GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip – Gaza militants bombarded southern Israel with 20 mortar rounds in the space of an hour midday Tuesday, provoking Israeli ground strikes that killed three militants from the territory’s ruling Hamas group. The violence flared in northeast Gaza just as Israel’s top leadership was debating whether …

WOBURN, Mass. – A British man accused of fatally shooting his wife and baby daughter asked if they could be buried together because “that’s the way I left them,” his father-in-law testified Monday. Neil Entwistle is charged in the January 2006 killings of his wife, Rachel, 27, and their daughter, …

VIENNA, Austria – The chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency says Syria has agreed to let inspectors into the country this month to probe allegations of illegal nuclear activity. IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei said Monday his experts will visit Syria between June 22 and 24. The inspectors plan to …

MEYRIN, Switzerland – The most powerful atom-smasher ever built could make some bizarre discoveries, such as invisible matter or extra dimensions in space, after it is switched on in August. But some critics fear the Large Hadron Collider could exceed physicists’ wildest conjectures: Will it spawn a black hole that …

Up to 10 encounters a day with possible terror suspects go unreported by state and local authorities, a senior FBI official said. Leonard Boyle, director of the bureau’s Terrorist Screening Center, told USA Today that failure to report brushes with people on the government’s terrorist watch list represents missed opportunities …

VIENNA, Austria – Big-game flops no more, Spain won the European Championship 1-0 over Germany on Sunday for its first major title in 44 years. Fernando Torres scored in the 33rd minute and the Spaniards never backed down against such a formidable opponent. Their last significant title came in the …

WASHINGTON – A former Army scientist who was named as a person of interest in the 2001 anthrax attacks will receive $5.8 million to settle his lawsuit against the Justice Department. Steven Hatfill claimed the Justice Department violated his privacy rights by speaking with reporters about the case. Settlement documents …

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – A woman whose American-born daughter was deported to Mexico with the father is suing the federal government for $5 million. Texas native Monica Castro accuses the U.S. Border Patrol of refusing to release her daughter to her when the girl’s father was arrested in December 2003. …

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Milder-than-expected weather on Saturday gave fire crews hope that they could rein in a series of Northern California wildfires that have destroyed dozens of homes and forced thousands of residents to evacuate. • Click here to view photos. Thousands of people stayed away from their homes in …

A shooting occurred near the food court at a shopping mall in Lakeland, Fla., according to WTVT FOX 13. Witnesses told FOX 13 that a man who appeared to be in his late teens or early 20s was at one of the Lakeland Square Mall entrances when he was shot. …