CLEVELAND (AP) — Attorneys for some defendants charged in beard-cutting attacks on fellow Amish in Ohio say additional allegations won’t change how they fight the charges. An updated indictment filed in federal court in Cleveland added four defendants to bring the total to 16 and added allegations they tried to hide or destroy evidence including a bag of hair. It said ringleader Sam Mullet Sr. lied to federal agents about an October hair-cutting, considered deeply offensive in Amish culture. Mullet... Read more

Today is Friday, April 6, the 97th day of 2012. There are 269 days left in the year. Highlights in history on this date: 1327 – Italian poet Petrarch first sees and loves “Laura” in the Church of St. Clare at Avignon, and will write poems about her until his death. 1593 – Henry Barrow, a Puritan, is executed for slandering England’s Queen Elizabeth I. 1648 – Naples is restored to Spanish rule after a revolt the year before. 1652... Read more

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A witness in a landmark priest abuse trial told a jury on Thursday she felt “helpless and trapped” as a 13-year-old because a priest was fondling her when she worked weekends at the rectory. The woman said she didn’t tell anyone for years and later learned the priest had fondled two younger sisters. Her testimony came on the fourth day of the child endangerment trial of Monsignor William Lynn, the longtime secretary for clergy in Philadelphia. Lynn... Read more

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — California’s highest court has sided with Oakland’s Roman Catholic Diocese and refused to reinstate a lawsuit brought by six brothers who allege they were molested by a priest during the 1970s. The California Supreme Court ruled 5-2 Thursday that the brothers had waited too long to bring their claims involving the now deceased priest, Donald Broderson, who was forced to retire amid similar allegations in 1993. The state Legislature opened a one-year window for old clergy... Read more

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — As Tim Tebow and Jeremy Lin have risen to prominence in the NFL and NBA, the touchstones of professional sports and religion have converged perhaps as never before. Tebow, the New York Jets quarterback known for doing missionary work in the offseason, and Lin, the point guard who came out of nowhere to galvanize the New York Knicks, have been outspoken about the role faith has played in their athletic careers. The conversation couldn’t have come at... Read more

Sunni leaders mostly shun Arab League summit, reflecting suspicions on Iraq, fractured region BAGHDAD (AP) — Sunni Muslim rulers largely shunned an Arab League summit hosted by Shiite-led Iraq on Thursday, illustrating how powerfully the sectarian split and the rivalry with Iran define Middle Eastern politics in the era of the Arab Spring. The crisis in Syria is the epicenter of those divisions. The one-day summit closed with a joint call on Syrian President Bashar Assad to stop his bloody... Read more

Sunni leaders mostly shun Arab League summit, reflecting suspicions on Iraq, fractured region BAGHDAD (AP) — Sunni Muslim rulers largely shunned an Arab League summit hosted by Shiite-led Iraq on Thursday, illustrating how powerfully the sectarian split and the rivalry with Iran define Middle Eastern politics in the era of the Arab Spring. The crisis in Syria is the epicenter of those divisions. The one-day summit closed with a joint call on Syrian President Bashar Assad to stop his bloody... Read more

Sunni leaders mostly shun Arab League summit, reflecting suspicions on Iraq, fractured region BAGHDAD (AP) — Sunni Muslim rulers largely shunned an Arab League summit hosted by Shiite-led Iraq on Thursday, illustrating how powerfully the sectarian split and the rivalry with Iran define Middle Eastern politics in the era of the Arab Spring. The crisis in Syria is the epicenter of those divisions. The one-day summit closed with a joint call on Syrian President Bashar Assad to stop his bloody... Read more

CAIRO (AP) — An Egyptian court has ordered the government to ban pornographic Internet websites in order to protect society and its values. The decision and a similar initiative in parliament has fed into fears by liberal and secular Egyptians that their country is moving down the path to fundamentalist Islam, following a sweeping victory by Islamists in parliamentary elections. The ruling Wednesday came from a lower court and can be appealed. Three years ago a court made a similar... Read more

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A witness in a landmark priest-abuse trial in Philadelphia described feeling “helpless and trapped” as a 13-year-old, because her priest was fondling her when she worked weekends at the rectory. The woman says she didn’t tell anyone for years, and later learned the same priest had fondled her younger sisters. The woman testified Wednesday, the fourth day of the child-endangerment trial of Monsignor William Lynn, the longtime secretary for clergy in Philadelphia. Lynn is the first Roman... Read more