Firefighters tried to hold back a massive wildfire from consuming thousands of homes and an essential communications center in Los Angeles County as they mourned two of their own who were killed when their vehicle was overrun by fast-moving flames and rolled down a mountain side. Read more

A California girl abducted at age 11 in 1991 has been found alive, police said on Thursday, adding her kidnapper apparently fathered two children with her and kept all three living in tents and sheds behind his house. Read more

Sen. Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts, the last surviving brother in a political dynasty and one of the most influential senators in history, died Tuesday night at his home on Cape Cod after a year-long struggle with brain cancer. He was 77. Read more

Switzerland is selling its nine-per cent stake in UBS, the federal government said on Wednesday, soon after the bank reached a deal with Washington over its tax fraud investigation. Read more

The United States on Tuesday looked for ways to bolster combat troops in Afghanistan as President Barack Obama warned the war would not be "quick" and violence threatened this week's election. Read more

Tropical Storm Claudette has made landfall on the Florida Panhandle near Fort Walton Beach.

The tropical storm's arrival early Monday makes it the first to hit the U.S. mainland this year. Read more