BEAVERTON, Ore. -- More superdelegates say they are are backing Sen. Barack Obama in the wake of his strong showing in this week's U.S. Democratic presidential primaries. As Obama campaigned in Oregon Friday, he picked up nine more superdelegate endorsements, including one former supporter of Democratic rival Sen. Hillary Clinton. By various counts, it either gave Obama his first lead in the crucial superdelegate count or enabled to pull even with her.Rep. Donald Payne (D-N.J.), ... [full story]

REDMOND, Ore. – A 34-year old La Pine man was flown by air ambulance to the hospital Saturday afternoon with reportedly “severe” injuries following a two-vehicle crash in northwest Redmond, deputies reported. According to a news release prepared by Deschutes County Sheriff’s Sgt. Gary Cima, deputies and Redmond Fire personnel and paramedics responded to the intersection of Northwest Way and NW Coyner just before 6 p.m., May 10. While he stated that “both vehicles were ... [full story]

NEWBERG-DUNDEE, Ore. – Police believe speed and alcohol may have contributed to a three-vehicle crash Sunday afternoon which took the life of one woman and seriously injured three men. According to Oregon State Police (OSP) Sgt. Brad Hessel, 51-year old Carma Colleen Smith, of Dayton, was pronounced dead at the scene.   Police believe speed and alcohol may have contributed to a 3-vehicle crash on Highway 99W Sunday afternoon which resulted in the death of one ... [full story]

JERUSALEM -- Israeli and Egyptian officials Monday had talks aimed at producing a cease-fire between the Jewish state and Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip.Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak met for 40 minutes in Tel Aviv with Egypt's chief intelligence officer who presented Cairo's proposal, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported.Barak told Egypt's Omar Suleiman that the release of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, captured in June 2006, must be included in the truce.He also said Israel ... [full story]

WASHINGTON -- The number of terrorism and national security cases initiated by the U.S. Justice Department has declined by more than 50 percent, a recent study shows.The non-profit Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University says data it obtained from the government reveal a drop of 19 percent last year and more than 50 percent since 2002, the Los Angeles Times reported Monday. The decline comes at the same time as the number of Americans ... [full story]

BEIJING -- Local Chinese officials said up to 5,000 people died and another 10,000 were injured Monday in a powerful earthquake in the southwestern part of the country."This is a very dangerous earthquake," Bruce Presgrave, a geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey, told CNN.Provincial disaster relief officials said local officials were the sole source of the death toll estimates, and put the figure at between 3,000 and 5,000 in Beichuan County in Sichuan province, Xinhua, ... [full story]

VIENNA -- At least 40 countries expressed interest in starting nuclear power programs, prompting experts to voice concern about possible nuclear weapons proliferation.U.S. and international officials said about half of the countries indicated they planned to enrich or reprocess nuclear fuel, leading to possible expansion of the worldwide supply of plutonium and enriched uranium, The Washington Post reported Monday.Rising fuel cost is driving some of the decisions, experts said. But in oil-rich Middle East, interest ... [full story]

EDMONTON, Alberta -- An off-duty Canadian police officer in Edmonton, Alberta, faces multiple charges, including drunken driving, after a fiery weekend car crash.City police said a BMW with four people inside hit a Ford F-150 pickup truck broadside at an intersection with enough force to roll the truck, the Edmonton Sun reported Monday.There were also four people in the truck in the 2:15 a.m. Sunday crash, three of whom escaped when it caught fire. The ... [full story]

WASHINGTON -- The most recent federal statistics show that in 10 years preschool enrollment in the United States increased 63 percent to more than 1 million children.The increase, which took place between 1995 and 2005, far outpaced the 10 percent hike in regular public school enrollment, USA Today reported Monday.Education experts attribute the rise to more mothers in the workforce as well as states stepping up to finance preschool programs.A new study released by the ... [full story]

YANGON, Myanmar -- The first U.S. military plane carrying relief supplies to cyclone-devastated Myanmar arrived in the Asian country Monday, officials said.The plane was loaded with 28,000 pounds of supplies including water, mosquito netting and blankets."One flight is much better than no flights," White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said. "And we're going to keep on working to provide as much assistance as possible."U.S. disaster teams, however, still haven't been issued visas, Johndroe said.International relief agencies ... [full story]