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NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Country music singer Gretchen Wilson has a mantel full of awards in her Lebanon home. Her first radio single, “Redneck Woman,” spent five weeks at No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart and it earned her a 2005 Grammy. Her debut album sold 4.5 million copies. …

WASHINGTON – The United States said Friday it has reached a deal with North Korea to provide 500,000 metric tons of food aid over the coming year to the closed-off communist nation. The Bush administration says the aid is unrelated to its nuclear disarmament deal with Pyongyang, although both have …

A snapping turtle that was supposed to bring good luck to a York, Pa., Chinese restaurant is bringing nothing but trouble after causing health officials to shut down the establishment. Owner Jim Zhao is working to bring his Panda Chinese Kitchen back up to code and hopes to be able …

Los Angeles – Sacha Baron Cohen, Marion Cotillard, Ruby Dee and Jet Li have been invited to join Hollywood’s most exclusive club — the group that hands out the Academy Awards. They were among 105 actors, filmmakers, executives and others in the movie business who were asked to become members …

BEIJING – A lion attacked a 10-year-old boy visiting a circus in eastern China, biting off his arm through the bars of its cage, state media said Monday. The boy was looking at the lion Saturday at Wanfota Park in Mengcheng, a county in Anhui province, when the feline lunged …

PARIS – President Nicolas Sarkozy and his wife, Carla Bruni, won a lawsuit against Irish low-cost airline Ryanair, which was ordered to pay nearly $89,000 for an advertisement featuring a photo of the couple. Sarkozy and Bruni filed separate lawsuits that were heard together in a court session in Paris, …

A high school sophomore arguing with another student shot him during a gym class Monday, saying “It’s over now” before handing the gun to a coach, authorities said. The victim, a 19-year-old senior, suffered at least two gunshot wounds and was taken to a hospital in critical condition, police spokeswoman …

KHARTOUM, Sudan – A Sudanese school office assistant denied Thursday she brought on the case four months ago against a British school teacher convicted of insulting Islam for letting her 6-year-old pupils name a teddy bear Muhammad — a violation under Sudan’s Islamic Sharia law. Sarah Khawad, who worked at …

SAO PAULO, Brazil – Naomi Campbell was hospitalized in Sao Paulo for the removal of a small cyst, her publicist said Tuesday. The 37-year-old British supermodel, a frequent visitor to Brazil who earlier this month celebrated Carnival in the northeastern city of Salvador, came to Sao Paulo to be treated …

LOS ANGELES – A moderate earthquake rocked Baja California in Mexico, shutting down factories near the U.S. border and leaving about 400,000 people without power, authorities said Saturday. No major damage or injuries were immediately reported. The quake that struck around 11:15 p.m. Friday had a preliminary magnitude of 5.4, …