This Just In

U.S. military plane crashes in Kyrgyzstan
A KC-135 tanker flies over Chicago in 2004.
May 3rd, 2013
02:55 PM ET

U.S. military plane crashes in Kyrgyzstan

An American military refueling plane took off and crashed in Kyrgyzstan on Friday, Kyrgyz and U.S. officials said.

Three people were on board, said Bolot Sharshenaliev of the Kyrgyz Emergencies Ministry. A ministry spokeswoman had previously said there were five. The U.S. military didn't give the number of those on the plane and said "the status of the crew is unknown."

The plane was a U.S. Air Force KC-135 tanker aircraft, according to the U.S. 376th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs Transit Center at Manas, near Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. The crew and aircraft are assigned to the transit center.

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Filed under: Kyrgyzstan • Military
May 3rd, 2013
02:49 PM ET

Houston airport shooter killed self, police say

The gunman who fired shots into the ceiling of a Houston airport on Thursday left behind a suicide note saying he had a "monster within" and he wanted police to stop him before he hurt others, police said Friday.

The man, identified as Carnell Marcus Moore, 29, of Beaumont, Texas, shot himself fatally in the temple as he was confronted by a Homeland Security officer at Houston Bush Intercontinental Airport on Thursday afternoon.

Moore had gone to the airport with the intention of suicide and left a note inside a suitcase he carried into the terminal, police officials said at news conference Friday morning.

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Filed under: Air travel • Texas • Travel
May 3rd, 2013
02:47 PM ET

Source: Explosives residue in suspect's home

Investigators have found residue of explosives in the Cambridge, Massachusetts, apartment slain bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev shared with his wife and young daughter, a source briefed on the investigation told CNN on Friday.

The residue turned up in at least three places, the source said: the kitchen table, the kitchen sink and the bathtub.

Suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev had previously told investigators that he and his brother built the devices in Tamerlan's home, according to another U.S. law enforcement official regularly briefed on the investigation.

Meanwhile, investigators searched areas in and around Dartmouth, Massachusetts, on Friday, according to the FBI.

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Filed under: Boston • Crime • Massachusetts • Terrorism
Maker of fake bomb detector gets prison
James McCormick, seen here arriving in a London court on April 23, 2013, was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
May 2nd, 2013
08:21 AM ET

Maker of fake bomb detector gets prison

The maker of a fake bomb detector that investigators say put lives at risk was sentenced Thursday to 10 years in prison by a London court.

James McCormick, 57, marketed his ADE 651 units to government agencies and private companies around the world, including in Iraq, with sales exceeding $50 million by his own admission.

However, independent tests showed the device has no better than a random chance of finding a golf ball, much less a bomb.

British police say the device the ADE standing for "Advanced Detection Equipment" is really a novelty golf-ball finder with the label removed.

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May 2nd, 2013
08:01 AM ET

Syria: Obama and Assad share 'red line'

Chemical weapons are a "red line" for Syria, too, a top government official said Thursday.

Syrian Information Minister Omran al Zoubi said in an exclusive interview with CNN that a hard-line Islamist rebel group has used chemical weapons during the civil war and his government "would never use" such munitions "if we had them."

"President Obama says chemical weapons are a red line," al Zoubi said. "Then he is in direct accordance with President (Bashar al-) Assad who also thinks that chemical weapons are a red line."

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Filed under: Syria
May 2nd, 2013
07:08 AM ET

California wildfire burns nearly 3,000 acres

Firefighters continue to battle what has been a fast-growing Southern California wildfire,one that has already consumed more than 2,950 acres.

The spread of the blaze seemed to slow early Thursday morning and crews gained greater containment, now pegged at 35%, according to the state agency Cal Fire.

The Riverside County Fire Department said 425 firefighters were involved in what's being called the Summit Fire. Six air tankers dropped chemical retardants on the flames.

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May 2nd, 2013
06:39 AM ET

N. Korea sentences American to hard labor

A North Korean court has sentenced a U.S. citizen to 15 years of hard labor, saying he committed "hostile acts" against the secretive state.

The country's Supreme Court delivered the sentence against Pae Jun Ho, known as Kenneth Bae by U.S. authorities, on Tuesday, the North's state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported Thursday.

The KCNA article said Bae a Korean-American, was arrested November 3 after arriving as a tourist in Rason City, a port in the northeastern corner of North Korea. It didn't provide any details about the "hostile acts" he is alleged to have committed.

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Drugs probed in Kris Kross rapper's death
Kris Kross' Chris Kelly, left, and Chris Smith reunited in February for a 20th anniversary concert for So So Def Records.
May 1st, 2013
10:26 PM ET

Drugs probed in Kris Kross rapper's death

[Updated at 1:42 p.m. ET Thursday] Atlanta-area authorities are investigating Wednesday's death of Chris Kelly, half of the 1990s rap duo Kris Kross, as a possible drug overdose, Fulton County Police Cpl. Kay Lester said Thursday morning.

Kelly, 34, died Wednesday at an Atlanta hospital after he was found unresponsive at his home, police said.

After paramedics took him to the hospital, a woman who identified herself as Kelly's friend told an investigator that Kelly had taken a mixture of heroin and cocaine Tuesday night, and that she had brought Kelly home "to recover from his drug use," according to a police report

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May 1st, 2013
09:54 PM ET

Justice Department appeals morning-after pill ruling

The U.S. Justice Department filed a notice of appeal Wednesday over a federal judge's ruling that directed the Food and Drug Administration to make the morning-after birth control pill available to females of all ages without a prescription.

The government also filed a motion for a temporary stay of the FDA's approval on Tuesday of the availability of the Plan B One-Step emergency contraception pill without a prescription for ages 15 and older.

In April, U.S. District Judge Edward Korman ordered the FDA to make emergency contraception, namely the morning-after pill, available to females of any age, without a prescription. This week's FDA announcement, which pertains to an application from Teva Women's Health, Inc., is not related to that, the FDA said.

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Filed under: Health
May 29 court-martial for Hassan
May 1st, 2013
07:56 PM ET

May 29 court-martial for Hassan

A military judge on Wednesday set a May 29 court-martial for U.S. Army Maj. Nidal Hasan, who is charged in a shooting rampage at Fort Hood, Texas, in November 2009 that left 13 people dead.

Hasan is charged with multiple counts of murder and attempted murder charges for the alleged shootings at the post's processing center, where soldiers were preparing to deploy to Afghanistan and Iraq.

Hasan's court-martial has been repeatedly delayed since it was initially set to begin in March 2012, most notably after an appeals court delayed the case over the question of whether the Army major's beard could be forcibly shaved.

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Filed under: Military • Texas • U.S. Army
Cannibalism evidence in historic Jamestown
May 1st, 2013
07:51 PM ET

Researchers: Cannibalism at Jamestown

The winter of 1609 to 1610 was treacherous for early American settlers. Some 240 of the 300 colonists at Jamestown, in Virginia, died during this period, called the "Starving Time," when they were under siege and had no way to get food.

Desperate times led to desperate measures. New evidence suggests that includes eating the flesh of fellow colonists who had already died.

Archaeologists revealed Wednesday their analysis of 17th century skeletal remains suggesting that settlers practiced cannibalism to survive.

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Filed under: History • Virginia
California law shifts $24 million to gun-confiscation program
May 1st, 2013
07:41 PM ET

California law shifts $24 million to gun-confiscation program

California Gov. Jerry Brown, a Democrat, signed legislation Wednesday that will boost funding for state efforts to confiscate firearms from those prohibited by law from owning them, the governor's office announced.

The bill gives $24 million from the Dealers' Record of Sale fund – fees paid by gun owners at the time of purchase – to the state's Department of Justice to help clear the backlog of individuals who once purchased a gun but are now barred from possessing firearms.

The state's Bureau of Firearms has identified about 20,000 Californians who illegally hold an estimated 40,000 handguns and assault weapons, with the list growing by 15 to 20 every day.

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Filed under: California
After 120 years, Netherlands gets king
Beatrix appears with King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima on the balcony of the royal palace on Tuesday to greet the public after her abdication in Amsterdam.
April 30th, 2013
12:42 PM ET

After 120 years, Netherlands gets king

Willem-Alexander became the first Dutch king in more than 120 years on Tuesday as his mother, Queen Beatrix abdicated the throne, ending 33 years as the country's monarch.

The 75-year-old monarch handed over power in a constitutionally ordained ceremony in the Mozes Hall of the royal palace in Amsterdam. The transfer became official as she signed the "instrument of abdication" that means she will now be known as Princess Beatrix.

Cheers erupted from crowds gathered outside the palace who were watching proceedings on a big screen as the queen signed the document. CNN's Max Foster reported that many in the Netherlands had been partying well into the night.

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Filed under: Uncategorized
Armed men seize Libya's Justice Ministry
Remains of the building of a defense ministry brigade bombed by residents in Benghazi, Libya on Monday.
April 30th, 2013
08:31 AM ET

Armed men seize Libya's Justice Ministry

Armed men in trucks with anti-aircraft guns mounted on them occupied the Libyan Justice Ministry in Tripoli on Tuesday, forcing ministry staff to leave, Justice Minister Salah al-Marghani said.

The militants consisted of 20 to 30 armed men in military fatigues, according to al-Marghani, who said he tried to talk to the men before fleeing.

This comes as the nation's Foreign Ministry remains under siege for a third straight day.

The armed protesters have said their main goal was to push the General National Congress to pass a proposed law that would ban Gadhafi-era officials from holding government posts.

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Filed under: Liberia
April 30th, 2013
08:23 AM ET

Boston probe eyes slain Canadian jihadist, source says

Federal agents are looking into possible links between dead Boston Marathon bomb suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev and a Canadian boxer-turned-jihadist killed by Russian troops in 2012, a source being briefed on the investigation said Monday.

William Plotnikov and six others died in a firefight with Russian forces in the southwestern republic of Dagestan in July 2012, while Tsarnaev was visiting the region, the source said. The 23-year-old Plotnikov was born in Russia, but his family moved to Canada when he was a teenager.

The source said Plotnikov's body was prepared for burial by a local imam on July 14. Tsarnaev flew out of Dagestan two days later, arriving in New York on July 17. Investigators are looking into the possibility he left because of Plotnikov's death, the source said.

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Filed under: Boston • Crime • Massachusetts • Terrorism
April 28th, 2013
01:06 PM ET

Gotta Watch: Best White House Correspondents' Dinner zingers

All presidents have to put up with a daily barrage of jokes at their expense, but it's not too often that they get to turn the tables. The White House Correspondents' Dinner, unofficially dubbed "nerd prom," offers one of those rare opportunities. President Obama finally got to let loose and make some jabs at a captive room of reporters, politicians, and celebrities. Check out some of our favorite zingers from the president and host Conan O'Brien.

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Obama rips on GOP

President Obama looked like he enjoyed turning the tables on his right-wing opponents from the election. Check out his jab at the GOP.

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Obama lets his hair down

First lady Michelle Obama's bangs seemed to get more publicity than the president got when she debuted her look in January. See the president hop on the bandwagon.

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Hollywood Look-alikes

Correspondents' Dinner host Conan O'Brien describes Washington's movie doppelgangers.

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Obama roasts himself

President Obama turns his jokes on himself, saying he's not "the strapping young Muslim socialist" that he used to be.

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Conan checks CNN

See Conan O'Brien rip into CNN.

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Filed under: Gotta Watch
50 more found alive under collapsed building
April 26th, 2013
01:11 PM ET

50 more found alive under collapsed building

[Updated at 1:11 p.m. ET] Rescuers tunneling Friday into the rubble of the eight-story building that collapsed Wednesday discovered another 50 people trapped on what remained of its third floor, an official said.

Bangladesh Fire Service Deputy Director Maj. Mizamur Rahman said rescuers were hoping to free them within a few hours.

Also Friday, two women who gave birth under the debris were rescued along with their infants a fire service official said, according to BSS.

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House OKs measure to end controller furloughs
April 26th, 2013
12:58 PM ET

House OKs measure to end controller furloughs

[Updated at 12:58 p.m. ET] In rare bipartisan accord, normally quarrelsome U.S. lawmakers passed a measure designed to end budget-related air traffic controller furloughs blamed for widespread flight delays.

The House of Representatives approved the legislation, capping a major congressional initiative as delays snarled traffic at airports. The House vote comes a day after unanimous approval by the U.S. Senate.

The measure - which is expected to be signed into law by President Obama - gives the Transportation Department budget planners new flexibility for dealing with forced spending cuts.

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Filed under: Air travel • Aviation • Barack Obama • Budget • Congress • Consumer safety • District of Columbia • Economy • FAA • Jobs • Labor • Politics • Travel
George Jones dies at 81
Country music legend George Jones was hospitalized in Nashville on April 18.
April 26th, 2013
10:42 AM ET

George Jones dies at 81

George Jones, the country music legend whose graceful, evocative voice gave depth to some of the greatest songs in country music including "She Thinks I Still Care," "The Grand Tour" and "He Stopped Loving Her Today" has died, according to his public relations firm.

Jones, 81, died Friday at Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville, the public relations firm said. He had been hospitalized since April 18 with fever and irregular blood pressure.

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Filed under: Celebrity • Music • Obituary • Showbiz
April 26th, 2013
09:43 AM ET

Bombers in Iraq target Sunni mosques; 4 dead

Bombs blew up at and near Sunni mosques Iraq amid Friday prayers, the latest flurry of attacks in a country seething with Sunni-Shiite tension.

Several explosions occurred in Baghdad, the nation's capital. One explosive planted at the al-Qubeisi mosque in southwestern Baghdad killed four worshipers and wounded 46, police said.

In the capital's northeastern region, four people were injured when a bomb blew up outside the al-Razaq mosque, and six were hurt when a roadside bomb exploded near the Malek al-Ashqar mosque.

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