rney General Eric Holder told Congress Wednesday that a serious national security leak required the secret gathering of telephone records at The Associated Press as he stood by an investigation in which he insisted he had no involvement.

Ninety-seven percent of scientists say global warming is mainly man-made but a wide public belief that experts are divided is making it harder to gain support for policies to curb climate change, an international study showed on Thursday.

Prestigious jeweler Harry Winston, which was acquired earlier this year by Swatch Group, bought a new colorless, flawless 101.73-carat diamond for a record US$26.7 million at an auction in Geneva on Wednesday, auction house Christie's said.

ish embassies were asked if they could silence a cockerel and order an unfit husband to shape up, among other “bizarre” requests for help in the last 12 months, the Foreign Office said Thursday.

The U.S. military vowed Wednesday to address a wave of sexual assault cases after a soldier who worked in a rape prevention program was accused of forcing a subordinate into prostitution.

Producer prices recorded their largest drop in three years in April as gasoline and food costs tumbled, pointing to weak inflation pressures that should give the Federal Reserve latitude to keep monetary policy very accommodative.

For Kevin Kookogey, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service's scrutiny of his one-man outfit providing conservative mentoring for students was so onerous he thought it was trying to deter him from political activity.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said on Tuesday he did not make the controversial decision to secretly seize telephone records of the Associated Press but defended his department's actions in the investigation of what he called a “very, very serious leak.”

British Prime Minister David Cameron and Prince Harry visited a design studio in New York City on Tuesday as part of a campaign to promote Britain as a tourist destination and U.S. business partner.

Most of the Defense Department's 800,000 civilian employees will be placed on unpaid leave for 11 days as the U.S.