AP - A wildfire that had burned more than 2,000 acres and forced more than 1,000 people from their homes north of Los Angeles was only smoldering early Monday, but worries were rampant as several hours of severe winds were expected to hit the region later in the day.

AP - Five years ago, retired Air Force intelligence officer Kirk von Ackermann became the first of 39 Americans to be kidnapped in Iraq. He's still missing, his wife fearing she'll never see him again.

AP - The British government said Monday it would provide up to $63 billion to boost the balance sheets of three of Britain's largest banks but demanded in return the departure of some of the country's top bankers.

AP - Most Asian stock markets recovered Monday after last week's historic sell-off as governments in Europe and beyond intensified efforts to stabilize the world's troubled financial system.

AP - With the world's financial markets on a stomach-churning ride, the Bush administration is scrambling to get a $700 billion rescue effort for the U.S. banking system up and running, as Europe's central banks began Monday to take unified actions aimed at easing the credit crisis.

AFP - South Korea said Sunday that a US decision to take North Korea off its terrorism blacklist put the communist state's nuclear disarmament back on track, but a Japanese minister called the move "extremely regrettable."

AFP - World powers vowed to keep a united front to solve the financial crisis as the IMF warned that the global system was on the brink of meltdown ahead of new European crisis talks in Paris on Sunday.

Reuters - Australia and New Zealand gave a blanket guarantee to all bank deposits Sunday in a move likely to raise pressure on other economies to do the same, amid a crisis of confidence in the global financial system.

Reuters - Afghan and NATO-led forces killed 65 Taliban militants preparing to attack the provincial capital of the southern province of Helmand, the provincial governor's spokesman Daud Ahmadi said on Sunday.

Reuters - Major British banks are likely to announce their plans to recapitalize early on Monday, a person familiar with the matter said, a move which could see the government take multi-billion pound stakes in several lenders.

Reuters - North Korea said on Sunday it would resume taking apart its plutonium-producing nuclear plant and allow in inspectors in response to a U.S. decision to remove it from a terrorism blacklist and salvage a faltering nuclear deal.

Reuters - Chrysler LLC has had talks with General Motors Corp about a deal to combine the No. 1 and No. 3 American automakers at a time when both are struggling to cut costs and shore up cash, according to three people familiar with the matter.

Reuters - Democrat Barack Obama has opened a 6-point lead over Republican rival John McCain in the U.S. presidential race, according to a Reuters/C-SPAN/Zogby poll released on Sunday.

Reuters - Rich nations rushed to shore up the global financial system after the International Monetary Fund warned of meltdown, with Australia and New Zealand guaranteeing bank deposits and newspapers reporting plans for Britain's biggest retail bank rescue.

Reuters - Finance leaders from the International Monetary Fund's 185 member countries on Saturday endorsed a plan by major economies to chart a course out of the credit crisis, hoping the broader support will calm markets.