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BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq's constitution requires that a new parliament be seated by next Tuesday, and Secretary of State John Kerry calls it "a critical moment" for the country's future. Kerry held meetings today in Baghdad with Iraqi leaders, including Shiite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and the parliament speaker, who is a Sunni. Kerry says its essential the Iraq's leaders meet their commitment to seat a new government and unite to halt the Sunni insurgency that's enflaming sectarian tensions in the country.
BEIRUT (AP) — Syria is accusing Israel of backing rebels fighting to topple President Bashar Assad. Syria's Foreign Ministry says a series of Israeli airstrikes killed four people and wounded nine others, while causing extensive damage to army positions and equipment. It calls the attack a "flagrant violation" of its sovereignty. Israel says it carried out the strikes in response to a cross-border attack in which a teenager was killed.
NEW YORK (AP) — A federal appeals court has released a previously secret memo that provides legal justification for using drones to kill Americans suspected of terrorism overseas. Portions of the memo have been blacked out, but it concludes that the killing of an al-Qaida leader who had been born in the United States had legal justification. It says the authority to use lethal force abroad may apply to a U.S. citizen who is part of the forces of an enemy organization.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A top federal investigator says the Department of Veterans Affairs is risking patients' health by not fully addressing whistleblower complaints about the quality of care. In a letter to President Barack Obama, Carolyn Lerner of the U.S. Office of Special Counsel says the VA consistently acknowledges problems but has done nothing to improve patient care. Acting VA Secretary Sloan Gibson says he's "deeply disappointed" in his agency's failure to take the complaints seriously and is launching an agency review.
RABAT, Morocco (AP) — Doctors Without Borders is sounding the alarm over the outbreak of the Ebola disease in West Africa. The World Health Organization says 567 cases have been reported in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone with 350 deaths, making it the most deadly Ebola outbreak ever. Most of the deaths have been in Guinea, but the growth of new cases appears to be higher in Sierra Leone. The virus has no cure and causes internal bleeding and organ failure.
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