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KABUL - Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai promised Thursday to prosecute corrupt government officials and end a culture of impunity, speaking during an inauguration closely watched by the international community for signs that his administration is moving beyond the cronyism and graft of the past five years.

NEW ORLEANS - The federal government could be vulnerable to billions of dollars in claims after a judge ruled that the Army Corps of Engineers' failure to properly maintain a navigation channel led to massive flooding in Hurricane Katrina.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - Blessed with a Friday off school, 15-year-old Alyssa Bustamante dug two holes in the ground to be used as a grave, authorities said. For the next week, she attended classes, all the while plotting the right time for a murder, they said.

LOS ANGELES - Nicole Richie has been admitted to a Los Angeles hospital and is being treated for pneumonia. Her representative says she's doing well.

CHICAGO - Baseball plans to cut down on off days during the postseason next year.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid released a long-awaited healthcare reform plan on Wednesday that budget analysts said would extend coverage to tens of millions of the uninsured and reduce the deficit over 10 years.

SEOUL (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama said he was willing to help North Korea repair its economy and end decades of international isolation if Pyongyang stopped a cycle of threats and finally moved toward nuclear disarmament.

KABUL (Reuters) - Newly-inaugurated Afghan President Hamid Karzai pledged on Thursday to tackle corruption and said his country's security forces should be ready to take over responsibility of unstable areas in three years.

HOUSTON (Reuters) - A U.S. judge ruled on Wednesday the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was negligent in maintaining a key navigational channel in New Orleans and was liable for some damage caused by massive flooding from Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

CHICAGO (Reuters) - U.S. health officials distanced themselves Wednesday from controversial new breast cancer screening guidelines that recommend against routine mammograms for healthy women in their 40s and said federal policy on screening mammograms had not changed.

SEOUL/MANILA (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama issued a strong warning to Iran on Thursday of consequences of its failure to respond to the offer of a nuclear deal and could have a package of steps to take "within weeks."

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama suggested on Wednesday the self-professed mastermind of the September 11, 2001, attacks would be convicted and put to death, but later said he was not trying to prejudge the trial.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Congress edged closer on Wednesday to creating new government powers to break up giant financial firms, which Europe is already doing, while a U.S. derivatives market crackdown got more complicated.

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AFP) - A suicide bomber blew himself up outside a Pakistan court building on Thursday, killing 14 people and wounding 20 others in the northwestern city of Peshawar, officials said.

SEOUL (AFP) - US President Barack Obama left South Korea for home Thursday, a US embassy spokesman said, wrapping up his four-country debut Asian tour.

KABUL (AFP) - Afghan President Hamid Karzai vowed to combat corruption and invited his chief rival to join the government after he was sworn in for a second term on Thursday, facing Western pressure to restore legitimacy as a US-led war stretches into a ninth year.

BRUSSELS (AFP) - European leaders gather Thursday in an effort to overcome political differences and unite behind a single candidate for the European Union's first-ever president.

MELBOURNE (AFP) - Two Bangladeshi twins look set to make a full recovery from surgery to part their conjoined heads, doctors said Thursday, as one woke up and started talking just two days after the operation.

LONDON (AFP) - US investment bank JP Morgan Chase will later Thursday unveil a one-billion-pound (1.67-billion-dollar, 1.12-billion-euro) deal to buy 190-year-old London stockbroker Cazenove, a newspaper said.

SINGAPORE (AFP) - Singapore on Thursday declared a severe recession over as data showed its economy grew for the second straight quarter in the three months to September.