KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AP) — Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and British Foreign Secretary David Miliband flew to the former Taliban stronghold of Kandahar in southern Afghanistan on Thursday for a firsthand look at the front lines of the NATO-led fight against Afghan insurgents….

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and British Foreign Secretary David Miliband arrived in Afghanistan on an unannounced visit Thursday, carrying a joint message of support and prodding to Afghan officials as the U.S. continued a drive to recruit more NATO troops….

WASHINGTON (AP) — The lead prosecutor in the terror case against Zacarias Moussaoui may have known the CIA destroyed tapes of its interrogations of an al-Qaida suspect more than a year before the government acknowledged it to the court, newly unsealed documents indicate….

LAFAYETTE, Tenn. (AP) — One man pulled a couch over his head. Bank employees rushed into the vault. A woman trembled in her bathroom, clinging to her dogs. College students huddled in dormitories….

PHOENIX (AP) — The Phoenix Suns acquired Shaquille O’Neal in a stunning, blockbuster deal that sent four-time All-Star Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks to the Miami Heat. The improbable pairing of the speedy Suns and the slow but once-mighty O’Neal became official when he cleared a physical exam Wednesday….

GUANTANAMO BAY NAVAL BASE, Cuba (AP) — Somewhere amid the cactus-studded hills on this sprawling Navy base, separate from the cells where hundreds of men suspected of links to al-Qaida and the Taliban have been locked up for years, is a place even more closely guarded - a jailhouse so protected that its very location is top secret….

WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House on Wednesday defended the use of the interrogation technique known as waterboarding, saying it is legal - not torture as critics argue - and has saved American lives. President Bush could authorize waterboarding for future terrorism suspects if certain criteria are met, a spokesman said….

WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. John McCain padded his lead in the race for Republican national convention delegates Wednesday, claiming far more than his three remaining rivals combined as he prodded conservative critics to cut him some slack….

CHICAGO (AP) — Sen. Barack Obama predicted Wednesday that Republicans will have a dump truck full of dirt to unload on Hillary Rodham Clinton if the former first lady wins the Democratic presidential nomination, and said he offers the party its best hope of winning the White House this fall….

NEW YORK (AP) — Heath Ledger died of an accidental overdose of painkillers, sleeping pills, anti-anxiety medication and other prescription drugs, the New York City medical examiner said Wednesday….