Recent polls suggest that, for the first time, more than half of Americans don’t approve of President Bush’s handling of the Iraq war, and much of the disaffection has to do with the relentless criticism he’s endured in the press. But before America’s armada of armchair strategists offer their next …

Golden Globes Golden Globes Go Big for Small Films The Hollywood Foreign Press gave the major motion picture studios a little jolt this morning. Wherever they could, the 90-member group veered off the page toward independent films and HBO offerings, leaving crumbs for the big boys. MPAA head Jack Valenti …

And now the most absorbing two minutes in television, the latest from the wartime grapevine: FOX Fans: Missed the Grapevine? Watch it in the Screening Room! Shocking Showdown Shock, not joy, seems to have been the prevailing reaction to yesterday’s events in Baghdad from people across the Arab world, whose …

BRUSSELS – The European Union has approved new rules that clamps down on the use of flimsy plastic bags that are hazardous for the environment. The 28 member nations on Monday gave final approval to the rules that mean consumers may be obliged to use sturdier, re-usable bags or face …

HELSINKI – Thousands of passengers have been stranded across Scandinavia as a strike by pilots of Norwegian Air Shuttle continued for a fifth day. Norwegian CEO Bjoern Kjos says it’s “terribly tragic” that 35,000 air travelers were being hit by the strike after several rounds of talks with pilots’ representatives …

BEIRUT – Al-Qaida’s Syrian affiliate is confirming that its top field commander has been killed in an airstrike. A spokesman for the Nusra Front was quoted on a prominent militant website Friday as saying the group’s “military commander” Abu Hommam al-Shami was killed a day earlier when an airstrike targeted …

MADRID – A Barcelona judge has issued a landmark ruling that three sex workers should have been hired full-time by a brothel owner. The judge ordered the brothel owner to make payments to the government so the prostitutes will be eligible for Spanish national health care, disability insurance, government pensions …

LONDON – A report led by the Great Manchester Police has criticized its own officers for failing to recognize the scale of child sex abuse in a northern town and putting too much emphasis on the credibility of the victims. The report Friday looked into how officers handled the abuse …

BUCHAREST, Romania – Authorities say a 4.6-magnitude earthquake has shaken eastern Romania, and was felt in the capital. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries. The National Earth Physics Institute director Constantin Ionescu said the quake occurred Monday at 5:49 p.m. (1549 GMT) in the region of Vrancea, …

JERUSALEM – Israelis woke up Wednesday morning to find that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing Likud Party came in first in parliamentary elections. It was a stunning turnaround after a tight race that had put his lengthy rule in jeopardy. Here is how things could play out now: ___ HOW …