WASHINGTON -- The former head of the compensation fund for responders to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attack in New York urged the federal government to reopen it. Ken Feinberg told a House subcommittee Tuesday some 11,000 people have been forced to go to court to seek assistance for health problems that developed in the years since they worked at Ground Zero. "The only reason they're litigating is because the Sept. 11 fund compensated their brethren, but ... [full story]

WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Department of Homeland Security says it is spending $20 million to determine if more cameras along the U.S.-Canadian border will enhance security. The United States currently has only 20 cameras along its northern border, but under a new program, DHS will position 44 more surveillance devices near Detroit and Buffalo, N.Y., USA Today reported Wednesday. Mark Borkowski, head of the department's Secure Border Initiative, said the move will determine if an extensive camera ... [full story]

THE HAGUE, Netherlands -- Afghan President Hamid Karzai is being pressured to rescind a new law the U.N. says legalizes spousal rape and severely limits women's rights, ministers said. Scandinavian foreign ministers attending a conference on Afghanistan at The Hague, Netherlands, Tuesday challenged Afghan leaders to respond to a published report on the new law, while U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton talked privately with Karzai on the issue, The Guardian reported Wednesday. During a news conference ... [full story]

YICHANG, China -- Rescuers searched for victims Wednesday following an explosion and landslide that killed seven workers at a quarry in central China's Hubei Province. The accident occurred Tuesday evening when the workers were setting off explosives at the Diaoxiyan Quarry, a local government spokesman told China's Xinhua news agency. The news agency reported at least 50 rescue workers searched throughout the night for three of the victims still missing and feared dead in the landslide. "Rescuers ... [full story]

TOKYO -- A Japanese marine science museum is selling clown fish for $25.28 to stop people from capturing the species popularized by the animated movie "Finding Nemo." The museum at Tokai University has bred 11 of the 28 kinds of clown anemone fish that originally came from the coral reefs of Australia, Japan's Kyodo news agency reported Wednesday. The university hopes people who want the fish for their aquariums will buy them from the science museum rather ... [full story]

WASHINGTON -- U.S. stimulus funds approved as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act appear to be hitting their mark in the early going, a survey indicates. A survey performed by USA Today showed most of the early spending from the $787 billion bill has, as promised by U.S. President Barack Obama, gone to "shovel-ready" projects, creating jobs which otherwise wouldn't have happened this year, the newspaper reported Wednesday. The investigation indicated that hiring on those ... [full story]

PORT HURON, Mich. -- Federal agents in eastern Michigan announced Wednesday they had begun rounding up members of the Devil's Disciples Motorcycle Club. FBI agents were serving arrest warrants in the Port Huron and Clinton Township areas in the latest in a series of operations against Detroit-area biker gangs. The Detroit News said as many as 22 suspects were expected to be picked up Wednesday. The pending charges were not immediately known. The newspaper said the FBI was ... [full story]

LONDON -- U.S. President Obama and Chinese President Hu Jintao agreed Wednesday to enhance U.S.-China relations and strengthen economic and financial cooperation. Obama accepted Hu's invitation to visit China this year during a meeting of the two world leaders in London, a day before the Group of 20 financial summit begins. "The two sides agreed to work together to build a positive, cooperative and comprehensive U.S.-China relationship for the 21st century and to maintain and strengthen exchanges ... [full story]

BOSTON -- Lawyers declined to discuss their strategy Wednesday as they headed for a Boston federal court hearing on the planned deportation of President Obama's aunt. Attorneys representing Zeituni Onyango met behind closed doors with U.S. Immigration Judge Leonard Shapiro to discuss the case, which the Boston Globe says is being closely watched as a test of the new president's commitment to immigration laws. Onyango is the half-sister of Obama's late Kenyan father. She lost a bid ... [full story]

WARSAW, Poland -- A twin-turboprop plane crashed in northern Poland killing all four Polish naval officers aboard, a navy spokesman said Wednesday. The Bryza aircraft was on a training flight Tuesday afternoon when it crashed while making a landing approach at the Babie Doly military airport near Gdynia, 180 miles north of Warsaw, Polish Radio reported. Polish Defense Minister Bogdan Klich ordered a special commission to investigate the cause of the crash. All similar planes have been ... [full story]