Iran

Obama gains more ground in Texas conventions - As the smoke cleared from this weekend's regional Democratic conventions, Barack Obama emerged with a majority of the state's at-large presidential nominating delegates and possibly a majority of all Texas delegates.

Justices Let Stand Ruling on Illegal F.B.I. Search - The Supreme Court on Monday let stand a lower court ruling that the F.B.I. went too far in searching the office of Representative William J. Jefferson, a Louisiana Democrat accused of using his position to promote business deals in Africa.

Sources: Iran helped prod al-Sadr cease-fire - Iran was integral in persuading Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr to halt attacks by his militia on Iraqi security forces, an Iraqi lawmaker said Monday. Haidar al-Abadi, who is with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's Dawa Party, said Iraqi Shiite lawmakers traveled Friday to Iran to meet with al-Sadr. They returned Sunday, the day al-Sadr told his Mehdi Army fighters to stand down.

US plans finance system overhaul - The US Treasury has revealed its blueprint for the biggest overhaul of regulation of the financial sector since the 1930s. Critics have said that the credit crunch and resultant market turmoil made a strong case for change. But Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson rejected claims that existing regulations have led to the turmoil. And he said the plan should not be implemented until current difficulties roiling financial markets are resolved.

Cubans can now stay in hotels for foreigners - New President Raúl Castro's government has lifted a ban on Cubans staying at hotels previously reserved for foreigners, ending another restriction that had been especially irksome to ordinary citizens. Some hotels scheduled meetings with all staff members to discuss the changes, and officials said new rules also will allow Cubans to rent cars at state-run agencies for the first time.

Obama wins Mississippi primary - Barack Obama will win the Mississippi Democratic primary. The state has 33 Democratic delegates up for grabs. Meanwhile, CNN estimates show that Obama won last week's Texas Democratic caucuses and will get more delegates out of the state than rival Hillary Clinton, who won the state's primary.

Dow soars 417 on Fed move - Stocks rallied Tuesday on news that the Federal Reserve, in coordination with central banks worldwide, will lend up to $200 billion to banks in an effort to loosen up tight credit markets. The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) jumped almost 417 points, its fourth-biggest one-day point gain ever and the biggest one-day point gain since July 2002.

Gasoline: Painful, and getting worse - So gasoline prices are at an all-time high. But after adjusting for inflation, rising incomes and better fuel efficiency, how bad are they really? The experts' answer: Bad. Nearly as bad as they've ever been, and not likely to get better anytime soon. Americans are spending about 6% of their total disposable income on energy, down from about 8% in 1982. In 2002, when many people may have bought a vehicle they are still driving today, Americans spent just 4% of their income on energy.

Iraq Attacks Lower, but Steady, New Figures Show - Newly declassified statistics on the frequency of insurgent attacks in Iraq suggest that after major security gains last fall in the wake of an American troop increase, the conflict has drifted into a stalemate, with levels of violence remaining stubbornly constant from November 2007 through early 2008.

Gay Iranian man loses asylum plea - Mehdi Kazemi has said his life is in danger if he is returned to Iran, where he says his boyfriend named him as a partner before being executed. Homosexual acts are illegal in the Islamic republic. Kazemi, 19, said he had travelled to Britain in 2005 to study English, and learned that his lover in Iran had been executed for sodomy.