US snow storm claims more lives

27 December 2012 Last updated at 19:25 ET

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Brent Pinkerton from KMTB Radio in Nashville, Arkansas: "The snow itself is not unusual, it's the quantity"

Sixteen people have been reported killed by a severe snow storm moving through the north-eastern US after disrupting Christmas in the Midwest.

States in New England are seeing heavy snowfall, with over a foot (30cm) already fallen in parts of Massachusetts, weather officials said.

Flights were grounded and road collisions reported as the storm moved across the middle of the US.

As many as 34 tornadoes were reported across the South on Christmas Day.

The storm moved across northern New England on Thursday afternoon. Heavy snow was also reported in eastern parts of Canada.

Lebanon, Maine reported 12in of snow, with up to 18 inches expected in the state and nearby Vermont and New Hampshire by the end of Thursday.

In Coudersport, Pennsylvania, where the storm has stopped, the National Weather Service reported 15 inches.

Hundreds of thousands of people are reported to have lost power, including 200,000 people in Arkansas and Alabama, where ice and 10 inches of snow coated electricity wires snapping poles and wires.

Storm-related deaths were reported in New York, Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana, Pennsylvania and Virginia, the Associated Press said.

Falling trees claimed the lives of two people in Texas and Louisiana. A New York man was killed after his vehicle skidded on an icy road and an Ohio teenager died after losing control of her car and crashing into an oncoming snowplough.

'Sleet and freezing rain'

As the storm moves into the southern parts of the Canadian province of Quebec, the area could receive up to 17in of snow, according to Environment Canada.

In Concord, New Hampshire, resident Dale Lamprey said he had been on the streets before 05:00 EST (10:00 GMT) on Thursday morning, trying to clear the snow.

"It's been windy, it's been snowing and I think it changed over to sleet and freezing rain at one point. It's pretty bad," he told AP.

Inbound flights were delayed in Philadelphia and at the three New York area airports, as thousands of travellers were trying to return home after Christmas.

In Pittsburgh, a flight that landed safely on Wednesday night got stuck in several inches of snow on the tarmac for about two hours.

Airlines cancelled more than 800 flights on Thursday across the country, according to FlightAware.com.

Flights were also cancelled in Canada, with Toronto and Montreal affected, reports said.

Earlier in the week Little Rock, Arkansas, saw its first snow on Christmas Day in 83 years, while in neighbouring Oklahoma seven inches of snow were blamed for a 21-vehicle pile-up on an interstate highway outside Oklahoma City.

Thirty-four tornadoes were observed in the southern states of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama on Tuesday. A large section of a church roof in Mobile, Alabama, was ripped off by a twister.

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NY woman in Newtown 'charity scam'

27 December 2012 Last updated at 21:21 ET

A New York woman allegedly cheated donors who gave money after the mass shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, by posing as the aunt of a child who died.

Nouel Alba, 37, was arrested after FBI accused her of using Facebook, phone calls and text messages to solicit donations to a "funeral fund".

Gunman Adam Lanza killed 20 children and six adults at the school, as well as his mother and himself.

Ms Alba says she did not know her accounts were being used for donations.

She is charged with lying to FBI agents investigating charity scams after the agency interviewed her about suspected wire fraud.

The 37-year-old appeared on Thursday in federal court in Hartford, Connecticut and was released on $50,000 (£31,000) bail.

According to the FBI complaint, Ms Alba posted on Facebook that "we've set up a funeral fund for my brother and families - anyone willing to make a donation can make one", before giving instructions on how to donate to a Paypal account or by direct deposit.

She allegedly claimed to have visited Sandy Hook Elementary School to identify her nephew during a conversation to a donor over the phone.

Ms Alba also allegedly sent text messages to a donor in support of the idea that she was part of a grieving family.

"Not looking forward to see that casket cause that is what will kill us all today. 11 gun shot in his little body," one text read, according to the complaint.

It is unclear how many people donated to the fund, but all the donations have been refunded, although later than Ms Alba claimed to have done.

"It is unconscionable to think that the families of the victims in Newtown, and a sympathetic community looking to provide them some sort of financial support and comfort, have become the targets of criminals," FBI Special Agent in Charge Kimberly Mertz said in a statement.

If convicted, Ms Alba faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

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Woman held in firemen deaths case

28 December 2012 Last updated at 16:37 ET

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The BBC's Adam McIlrick reports on the events of the Christmas Eve shooting

A 24-year-old woman has been arrested in connection with the guns used in the shooting of two firefighters in the state of New York on Christmas Eve.

Dawn Nguyen faces a state charge of filing a false business record, police said, with a federal charge pending.

Her brother, Steven Nguyen, told local media the guns used to kill the firemen had been stolen from his sister.

William Spengler is alleged to have shot dead two firemen who arrived to tackle a fire at his home in Webster.

Police said they found a long note from Spengler, 62, outlining his plans, in which he said he was planning to "do what I like doing best - killing people".

Seven homes on a narrow stretch of land beside Lake Ontario were destroyed by the fire. Another two firemen and an off-duty police officer were wounded in the attack.

Police said the charge against Ms Nguyen was connected to the sale of an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle and a 12-gauge shotgun that the attacker had with him on the night of the shooting, according to the Associated Press.

A third gun, a Bushmaster .223 calibre rifle with flash suppression, is believed to have been used in the attack but Ms Nguyen is not thought to be connected to that weapon.

Ms Nguyen and her mother Dawn Welsher had lived next door to Spengler in 2008.

Spengler had served 17 years in jail for killing his grandmother with a hammer but had done nothing to attract the authorities' attention since being granted parole in 1998.

As a convicted criminal, he was not allowed to own weapons.

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US seeks 'drug lord' extradition

28 December 2012 Last updated at 20:24 ET

Prosecutors in the United States have requested the extradition of one of Colombia's most wanted drug dealers, detained two months ago in Argentina.

Henry de Jesus Lopez Londono, known as Mi Sangre or My Blood, is the alleged leader of the Urabenos gang, which operates in northern Colombia.

Argentine media reported that he was due to be released on 2 January unless there was a formal extradition request.

Lopez entered Argentina with a false passport, police said.

The 41-year-old Colombian posed as a Venezuelan businessman, travelling for work.

He was arrested with his wife and 10 bodyguards in Buenos Aires on 30 October.

Henry Lopez insists that he has been the victim of "a plot".

He was officially notified of the request made by a court in southern Florida, official Argentine news agency Telam said.

The extradition process is expected to last four months.

Cartel contacts

Officers from the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, the Colombian police and the Argentine police force had been tracking him for months prior to his arrest, tapping his phone, monitoring his cars via satellite and infiltrating his inner circle.

They said he, his wife, two children and bodyguards had constantly moved between five different residences.

According to police, Mi Sangre had arrived in Argentina two years earlier, but had travelled between Venezuela, Uruguay, Ecuador, Mexico and Paraguay arranging drug deals.

They said that only minutes before his arrest he had met a member of the Mexican drug cartel Los Zetas, for whom he provided much of the drugs.

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New York murders at record low

28 December 2012 Last updated at 21:57 ET

The number of murders in New York City is expected to hit a record low this year, as officials credited police efforts in reducing crime.

So far, there have been 414 homicides in the city, down 19% from 2011 and the fewest since reliable records began in 1963.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg said the number showed that "the safest big city in America is safer".

Meanwhile, Chicago has hit 500 murders for the year.

The US' third largest city has seen a wave of gang violence in the past year, including one weekend day on which six people died.

'Stop-and-frisk'

Mr Bloomberg and New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly announced the numbers during a police academy graduation on Friday.

The 2012 murder rate was less than a fifth of the city's record of 2,245 homicides in 1990.

The drop in the murder rate is "a testament to the hard work and determination of the men and women who put their lives on the line for us every day, "Mr Bloomberg said. "And it also reflects our commitment to doing everything possible to stop gun violence."

Continue reading the main story

When people ask me, 'What's different about Chicago?' that's one of the things I tell them. We have a proliferation of illegal firearms"

End Quote Garry McCarthy Chicago police superintendent

In a statement, Mr Kelly attributed the decline to the increasing use of stop-and-frisk, a controversial tactic where police can stop and search people on the street they consider suspicious.

"We're preventing crimes before someone is killed and before someone else has to go to prison for murder or other serious crimes," he said.

Civil rights groups and some local politicians have criticised the practice, saying that most people stopped turn out to be innocent, and that it unfairly targets black and Latino men.

Other crimes like rapes, robberies, assaults and burglaries were up slightly in the city, while grand larceny went up by 9%, due to increased thefts of electronic devices.

Gangs and guns

Chicago recorded its 500th murder on Friday.

While the city's murder rate is now higher than New York City, Chicago has only about one-third of New York's population.

Most of the violence has been in Chicago's troubled south and west sides, but there also have been a handful of incidents in the downtown area.

Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy and other officials blame the death toll on a splintering of the city's traditional gangs as well as a large number of illegal guns available in the city.

"In the first six months of the year, we seized three guns for every gun seized in Los Angeles and nine guns for every gun confiscated by the New York Police Department," Mr McCarthy said.

"When people ask me, 'What's different about Chicago?' that's one of the things I tell them. We have a proliferation of illegal firearms," he said.

Illinois does not ban assault weapons and the high-capacity magazines as do New York and California.

The city's homicides were 80% gang-related, and 80% of the victims were black, although only 33% of the city's population is black.

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Race to beat wind energy deadline

28 December 2012 Last updated at 22:14 ET By Matt McGrath Environment correspondent, BBC News

US energy companies are racing to install wind turbines before a federal tax credit expires at the end of this year.

Experts say that wind power has exceeded the construction of natural gas plants in recent months.

However the financial incentive for wind could be lost as congress struggles to avoid financial deadlock.

Even if the credit is extended it is expected that new installations will decline in 2013.

According to industry analysts, the federal government's production tax credit has played an important role in the expansion of wind energy across the US since it was first introduced in 1992.

Wind passes gas

At that point there was less than 1.5 gigawatts of power generating capacity provided by wind across the country. That figure has grown dramatically. This year has seen around 12 gigawatts of wind power capacity installed, outpacing even natural gas projects which have boomed on the back of cheap shale.

Continue reading the main story

There's a lot of rushing right now to get projects completed by the end of the year"

End Quote Rob Gramlich American Wind Energy Association

The government subsidy works out at 2.2 cents per kilowatt hour of power produced over ten years. This amounts to around $1m (£620,000) for every large turbine. However the deadline is absolute - to get the money the blades on new installations must be turning and generating power before the 31st of December.

"There's a lot of rushing right now to get projects completed by the end of the year," says Rob Gramlich, senior vice president at the American Wind Energy Association.

"It is not a great way to run a business with this policy-induced uncertainty."

The tax credit has proved contentious with some lawmakers criticising it as too generous. It lapsed previously in 1999, 2001 and 2003. Each time it lead to a collapse in new construction.

The American Wind Energy Association are hoping the tax credit will be passed as part of a compromise package of legislation to help the US avoid the so-called fiscal cliff. The say the most likely outcome is a short term extension of the subsidy.

"There's a good chance we could get this extension, it is very hard to predict, but the industry is not making bets on the Congress getting it done," says Mr Gramlich,

Even if there is an extension there is likely to be a significant curtailment of wind installations in 2013. Wind energy companies say they need longer time frames to negotiate deals to sell the power they generate.

Iberdrola Renewables is the second largest developer of wind power projects in the United States. The company is racing to finalise new wind installations in Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

However the prospects for new turbines in 2013 are slim according to Paul Copleman, communications manager for Iberdrola.

"Even if the tax credit is extended, our new construction plans likely will be ramped back substantially in 2013 compared with the last few years. So much time has passed without certainty that a normal one-year extension would not be a game-changer for our 2013 build plans."

Some analysts argue that all subsidies to wind should end and the industry should stand on its own two feet. They say that the current arrangements mean that energy companies continue to make money even when there is a surplus of wind and the market price is negative.

Dan Kish is with the Institute for Energy Research, a body long critical of subsidies for renewables. He told BBC News the extension of the tax credit was expensive, unnecessary and destabilising to the electricity grid.

"Wind produces power at a fraction of its stated capacity, and is increasingly adding unnecessary costs to consumers, just as it is in the UK," he said

"They are creations of government and serve only to make their builders and owners wealthy at the expense of the public."

Follow Matt on Twitter.

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George Bush out of intensive care

29 December 2012 Last updated at 16:38 ET

Former US President George H W Bush's condition has improved, allowing him to be moved out after nearly a week in intensive care, his spokesman has said.

Mr Bush, 88, will continue treatment at the Methodist Hospital in Houston, where he was admitted on 23 November suffering from bronchitis.

"The Bushes thank everyone for their prayers and good wishes," family spokesman Jim McGrath said.

Mr Bush is the oldest living former US president and a World War II veteran.

He was admitted to intensive care on 23 December with a fever.

But on Saturday, Mr McGrath said the former president's condition had improved.

"So he has been moved today from the intensive care unit to a regular patient room at The Methodist Hospital to continue his recovery," he said.

Mr Bush was Ronald Reagan's vice-president for two terms, from 1981 to 1989, when he became the 41st US president. He was defeated by Democrat Bill Clinton when he stood for re-election in 1992.

His son George W Bush served as 43rd president in 2001-09.

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Woman held for train push killing

29 December 2012 Last updated at 17:59 ET

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CCTV footage shows a woman running after the incident took place

Police in New York have arrested a woman in connection with the death of a man pushed in front of a subway train.

Prosecutors said Erika Menendez, 31, was charged with second-degree murder as a hate crime.

She is alleged to have said that she hates Hindus and Muslims.

The victim, 46-year-old Sunando Sen, originally came from India. Witnesses said he was standing on a platform at a Queens subway station when a woman shoved him on to the tracks.

Mr Sen was a resident of Queens and ran a printing business on the Upper West Side.

Prosecutors said in a statement that Ms Menendez, from Rego Park, Queens, admitted pushing the victim, saying: "I pushed a Muslim off the train tracks because I hate Hindus and Muslims ever since 2001 when they put down the twin towers I've been beating them up."

Queens District Attorney Richard A Brown said that, according to the charges, Ms Menendez was seen talking to herself while seated on a bench at the subway station and was also seen pacing on the platform and muttering to herself.

"The defendant is accused of committing what is every subway commuter's worst nightmare - being suddenly and senselessly pushed into the path of an oncoming train," he said.

"The victim was allegedly shoved from behind and had no chance to defend himself. Beyond that, the hateful remarks allegedly made by the defendant and which precipitated the defendant's actions can never be tolerated by a civilised society."

Prosecutors originally said Ms Menendez was from the Bronx.

Fled the scene

Mr Sen's death on Thursday was the second such killing this month.

Naeem Davis was charged with murder in early December after allegedly pushing a passenger to his death in the Times Square subway station at the beginning of December.

New York's mayor, Michael Bloomberg, said such attacks were rare.

"You can say it's only two out of the three or four million people who ride the subway every day, but two is two too many," he told a press conference.

New York police spokesman Paul Browne said in a statement that investigations into the incidents were continuing.

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Hillary Clinton has blood clot

30 December 2012 Last updated at 23:57 ET

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has been admitted to hospital in New York with a blood clot, officials say.

Mrs Clinton suffered a concussion earlier this month after fainting and falling down.

At the time, she was reported to have had a stomach virus and to have passed out after becoming dehydrated.

Mrs Clinton, 65, is due to stand down as secretary of state before US President Barack Obama officially begins his second term in January.

Doctors discovered the clot during a follow-up examination on Sunday, her spokesman Philippe Reines said.

"She is being treated with anti-coagulants and is at New York-Presbyterian Hospital so that they can monitor the medication over the next 48 hours," he said.

"They will determine if any further action is required."

No information was given about where the blood clot had formed.

Mrs Clinton is due to give evidence before a Congressional committee in January in connection with the attack in September on the US consulate in the Libyan city of Benghazi.

The US ambassador to Libya and three American officials were killed in the incident.

Mrs Clinton was appointed secretary of state at the start of Mr Obama's first term, in January 2009.

Her most recent foreign trip was to Dublin earlier this month.

Mrs Clinton, 65, is known for her gruelling travel schedule.

She is the most travelled secretary of state in history, having visited 112 countries while in the job, the Associated Press says.

Earlier this month, President Obama nominated Senator John Kerry - the Massachusetts Democrat who heads the Senate Foreign Relations Committee - to replace Mrs Clinton as secretary of state.

She has repeatedly said that she only intended to serve one term in the post.

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US 'fiscal cliff' talks go to wire

31 December 2012 Last updated at 03:27 ET

US Congressional leaders have one more day to stop steep tax rises and spending cuts, known as the "fiscal cliff", after talks ended with no deal.

Senators will continue to seek a compromise deal on Monday to send to the House of Representatives.

Failure to reach agreement by 1 January could push the US back into recession.

President Barack Obama has blamed Republicans for the deadlock. He said their "overriding theme" was protecting tax breaks for the rich.

Fallback plan

Continue reading the main story

At the scene

Adam Blenford BBC News, Washington

---

Few in the US capital could talk of anything but who would win Sunday's must-win showdown. For most, that meant an NFL game between the Washington Redskins and the Dallas Cowboys; on Capitol Hill the stakes were somewhat higher.

Cliches and aphorisms abounded in the Senate corridors as reports spread of a breakdown in deal-making. "The fat lady hasn't sung yet," one Republican declared, obscured by the pack of reporters following him down the hallway. "These things always happen at the end," said Chuck Schumer, a senior Democrat.

But it was the retiring senators, three days away from their final goodbyes, who spoke the most openly. Failure would "send a message worldwide that we don't have the capacity to work across political aisles on critical issues", said Olympia Snowe, Maine's outgoing Republican.

"The world has gotten used to this so they are no longer shocked," Ben Nelson, a retiring Nebraska Democrat said. "They see this as just more of the same and hope that one of these days maybe Congress will get its act together."

Republicans and Democrats have been fighting for months over how to deal with the combination of automatic spending cuts and the expiration of Bush-era tax reductions at the new year.

Without an agreement, higher taxes will rise for virtually every working American and across-the-board cuts in government spending will kick in from Tuesday.

Analysts say this could significantly reduce consumer spending, leading the US economy to fall off the "fiscal cliff".

After the latest round of intense negotiations in the Senate on Sunday the main sticking points reportedly include such key issues as the income threshold for higher tax rates and inheritance taxes.

If no agreement is reached on Monday, senators are expected to be given the chance to vote on a fallback plan proposed by President Obama.

That would renew tax cuts on earnings under $250,000 (£154,000) and extend unemployment benefits, but does not address the spending cuts.

Both the House and Senate are due to convene on Monday in a last-minute attempt to bridge the gap between the two sides. The Republican Speaker of the House, John Boehner, has insisted that the Senate act first.

The current stand-off has its roots in a failed 2011 attempt to tackle the government debt limit and budget deficit.

Republicans and Democrats agreed then to postpone difficult decisions on spending until the end of 2012.

Commentators say that even if a deal is reached, it will do little to reduce the original problem of the deficit and the government debt limit, raising the prospect of further political infighting early in the new year.

Parties divided

Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid and his Republican counterpart Mitch McConnell were locked in negotiations over the weekend.

Continue reading the main story

What is the fiscal cliff?

• On 1 January 2013, tax increases and huge spending cuts are due to come into force - the so-called fiscal cliff
• Deadline was put in place in 2011 to force president and Congress to agree ways to save money over the next 10 years
• Date coincides with expiry of Bush-era tax cuts, which would affect all income groups and many businesses
• Fear is that raising taxes while massively cutting spending will have a huge impact on households and businesses
• Experts believe it could push the US into recession, and have a global impact on growth

The two senators appeared to admit before the 15:00 deadline (20:00 GMT) that negotiations were at a standstill, with their two parties still divided over core issues.

However late on Sunday, Senate Republicans said they were dropping their proposal to slow the growth of Social Security payments. The plan - which would have led to lower benefits to pensioners and the disabled - had been fiercely resisted by Democrats.

Meanwhile Senator McConnell said he had asked Vice-President Joe Biden for help in breaking the deadlock late on Sunday.

"I'm concerned with the lack of urgency here. There's far too much at stake," he said. "There is no single issue that remains an impossible sticking point - the sticking point appears to be a willingness, an interest or courage to close the deal."

In his interview with NBC's Meet the Press, broadcast on Sunday, Mr Obama said the priority was to ensure taxes do not rise for middle-class families, saying that would "hurt our economy badly".

"That's something we all agree on. If we can get that done, that takes a big bite out of the 'fiscal cliff'," he said.

There is also debate over where to set the threshold for tax rises. Democrats say the Bush-era tax cuts should be extended for all Americans except the richest - those with annual earnings of more than $250,000 (£155,000).

Republicans - some of whom have pledged never to vote for increased taxes - say the deficit is a consequence of excessive government spending.

They want the tax threshold set higher, at around $400,000, and for revenue to be raised by economic growth and cuts in social security and other services states are legally bound to provide.

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US snow storm claims more lives

27 December 2012 Last updated at 19:25 ET

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Brent Pinkerton from KMTB Radio in Nashville, Arkansas: "The snow itself is not unusual, it's the quantity"

Sixteen people have been reported killed by a severe snow storm moving through the north-eastern US after disrupting Christmas in the Midwest.

States in New England are seeing heavy snowfall, with over a foot (30cm) already fallen in parts of Massachusetts, weather officials said.

Flights were grounded and road collisions reported as the storm moved across the middle of the US.

As many as 34 tornadoes were reported across the South on Christmas Day.

The storm moved across northern New England on Thursday afternoon. Heavy snow was also reported in eastern parts of Canada.

Lebanon, Maine reported 12in of snow, with up to 18 inches expected in the state and nearby Vermont and New Hampshire by the end of Thursday.

In Coudersport, Pennsylvania, where the storm has stopped, the National Weather Service reported 15 inches.

Hundreds of thousands of people are reported to have lost power, including 200,000 people in Arkansas and Alabama, where ice and 10 inches of snow coated electricity wires snapping poles and wires.

Storm-related deaths were reported in New York, Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana, Pennsylvania and Virginia, the Associated Press said.

Falling trees claimed the lives of two people in Texas and Louisiana. A New York man was killed after his vehicle skidded on an icy road and an Ohio teenager died after losing control of her car and crashing into an oncoming snowplough.

'Sleet and freezing rain'

As the storm moves into the southern parts of the Canadian province of Quebec, the area could receive up to 17in of snow, according to Environment Canada.

In Concord, New Hampshire, resident Dale Lamprey said he had been on the streets before 05:00 EST (10:00 GMT) on Thursday morning, trying to clear the snow.

"It's been windy, it's been snowing and I think it changed over to sleet and freezing rain at one point. It's pretty bad," he told AP.

Inbound flights were delayed in Philadelphia and at the three New York area airports, as thousands of travellers were trying to return home after Christmas.

In Pittsburgh, a flight that landed safely on Wednesday night got stuck in several inches of snow on the tarmac for about two hours.

Airlines cancelled more than 800 flights on Thursday across the country, according to FlightAware.com.

Flights were also cancelled in Canada, with Toronto and Montreal affected, reports said.

Earlier in the week Little Rock, Arkansas, saw its first snow on Christmas Day in 83 years, while in neighbouring Oklahoma seven inches of snow were blamed for a 21-vehicle pile-up on an interstate highway outside Oklahoma City.

Thirty-four tornadoes were observed in the southern states of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama on Tuesday. A large section of a church roof in Mobile, Alabama, was ripped off by a twister.

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NY woman in Newtown 'charity scam'

27 December 2012 Last updated at 21:21 ET

A New York woman allegedly cheated donors who gave money after the mass shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, by posing as the aunt of a child who died.

Nouel Alba, 37, was arrested after FBI accused her of using Facebook, phone calls and text messages to solicit donations to a "funeral fund".

Gunman Adam Lanza killed 20 children and six adults at the school, as well as his mother and himself.

Ms Alba says she did not know her accounts were being used for donations.

She is charged with lying to FBI agents investigating charity scams after the agency interviewed her about suspected wire fraud.

The 37-year-old appeared on Thursday in federal court in Hartford, Connecticut and was released on $50,000 (£31,000) bail.

According to the FBI complaint, Ms Alba posted on Facebook that "we've set up a funeral fund for my brother and families - anyone willing to make a donation can make one", before giving instructions on how to donate to a Paypal account or by direct deposit.

She allegedly claimed to have visited Sandy Hook Elementary School to identify her nephew during a conversation to a donor over the phone.

Ms Alba also allegedly sent text messages to a donor in support of the idea that she was part of a grieving family.

"Not looking forward to see that casket cause that is what will kill us all today. 11 gun shot in his little body," one text read, according to the complaint.

It is unclear how many people donated to the fund, but all the donations have been refunded, although later than Ms Alba claimed to have done.

"It is unconscionable to think that the families of the victims in Newtown, and a sympathetic community looking to provide them some sort of financial support and comfort, have become the targets of criminals," FBI Special Agent in Charge Kimberly Mertz said in a statement.

If convicted, Ms Alba faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

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US Gen Norman Schwarzkopf dies

28 December 2012 Last updated at 02:41 ET

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The BBC's Richard Galpin looks back at Gen Norman Schwarzkopf's military career

Retired US General Norman Schwarzkopf, who led troops in the 1991 Gulf War, has died aged 78.

Gen Schwarzkopf - known as Stormin' Norman - was commander of coalition forces in the first Gulf War in 1990-91.

The US-led coalition drove Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein's forces out of Kuwait.

Former US President George H W Bush described Gen Schwarzkopf as "one of the great military leaders of his generation".

Gen Schwarzkopf spent his retirement in Tampa, Florida, where he had served in his last military assignment as commander-in-chief of US Central Command.

His military success made him one of America's most famous modern generals, although some criticised him for negotiating ceasefire terms which allowed Saddam Hussein to remain in power, says the BBC's Ben Wright in Washington.

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

General Schwarzkopf was justly recognised as a brilliant strategist and inspiring leader"

End Quote Leon Panetta US Defence Secretary

President Bush, who was in office during the first Gulf War, said he "mourned the loss" of Gen Schwarzkopf, "one of the great military leaders of his generation".

Mr Bush, who remains in intensive care at the Methodist Hospital in Houston, Texas, issued a statement, saying: "A distinguished member of that Long Gray Line hailing from West Point, General Schwarzkopf, to me, epitomised the 'duty, service, country' creed that has defended our freedom and seen this great nation through our most trying international crises.

"More than that, he was a good and decent man - and a dear friend. Barbara and I send our condolences to his wife Brenda and his wonderful family."

US Republican Senator John McCain tweeted that Gen Schwarzkopf was "one of the great American heroes".

"We thank him for his service," he said.

US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta also paid tribute to the general, saying his 35 years of service had "left an indelible imprint on the United States military and on the country".

"His bravery during two tours in Vietnam earned him three silver stars, and set him on the path to lead our troops into battle in Grenada, and then to take charge of the overall allied effort in the first Gulf War as Commander of United States Central Command," he said.

Continue reading the main story

Gen Schwarzkopf: Career highlights

• Born on 22 August 1934 in Trenton, New Jersey
• Aged 12, he moves to Iran where his father, a high-ranking army officer, trained the police and was an adviser to the Shah
• Studies in Switzerland and Germany, attends US Military Academy at West Point, New York. Gains masters degree in guided-missile engineering from the University of Southern California
• Highly decorated for his services in the Vietnam and Grenada wars
• Named commander-in-chief of the US Central Command in 1988
• Best known for leading allied forces as part of Operation Desert Storm in the Gulf War in 1991
• Often referred to as 'Stormin Norman', he used to taunt Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein

"General Schwarzkopf's skilled leadership of that campaign liberated the Kuwaiti people and produced a decisive victory for the allied coalition.

"In the aftermath of that war, General Schwarzkopf was justly recognised as a brilliant strategist and inspiring leader. Today, we recall that enduring legacy and remember him as one of the great military giants of the 20th Century."

During Operation Desert Storm, Gen Schwarzkopf famously used one of his regular news conferences to taunt his opponent.

"As far as Saddam Hussein being a great military strategist, he is neither a strategist, nor is schooled in the operational art, nor is he a tactician, nor is he a general, nor is he a soldier: other than that, he's a great military man - I want you to know that," he said.

Gen Schwarzkopf's sometimes fiery temper meant that he clashed with subordinates and superiors alike, including the then Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen Colin Powell.

Despite this and his bluff appearance, he was smarter and more diplomatic than many critics gave him credit for, says BBC world affairs correspondent Nick Childs.

After the first Gulf War Gen Schwarzkopf became a national celebrity, but always rejected suggestions that he run for office himself.

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Woman held in firemen deaths case

28 December 2012 Last updated at 16:37 ET

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The BBC's Adam McIlrick reports on the events of the Christmas Eve shooting

A 24-year-old woman has been arrested in connection with the guns used in the shooting of two firefighters in the state of New York on Christmas Eve.

Dawn Nguyen faces a state charge of filing a false business record, police said, with a federal charge pending.

Her brother, Steven Nguyen, told local media the guns used to kill the firemen had been stolen from his sister.

William Spengler is alleged to have shot dead two firemen who arrived to tackle a fire at his home in Webster.

Police said they found a long note from Spengler, 62, outlining his plans, in which he said he was planning to "do what I like doing best - killing people".

Seven homes on a narrow stretch of land beside Lake Ontario were destroyed by the fire. Another two firemen and an off-duty police officer were wounded in the attack.

Police said the charge against Ms Nguyen was connected to the sale of an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle and a 12-gauge shotgun that the attacker had with him on the night of the shooting, according to the Associated Press.

A third gun, a Bushmaster .223 calibre rifle with flash suppression, is believed to have been used in the attack but Ms Nguyen is not thought to be connected to that weapon.

Ms Nguyen and her mother Dawn Welsher had lived next door to Spengler in 2008.

Spengler had served 17 years in jail for killing his grandmother with a hammer but had done nothing to attract the authorities' attention since being granted parole in 1998.

As a convicted criminal, he was not allowed to own weapons.

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US seeks 'drug lord' extradition

28 December 2012 Last updated at 20:24 ET

Prosecutors in the United States have requested the extradition of one of Colombia's most wanted drug dealers, detained two months ago in Argentina.

Henry de Jesus Lopez Londono, known as Mi Sangre or My Blood, is the alleged leader of the Urabenos gang, which operates in northern Colombia.

Argentine media reported that he was due to be released on 2 January unless there was a formal extradition request.

Lopez entered Argentina with a false passport, police said.

The 41-year-old Colombian posed as a Venezuelan businessman, travelling for work.

He was arrested with his wife and 10 bodyguards in Buenos Aires on 30 October.

Henry Lopez insists that he has been the victim of "a plot".

He was officially notified of the request made by a court in southern Florida, official Argentine news agency Telam said.

The extradition process is expected to last four months.

Cartel contacts

Officers from the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, the Colombian police and the Argentine police force had been tracking him for months prior to his arrest, tapping his phone, monitoring his cars via satellite and infiltrating his inner circle.

They said he, his wife, two children and bodyguards had constantly moved between five different residences.

According to police, Mi Sangre had arrived in Argentina two years earlier, but had travelled between Venezuela, Uruguay, Ecuador, Mexico and Paraguay arranging drug deals.

They said that only minutes before his arrest he had met a member of the Mexican drug cartel Los Zetas, for whom he provided much of the drugs.

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New York murders at record low

28 December 2012 Last updated at 21:57 ET

The number of murders in New York City is expected to hit a record low this year, as officials credited police efforts in reducing crime.

So far, there have been 414 homicides in the city, down 19% from 2011 and the fewest since reliable records began in 1963.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg said the number showed that "the safest big city in America is safer".

Meanwhile, Chicago has hit 500 murders for the year.

The US' third largest city has seen a wave of gang violence in the past year, including one weekend day on which six people died.

'Stop-and-frisk'

Mr Bloomberg and New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly announced the numbers during a police academy graduation on Friday.

The 2012 murder rate was less than a fifth of the city's record of 2,245 homicides in 1990.

The drop in the murder rate is "a testament to the hard work and determination of the men and women who put their lives on the line for us every day, "Mr Bloomberg said. "And it also reflects our commitment to doing everything possible to stop gun violence."

Continue reading the main story

When people ask me, 'What's different about Chicago?' that's one of the things I tell them. We have a proliferation of illegal firearms"

End Quote Garry McCarthy Chicago police superintendent

In a statement, Mr Kelly attributed the decline to the increasing use of stop-and-frisk, a controversial tactic where police can stop and search people on the street they consider suspicious.

"We're preventing crimes before someone is killed and before someone else has to go to prison for murder or other serious crimes," he said.

Civil rights groups and some local politicians have criticised the practice, saying that most people stopped turn out to be innocent, and that it unfairly targets black and Latino men.

Other crimes like rapes, robberies, assaults and burglaries were up slightly in the city, while grand larceny went up by 9%, due to increased thefts of electronic devices.

Gangs and guns

Chicago recorded its 500th murder on Friday.

While the city's murder rate is now higher than New York City, Chicago has only about one-third of New York's population.

Most of the violence has been in Chicago's troubled south and west sides, but there also have been a handful of incidents in the downtown area.

Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy and other officials blame the death toll on a splintering of the city's traditional gangs as well as a large number of illegal guns available in the city.

"In the first six months of the year, we seized three guns for every gun seized in Los Angeles and nine guns for every gun confiscated by the New York Police Department," Mr McCarthy said.

"When people ask me, 'What's different about Chicago?' that's one of the things I tell them. We have a proliferation of illegal firearms," he said.

Illinois does not ban assault weapons and the high-capacity magazines as do New York and California.

The city's homicides were 80% gang-related, and 80% of the victims were black, although only 33% of the city's population is black.

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Race to beat wind energy deadline

28 December 2012 Last updated at 22:14 ET By Matt McGrath Environment correspondent, BBC News

US energy companies are racing to install wind turbines before a federal tax credit expires at the end of this year.

Experts say that wind power has exceeded the construction of natural gas plants in recent months.

However the financial incentive for wind could be lost as congress struggles to avoid financial deadlock.

Even if the credit is extended it is expected that new installations will decline in 2013.

According to industry analysts, the federal government's production tax credit has played an important role in the expansion of wind energy across the US since it was first introduced in 1992.

Wind passes gas

At that point there was less than 1.5 gigawatts of power generating capacity provided by wind across the country. That figure has grown dramatically. This year has seen around 12 gigawatts of wind power capacity installed, outpacing even natural gas projects which have boomed on the back of cheap shale.

Continue reading the main story

There's a lot of rushing right now to get projects completed by the end of the year"

End Quote Rob Gramlich American Wind Energy Association

The government subsidy works out at 2.2 cents per kilowatt hour of power produced over ten years. This amounts to around $1m (£620,000) for every large turbine. However the deadline is absolute - to get the money the blades on new installations must be turning and generating power before the 31st of December.

"There's a lot of rushing right now to get projects completed by the end of the year," says Rob Gramlich, senior vice president at the American Wind Energy Association.

"It is not a great way to run a business with this policy-induced uncertainty."

The tax credit has proved contentious with some lawmakers criticising it as too generous. It lapsed previously in 1999, 2001 and 2003. Each time it lead to a collapse in new construction.

The American Wind Energy Association are hoping the tax credit will be passed as part of a compromise package of legislation to help the US avoid the so-called fiscal cliff. The say the most likely outcome is a short term extension of the subsidy.

"There's a good chance we could get this extension, it is very hard to predict, but the industry is not making bets on the Congress getting it done," says Mr Gramlich,

Even if there is an extension there is likely to be a significant curtailment of wind installations in 2013. Wind energy companies say they need longer time frames to negotiate deals to sell the power they generate.

Iberdrola Renewables is the second largest developer of wind power projects in the United States. The company is racing to finalise new wind installations in Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

However the prospects for new turbines in 2013 are slim according to Paul Copleman, communications manager for Iberdrola.

"Even if the tax credit is extended, our new construction plans likely will be ramped back substantially in 2013 compared with the last few years. So much time has passed without certainty that a normal one-year extension would not be a game-changer for our 2013 build plans."

Some analysts argue that all subsidies to wind should end and the industry should stand on its own two feet. They say that the current arrangements mean that energy companies continue to make money even when there is a surplus of wind and the market price is negative.

Dan Kish is with the Institute for Energy Research, a body long critical of subsidies for renewables. He told BBC News the extension of the tax credit was expensive, unnecessary and destabilising to the electricity grid.

"Wind produces power at a fraction of its stated capacity, and is increasingly adding unnecessary costs to consumers, just as it is in the UK," he said

"They are creations of government and serve only to make their builders and owners wealthy at the expense of the public."

Follow Matt on Twitter.

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George Bush out of intensive care

29 December 2012 Last updated at 16:38 ET

Former US President George H W Bush's condition has improved, allowing him to be moved out after nearly a week in intensive care, his spokesman has said.

Mr Bush, 88, will continue treatment at the Methodist Hospital in Houston, where he was admitted on 23 November suffering from bronchitis.

"The Bushes thank everyone for their prayers and good wishes," family spokesman Jim McGrath said.

Mr Bush is the oldest living former president and a World War II veteran.

He was admitted to intensive care on 23 December with a fever.

But on Saturday, Mr McGrath said the former president's condition had improved.

"So he has been moved today from the intensive care unit to a regular patient room at The Methodist Hospital to continue his recovery," he said.

Mr Bush was Ronald Reagan's vice-president for two terms, from 1981 to 1989, when he became the 41st US president. He was defeated by Democrat Bill Clinton when he stood for re-election in 1992.

His son George W Bush served as 43rd president in 2001-09.

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Woman held for train push killing

29 December 2012 Last updated at 17:59 ET

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CCTV footage shows a woman running after the incident took place

Police in New York have arrested a woman in connection with the death of a man pushed in front of a subway train.

Prosecutors said Erika Menendez, 31, was charged with second-degree murder as a hate crime.

She is alleged to have said that she hates Hindus and Muslims.

The victim, 46-year-old Sunando Sen, originally came from India. Witnesses said he was standing on a platform at a Queens subway station when a woman shoved him on to the tracks.

Mr Sen was a resident of Queens and ran a printing business on the Upper West Side.

Prosecutors said in a statement that Ms Menendez, from the Bronx, admitted pushing the victim, saying: "I pushed a Muslim off the train tracks because I hate Hindus and Muslims ever since 2001 when they put down the twin towers I've been beating them up."

Queens District Attorney Richard A Brown said that, according to the charges, Ms Menendez was seen talking to herself while seated on a bench at the subway station and was also seen pacing on the platform and muttering to herself.

"The defendant is accused of committing what is every subway commuter's worst nightmare - being suddenly and senselessly pushed into the path of an oncoming train," he said.

"The victim was allegedly shoved from behind and had no chance to defend himself. Beyond that, the hateful remarks allegedly made by the defendant and which precipitated the defendant's actions can never be tolerated by a civilised society."

Fled the scene

Mr Sen's death on Thursday was the second such killing this month.

Naeem Davis was charged with murder in early December after allegedly pushing a passenger to his death in the Times Square subway station at the beginning of December.

New York's mayor, Michael Bloomberg, said such attacks were rare.

"You can say it's only two out of the three or four million people who ride the subway every day, but two is two too many," he told a press conference.

New York police spokesman Paul Browne said in a statement that investigations into the incidents were continuing.

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Crucial day for US budget talks

30 December 2012 Last updated at 08:03 ET

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US President Barack Obama: "Agreement is being discussed as we speak"

US politicians are facing a crucial day of talks aimed at preventing the economy falling over a "fiscal cliff".

Congress must reach a deal by the end of the year to avert steep spending cuts and tax rises due to take effect.

President Barack Obama has said he is "modestly optimistic" that Senate leaders can craft a bill that could win approval in both chambers of Congress.

If they fail, taxes will significantly rise for most Americans, raising fears of a US economic slowdown.

Republicans and Democrats tried to resolve the looming crisis in 2011 but failed, instead signing temporary agreements which postponed the deadlock until the end of 2012.

Democrat Senate leader Harry Reid and his Republican counterpart Mitch McConnell have been locked in negotiations over the weekend, in an otherwise closed-down Capitol.

According to the Washington Post, they have set themselves a deadline of 15:00 local time (20:00 GMT) to reach a compromise agreement, after which they will convene caucus meetings of their members and decide whether the measure has enough support to be put to a vote.

The Senate could then vote on the measure and allow the House of Representatives enough time on Monday to consider it, said the paper.

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

America's reckless politicians may still take the country over the cliff into an uncertain land where recession looms"

End Quote

But Republican and Democratic leaders remain divided over core ideological issues about tax and government funding.

There is also debate over where to set the threshold for tax rises. Democrats say tax cuts introduced by former President George W Bush and now due to expire should be extended for all Americans except the richest, those with annual earnings of more than $250,000 (£155,000), who should pay more.

Republicans want the tax threshold set higher, at around $400,000, and for revenue to be raised by economic growth and cuts in social security and mandatory spending programmes.

President Obama is scheduled to make a rare appearance on NBC's Meet the Press on Sunday.

He has urged negotiators to reach a deal, even if the resulting legislation is an unhappy compromise for both sides which defers resolution of some elements under discussion.

The country "just can't afford a politically self-inflicted wound to our economy," he said, warning that if they fail, "every American's paycheck will get a lot smaller".

"Congress can prevent it from happening, if they act now," he said.

Some Republicans have pledged never to vote for increased taxes. There are some indications they could oppose any deal which included higher taxes.

If Mr Reid and Mr McConnell cannot reach a deal by the end of the year, Mr Obama has said he will seek a vote to prevent tax rises on incomes up to $250,000 and ensure unemployment insurance is continued.

That, he says, is the "bare minimum" Congress should get done before 1 January.

End to benefits

The term fiscal cliff refers to the combination of almost $600bn (£370bn) of tax rises and spending cuts due to come into force on 1 January if Congress fails to pass new legislation.

Continue reading the main story

What is the fiscal cliff?

• On 1 January 2013, tax increases and huge spending cuts are due to come into force - the so-called fiscal cliff
• Deadline was put in place in 2011 to force president and Congress to agree ways to save money over the next 10 years
• Fear is that raising taxes while massively cutting spending will have a huge impact on households and businesses
• Experts believe it could push the US into recession, and have a global impact on growth

Sweeping Bush-era tax cuts will expire, eventually affecting people of all income levels, and many businesses.

While some of the impact would be felt almost immediately, other effects would take longer to filter through. This could damage America's recent fragile economic recovery and alarm global markets.

In addition, the US Treasury will hit its legal borrowing limit on 31 December of $16.4tn.

Last week, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner won a reprieve of about two months of time, but the debate on the borrowing ceiling will also need to be properly addressed in the new year.

The tax cuts and benefits set to expire include:

• A 2010 payroll tax cut, the expiration of which would prompt immediate wage-packet cuts

• Benefits for the long-term unemployed, which could mean more than two million Americans immediately stopped receiving payments

• Compensation for doctors treating patients on federal healthcare programmes

• Inheritance taxes are also likely to be affected if no deal is reached.

In addition, spending cuts mandated by a law passed to break a previous fiscal impasse in Congress will come into force, affecting both military and domestic budgets.

The cuts are expected to affect federal government departments and the defence sector, as well as hitting unemployment insurance and veterans' support.

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US snow storm claims more lives

27 December 2012 Last updated at 19:25 ET

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Brent Pinkerton from KMTB Radio in Nashville, Arkansas: "The snow itself is not unusual, it's the quantity"

Sixteen people have been reported killed by a severe snow storm moving through the north-eastern US after disrupting Christmas in the Midwest.

States in New England are seeing heavy snowfall, with over a foot (30cm) already fallen in parts of Massachusetts, weather officials said.

Flights were grounded and road collisions reported as the storm moved across the middle of the US.

As many as 34 tornadoes were reported across the South on Christmas Day.

The storm moved across northern New England on Thursday afternoon. Heavy snow was also reported in eastern parts of Canada.

Lebanon, Maine reported 12in of snow, with up to 18 inches expected in the state and nearby Vermont and New Hampshire by the end of Thursday.

In Coudersport, Pennsylvania, where the storm has stopped, the National Weather Service reported 15 inches.

Hundreds of thousands of people are reported to have lost power, including 200,000 people in Arkansas and Alabama, where ice and 10 inches of snow coated electricity wires snapping poles and wires.

Storm-related deaths were reported in New York, Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana, Pennsylvania and Virginia, the Associated Press said.

Falling trees claimed the lives of two people in Texas and Louisiana. A New York man was killed after his vehicle skidded on an icy road and an Ohio teenager died after losing control of her car and crashing into an oncoming snowplough.

'Sleet and freezing rain'

As the storm moves into the southern parts of the Canadian province of Quebec, the area could receive up to 17in of snow, according to Environment Canada.

In Concord, New Hampshire, resident Dale Lamprey said he had been on the streets before 05:00 EST (10:00 GMT) on Thursday morning, trying to clear the snow.

"It's been windy, it's been snowing and I think it changed over to sleet and freezing rain at one point. It's pretty bad," he told AP.

Inbound flights were delayed in Philadelphia and at the three New York area airports, as thousands of travellers were trying to return home after Christmas.

In Pittsburgh, a flight that landed safely on Wednesday night got stuck in several inches of snow on the tarmac for about two hours.

Airlines cancelled more than 800 flights on Thursday across the country, according to FlightAware.com.

Flights were also cancelled in Canada, with Toronto and Montreal affected, reports said.

Earlier in the week Little Rock, Arkansas, saw its first snow on Christmas Day in 83 years, while in neighbouring Oklahoma seven inches of snow were blamed for a 21-vehicle pile-up on an interstate highway outside Oklahoma City.

Thirty-four tornadoes were observed in the southern states of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama on Tuesday. A large section of a church roof in Mobile, Alabama, was ripped off by a twister.

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NY woman in Newtown 'charity scam'

27 December 2012 Last updated at 21:21 ET

A New York woman allegedly cheated donors who gave money after the mass shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, by posing as the aunt of a child who died.

Nouel Alba, 37, was arrested after FBI accused her of using Facebook, phone calls and text messages to solicit donations to a "funeral fund".

Gunman Adam Lanza killed 20 children and six adults at the school, as well as his mother and himself.

Ms Alba says she did not know her accounts were being used for donations.

She is charged with lying to FBI agents investigating charity scams after the agency interviewed her about suspected wire fraud.

The 37-year-old appeared on Thursday in federal court in Hartford, Connecticut and was released on $50,000 (£31,000) bail.

According to the FBI complaint, Ms Alba posted on Facebook that "we've set up a funeral fund for my brother and families - anyone willing to make a donation can make one", before giving instructions on how to donate to a Paypal account or by direct deposit.

She allegedly claimed to have visited Sandy Hook Elementary School to identify her nephew during a conversation to a donor over the phone.

Ms Alba also allegedly sent text messages to a donor in support of the idea that she was part of a grieving family.

"Not looking forward to see that casket cause that is what will kill us all today. 11 gun shot in his little body," one text read, according to the complaint.

It is unclear how many people donated to the fund, but all the donations have been refunded, although later than Ms Alba claimed to have done.

"It is unconscionable to think that the families of the victims in Newtown, and a sympathetic community looking to provide them some sort of financial support and comfort, have become the targets of criminals," FBI Special Agent in Charge Kimberly Mertz said in a statement.

If convicted, Ms Alba faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

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US Gen Norman Schwarzkopf dies

28 December 2012 Last updated at 02:41 ET

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The BBC's Richard Galpin looks back at Gen Norman Schwarzkopf's military career

Retired US General Norman Schwarzkopf, who led troops in the 1991 Gulf War, has died aged 78.

Gen Schwarzkopf - known as Stormin' Norman - was commander of coalition forces in the first Gulf War in 1990-91.

The US-led coalition drove Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein's forces out of Kuwait.

Former US President George H W Bush described Gen Schwarzkopf as "one of the great military leaders of his generation".

Gen Schwarzkopf spent his retirement in Tampa, Florida, where he had served in his last military assignment as commander-in-chief of US Central Command.

His military success made him one of America's most famous modern generals, although some criticised him for negotiating ceasefire terms which allowed Saddam Hussein to remain in power, says the BBC's Ben Wright in Washington.

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

General Schwarzkopf was justly recognised as a brilliant strategist and inspiring leader"

End Quote Leon Panetta US Defence Secretary

President Bush, who was in office during the first Gulf War, said he "mourned the loss" of Gen Schwarzkopf, "one of the great military leaders of his generation".

Mr Bush, who remains in intensive care at the Methodist Hospital in Houston, Texas, issued a statement, saying: "A distinguished member of that Long Gray Line hailing from West Point, General Schwarzkopf, to me, epitomised the 'duty, service, country' creed that has defended our freedom and seen this great nation through our most trying international crises.

"More than that, he was a good and decent man - and a dear friend. Barbara and I send our condolences to his wife Brenda and his wonderful family."

US Republican Senator John McCain tweeted that Gen Schwarzkopf was "one of the great American heroes".

"We thank him for his service," he said.

US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta also paid tribute to the general, saying his 35 years of service had "left an indelible imprint on the United States military and on the country".

"His bravery during two tours in Vietnam earned him three silver stars, and set him on the path to lead our troops into battle in Grenada, and then to take charge of the overall allied effort in the first Gulf War as Commander of United States Central Command," he said.

Continue reading the main story

Gen Schwarzkopf: Career highlights

• Born on 22 August 1934 in Trenton, New Jersey
• Aged 12, he moves to Iran where his father, a high-ranking army officer, trained the police and was an adviser to the Shah
• Studies in Switzerland and Germany, attends US Military Academy at West Point, New York. Gains masters degree in guided-missile engineering from the University of Southern California
• Highly decorated for his services in the Vietnam and Grenada wars
• Named commander-in-chief of the US Central Command in 1988
• Best known for leading allied forces as part of Operation Desert Storm in the Gulf War in 1991
• Often referred to as 'Stormin Norman', he used to taunt Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein

"General Schwarzkopf's skilled leadership of that campaign liberated the Kuwaiti people and produced a decisive victory for the allied coalition.

"In the aftermath of that war, General Schwarzkopf was justly recognised as a brilliant strategist and inspiring leader. Today, we recall that enduring legacy and remember him as one of the great military giants of the 20th Century."

During Operation Desert Storm, Gen Schwarzkopf famously used one of his regular news conferences to taunt his opponent.

"As far as Saddam Hussein being a great military strategist, he is neither a strategist, nor is schooled in the operational art, nor is he a tactician, nor is he a general, nor is he a soldier: other than that, he's a great military man - I want you to know that," he said.

Gen Schwarzkopf's sometimes fiery temper meant that he clashed with subordinates and superiors alike, including the then Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen Colin Powell.

Despite this and his bluff appearance, he was smarter and more diplomatic than many critics gave him credit for, says BBC world affairs correspondent Nick Childs.

After the first Gulf War Gen Schwarzkopf became a national celebrity, but always rejected suggestions that he run for office himself.

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Putin makes US adoption ban law

28 December 2012 Last updated at 09:54 ET

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed into law a ban on Americans adopting Russian orphans.

The law is a reaction to the US Magnitsky Act, which blacklists Russian officials accused of rights abuses.

The death of anti-corruption lawyer Sergei Magnitsky in 2009 became a symbol of the fight against corruption in Russia, and soured relations between Russia and the US.

The US state department says it "deeply regrets" the passing of the law.

On Friday, a Moscow court acquitted a prison doctor accused of negligence over Magnitsky's death. It was the only trial to be held in the case.

The judge said Dmitry Kratov had acted appropriately when Magnitsky fell ill in jail. Mr Kratov was deputy head of the high-security Butyrka prison in Moscow at the time.

A Russian official report last year concluded that Magnitsky had been tortured and handcuffed in jail.

Magnitsky represented London-based Hermitage Capital Management (HCM). He uncovered what he described as a web of corruption involving Russian tax officials, including the alleged theft of more than $200m (£125m).

After reporting it to the authorities, he was himself detained on suspicion of aiding tax evasion, and died in custody on 16 November 2009 at the age of 37.

US-born fund manager Bill Browder, who runs Hermitage Capital, spearheaded efforts in the US to put pressure on Russia over the Magnitsky case. Mr Browder was a major investor in Russia before Magnitsky's arrest.

Earlier this month the US Congress adopted the Magnitsky Act, prompting Russia's retaliation. The EU has also criticised Russia over its handling of the case.

Mr Putin signed the Russian law after it had been approved by the Russian parliament.

He told officials he saw no reason not to sign it, and said he would sign a presidential decree to "modify the support mechanisms for orphaned children".

"There are lots of places in the world where living standards are higher than they are here," Mr Putin said.

"Are we going to send all our children there? Perhaps we should move there ourselves?"

Some 3,400 Russian children were adopted by foreign families in 2011, almost one-third of the children going to American homes.

Over the same period, the number of children adopted by Russian citizens was 7,416.

In the past two decades Americans have adopted more than 60,000 Russian children.

"The Russian government's politically motivated decision will reduce adoption possibilities for children who are now under institutional care," US state department spokesman Patrick Ventrell said.

"We are further concerned about statements that adoptions already underway may be stopped and hope that the Russian government would allow those children who have already met and bonded with their future parents to finish the necessary legal procedures so that they can join their families," he added.

Suspicious death

The Moscow judge ruled on Friday that Mr Kratov had organised Magnitsky's transfer to hospital and had "taken all the necessary measures to treat the illnesses" that Magnitsky was suffering from.

Magnitsky had pancreatitis, but an investigation by Russia's presidential council on human rights concluded that he had been severely beaten and denied medical treatment.

The council's report, compiled while Dmitry Medvedev was president, singled out senior interior ministry investigator Oleg Silchenko and prison chief Ivan Prokopenko as being at fault for neglect over the lawyer's death.

The document said they "obstructed" his medical care by moving him to another prison just before he was due to have an operation, where there was a criminal failure to provide him with care in the last days of his life.

Magnitsky's mother, widow and lawyers believe that Mr Kratov has been used as a decoy by the authorities to protect the real culprits in the lawyer's death.

Mr Kratov's assistant Larisa Litvinova had also been a suspect in the case, but the investigation into her actions was dropped in April.

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Woman held in firemen deaths case

28 December 2012 Last updated at 16:37 ET

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The BBC's Adam McIlrick reports on the events of the Christmas Eve shooting

A 24-year-old woman has been arrested in connection with the guns used in the shooting of two firefighters in the state of New York on Christmas Eve.

Dawn Nguyen faces a state charge of filing a false business record, police said, with a federal charge pending.

Her brother, Steven Nguyen, told local media the guns used to kill the firemen had been stolen from his sister.

William Spengler is alleged to have shot dead two firemen who arrived to tackle a fire at his home in Webster.

Police said they found a long note from Spengler, 62, outlining his plans, in which he said he was planning to "do what I like doing best - killing people".

Seven homes on a narrow stretch of land beside Lake Ontario were destroyed by the fire. Another two firemen and an off-duty police officer were wounded in the attack.

Police said the charge against Ms Nguyen was connected to the sale of an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle and a 12-gauge shotgun that the attacker had with him on the night of the shooting, according to the Associated Press.

A third gun, a Bushmaster .223 calibre rifle with flash suppression, is believed to have been used in the attack but Ms Nguyen is not thought to be connected to that weapon.

Ms Nguyen and her mother Dawn Welsher had lived next door to Spengler in 2008.

Spengler had served 17 years in jail for killing his grandmother with a hammer but had done nothing to attract the authorities' attention since being granted parole in 1998.

As a convicted criminal, he was not allowed to own weapons.

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Obama 'optimistic' on cliff deal

28 December 2012 Last updated at 19:11 ET

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US President Barack Obama: "An agreement is being discussed as we speak"

US President Barack Obama says he is "modestly optimistic" that a deal to avoid the "fiscal cliff" is possible, after a last-ditch White House meeting.

Mr Obama said Senate leaders were working to craft a bill that could win approval in both chambers of Congress.

But if a compromise was not reached, the president said he would ask for a quick vote on preventing tax rises.

Congress has only four days to reach an agreement before across-the-board tax rises and spending cuts take effect.

Analysts say sliding over the so-called "cliff" could tip the US into recession and set back the global economic recovery.

If Senate majority leader Harry Reid and minority leader Mitch McConnell do not work out a deal, Mr Obama is seeking a vote to prevent tax rises on incomes up to $250,000 (£150,000) and ensure unemployment insurance is continued.

He described that as the "bare minimum" Congress should get done before 1 January.

"The hour for immediate action is here, it is now," Mr Obama said.

'Imperfect' deal

Earlier on Friday, Mr Obama met Mr Reid, Mr McConnell, House Speaker John Boehner and House minority leader Nancy Pelosi at the White House for just over an hour.

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

"The American people are watching what we do here - obviously their patience is already thin"

End Quote Barack Obama

Mr McConnell and Mr Reid said they were entering talks shortly after the meeting, and gave relatively upbeat assessments on their task.

Mr McConnell said he was "hopeful and optimistic" that he could present a comprise to his caucus by Sunday, just over 24 hours before the deadline.

His Democratic counterpart said he would "do everything I can" to make the deal happened.

But Mr Reid cautioned that "whatever we come up with is going to be imperfect".

The renewed effort towards a Senate deal that could pass both chambers comes after much of the focus in negotiations rested on House Speaker John Boehner.

An alternative plan proposed by Mr Boehner - which would have seen taxes rise only on those earning over $1m - failed in the House of Representatives late last week.

Continue reading the main story

What is the fiscal cliff?

• On 1 January 2013, tax increases and huge spending cuts are due to come into force - the so-called fiscal cliff
• Deadline was put in place in 2011 to force president and Congress to agree ways to save money over the next 10 years
• Fear is that raising taxes while massively cutting spending will have huge impact on households and businesses
• Experts believe it could push the US into recession, and have a global impact on growth

Mr Boehner has called the lower chamber into session on Sunday. A staff member in the house speaker's office told Reuters that the House would consider Senate legislation.

"The Speaker told the president that if the Senate amends the House-passed legislation and sends back a plan, the House will consider it - either by accepting or amending," the unnamed aide said.

Mr Obama's plans to increase taxes on the wealthiest Americans have remained a point of division between the two parties since he won re-election in November.

Many Republicans oppose new taxes as a matter of principle, and are demanding cuts to what they see as deficit-inflating public spending, putting at risk healthcare and welfare benefit schemes popular with Democrats.

During the news conference on Friday, Mr Obama said any last minute action on tax rises would form the groundwork for further negotiations in the new year.

"The American people are watching what we do here," he said. "Obviously their patience is already thin."

Cuts and benefits

The term fiscal cliff refers to the combination of almost $600bn (£370bn) of tax rises and spending cuts due to come into force on 1 January if Congress does not pass new legislation.

Sweeping tax cuts passed during the presidency of George W Bush will expire, eventually affecting people of all income levels, and many businesses.

Other tax cuts and benefits set to expire include:

• A 2010 payroll tax cut, the expiration of which would prompt immediate wage-packet cuts

• Benefits for the long-term unemployed

• Compensation for doctors treating patients on federal healthcare programmes

• Inheritance taxes are also likely to be affected if no deal is reached.

In addition, spending cuts mandated by a law passed to break a previous fiscal impasse in Congress will come into force, affecting both military and domestic budgets.

The cuts are expected to affect federal government departments and the defence sector, as well as hitting unemployment insurance and veterans' support.

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US seeks 'drug lord' extradition

28 December 2012 Last updated at 20:24 ET

Prosecutors in the United States have requested the extradition of one of Colombia's most wanted drug dealers, detained two months ago in Argentina.

Henry de Jesus Lopez Londono, known as Mi Sangre or My Blood, is the alleged leader of the Urabenos gang, which operates in northern Colombia.

Argentine media reported that he was due to be released on 2 January unless there was a formal extradition request.

Lopez entered Argentina with a false passport, police said.

The 41-year-old Colombian posed as a Venezuelan businessman, travelling for work.

He was arrested with his wife and 10 bodyguards in Buenos Aires on 30 October.

Henry Lopez insists that he has been the victim of "a plot".

He was officially notified of the request made by a court in southern Florida, official Argentine news agency Telam said.

The extradition process is expected to last four months.

Cartel contacts

Officers from the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, the Colombian police and the Argentine police force had been tracking him for months prior to his arrest, tapping his phone, monitoring his cars via satellite and infiltrating his inner circle.

They said he, his wife, two children and bodyguards had constantly moved between five different residences.

According to police, Mi Sangre had arrived in Argentina two years earlier, but had travelled between Venezuela, Uruguay, Ecuador, Mexico and Paraguay arranging drug deals.

They said that only minutes before his arrest he had met a member of the Mexican drug cartel Los Zetas, for whom he provided much of the drugs.

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New York murders at record low

28 December 2012 Last updated at 21:57 ET

The number of murders in New York City is expected to hit a record low this year, as officials credited police efforts in reducing crime.

So far, there have been 414 homicides in the city, down 19% from 2011 and the fewest since reliable records began in 1963.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg said the number showed that "the safest big city in America is safer".

Meanwhile, Chicago has hit 500 murders for the year.

The US' third largest city has seen a wave of gang violence in the past year, including one weekend day on which six people died.

'Stop-and-frisk'

Mr Bloomberg and New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly announced the numbers during a police academy graduation on Friday.

The 2012 murder rate was less than a fifth of the city's record of 2,245 homicides in 1990.

The drop in the murder rate is "a testament to the hard work and determination of the men and women who put their lives on the line for us every day, "Mr Bloomberg said. "And it also reflects our commitment to doing everything possible to stop gun violence."

Continue reading the main story

When people ask me, 'What's different about Chicago?' that's one of the things I tell them. We have a proliferation of illegal firearms"

End Quote Garry McCarthy Chicago police superintendent

In a statement, Mr Kelly attributed the decline to the increasing use of stop-and-frisk, a controversial tactic where police can stop and search people on the street they consider suspicious.

"We're preventing crimes before someone is killed and before someone else has to go to prison for murder or other serious crimes," he said.

Civil rights groups and some local politicians have criticised the practice, saying that most people stopped turn out to be innocent, and that it unfairly targets black and Latino men.

Other crimes like rapes, robberies, assaults and burglaries were up slightly in the city, while grand larceny went up by 9%, due to increased thefts of electronic devices.

Gangs and guns

Chicago recorded its 500th murder on Friday.

While the city's murder rate is now higher than New York City, Chicago has only about one-third of New York's population.

Most of the violence has been in Chicago's troubled south and west sides, but there also have been a handful of incidents in the downtown area.

Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy and other officials blame the death toll on a splintering of the city's traditional gangs as well as a large number of illegal guns available in the city.

"In the first six months of the year, we seized three guns for every gun seized in Los Angeles and nine guns for every gun confiscated by the New York Police Department," Mr McCarthy said.

"When people ask me, 'What's different about Chicago?' that's one of the things I tell them. We have a proliferation of illegal firearms," he said.

Illinois does not ban assault weapons and the high-capacity magazines as do New York and California.

The city's homicides were 80% gang-related, and 80% of the victims were black, although only 33% of the city's population is black.

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US man 'pushed in front of train'

28 December 2012 Last updated at 22:02 ET

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CCTV footage shows a woman running after the incident took place

US police are searching for a woman alleged to have pushed a passenger in front of an oncoming train in New York.

Eyewitnesses said the man was standing on a platform at the subway station in Queens when a woman rose from a bench and shoved him onto the tracks.

In December, a homeless man was charged with murder for pushing a passenger to his death in the Times Square subway.

The incident caused an outcry after a tabloid published a photo showing the victim moments away from being struck.

On Friday, police identified the victim as 46-year-old Sunando Sen, originally from India and a resident of Queens.

Investigators identified Sen through a smart phone and a prescription pill bottle he was carrying.

No surveillance footage

Thursday's incident took place at the 40th Street-Lowery Street subway station near Queens Boulevard in the Sunnyside neighbourhood of the borough of Queens in New York City.

Witnesses said that moments before the attack the female assailant was talking to herself while walking up and down the platform, before eventually sitting down on a bench.

As the train approached, the suspect rose from her seat and pushed Sen, who stood with his back to her, onto the tracks, Deputy Commissioner Paul Brown said in a statement.

The man's body was pinned under the front of a carriage as the train came to a halt. Police are still trying to identify the badly damaged body of the victim, the Associated Press news agency reports.

The woman then fled the scene. It is unclear whether she knew her victim.

Police released a grainy, black-and-white video of a woman thought to be the assailant running down Queens Boulevard.

She was described by police as Hispanic, in her 20s, and "heavy-set".

They said she was approximately 5ft 5in (165cm) tall with blonde or brown hair, and was wearing a blue, white and grey ski jacket and Nike trainers.

In the last fatal subway push, on 3 December, Ki-Suck Han was shoved by Naeem Davis onto the track at 49th Street station near Times Square.

Freelance photographer R Umar Abbasi, who had been waiting on the platform, was criticised for taking pictures of the victim instead of trying to help.

Mr Abbasi said he was trying to get the train driver's attention with his camera flash.

The New York Post tabloid also came under fire over its decision to publish the image.

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Race to beat wind energy deadline

28 December 2012 Last updated at 22:14 ET By Matt McGrath Environment correspondent, BBC News

US energy companies are racing to install wind turbines before a federal tax credit expires at the end of this year.

Experts say that wind power has exceeded the construction of natural gas plants in recent months.

However the financial incentive for wind could be lost as congress struggles to avoid financial deadlock.

Even if the credit is extended it is expected that new installations will decline in 2013.

According to industry analysts, the federal government's production tax credit has played an important role in the expansion of wind energy across the US since it was first introduced in 1992.

Wind passes gas

At that point there was less than 1.5 gigawatts of power generating capacity provided by wind across the country. That figure has grown dramatically. This year has seen around 12 gigawatts of wind power capacity installed, outpacing even natural gas projects which have boomed on the back of cheap shale.

Continue reading the main story

There's a lot of rushing right now to get projects completed by the end of the year"

End Quote Rob Gramlich American Wind Energy Association

The government subsidy works out at 2.2 cents per kilowatt hour of power produced over ten years. This amounts to around $1m (£620,000) for every large turbine. However the deadline is absolute - to get the money the blades on new installations must be turning and generating power before the 31st of December.

"There's a lot of rushing right now to get projects completed by the end of the year," says Rob Gramlich, senior vice president at the American Wind Energy Association.

"It is not a great way to run a business with this policy-induced uncertainty."

The tax credit has proved contentious with some lawmakers criticising it as too generous. It lapsed previously in 1999, 2001 and 2003. Each time it lead to a collapse in new construction.

The American Wind Energy Association are hoping the tax credit will be passed as part of a compromise package of legislation to help the US avoid the so-called fiscal cliff. The say the most likely outcome is a short term extension of the subsidy.

"There's a good chance we could get this extension, it is very hard to predict, but the industry is not making bets on the Congress getting it done," says Mr Gramlich,

Even if there is an extension there is likely to be a significant curtailment of wind installations in 2013. Wind energy companies say they need longer time frames to negotiate deals to sell the power they generate.

Iberdrola Renewables is the second largest developer of wind power projects in the United States. The company is racing to finalise new wind installations in Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

However the prospects for new turbines in 2013 are slim according to Paul Copleman, communications manager for Iberdrola.

"Even if the tax credit is extended, our new construction plans likely will be ramped back substantially in 2013 compared with the last few years. So much time has passed without certainty that a normal one-year extension would not be a game-changer for our 2013 build plans."

Some analysts argue that all subsidies to wind should end and the industry should stand on its own two feet. They say that the current arrangements mean that energy companies continue to make money even when there is a surplus of wind and the market price is negative.

Dan Kish is with the Institute for Energy Research, a body long critical of subsidies for renewables. He told BBC News the extension of the tax credit was expensive, unnecessary and destabilising to the electricity grid.

"Wind produces power at a fraction of its stated capacity, and is increasingly adding unnecessary costs to consumers, just as it is in the UK," he said

"They are creations of government and serve only to make their builders and owners wealthy at the expense of the public."

Follow Matt on Twitter.

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Rescue Me singer Bass dies at 72

27 December 2012 Last updated at 15:21 ET

The American soul singer, Fontella Bass, best remembered for the hit single Rescue Me, has died of complications following a heart attack. She was 72.

She had been in poor health for much of the past seven years.

Rescue Me reached the top of the US R&B chart in 1965 and is one of the best known soul songs. It has been covered by many artists.

Fontella Bass had a powerful voice and a background steeped in music.

Her mother was gospel singer Martha Bass, one of the Clara Ward Singers and Fontella Bass began performing at a young age, singing in her church's choir at the age of six.

Like many of her generation, she graduated to soul and R&B in the 60s, signing to Chess Records.

She first found success in a duet with Bobby McClure on Don't Mess Up a Good Thing and You'll Miss Me (When I'm Gone).

She co-wrote Rescue Me, a song her daughter Neuka Mitchell said "held a special place in her heart".

But it took years of legal battles for her to receive full royalty rights to the song. A final settlement was reached more than 20 years after the song was first released.

Ms Mitchell said her mother was an outgoing person. "She had a very big personality. Any room she entered, she just lit the room up, whether she was on stage or just going out to eat."

Fontella Bass was married to the great jazz trumpeter, Lester Bowie, who was her musical director.

She died in the city where she was born, St Louis, Missouri.

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Apple's boss in massive pay cut

27 December 2012 Last updated at 16:49 ET

Tim Cook will take home a salary of just 1% of the $378m (£235m) he received to be Apple's boss last year.

In a regulatory filing, the iPhone-maker's head said he would get a salary of $1.4m and a bonus of $2.8m for 2012.

Most of his money from 2011 came from a grant of shares awarded for becoming the chief executive, and Apple said he would not get any new shares.

"Mr Cook's target cash compensation remains significantly below the median for CEOs of peer companies," it said.

Last year, following the death of co-founder Steve Jobs, Mr Cook received a bonus in the form of stock of more than $370m, making him reportedly the best-paid boss in the US.

His base salary was $900,000. His predecessor, Steve Jobs, famously had an annual salary of $1.

Mr Cook's salary was raised to $1.4m and he received a bonus of 200% of his salary for exceeding Apple's own targets in a year when its profit grew 61% to $41.7bn and Apple became for a time the most valuable company in the world.

"Mr Cook did not receive an RSU [restricted stock unit] award in 2012 in light of the RSU award he received in connection with his promotion to CEO in August 2011," Apple said.

It added: "Following a recommendation by Mr Cook to the Compensation Committee, the company adopted stock ownership guidelines for the CEO and the non-employee directors. Under the guidelines, Mr Cook is expected to own shares of company common stock that have a value equal to ten times his base salary."

His colleagues received hefty pay packages after a successful year. Bob Mansfield, senior vice president of technologies, will get almost $86m and chief financial officer Peter Oppenheimer will receive $68.6m.

Earlier this year, Apple's shares touched a high of $644, surpassing $600bn in market value and making the company the world's most valuable firm.

Apple's share price has dropped 24% in the last three months and is now around $515 a share.

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