3xwy Blog

Reports say Baitullah Mehsud, the leader of the Taliban in Pakistan, has been killed in a U.S. drone attack. The Pakistani foreign minister, intelligence sources and some members of the Taliban say Mehsud died when an unmanned U.S. aircraft destroyed his father-in-law’s house Wednesday. But no one has been able to offer definitive proof of his death.

Reuters – Freddie Mac, the second largest provider of U.S. home mortgage funding, on Friday posted its first quarterly profit in two years as gains from hedges and a one-time accounting change offset still-lofty credit losses.

This scanning electron micrograph of a blood clot — taken from the coronary artery of somebody who had a heart attack — might be scary if it weren’t so cool.

AFP – US mortgage finance giant Freddie Mac announced Friday it swung to a profit of 768 million dollars in the second quarter, after a 9.9 billion dollar loss in the previous quarter.

Reuters – The U.S. unemployment rate fell in July for the first time in 15 months as employers cut far fewer jobs than expected, giving the clearest indication yet that the economy was turning around from a deep recession.

AP – Don’t panic, schools. The government is urging school officials to stay calm when swine flu strikes this fall, closing buildings only in drastic cases and allowing sick students to return as soon as 24 hours after their fever is gone.

AP – Automotive retailer CarMax Inc. said Friday that it has renewed its borrowing facility and lowered the limit for its financing arm by $200 million.

Reuters – The U.S. government said it was having trouble hammering out a settlement of its tax-evasion dispute with Swiss bank UBS AG and asked a judge to delay a trial in the case that was set to begin on Monday.

Pakistani Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud, thought to be in his 30s, rose to prominence in 2004, when he succeeded another Pashtun tribal leader who was killed in a U.S. airstrike. If confirmed, his death could be a significant blow to the Islamist militants linked under his umbrella group.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton tells South African business leaders that the country is “uniquely positioned” to propel economic growth throughout the continent. Clinton also met with Nelson Mandela during the second stop on her seven-nation African tour.