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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama was pinned down on Tuesday on whether he credits an increase in U.S. troop levels in Iraq -- known as the "surge" -- for helping stabilize the country.

BEIJING (Reuters) - China has finished evacuating the last town to be submerged by the giant Three Gorges Dam, making way for water levels in the reservoir to rise to their final height of 175 meters above sea level, state media said.

ABUJA (Reuters) - Scavenging through mounds of rubble in Nigeria's capital Abuja, Usman Landam plucks out the biggest mud blocks he can find, determined to rebuild his two-bedroom hut after government bulldozers knocked it down.

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - A Palestinian rammed a bulldozer into vehicles on a Jerusalem street on Tuesday before a visit by U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, who condemned the attack and pledged to push for a peace deal.

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday released details of a letter he received from Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah outlining his group's conditions for further prisoner deals with Israel.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Congress is discussing a second economic stimulus bill that could include nearly $15 billion in infrastructure spending, a senior member of the House of Representatives told Reuters on Tuesday.

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday released details of a letter he received from Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah outlining his group's conditions for further prisoner deals with Israel.

BALTIMORE (Reuters) - Would it be a good week to announce a vice presidential pick? John McCain won't say, but he doesn't mind if you keep asking.

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's lawyers said on Tuesday they had uncovered contradictions and discrepancies in the testimony of a key witness in a case that threatens to topple the Israeli leader.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The State Department said on Tuesday a U.S. diplomat will meet three Syrians on a private visit to Washington but made clear this did not signal warmer ties or greater U.S. interest in Israeli-Syrian peace talks.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President George W. Bush on Tuesday urged Congress to move forward on a free trade deal with Colombia, saying failure to approve it was hurting U.S. businesses at a time of economic uncertainty.

ROME (Reuters) - The Italian parliament approved a law on Tuesday giving Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi immunity from prosecution, a victory for the conservative billionaire who has long complained of being hounded by "biased" prosecutors.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A defense administrator and a former cargo pilot vowed on Tuesday to restore credibility to the U.S. Air Force after months of scandal over nuclear security and doubts about the embattled service's wartime priorities.

GUANTANAMO BAY U.S. NAVAL BASE, Cuba (Reuters) - Salim Hamdan was Osama bin Laden's personal protector as well as his driver and joined an al Qaeda conspiracy to wage war on the United States, a prosecutor said on Tuesday at the first U.S. war crimes trial since World War Two.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A top U.S. Air Force officer warned on Tuesday that Russia would be crossing "a red line" if it were to use Cuba as a refueling base for nuclear-capable bombers.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Senate on Tuesday voted overwhelmingly to open debate on a bill to rein in energy market speculation blamed for high oil and gasoline prices.

KHARTOUM (Reuters) - Darfur rebels accused the African Union of bias on Tuesday after it said it would urge the U.N. Security Council to suspend any warrant to arrest Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir for war crimes.

SANTIAGO (Reuters) - A Chilean woman beat her daughter to death after she refused to do her homework, police said on Tuesday.

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived in Singapore on Tuesday for six-party talks over North Korea's weapons program that China said would push forward the process of denuclearization.

AMMAN (Reuters) - U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama pledged on Tuesday to work to reach a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians from his first day in office but said it would be difficult.