AP - Russia has broadened the authority of the Federal Security Service, the KGB's main successor agency, giving it Soviet-style repressive powers in a move critics say could be used to stifle protests and intimidate government opponents.

AP - The U.S. economic recovery will remain slow deep into next year, held back by shoppers reluctant to spend and employers hesitant to hire, according to an Associated Press survey of leading economists.

Reuters - BP Plc may permanently shut the well that caused the worst off-shore oil spill in U.S. history as early as Monday, the company said as speculation grew over assets it might sell to cover mounting costs.

AP - A jury of Rep. Charles Rangel's congressional peers is ready to publicly discuss charges of ethical misdeeds. But the political discussions outside the room will be far more significant.

AFP - Arizona's bid to curb illegal immigration was going into force on Thursday minus its most controversial sections, after a US judge blocked a provision giving police the power to spot-check the immigration status of suspected lawbreakers.

AP - Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino is used to answering questions from reporters.

Reuters - Foreclosures rose in 3 of every four large U.S. metro areas in this year's first half, likely ruling out sustained home price gains until 2013, real estate data company RealtyTrac said on Thursday.

AP - Cooler temperatures and calmer winds helped firefighters in their battle against the most destructive of two big wildfires that have burned homes and forced hundreds of people to evacuate mountain communities on the edge of the Mojave Desert and in the southern Sierra Nevada.

Reuters - Authorities in China's far west have bred and trained "an army" of silver foxes bought from a fur farm to fight a plague of rats threatening a huge expanse of grasslands, state media said on Wednesday.

Reuters - Staff at the Jenolan Caves west of Sydney have added a new out-of-this-world attraction -- a tour in the Star Trek language Klingon.

Reuters - A laid off paramedic who turned to delivering pizzas to make ends meet is credited with saving the life of a man who went into cardiac arrest just as a pizza was delivered to his door.

Reuters - Rangers captured an escaped tiger at a South African farm on Wednesday after a two-day helicopter search that had dominated news broadcasts.

Reuters - An unemployed woman who said she was desperate for money has been arrested on charges she robbed an Oklahoma McDonald's with a white stretch girdle wrapped around her face as a makeshift mask.

AFP - Japan's industry ministry has ordered Apple to report on measures it will take regarding cases of its iPod Nano music player overheating and catching fire, an official said Thursday.

AFP - Shares in Canada's Research in Motion surged Wednesday on reports the BlackBerry maker plans to release a new smartphone next week to rival Apple's iPhone.