CONCORD, New Hampshire (AP) — Mitt Romney jumped ahead in early returns from the New Hampshire Republican primary Tuesday night, as he looked to cement his position as the party’s choice to run against President Barack Obama in November. Returns from 4 percent of the precincts showed Romney, former governor of the neighboring state of Massachusetts, with 37 percent of the vote. Congressman Ron Paul was second with 24 percent and former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman had 15 percent. Former... Read more

CONCORD, New Hampshire (AP) — Mitt Romney was expected to win New Hampshire’s Republican presidential primary Tuesday, with the main uncertainties being how big the victory would be and which of his rivals would come in second. A big win for Romney would add to the impression that he is all-but-certain to become the Republican challenger to President Barack Obama in the November election. It would also give Romney, former governor of the neighboring state of Massachusetts, momentum going into... Read more

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A proposed constitutional amendment that would ban Oklahoma courts from considering international or Islamic law discriminates against religions, and a Muslim community leader has the right to challenge its constitutionality, a federal appeals court said Tuesday. The court in Denver upheld U.S. District Judge Vicki Miles-LaGrange’s order blocking implementation of the amendment shortly after it was approved by 70 percent of Oklahoma voters in November 2010. Muneer Awad, the executive director of the Council on American-Islamic... Read more

OFFICIAL RESIGNS: Italian Premier Mario Monti’s new government suffered its first ethics casualty Tuesday with the resignation of a top official who allegedly received complimentary vacations at an exclusive Tuscan resort. DENIAL OF WRONGDOING: Carlo Malinconico, Monti’s undersecretary, quit Tuesday although he insisted he did nothing wrong. THE VACATIONS: Italian media have reported that a businessman under investigation for alleged corruption in a public contracts case paid at least part of the €19,876 (over $25,000) bill for Malinconico’s summer weekend... Read more

LOUISVILLE, Kentucky (AP) — Long before he became the world’s most recognizable athlete, a young Cassius Clay honed his skills by sparring with neighborhood friends and running alongside the bus on the way to school in his hometown of Louisville. The man known worldwide as Muhammad Ali was a babysitter, a jokester and a dreamer in the predominantly black West End neighborhood where he grew up and forged lasting friendships while beginning his ascent toward greatness. Now, as the iconic... Read more

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — An amendment that would ban Oklahoma courts from considering international or Islamic law discriminates against religions and a Muslim community leader has the right to challenge its constitutionality, a federal appeals court said Tuesday. The court in Denver upheld U.S. District Judge Vicki Miles-LaGrange’s order blocking implementation of the amendment shortly after it was approved by 70 percent of Oklahoma voters in November 2010. Muneer Awad, the executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations in... Read more

CAIRO (AP) — Egypt’s Foreign Ministry said Wednesday it had told Israel that it would not be “appropriate” for Israeli pilgrims to make an annual visit to the tomb of a 19th-century Jewish holy man in the Nile Delta, as activists mobilized to block the pilgrimage route. Ceremonies at the tomb of Rabbi Yaakov Abu Hatizra have triggered yearly political sparring in Egypt throughout most of the last decade, with Islamists, nationalists, and others claiming that the government by allowing... Read more

CAIRO (AP) — Egypt’s Foreign Ministry said Wednesday it had told Israel that it would not be “appropriate” for Israeli pilgrims to make an annual visit to the tomb of a 19th-century Jewish holy man in the Nile Delta, as activists mobilized to block the pilgrimage route. Ceremonies at the tomb of Rabbi Yaakov Abu Hatzira have triggered yearly political sparring in Egypt throughout most of the last decade, with Islamists, nationalists, and others claiming that the government by allowing... Read more

CAIRO (AP) — Egyptian Islamists and other activists vowed Wednesday to prevent Israelis from making an annual pilgrimage to the tomb of a 19th-century Jewish holy man in the Nile Delta. Pilgrimage opponents have decided to stage protests on roads leading to the tomb of Rabbi Yaakov Abuhatzeira in the village of Daymouta, 180 kilometers (112 miles) north of Cairo, said Gamal Heshmat of the Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamist group which is the country’s best organized political movement. He said... Read more

CAIRO (AP) — Former President Jimmy Carter on Tuesday dismissed concerns about the success of Islamist parties in Egypt’s first elections since the fall of President Hosni Mubarak, because it represents the will of the Egyptian people. Carter’s Atlanta-based Carter Center has sent 40 observers to monitor Egypt’s staggered parliamentary elections since voting started in late November, the freest and fairest in decades. Under Mubarak, elections were blatantly rigged, and turnout was often tiny. Carter said his organization was “very... Read more