DAMASCUS (AP) — A UN investigator on Tuesday interviewed Syrian President Bashar Assad about the assassination of a former Lebanese prime minister, an encounter the Syrian leader had previously twice declined.

DAHAB (Reuters) — Egyptian police detained at least 10 people, including computer engineers, on Tuesday in connection with a triple bombing that killed at least 18 people and wounded scores in the Red Sea tourist resort of Dahab.

WASHINGTON — A must-pass spending bill to pay for the rising costs of the war in Iraq and for additional hurricane aid for the storm-ravaged northern coast of the Gulf of Mexico Coast is debuting on the Senate floor to poor reviews from conservatives over its massive cost.