AFP
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US Marines at in Helmand Province on November 21. President Barack Obama gathered his war cabinet Monday for what officials indicated could be the final time before he decides whether to dispatch tens of thousands more US troops to Afghanistan.(AFP/File/Manpreet Romana)

Obama to meet war cabinet on Afghanistan

Mon Nov 23, 3:47 PM ET

WASHINGTON (AFP) - President Barack Obama gathered his war cabinet Monday for what officials indicated could be the final time before he decides whether to dispatch tens of thousands more US troops to Afghanistan.

  • Smoke rises from an incineration plant in Amsterdam. The United States plans to join other developed nations in presenting an emissions target at the UN climate summit in Copenhagen, a senior administration official said Monday.(AFP/File/John D McHugh)
    US to present emissions target before Copenhagen 2 hours, 25 minutes ago

    WASHINGTON (AFP) - The United States will announce a target for reducing its greenhouse gas emissions before the UN climate conference in Copenhagen, removing a major obstacle to a deal, a senior official said Monday.

  • US President Barack Obama with his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev on November 15. The United States said Monday it was in talks with Russia to maintain monitoring provisions set out in an arms reduction treaty that expires next month before a new deal is ratified.(AFP/File/Saul Loeb)
    US, Russia mull arms monitoring before new treaty 2 hours, 46 minutes ago

    WASHINGTON (AFP) - The United States said Monday it was in talks with Russia to maintain monitoring provisions set out in an arms reduction treaty that expires next month before a new deal is ratified.

  • Indian Prime Minister Manmoham Singh, seen here addressing the US business community at the US Chamber of Commerce in Washington, appealed for wide-ranging cooperation with the United States on areas such as climate change and defense as he started a high-profile state visit.(AFP/Jim Watson)
    Indian PM pitches for growing US ties Mon Nov 23, 4:09 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (AFP) - Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday appealed for wide-ranging cooperation with the United States on areas such as climate change and defense as he started a high-profile state visit.

  • A sold sign is posted in front of a home for sale in August 2009 in San Francisco, California. A rush to cash in on tax incentives helped to push up sales of existing US homes by 10.1 percent in October giving momentum to the ailing sector, industry data showed Monday.(AFP/Getty Images/File/Justin Sullivan)
    Tax credits fuel 10 percent surge in US home sales Mon Nov 23, 3:37 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (AFP) - A rush to cash in tax incentives helped boost sales of existing US homes 10.1 percent in October, according to data Monday showing fresh momentum for the sector at the heart of the economic crisis.

  • The United States is "deeply involved" in efforts to help Iraqi rivals adopt an electoral law, but elections may be delayed, Secretary of Stage Hillary Clinton, pictured on November 16, said Monday.(AFP/File/Philippe Lopez)
    US helping Iraq adopt election law: Clinton 46 minutes ago

    WASHINGTON (AFP) - The United States is "deeply involved" in efforts to help Iraqi rivals adopt an electoral law, but elections may be delayed, Secretary of Stage Hillary Clinton said Monday.

  • Job seekers at a job fair in New York City on November 6. The worst of US job losses are expected to be over by March 2010 as the economic grows after a long recession, a poll of business economists showed Monday.(AFP/Getty Images/File/Spencer Platt)
    US unemployment to peak by March: poll Mon Nov 23, 11:41 AM ET

    WASHINGTON (AFP) - The worst of US job losses are expected to be over by March 2010 as the economic grows after a long recession, a poll of business economists showed Monday.

  • A crest of the Federal Bureau of Investigation is seen inside the J. Edgar Hoover FBI Building in Washington, DC. The number of US hate crime victims rose slightly last year to nearly 9,700 from 9,500 in 2007, with most people targeted because of their skin color, the FBI said Monday.(AFP/File/Mandel Ngan)
    Number of hate crimes up slightly in US: FBI Mon Nov 23, 1:46 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (AFP) - The number of US hate crime victims rose slightly last year to nearly 9,700 from 9,500 in 2007, with most people targeted because of their skin color, the FBI said Monday.

  • US President Barack Obama should "pick up the phone" and urge Chinese President Hu Jintao, seen here on November 11, personally to ease pressure on a Beijing-based human rights lawyer, Jiang Tianyong, US lawmakers said Monday.(AFP/File/Saeed Khan)
    Obama must help Chinese dissident: US lawmakers Mon Nov 23, 2:50 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (AFP) - US President Barack Obama should "pick up the phone" and urge Chinese President Hu Jintao personally to ease pressure on a Beijing-based human rights lawyer, Jiang Tianyong, US lawmakers said Monday.

  • Jacques Monsieur (L) sits besides his lawyer Marc Preumont while appearing before Brussels' Correctionnal court in 2002. Monsieur , an alleged Belgian arms dealer, on Monday pleaded guilty to charges of conspiring to export fighter jet engines and parts to Iran, US justice officials said.(AFP/BELGA/File/Virginie Lefour)
    Belgian in US court admits Iran arms dealing 1 hour, 32 minutes ago

    WASHINGTON (AFP) - A alleged Belgian arms dealer on Monday pleaded guilty to charges of conspiring to export fighter jet engines and parts to Iran, US justice officials said.

  • A worker putting the finishing touches to a toy car at a toy factory in Shantou, China. The United States Monday praised Beijing for "taking toy safety seriously" two years after millions of made-in-China toys had to be recalled amid fears they were dangerous.(AFP/File)
    US lauds China for boosting toy safety standards Mon Nov 23, 4:02 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (AFP) - The United States Monday praised Beijing for "taking toy safety seriously" two years after millions of made-in-China toys had to be recalled amid fears they were dangerous.

  • US Army soldiers bow their heads in prayer during ceremonies at the Fallen Soldier Memorial on November 10. Countless commanders in the US Army have prepared battalions for war since the terrorist attacks of September 11, but none of them had do it after losing soldiers in a shooting spree on a home base.(AFP/Paul J. Richards)
    Fort Hood soldiers prepare for battle with scars from rampage Mon Nov 23, 9:24 AM ET

    FORT HOOD, Texas (AFP) - Countless commanders in the US Army have prepared battalions for war since the terrorist attacks of September 11, but none of them had do it after losing soldiers in a shooting spree on a home base.

  • The Senate's health care reform bill sits on the podium following a news conference by Republican Senators on Capitol Hill on November 21, in Washington, DC. President Barack Obama's top domestic priority, remaking US health care, cleared a major Senate hurdle but strong opposition Sunday to key parts of the proposals augured a tough battle ahead.(AFP/Getty Images/File/Brendan Hoffman)
    Key senators seek changes on US health care bill Sun Nov 22, 5:30 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (AFP) - Key Democratic allies in the US health care battle warned Sunday that a Senate bill required major changes if it was to earn their support and give President Barack Obama a crucial victory on his top domestic priority.

  • Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, pictured on November 8, on Sunday started a high-profile state visit to the United States with a call on President Barack Obama to stay committed on Afghanistan and pressure Pakistan.(AFP/File/Raveendran)
    Indian PM presses Pakistan on US visit Sun Nov 22, 3:11 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (AFP) - Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Sunday started a high-profile state visit to the United States with a call on President Barack Obama to stay committed on Afghanistan and pressure Pakistan.

  • Department of Defense handout image shows Secretary of Defense Robert Gates (L) and Canadian Minister of National Defense Peter MacKay arriving for a press conference at the Citadel in Halifax, Nova Scotia. International political and military officials agreed no exit strategy should be set for troops in Afghanistan, while the United States urged Iran to engage the West.(AFP/DOD/File/Cherie Cullen)
    Afghanistan, Iran dominate at new security forum Sun Nov 22, 3:38 PM ET

    HALIFAX, Canada (AFP) - The United States on Sunday urged Iran to "engage" the West at a new security forum in Canada, where allied commanders also agreed setting an Afghanistan exit date would only serve to embolden the Taliban.

  • People walk through a pedestrian bridge while shopping at stores in a Brooklyn mall in October 2009 in New York City. Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has voiced confidence that the US economy will make a strong recovery and poured cold water on talk of dropping the dollar as the key global currency.(AFP/Getty Images/File/Spencer Platt)
    US economy will 'bounce back': Indian PM Sun Nov 22, 4:21 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (AFP) - Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has voiced confidence that the US economy will make a strong recovery and poured cold water on talk of dropping the dollar as the key global currency.

  • Patrick Kennedy, pictured in May 2009,a US lawmaker and the nephew of ex-president John F. Kennedy, has been barred from receiving communion at his Catholic church due to his support for abortion rights, a newspaper reported Sunday.(AFP/Getty Images/File/Brendan Hoffman)
    JFK's nephew barred from communion: report Sun Nov 22, 6:59 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (AFP) - The nephew of ex-president John F. Kennedy, a US lawmaker, has been barred from receiving communion at his Catholic church due to his support for abortion rights, a newspaper reported Sunday.

  • US President Barack Obama tours the Great Wall of China in Badaling, outside of Beijing on November 18. Two Chinese intellectuals who helped draft a bold petition for democracy appealed Sunday to US President Barack Obama to make human rights integral to his approach to Beijing, which they warned would not move on its own.(AFP/File/Saul Loeb)
    Chinese democracy leaders appeal to Obama Sun Nov 22, 3:52 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (AFP) - Two Chinese intellectuals who helped draft a bold petition for democracy appealed Sunday to US President Barack Obama to make human rights integral to his approach to Beijing, which they warned would not move on its own.

  • US President Barack Obama, seen here on November 19, back from a tour of Asia, called for the United States to produce more goods to sell across the Pacific, touting trade as a way to revive the troubled US economy.(AFP/File/Mandel Ngan)
    Obama touts Asia trade to create jobs Sat Nov 21, 12:05 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (AFP) - Back from an Asia tour, President Barack Obama called Saturday for the United States to produce more goods to sell across the Pacific, touting trade as a way to revive the troubled US economy.

  • US Marines of 2nd Battalion 2 Marines of 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade walk back to their base after a patrol with soldiers of Afghan National Army in Lakari in Helmand Province. Despite fierce public pressure to end the war in Afghanistan eight years on, politicians and experts on Saturday decried calls for setting an exit date they say would embolden the Taliban.(AFP/Manpreet Romana)
    Setting Afghan exit date defeatist: defense panel Sat Nov 21, 3:58 PM ET

    HALIFAX, Canada (AFP) - Despite fierce public pressure to end the war in Afghanistan eight years on, politicians and experts on Saturday decried calls for setting an exit date they say would embolden the Taliban.