Balanced News Blog

A slick of river-borne toxins from a chemical plant explosion flowed into a major Chinese city Thursday as the government dug wells after shutting down its water system to protect millions of residents from the pollution.

Former Chilean dictator Gen. Augusto Pinochet was indicted and put under house arrest Wednesday on charges of tax evasion and corruption related to his multimillion-dollar overseas accounts, state television reported.

A volcano erupted Thursday in southwestern Colombia, spewing smoke and ash, and raising fears for the safety of nearby villagers, officials said.

China on Thursday announced the spread of bird flu to a far western region, while Indonesia reported its first outbreak of the virus in the tsunami-ravaged Aceh province where hundreds of chickens have died from the disease.

The Iraqi army said it had seized a number of booby-trapped children’s dolls, accusing insurgents of using the explosive-filled toys to target children.

Acting Gov. Richard J. Codey announced Wednesday that he is not interested in switching jobs with Governor-elect Jon Corzine and serving the remainder of the U.S. senator’s term. It is up to Corzine, a Democrat elected two weeks ago, to appoint someone to fill his Senate seat until next November’s elections.

New Orleans city officials on Wednesday announced a scaled-down plan for next year’s Mardi Gras celebration that will be four days shorter than usual.

A commuter train crashed into five vehicles at a rail crossing near Chicago on Wednesday, triggering a chain reaction collision that injured 16 people.