Kabul truck bomb kills 7, wounds 400

Kabul truck bomb kills 7, wounds 400

KABUL, Afghanistan

A bomb hidden in a truck exploded in the center of the Afghan capital, killing seven people and wounding about 400, police and health officials said today.

Police chief Abdul Rahman Rahimi said the pre-dawn blast was near a Defense Ministry compound, but that all of the victims were civilians, including women and children.

Health Ministry spokesman Wahidullha Mayar about 400 people were hurt, mostly from being hit by flying glass.

Rahimi said the target of the blast, which blew out windows in nearby homes, was not known.

Calif. residents find homes destroyed

CLEARLAKE OAKS, Calif.

Thousands of people driven from their homes by a massive Northern California wildfire began to trickle back to their neighborhoods Thursday, and some saw what they most feared: nothing.

“All of it is gone. It’s so surreal,” Layna Rivas said through tears in a phone interview just after she discovered her home in Clearlake Oaks had burned to the ground. “It looked like a bomb went off everywhere. It’s all black.”

Rivas kept chickens and said she saw only one walking through the rubble.

Forty-three homes were destroyed and 13,000 people were ordered or warned to evacuate as the blaze chewed through nearly 109 square miles of dry brush.

About 800 evacuees were allowed to return home Thursday, and the number could increase as firefighting operations wind down.

Mine plug blows, dumping waste

DENVER

A million-gallon mine- waste spill that sent a plume of orange-ish muck down a river in southwest Colorado on Thursday was caused by a federal mine-cleanup crew.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said that a cleanup team was working with heavy equipment Wednesday to secure an entrance to the Gold King Mine. Workers instead released an estimated 1 million gallons of mine waste into Cement Creek.

“The project was intended to pump and treat the water and reduce metals pollution flowing out of the mine,” agency spokesman Rich Mylott said in a statement.

Council to vote on chemical attacks

UNITED NATIONS

The U.N. Security Council votes today on a draft resolution aimed at identifying the perpetrators of chemical weapons attacks in Syria so they can be brought to justice.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov reached agreement on the text Wednesday, and the 13 other council members had until Thursday morning to raise objections. None did.

Schumer opposes US deal with Iran

WASHINGTON

New York Sen. Chuck Schumer, the No. 3 Senate Democrat, is breaking with President Barack Obama and will oppose the Iran nuclear deal.

Schumer made the announcement late Thursday night. The move is a blow to the Obama administration, which has lobbied hard for the international accord ahead of a vote next month.

Schumer says in a statement that there is a real risk that Iran will not moderate and will use the pact to pursue its nefarious goals.

Schumer is widely expected to become the next Democratic leader after Sen. Harry Reid retires, and his split with Obama is remarkable for a senior leader. But Schumer, who is Jewish, also is a strong supporter of Israel and represents a state with a significant population of Jewish voters.

Associated Press