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SEATTLE – Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) issued fixes for nine security flaws, including four meant to keep hackers from breaking into computers through Web pages, during a regularly scheduled update Tuesday. Microsoft gave the four Web browsing-related patches its most severe “critical” rating. The updates affect many versions of Windows, Windows …

Country singer Tim McGraw hauled a rowdy fan out of the audience and up onto the stage during his Washington concert on Tuesday. Video shot by a fan at the concert shows McGraw shouting “Get rid of this guy,” summoning security and helping arriving crew members to haul him onstage. …

WASHINGTON – Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said Thursday that the government must move quickly to give the Federal Reserve more powers to regulate the financial system, contending that this year’s financial market turmoil had highlighted the need for action. Paulson said that the central bank’s powers should be expanded in …

Tours chronicling the rise of notorious dictator Adolf Hitler have been met with a flurry of interest by foreign tourists in the southern German city of Munich, where Hitler nurtured the Nazi Party and mounted the 1923 Beer Hall Putsch. The guided walking tours showcase historical city sites where significant …

KABUL, Afghanistan – U.S.-led coalition warplanes attacked militants withdrawing from a clash with police in the mountains of eastern Afghanistan on Tuesday, killing 15 of them, officials said. Ismatullah Alizai, police chief of Paktia province, said no one was hurt in the initial battle at the government headquarters in the …

A baby who suffered a severe allergic reaction to a leather sofa has still not fully recovered from the ordeal three months later. Within one hour of being laid fully clothed on the leather couch, six-month-old Charlie Mather was rushed to hospital with severe burns, rashes and sores that covered …

JAKARTA, Indonesia – International scientists said Tuesday they are almost certain a mud volcano that has displaced tens of thousands of villagers in central Indonesia was caused by faulty drilling of a gas exploration well — not an earthquake as claimed by the company. Debate over the eruption has flared …

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – The U.N. nuclear watchdog chief warned in comments aired Saturday that any military strike on Iran could turn the Mideast into a “ball of fire” and lead the country to a more aggressive stance on its controversial nuclear program. The comments by Mohamed ElBaradei, head …

An Australian man of Indian descent is believed to have murdered his second wife and her 9-year-old daughter, India’s Timesnow.tv is reporting. Sanjay Mehta, 41, is accused of dumping Jyoti, 38, and her daughter’s bodies over a canyon cliff, after murdering them. He reported them missing on May 5, but …

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan – Pakistan authorities have seized two vehicles carrying about 2,200 pounds of explosives, foiling a possible terror plot near Pakistan’s capital, officials said. Senior police officer Rao Mohammed Iqbal told The Associated Press that several suspects were arrested in the operation late Thursday in the garrison city of …