Evening Edition

US and BP officials were poring over weather data as the National Hurricane Center downgraded an earlier forecast saying there was now a 50 percent chance of the bad weather “becoming a tropical cyclone in the next 48 hours.”

Depending on how the system develops, officials may have to issue evacuation orders for hundreds of support ships and engineers trying to complete a relief well being drilled deep under the seabed.

The British energy giant and US government officials were evaluating the cap each day, and on Tuesday extended for another 24 hours the period of evaluation of the so-called capping stack structure that appeared to stop the oil flow last week after nearly three months.

“We’re just going to continue on with the tests. And every day that we continue on with the tests, that gives us more confidence when we don’t see any anomalies,” BP vice president Kent Wells told a briefing Tuesday.

The bomb in a car parked near a Shiite mosque in the Abu Sayeeda neighbourhood of the city exploded at around 6:00 pm (1500 GMT), an official from Baquba Operations Command said.

Police imposed a curfew in Abu Sayeeda as they suspect there might be more bombs, the official said, adding later that police had defused two roadside bombs in the area.

“The appeals chamber … orders that Ramush Haradinaj, Idriz Balaj and Lahi Brahimaj be retried” on several counts of the initial indictment, appeals judge Patrick Robinson of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) said.

This would be the court’s first-ever retrial.

The exhumation at Bucharest’s military graveyard of Ghencea came at the request of the family who have long suspected the bodies in the burial plot were not those of the Ceausescus.

Although the test results are not expected for months, one relative said he thought the remains were indeed that of the Communist strongman who ruled Romania from 1965 until 1989, and his wife Elena.

The legislation, which some Republicans have pledged to repeal, introduces new consumer protections, checks the power of big banks and cracks down on deceptive practices by credit card firms.

“Because of this law, the American people will never again be asked to foot the bill for Wall Street?s mistakes. There will be no more tax-funded bailouts,” Obama promised.

Unveiling a strategy here this week, Bordeaux’s wine trade council (CIVB) decided to increase overall production by 12 percent while reducing the current 1.1 million hectolitre production of so-called “Basic Bordeaux”.

These cheap and cheerful labels retail for less than two euros (2.50 dollars) per bottle in France, but producers and merchants fear they dilute the region’s image as the home of prestigious wines.

But when it comes to winning stages on the Tour de France, the hosts are leading the way.

After 17 days of racing French riders have won six stages, equalling a modern day record that was last set in 1997 — a year before the Festina doping scandal almost brought the event to its knees.

The recovery, driven mainly by external demand, “is likely to be slowed in the near term by market tensions related to sovereign risks,” the International Monetary Fund said in a report.

“Over the medium term, the need for fiscal consolidation and structural rigidities will weigh on it, leading to persistent unemployment and subdued investment,” the Washington-based fund said after annual consultations with the 16 member economies of the eurozone area.

The maverick chief executive is seen to be positioning the group to join the fray as major world automakers seek new alliances, a year and a half after orchestrating a tie-up with near-bankrupt US automaker Chrysler.

“It will be easier for Fiat to merge with other companies and the first that comes to mind obviously is Chrysler,” said Umberto Bertele, chairman of Milan Politechnic’s business school, of the restructuring.

Airlines and leasing companies have splashed billions of dollars on planes seating around 100 passengers from Brazil’s Embraer and Russia’s Sukhoi but have sat tight regarding Mitsubishi’s new planned jet and Bombardier’s CSeries.

Short-haul planes are being snapped up to meet soaring demand for air travel across emerging markets, especially in Asia, and ahead of an expected upturn in European and US economic growth.

The unknown attackers, who also beat up other plant employees, set off the explosions at the station in the North Caucasus’s Kabardino-Balkaria region by laying mines in the turbine room. The plant has been shut down as a result.

“A terror act took place at the Baksanskaya hydroelectric power plant,” state-run power group RusHydro, which runs the plant, said in a statement.

Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond said he did not regret freeing Libyan Abdelbaset Ali Mohmet al-Megrahi on compassionate grounds last August.

And Salmon denied claims from US lawmakers that the release formed part of an oil deal between BP and resource-rich Libya.

CEO Tony Hayward, criticized for his handling of the disaster, has the full support of the company’s board and will remain in his job, a BP spokesman said, dismissing a Times of London report that he would step down within the next 10 weeks.

The Times, citing a person close to the matter, said Hayward would have to step down so the British energy giant could protect itself against a potential buyout threat by ExxonMobil or Royal Dutch Shell.

It is, in other words, business as usual for the former Coast Guard boss, the unlikely face of an Obama administration that has been pilloried by critics for a tepid response to the worst oil spill in U.S. history — a perception the White House and Allen vehemently dispute.

After breakfast at his New Orleans hotel, Allen loads up in a waiting SUV, leaving by 7:00 a.m. for the airport, where a helicopter will fly him to Theodore, Alabama, his first stop.

Policy makers, however, still expect growth to be sustained despite a recent softening in the economy evident in data, Bernanke said in congressional testimony.

The Federal Reserve is continuing “prudent planning for the ultimate withdrawal of monetary policy accommodation” even as it recognizes the uncertain outlook, Bernanke told the Senate Banking Committee.

Influential business groups lined up to criticize the new law, underscoring Obama’s uneasy relationship with America’s business community. Some on Wall Street, however, welcomed the clarity offered by the law after months of wrangling in Congress over what should be in the legislation.

The law, which got final approval from the Senate last week, targets the kind of Wall Street risk-taking that helped trigger a global financial meltdown in 2007-2009 and also aims to strengthen consumer protections.

The Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program said the increase was due largely to the government’s pledges to supply capital to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and to guarantee more mortgages to the support the housing market.

Increased guarantees for loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration, the Government National Mortgage Association and the Veterans administration increased the government’s commitments by $512.4 billion alone in the year to June 30, according to the report.

Retired U.S. Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen said a weather system brewing in the Carribean could force crews to abandon their watch over the experimental cap that’s been bottling oil a mile below the surface of the water for nearly a week.

Scientists have been scrutinizing underwater cameras and data for days, trying to determine if the cap is displacing pressure and causing leaks underground. If storms keep them from seeing the cap and getting those readings – for up to four days, Allen said – BP could reopen the well to avoid missing signs it is buckling.

Hordes of helicopters, bulldozers, Army trucks, ATVs, barges, dredges, airboats, workboats, cleanup crews, media, scientists and volunteers have descended on the beaches, blue waters and golden marshes of the Gulf Coast.

That’s a lot of propellers, anchors, tires, and feet for a fragile ecosystem to take, and a tough truth is emerging: In many places, the oil cleanup itself is causing environmental damage.

An official warned the spill posed a “severe threat” to sea life and water quality as China’s latest environmental crisis spread off the shores of Dalian, once named China’s most livable city.

One cleanup worker has drowned, his body coated in crude.

The decision closes the books on one of the lingering political disputes of the Bush administration, one that Democrats said was evidence of GOP politics run amok and that Republicans have always said was a manufactured controversy.

Investigators looked into whether the Bush administration improperly dismissed nine U.S. attorneys, and in particular New Mexico U.S. Attorney David Iglesias, as a way to influence criminal cases. The scandal added to mounting criticism that the administration had politicized the Justice Department, a charge that contributed to the resignation of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs called the dismissal of Shirley Sherrod an injustice and a mistake and said he was apologizing for the “entire administration.” He said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack was trying to reach her to extend an apology.

“I accept the apology,” Sherrod said on CNN after watching Gibbs talk to reporters at a televised briefing. But she said the apology took too long and she wasn’t sure if she wanted her job back.

The president’s signing ceremony capped nearly two years of intense debate over how to avoid a recurrence of the 2008 financial meltdown that buckled the U.S. economy and has left sharp, lasting imprints on the nation’s politics and in Americans’ homes.

In a heated midterm election season that has put a dent in his public support, Obama sought to put the complex law in pocketbook terms. Emphasizing provisions that guard borrowers from abusive lenders, he claimed “the strongest financial protections for consumers in the nation’s history.”

Both lawsuits said the ordinance amounted to discrimination. The suits were filed by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Mexican American Legal Defense & Educational Fund, also known as MALDEF.

“This law encourages discrimination and racial profiling against Latinos and others who appear to be foreign-born, including U.S. citizens,” said Amy Miller, legal director of ACLU Nebraska. “We’re going to do all we can to make sure this extreme law, which would lead to individuals losing housing and jobs because of their appearance and language ability, never goes into effect.”

Several volleyball players and their coach had sued Quinnipiac University after it announced in March 2009 that it would eliminate the team for budgetary reasons and replace it with a competitive cheer squad.

The school contended the cheer squad and other moves kept it in compliance with Title IX, the 1972 federal law that mandates equal opportunities for men and women in athletics. But U.S. District Judge Stefan Underhill disagreed in a ruling that those involved say was the first time the issue has been decided by a judge.

Those behind the find say the star, called R136a1, may once have weighed as much as 320 solar masses. Astrophysicist Paul Crowther said the obese star – twice as heavy as any previously discovered – has already slimmed down considerably over its lifetime.

In fact, it’s burning itself off with such intensity that it shines at nearly 10 million times the luminosity of the sun.

After the Democratic-controlled Senate voted 60-40 on Tuesday to move ahead on the bill, approval became a formality. The measure would go to the House for a final vote and on to President Barack Obama.

At issue are payments averaging $309 a week for almost 5 million people whose 26 weeks of state benefits have run out. Those people are enrolled in a federally financed program providing up to 73 additional weeks of unemployment benefits.

Ceausescu ruled Romania for 25 years with an iron fist before being ousted and executed during the 1989 anti-communist revolt in which more than 1,000 people were killed.

Many Romanians have doubted for years that the Ceausescus were really buried in the Ghencea military cemetery in west Bucharest. Still, they were shocked by the unannounced early-morning exhumation, part of a five-year lawsuit.

Bernanke said the Fed would consider action if matters worsened.

His comments to the Senate Banking Committee sent stocks tumbling. The Dow Jones industrial average had been up 20 points before he spoke. It fell as much as 160 points during his testimony, but recovered some losses to close down 109 points. Investors shifted money into the safety of Treasury bonds; the yield on 10-year Treasury notes fell to 2.86 percent.

The department abandoned the practice after AP investigated. Inspectors from the department’s Office of Inspector General quietly conducted interviews last week to determine whether political advisers acted improperly.

The Freedom of Information Act, the main tool forcing the government to be more open, is designed to be insulated from political considerations. Anyone who seeks information through the law is supposed to get it unless disclosure would hurt national security, violate personal privacy or expose confidential decision-making in certain areas.

Cameron planned to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery before heading to the Pentagon for briefings on military operations in Afghanistan.

Britain has the most troops serving in Afghanistan of any NATO nation after the United States. But Cameron said he wants his country’s 10,000 troops out by the time of Britain’s next election, which must be held by 2015.

On Tuesday, an Afghan army sergeant opened fire at an army base in northern Afghanistan, killing two American civilian trainers before being shot dead. That followed an attack in the south on July 13, when a soldier killed three British troopers, including the company commander, with gunfire and a rocket-propelled grenade in the dead of night.

Military commanders have described the two attacks as isolated events, and it is indeed rare for an Afghan soldier to turn on NATO forces. Still, they feed on larger doubts about the ongoing massive recruiting among a largely illiterate population – many of whom are used to holding a gun but not to rigid military discipline.

Just one Republican joined Democrats to approve Kagan’s nomination and send it to the full Senate, where she’s expected to win confirmation within weeks.

“Elena Kagan will be confirmed,” predicted Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., the Judiciary chairman. “She will go on the U.S. Supreme Court.”

Former Secretary of State Karen Handel will face former U.S. Rep. Nathan Deal in an Aug. 10 runoff for the Republican nomination. With 83 percent of precincts reporting from Tuesday’s primary, unofficial returns showed Handel had 33 percent of the vote to Deal’s 24 percent.

Palin’s nod helped Handel surge to the top of the polls in recent days, while Deal had an endorsement from Gingrich.

Byron Williams, 45, a parolee with two previous bank robbery convictions, wanted to “start a revolution” by killing people at the American Civil Liberties Union and Tides Foundation, both in San Francisco, Oakland police Sgt. Michael Weisenberg said in court documents.

The weekend shootout occurred during a 24-hour span in Oakland when a sniper shot at police officers from a high-rise building, and a Virginia man who had a job interview in the San Francisco Bay area was fatally shot in downtown Oakland by robbers who got away with just $17.

Two of the cases were set to go before U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton on Thursday.

Lawyers in separate cases filed by the federal government and by the American Civil Liberties Union and other advocacy groups are seeking an order to keep the law from taking effect.

The head of the Environmental Protection Department on Wednesday approved the six-day hunt in northwestern New Jersey as part of a management policy that includes public education and habitat protection.

Bears have always had a plentiful food supply in the hilly wilds of northwestern New Jersey, but as civilization pushes ever westward from New York they are finding it easier to live off crops, garbage and other vestiges of humanity, experts say.

The frightening encounter shows the keeper trying to protect himself as the elephant lowered its head, its tusks narrowly missing the man’s head and chest.

The elephant then backed away as the keeper stumbled out.

A family court judge in Reno signed the divorce decree Wednesday for Gov. Jim Gibbons and his now ex-wife, Dawn.

Gibbons becomes the first sitting governor to get divorced in Nevada’s history. The former congressman won’t be returning to the governor’s mansion next year because he lost the Republican primary last month to former federal judge Brian Sandoval – another first for an incumbent governor.

The predators were poisoned and trapped to near-extermination in the United States last century, but have since clawed their way back to some of the most remote wilderness in the lower 48 states.

That recovery was boosted in the 1990s by the reintroduction of 66 wolves in Idaho and Yellowstone National Park. Yet as those first packs have flourished, increased livestock killings and declining big game herds have drawn sharp backlash from ranchers, hunters and officials in the Northern Rockies.

The district also agreed to follow a non-discrimination policy as part of the settlement, though it argues such a policy was already in place.

Constance McMillen, 18, said the victory came at the price of her being shunned in her small hometown of Fulton.

An Associated Press-Univision poll of more than 1,500 Latinos uncovered several distinct trends. Hispanics worry more than most Americans about losing jobs and paying bills. They place a high importance on education and expect their children to go to college.

The poll, also sponsored by The Nielsen Company and Stanford University, showed that Hispanics are torn between hopes for tomorrow and daily doses of financial stress.