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Thunderstorms slow tornado cleanup

A band of thunderstorms battered the Oklahoma City area Thursday, slowing cleanup operations in the suburb where a tornado killed 24 people and destroyed thousands of homes this week.

Kids, teachers from devastated school reunite

Students from a suburban Oklahoma City elementary school destroyed by this week’s tornado reunited with their teachers Thursday and collected whatever could be salvaged from the ruins.

Bridge collapses in Washington

An Interstate 5 bridge over a river north of Seattle collapsed Thursday evening, dumping vehicles and people into the water, the Washington State Patrol said.

Boy Scouts approve plan to accept openly gay boys

The Boy Scouts of America threw open its ranks Thursday to gay Scouts but not gay Scout leaders — a fiercely contested compromise that some warned could fracture the organization and lead to mass defections of members and donors.

Jurors deadlock on Jodi Arias penalty; retrial set

The jury in Jodi Arias’ murder trial was dismissed Thursday after failing to reach a verdict against the woman they convicted of murdering her one-time boyfriend in a case that captured headlines worldwide with its sex, lies, and violence.

IRS replaces official in controversy

A day after she refused to answer questions at a congressional hearing, Lois Lerner was replaced Thursday as director of the Internal Revenue Service division that oversaw agents who targeted tea party groups.

Hobby Lobby seeks exemption on birth control coverage, up for federal appeal

In the most prominent challenge of its kind, Hobby Lobby Stores Inc. is asking a federal appeals court Thursday for an exemption from part of the federal health care law that requires it to offer employees health coverage that includes access to the morning-after pill.

Obama sees narrower terror threat

President Barack Obama sought Thursday to advance the U.S. beyond the unrelenting war effort of the past dozen years, defining a narrowing terror threat that still imperils the nation but now is defined by smaller networks and homegrown extremists rather than the grandiose plots of Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaida. He defended his controversial drone-strikes program as a linchpin of the U.S. response to the evolving dangers.

US, Israel raise hopes for Mideast peace restart

The United States and Israel raised hopes Thursday for a restart of the Middle East peace process, despite little tangible progress so far from U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry’s two-month-old effort to get Israelis and Palestinians back to the negotiating table.

Muslim hard-liners ID suspect in London attack

A man seen with bloody hands wielding a butcher knife after the killing of a British soldier on the streets of London was described as a convert to Islam who took part in demonstrations with a banned radical group, two Muslim hard-liners said Thursday.

NASA head views progress on asteroid lasso mission

Surrounded by engineers, NASA chief Charles Bolden inspected a prototype spacecraft engine that could power an audacious mission to lasso an asteroid and tow it closer to Earth for astronauts to explore.

Japanese climber, 80, becomes oldest atop Everest

An 80-year-old Japanese mountaineer became the oldest person to reach the top of Mount Everest on Thursday — although his record may last only a few days. An 81-year-old Nepalese man, who held the previous record, plans his own ascent next week.

Body of 2nd child found in deadly Minn. landslide

Authorities on Thursday recovered the body of a second child killed when a rockslide hit a group of fourth-graders in a St. Paul park a day earlier, and announced that the popular fossil-hunting area would be closed indefinitely.

Missing Iowa girl’s blood found

Investigators have discovered the blood of a missing 15-year-old Iowa girl on the truck of a registered sex offender suspected of kidnapping her Monday, diminishing the chances of finding her alive, a lead investigator said Thursday.

Storm protection for students spotty in tornado zones

‘Safe rooms’ for schools?

The federal government offers money to schools in some states if they decide to install reinforced safe rooms. But doing so can still be a daunting financial decision. That dollars-and-cents reality has resulted in a patchwork of protection in tornado-prone areas — sometimes with tragic results.

31.2M drivers to take Memorial Day road trip

It’s going to be another busy Memorial Day weekend on the nation’s highways.

Boy achieves family dream with geography bee win

Passion for geography runs deep in Sathwik Karnik’s family.

Faith healers charged with murder after 2nd death

A Philadelphia couple who believe in faith healing over medicine and who were on probation in their son’s pneumonia death were charged with murder Wednesday after a second young child died under what a prosecutor called “eerily similar” circumstances.

Man shot to death while questioned in Boston probe

A Chechen immigrant who was being questioned about his ties to one of the Boston Marathon bombing suspects was shot to death early Wednesday after he lunged at an FBI agent with a knife, officials said.

The pope and the devil: Is Francis an exorcist?

Pope Francis’ obsession with the devil took on remarkable new twists this week, with a well-known exorcist insisting Francis helped “liberate” a Mexican man possessed by four different demons despite the Vatican’s insistence that no such papal exorcism took place.