of lawmakers from both parties — including staunch liberals and conservatives — have united behind a bill that supporters say addresses a heart-rending issue beyond politics: the millions of foreign children languishing in orphanages or otherwise at risk because they have no immediate family.

The bill would encourage more adoptions of foreign orphans, which have declined steadily in recent years, and reflects impatience with current policies overseen by the State Department.

Titled the Children in Families First Act, the measure has been introduced in slightly different forms in both the Senate and House. Its co-sponsors range from Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., a hero of the Democratic left, to Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., a favorite of tea-party conservatives.

17 Haitian migrants die in capsizing

MIAMI

At least 17 migrants from Haiti died Wednesday when their overloaded sailboat capsized as it was being towed to shore in the Turks and Caicos Islands, officials in the British territory said.

A marine unit of the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force had intercepted the packed sloop about two hours earlier and was escorting it to shore when it abruptly overturned, sparking a frantic search-and-rescue operation in the pre-dawn darkness.

Crowds relive Washington’s ride

WASHINGTON CROSSING, N.J.

George Washington has made his annual Christmas Day ride across the Delaware River.

Washington’s daring Christmas 1776 crossing of the river turned the tide of the Revolutionary War. The 61st re-enactment of it was staged Wednesday.

Hundreds of people gather each year to hear Washington’s stand-in deliver stirring words to the troops and watch three boats make the crossing from Pennsylvania to New Jersey.

Associated Press