PHOENIX -- Presumptive GOP presidential nominee U.S. Sen. John McCain of Arizona has a strained relationship with African-American constituents, black leaders say.Oscar Tillman with the Phoenix branch of the NAACP said McCain "has pretty well zero relationship" and state Rep. Cloves Campbell Jr., D-Phoenix, said McCain has "no relationship" with the black community in Arizona, The Politico said Tuesday.McCain faced scrutiny for his relationship with the black community and later apologized for opposing a holiday ... [full story]

CAIRO -- The Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt said it called for a boycott of municipal elections amid protests and a government crackdown on candidates.The ruling National Democratic Party of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak runs unopposed for many of the 52,000 seats.The Muslim Brotherhood had thousands of candidates rejected by the national government placing only 20 candidates on the ballot, the BBC said Tuesday.A crackdown on opposition groups left many potential candidates behind bars prompting protesters ... [full story]

RALPH, Saskatchewan -- Clean-up began of a three-train derailment in southeastern Saskatchewan Tuesday after firefighters let a blaze burn itself out.Black smoke was visible for miles after the Monday morning accident involving three CP Rail trains outside the town of Ralph, the Regina Leader-Post reported Tuesday.There were no serious injuries, but several crew members were taken to a hospital for observation, Weyburn Fire Department Chief Denis Pilon told reporters.As many as 14 cars toppled off ... [full story]

COLUMBIA, Md. -- The Maryland chemical conglomerate W.R. Grace and Co. said it agreed to settle all of its remaining asbestos cases with a $1.8 billion offer.Monday's settlement awards cash, ongoing contributions to a victims' trust fund and a deal to offer claimants the right to buy its stock at a discounted price, The Washington Post said Tuesday.Asbestos is a fire resistant material known to cause cancer."We wanted to do what we do best and ... [full story]

WASHINGTON -- Both sides are predicting victory when the debate over death sentences for crime other than murder reaches the U.S. Supreme Court next week.The high court will hear arguments next Wednesday on a Louisiana man's appeal of his death sentence in the rape of his 8-year-old stepdaughter.Lawyers for Patrick Kennedy told USA Today Tuesday no one in the United States has been sent to death row for rape since the 1970s, and therefore their ... [full story]

WASHINGTON -- The Federal Aviation Administration says it reassigned a regional manager in the wake of charges of ignored violations and cover-ups in the U.S. agency.An FAA spokeswoman said the agency Monday gave new, unspecified duties to Thomas Stuckey, an FAA regional chief of inspectors, after testimony before Congress focused on violations and other problems at Southwest Airlines, USA Today reported Tuesday."He's in an administrative position that does not have safety oversight responsibilities," spokeswoman Laura ... [full story]

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Florida authorities say they arrested a group of teenagers who had planned to post a video of a beating on YouTube.A gang of six girls allegedly pummeled another teenager while one of them recorded the incident on a video camera, apparently with plans to place it on YouTube for all to see.The family of the victim told WFTV-TV, Orlando, the ambush was part of an alleged scheme to humiliate their daughter and ... [full story]

BELFAST, Ireland -- A lawsuit against the alleged conspirators of the deadly 1998 Omagh bombing in Northern Ireland seeks a record level of damages, observers say.The high court in Belfast Monday opened the landmark $2.8 million civil case against five men the plaintiffs accuse of conspiring to commit the bombing that killed 29 people and injured more than 200.The only man charged in the case, Sean Hoey, was acquitted of all charges by a Belfast ... [full story]

JERUSALEM -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert held intense negotiations to push for a peace settlement, officials said.Abbas and Olmert announced a fast-track process to settle outstanding issues in the peace process by the end of 2008, Haaretz reported Tuesday.Saeb Erekat, the chief negotiator for the Palestinians, said the two parties spoke mostly on the construction of Jewish settlements in the West Bank.The negotiation of the latest peace settlement unveiled ... [full story]

HARARE, Zimbabwe -- Police said they arrested five Zimbabwean election officials for allegedly under-counting votes cast for President Robert Mugabe in last month's election.The officials, accused of taking nearly 5,000 votes away from Mugabe, were charged with fraud and criminal abuse of duty, the BBC reported.Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has joined international calls for an urgent release of the results. High Court Judge Tendai Uchena Monday dismissed the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission's argument that the ... [full story]