http://www.mynorthwest.com MyNorthwest.com delivers up-to-the-minute local news and information for Seattle and the greater Puget Sound area. en-us 15 144 21 http://www.mynorthwest.com http://www.mynorthwest.com/img/lg_mynw_144x21.gif http://www.mynorthwest.com?nid=17&sid=88360 By ARON HELLER Associated Press Writer JERUSALEM (AP) - Vice President Joe Biden condemned an Israeli plan to build hundreds of homes in disputed east Jerusalem on Tuesday, casting a cloud over a high-profile visit that had been aimed at repairing ties with the Jewish state and kickstarting Mideast peace talks. Israels Interior Ministry said late Tuesday that it had approved construction of 1,600 new apartments, an embarrassing setback for Biden after a day of warm meetings with top Israeli officials. Although ministry officials said the announcement was procedural and unconnected to the visit, a top aide to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was blindsided and tried to contain the damage at a late-night dinner with Biden. Nonetheless, Biden issued a harshly worded statement after the dinner, saying its timing was especially troubling by coming on the eve of a new round of U.S.-mediated peace talks. "The substance and timing of the announcement, particularly with the launching of proximity talks, is precisely the kind of step that undermines the trust we need right now," Biden said. "We must build an atmosphere to support negotiations, not complicate them," he added, warning that "unilateral action taken by either party cannot prejudge the outcome of negotiations." Relations between Israel and the Obama administration have been chilly precisely because of the settlement issue, and one of Bidens main goals had been to try to patch up ties. Tue, 09 Mar 2010 14:57:04 PST http://www.mynorthwest.com?nid=17&sid=90805 BAGHDAD (AP) - The U.S. Tue, 09 Mar 2010 14:28:36 PST http://www.mynorthwest.com?nid=17&sid=289949 By DAVID STRINGER Associated Press Writer LONDON (AP) - United States intelligence agencies misled key allies, including Britain, about its mistreatment of suspected terrorists, the former head of the countrys domestic spy agency, MI5, said Tuesday. Eliza Manningham-Buller, who retired in 2007 and is now a member of the House of Lords, said the U.S. Tue, 09 Mar 2010 14:28:28 PST http://www.mynorthwest.com?nid=17&sid=295323 By MELISSA EDDY and ALESSANDRA RIZZO Associated Press Writers BERLIN (AP) - The popes brother said in a newspaper interview published Tuesday that he slapped pupils as punishment after he took over a renowned German boys choir in the 1960s. Tue, 09 Mar 2010 14:07:34 PST http://www.mynorthwest.com?nid=17&sid=262813 By JON GAMBRELL Associated Press Writer JOS, Nigeria (AP) - Automatic weapons fire punctuated by screams erupted after dark Tuesday in a Nigerian city located near villages where massacres just two days ago left more than 200 people dead. Nerves remained on edge, despite a long-standing dusk-til-dawn curfew in Jos, the capital of Plateau state. Tue, 09 Mar 2010 14:02:54 PST http://www.mynorthwest.com?nid=17&sid=295543 BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) - An Iranian accused of masterminding the 1994 bombing of a Jewish cultural center that killed 85 people dismissed the allegations as "lies" on Tuesday and said he wont appear before an Argentine court. Moshen Rabbani, Irans former cultural attache in Buenos Aires, was interviewed on Radio Cooperativa by Argentine protest leader Luis DElia during a trip to Tehran. Tue, 09 Mar 2010 13:42:45 PST http://www.mynorthwest.com?nid=17&sid=295677 LONDON (AP) - A soldier in the British army in Afghanistan has described how he saved the lives of two comrades by picking up a live Taliban grenade and throwing it back toward the enemy. Rifleman James McKie says he scooped up the hand grenade _ which landed at his feet while he was on a rooftop in Sangin, southern Afghanistan on March 3 _ and threw it straight back at insurgents. McKie says the device exploded in mid air just meters away from where they were standing. Tue, 09 Mar 2010 13:42:25 PST http://www.mynorthwest.com?nid=17&sid=276831 By ALAN CLENDENNING Associated Press Writer BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) - Brazils president warned Tuesday that U.S.-proposed sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program could lead to war, and said he will make his own efforts to head off further conflicts _ an example he said shows his countrys growing global prominence. President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said in an interview with The Associated Press that sanctions would likely push Iran further from the bargaining table. Tue, 09 Mar 2010 13:34:35 PST http://www.mynorthwest.com?nid=17&sid=295345 By DIAA HADID Associated Press Writer JERUSALEM (AP) - Israeli police are improperly arresting Palestinian boys in nighttime raids in Jerusalem that involve assault rifle wielding security forces handcuffing minors and interrogating them without lawyers or parents, an Israeli rights group charged Tuesday. Most of the youths were accused of hurling rocks at Jewish settlers and damaging their property in the east Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan, where tensions are high between settlers and Palestinian residents. Tue, 09 Mar 2010 13:27:49 PST http://www.mynorthwest.com?nid=17&sid=295623 By LIBARDO CARDONA Associated Press Writer BOGOTA (AP) - Evaristo Porras, a former high-flying Medellin cartel drug trafficker associated with Pablo Escobar in the 1980s, has died at age 62, reportedly in economic ruin. Porras death was confirmed by the Gaviria funeral home in Bogota, which said he was buried on Friday. Tue, 09 Mar 2010 12:48:41 PST