The Israeli and Palestinian leaders were to open direct peace talks on Thursday after gathering at the White House for a moment of diplomatic theater on Wednesday night.
AP - Hurricane Earl blew toward the Eastern Seaboard on Thursday as a major storm with winds of around 145 mph as forecasters tried to pinpoint exactly how close the strongest gales and heaviest surge would get to North Carolina's fragile chain of barrier islands.
AP - The number of people requesting unemployment benefits declined for the second straight week, suggesting that the slowing economy isn't prompting widespread job cuts.
AP - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates arrived in Afghanistan's capital Thursday for meetings with President Hamid Karzai and top NATO commander Gen. David Petraeus.