McChrystal Says Insurgents Are Winning Communications Battle

The United States and its allies in Afghanistan must "wrest the information initiative" from the Taliban and other insurgent groups that have undermined the credibility of the Kabul government and its international backers, according to the top U.S. and NATO commander in the country.

Iran Pressured Over New Plant

At talks scheduled for Thursday in Geneva with Iran, the United States and five other major powers will demand immediate and unfettered access to the newly exposed nuclear facility in Iran, including access to people and documents involved in its construction, and they will insist that Tehran abide by international rules to reveal such projects before construction begins, Obama administration officials said Saturday.

U.S., Allies Say Iran Has Secret Nuclear Facility

President Obama's charge that Iran is constructing a secret nuclear fuel facility brought years of confrontation over the country's alleged nuclear weapons program to a new crisis point Friday, as he joined with the leaders of Britain and France to warn that international patience is waning fast.

White House Regroups on Guantanamo

With four months left to meet its self-imposed deadline for closing the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, the Obama administration is working to recover from missteps that have put officials behind schedule and left them struggling to win the cooperation of Congress.

Terrorism Suspect Planned Peroxide Bombs, Officials Say

Evidence of one of the most significant homegrown terrorism threats in nearly two decades unfolded Thursday as investigators described an advanced-stage plot to detonate explosives made with beauty-supply chemicals on U.S. soil.

Anti-U.S. Wave Imperiling Efforts in Pakistan, Officials Say

A new wave of anti-American sentiment in Pakistan has slowed the arrival of hundreds of U.S. civilian and military officials charged with implementing assistance programs, undermined cooperation in the fight against al-Qaeda and the Taliban, and put American lives at risk, according to officials from both countries.

Suspected U.S. Airstrike Kills 4 in Northwest Pakistan

MIR ALI, Pakistan, Sept. 24 -- A suspected U.S. missile strike killed four people in northwestern Pakistan late Thursday, intelligence officials said -- the latest in a spate of attacks close to the Afghan border that have squeezed al-Qaeda and the Taliban.

At United Nations, Obama Makes Appeal for World's Cooperation

UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 23 -- President Obama challenged other nations to match his efforts to change the United States' relationship with the rest of the world on Wednesday, saying in an address to the United Nations that the task of solving global crises "cannot be solely America's endeavor."

Britain's Brown Signals Willingness to Reduce Nuclear Deterrent

UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 23 -- British Prime Minister Gordon Brown signaled Wednesday at the U.N. General Assembly that he is prepared to scale back the country's Trident submarine nuclear deterrent as part of a "global bargain" to reduce the world's nuclear arsenal.

Federal Diary: Head of Suicide Prevention Program Gets Top Honor Among Those Recognized for Service

Faced with alarming numbers of suicides by veterans, the Department of Veterans Affairs turned several years ago to Janet Kemp, an experienced hand who had started her career as a VA nurse over two decades ago, earned a doctorate and became an expert on the subject of suicide prevention.

Gaddafi Praises Obama at U.N.

NEW YORK, Sept. 23 -- President Obama at the United Nations won praise from an unlikely and probably unwelcome source Wednesday: Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi, who was making his first appearance before the world body.

Obama Tightens State Secrets Standard

The Obama administration on Wednesday announced a new policy making it much more difficult for the government to claim that it is protecting state secrets when it hides details of sensitive national security strategies such as rendition and warrantless eavesdropping.

Obama to Set Higher Bar for Keeping State Secrets

The Obama administration will announce a new policy Wednesday making it much more difficult for the government to claim that it is protecting state secrets when it hides details of sensitive national security strategies such as rendition and warrantless eavesdropping, according to two senior Justice Department officials.

Rising U.S. Toll in Afghanistan Stirs Unease on Hill, Among Families

Concern is rising in Congress and among military families over a sharp increase in U.S. troop deaths in Afghanistan at a time when senior military officials acknowledge that American service members are facing greater risks under a new strategy that emphasizes protecting Afghan civilians.

Terror Probe Puts U.S. Mass Transit Systems on Alert

A 24-year-old Afghan man at the center of an unfolding FBI investigation into a possible U.S. terrorism cell was ordered held without bond in Colorado Monday as authorities raced to learn more about an alleged plot using hydrogen peroxide explosives and who else might have been helping to carry it out.