HEALTH OVERHAUL-UNINSURED
WASHINGTON — Going into President Barack Obama's last year in office, progress has stalled on reducing the number of uninsured Americans under his signature health care law, according to a major survey out Thursday.
KEYSTONE PIPELINE-LAWSUIT
HOUSTON — The Canadian company that proposed the Keystone XL oil pipeline files a lawsuit over the U.S. government's rejection of the project and announced it plans to file a second legal challenge that will seek more than $15 billion in damages.
NKOREA-Q&A
WASHINGTON — North Korea's claim to have detonated a thermonuclear weapon in an underground test has raised worldwide worry about what really happened, whether the isolated nation is closer to being capable of hitting the U.S. mainland with a nuclear missile, and whether it brings war closer. Some questions and answers about what the Pentagon called an "unacceptable and irresponsible provocation" that threatens peace in Asia.
GHANA-EX-GUANTANAMO-PRISONERS
ACCA, Ghana — Two men who were captured in Afghanistan and held at the U.S. base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for nearly 14 years without charge have been released and sent to the West African nation of Ghana for resettlement, officials say.
WOMAN DEAD IN JAIL
HEMPSTEAD — A Texas state trooper who arrested a black woman after a contentious traffic stop last summer has been fired after being charged with perjury for allegedly lying about his confrontation with the woman, who died three days later in jail.
VENEZUELA-POLITICS
CARACAS, Venezuela —The new opposition-dominated congress swears in three lawmakers barred by the Supreme Court from taking their seats, setting up a confrontation with the ruling socialists in this oil-exporting nation mired in deep economic troubles.
GUATEMALA-PAST CRIMES
GUATEMALA CITY — Prosecutors announce the arrest of more than a dozen former military and government officials for alleged crimes against humanity committed during Guatemala's civil war, and initiate human rights proceedings against an ally of President-elect Jimmy Morales.