France's assertive response to deadly unrest in Libya and its embrace of nuclear power amid Japan's atomic crisis drew praise this week from US politicians who eight years ago would likely have sung a very different tune.

US President Barack Obama left behind a week wracked by disaster and war, launching a five-day tour of Latin America, a region showing fresh potential after its own years of turmoil.

Prime Minister David Cameron said Tuesday the world cannot let Libya's Moamer Kadhafi do "terrible" things to his people, after discussing action, including a possible no-fly zone, with US President Barack Obama.

President Barack Obama Tuesday promised to listen and learn from small-scale entrepreneurs for ideas on how to drive growth, in his latest bid to repair his ties with the business world.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama spoke with Bahrain's king on Friday night, urging restraint after the kingdom's security forces ignored Washington's earlier call for calm and opened fire on protesters demanding reforms.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama spoke with Bahrain's king on Friday night, urging restraint after the kingdom's security forces ignored Washington's earlier call for calm and opened fire on protesters demanding reforms.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama spoke with Bahrain's king on Friday night, urging restraint after the kingdom's security forces ignored Washington's earlier call for calm and opened fire on protesters demanding reforms.

ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE (Reuters) - The United States is monitoring the possible transit of two Iranian warships through the Suez Canal and does not believe Iran has behaved responsibly in the region, the White House said on Friday.

SEATTLE (Reuters) - Boeing Co rolled out a new jumbo jet on Sunday, hoping to relive the glamour of the birth of the 747 over 40 years ago and use it to boost slow sales.

04:16 GMT: UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stresses that Egyptians must decide their own political future as he reiterated his call for a peaceful transition to free and fair elections. Ban said the United Nations stood "ready to assist in the process," and repeated a call on the Egyptian leadership to ensure protesters could voice their grievances without fear of violence.

Furious Egyptian demonstrators vowed to launch their most spectacular protest yet in Cairo on Friday to demand the immediate departure of President Hosni Mubarak and his newly anointed deputy.

Congressional Republicans on a course to stall progress, federal budget. With a federal spending bill set to run out next month, Democratic leaders in Congress are warning of a potential government shutdown. Republicans, who took control of the House of Representatives, have taken a hard-line position on the budget, and if they refuse to compromise, that could lead to the shuttering of government services.It could be a replay of 1995, when Republicans took control of Congress and House Speaker Newt Gingrich led his party in going toe-to-toe with Democratic President Bill Clinton over the budget. The result was two shutdowns ? one for five days, the other for a record 21 days.

Tea Party matriarch Sarah Palin has urged the US right to draw inspiration from Ronald Reagan, as she kicked off a weekend of commemorations on the ex president's 100th anniversary.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States bluntly urged Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak on Wednesday to make political reforms in the face of protesters demanding his ouster, in a shift in tone toward an important Arab ally.

The United States on Wednesday urged its key ally Egypt to lift a ban on demonstrations and undertake reforms as security forces clamped down on the biggest protests in decades.

PHOENIX (Reuters) - A car collector who wanted a "piece of history" paid $120,000 at an auction in Arizona for a 1963 ambulance that purportedly carried the body of President John F. Kennedy after he was assassinated, auction officials said.

PHOENIX (Reuters Life!) - A car collector who wanted a "piece of history" paid $120,000 at an auction in Arizona for a 1963 ambulance that purportedly carried the body of President John F. Kennedy after he was assassinated, auction officials said.

PHOENIX (Reuters) - A car collector who wanted a "piece of history" paid $120,000 at an auction in Arizona for a 1963 ambulance that purportedly carried the body of President John F. Kennedy after he was assassinated, auction officials said on Sunday.

Taking control of the House, GOP rushes toward political fight against Obama White House. Taking control of the House at last, Republicans are rushing straight into a political fight with President Barack Obama over health care and changes in Washington they say voters demanded in the midterm elections.

Taking control of the House, GOP rushes toward political fight against Obama White House. Taking control of the House at last, Republicans are rushing straight into a political fight with President Barack Obama over health care and changes in Washington they say voters demanded in the midterm elections.