WASHINGTON

Detainee’s organization to be named terrorist group

U.S. officials suspect a former Guantanamo Bay detainee played a role in the attack on the American compound in Benghazi, Libya, and are planning to designate the group he leads as a foreign terrorism organization, according to officials with the plans.

Militiamen under the command of Abu Sufian bin Qumu, the leader of Ansar al-Sharia in the Libyan city of Darnah, participated in the attack that killed U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and three other Americans, U.S. officials said.

Witnesses have told American officials that Qumu’s men were in Benghazi before the attack took place on Sept. 11, 2011, according to the officials.

War on Poverty helped, but more needs to be done

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The White House says that although progress has been made in reducing poverty, government can still play a positive role in reducing hardship and increasing economic opportunity.

President Obama’s Council of Economic Advisers is marking the 50th anniversary of the nation’s “War on Poverty” by releasing a progress report covering the past five decades. President Lyndon B. Johnson launched the effort in 1964.

The White House says poverty has dropped from nearly 26 percent in 1967 to 16 percent in 2012.

But the report says there’s more to be done and that government has a role. It says government programs to help those in poverty have largely been responsible for the progress.

The anniversary comes as Obama is proposing steps to reduce income inequality, including a minimum wage hike.

SACRAMENTO, Calif.

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Catholic bishops call for prayers to end drought

Catholic bishops called for divine intervention Tuesday as California endures what appears to be its third straight dry winter.

The California Conference of Catholic Bishops asked people of all faiths to join in prayers for rain as reservoirs in the state dipped to historic lows after one of the driest calendar years on record.

Some cities already are restricting water use, while prospects for another dry summer have raised alarm about agriculture and wildfires.

The first Sierra Nevada snow survey of the winter last week found the water content in the statewide snowpack to be just 20 percent of average for this time of year. Without relief, state water managers said they will be able to deliver just 5 percent of the water sought by agencies that supply more than 25 million Californians and nearly a million acres of irrigated farmland.

 


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