AP - All that was left of some houses Friday were chimneys, rising from still smoldering ruins. Burned-out cars sat along ash-covered streets. And a rescue worker with a dog searched door to door for missing people.

AP - Facing big Democratic losses in November, President Barack Obama blamed Republicans and election-year politics Friday for thwarting his efforts to do more to spur a listless national economy. He challenged Congress to quit squabbling and quickly approve "what we all agree on" — a reprieve for expiring tax cuts for the middle class.

AP - For almost a decade, the anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks was marked by somber reflection and a call to unity, devoid of politics. Not this time.

AP - Iran on Friday postponed the planned release of an American woman jailed along with two friends for more than a year, state media reported, dealing a blow to the hopes of three U.S. mothers who have pleaded for the trio's release.

AP - The son of a pastor who suspended plans to burn copies of the Quran to mark the 9/11 anniversary says Islam's holiest text will not be torched at their Florida church Saturday.

AP - Chile is sparing no expense to rescue its 33 trapped miners, mounting three separate drilling efforts to carve escape tunnels through nearly a half-mile of solid rock and collapsed mine shafts. The latest — an oil-well drill so big it takes 40 trucks to carry it — began arriving Friday.

AP - Boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. was jailed briefly Friday on a felony charge after his ex-girlfriend alleged he beat her and stole her cell phone during an argument in front of their three children.

AP - Stocks edged higher Friday, extending a rally that began nearly two weeks ago, as investors hold on to their newfound optimism about the economy.

AP - Kim Clijsters is one win from her second straight U.S. Open title after beating Venus Williams in three sets for her 20th straight victory at Flushing Meadows.

Reuters - President Barack Obama on Friday appealed to Americans to respect the "inalienable" right of religious freedom and expressed hope a Florida Christian preacher would abandon a plan to burn the Koran that could deeply hurt the United States abroad.

Reuters - President Barack Obama accused Republicans on Friday of holding the middle class hostage and defended his efforts to stimulate the sluggish economy as he tries to reverse grim election prospects for his fellow Democrats in November.

Reuters - Eighty-five prisoners escaped from a jail near the U.S. border on Friday, authorities and media said, the latest prison break underscoring the challenges Mexico faces as it battles powerful drug cartels.

Reuters - Iran has canceled the planned release on Saturday of a detained American woman because the legal process has not been completed, Tehran's prosecutor said on Friday.

Reuters - Twelve U.S. soldiers have been charged with gruesome crimes in Afghanistan ranging from murdering civilians to keeping body parts as war trophies -- revelations that the Pentagon said on Thursday damaged America's image around the world.

AFP - An impassioned President Barack Obama Friday warned Americans must not turn on one another over religion, after rows over Islam sparked global fury, nine years after the September 11 attacks.

AFP - A Florida pastor at the center of a global firestorm insisted Friday he would not proceed with a planned Koran burning ceremony, but failed to stem a tide of Muslim outrage.