Michael Jackson Pepsi Burn Accident Video

Us Weekly magazine has obtained video it says shows never-before-seen footage of Michael Jackson's head catching on fire during filming of his 1984 Pepsi commercial. Jackson suffered severe burns after a pyrotechnics mishap caused his hair and scalp to catch afire. Still photos of the accident have been seen before, but the new video on Us Weekly's Web site shows the moment Jackson's hair caught on fire and the top of his head became engulfed in flames.

Obama To Address NAACP

U.S. - President Barack Obama is telling the nation's oldest civil rights organization that government, families and neighborhoods must work together to improve their communities. Obama also planned to urge young people to aspire to surpass their role models and resist the lure of mediocrity during a speech Thursday to the NAACP. White House aides said the president did not intend to introduce new programs or policy, instead striking an inspirational tone on the 100th birthday of the civil rights groups.

U.S. Health Care Bill: House Democrats Ready To Vote

U.S. - House Democrats are preparing to advance legislation that would deliver on President Barack Obama's promise to remake the nation's costly health care system and cover some 50 million uninsured. On the heels of the Senate health committee's approval Wednesday of a plan to revamp U.S. health care, three House committees with jurisdiction over the issue were shifting into action.

Pictures Of The Day - (July 15 2009)

British Soldiers Killed In Afghanistan Flown Home

Iranian Airliner Crashes: 168 Feared Dead

Iran Plane Crashes - An Iranian airliner crashed into farmland in the northwest of the country on Wednesday, and all 168 people on board are believed to be dead, local media reported. The Caspian Airlines plane crashed near the city of Qazvin, northwest of the capital, just 16 minutes after takeoff from Tehran's international Imam Khomeiny airport, local media said.

Mogadishu Insurgents Kidnapped French Agents

MOGADISHU — Two French security agents kidnapped from their hotel in Mogadishu have been passed on to hardline Islamist insurgents in the Somali capital, a security official said Wednesday.

"The two French hostages have now changed hands, they are held by Islamist rebels in Mogadishu. Talks with the government for their release are still ongoing," the high-ranking security official said on condition of anonymity.

Nigerian Rebels Declare Oil War Truce

LAGOS — Nigeria's main militant group on Wednesday declared a 60-day truce in its "oil war" with the government after the release of its leader Henry Okah under an amnesty deal. The second militant truce in less than a year came into effect just 48 hours after the rebels blew up an oil docking harbour in Lagos in their first attack outside the main Niger Delta oil producing region.

Mir Hossein Mousavi Plans New Political Front

Mir Hossein Mousavi - Iranian opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi plans to unveil a new political front which will keep up a protest campaign against last month's disputed presidential election, an aide said.

"The establishment of this front is on Mir Hossein Mousavi's agenda and we will soon announce its establishment," Alireza Beheshti was quoted as saying in the reformist newspaper Sarmayeh.

U.S. General Says U.S. Ready For North Korean Attack

U.S. - The top U.S. military commander in Korea said Tuesday that U.S. and South Korean forces are prepared for "anything North Korea can throw at us," regardless of the state of leader Kim Jong Il's health or of internal North Korean politics. General Walter "Skip" Sharp told reporters that Kim should stop threatening the world with nuclear and missile tests and instead take care of his people and follow through on past commitments to abandon nuclear weapons programs.

Thousands Pay Respects To 8 Soldiers Killed In Afghanistan

Thousands of people paid their respects on Tuesday to eight soldiers killed in Britain's bloodiest 24-hour period in Afghanistan. Crowds lined the streets as the coffins draped in Union Jack flags were driven slowly through the small town of Wootton Bassett in Wiltshire, after the bodies were flown to a nearby airbase. Friends and relatives of the dead tossed flowers on to the hearses and the sound of sobbing could be heard above a ripple of applause.

8 British Soldiers' Bodies Flown Home

U.K. - The bodies of eight British soldiers killed in Afghanistan in a single 24-hour period have been flown back home to Britain. Thousands of people are expected to line the streets as their coffins are driven through Wootton Bassett, near RAF Lyneham, in Wiltshire.

Iran Hangs 13 Members Of Sunni Muslim Group

Iran — Authorities in southeastern Iran on Tuesday hanged 13 members of a Sunni Muslim rebel group convicted of bombings and killings in the area, the official IRNA news agency reported Tuesday. The report said Abdulhamid Rigi, brother of Abdulmalik Rigi, leader of the group known as Jundallah or soldiers of God, had been scheduled to be hanged along with the 13 men on Tuesday but his execution was postponed. It gave no reason for the postponement.