World/Nation
Cars engulfed as rain sets record for Phoenix
PHOENIX - The remnants of Hurricane Norbert pushed into the desert Southwest and swamped Phoenix with record rainfall for a single day, turning freeways into small lakes and sending rescuers scrambling to get drivers out of inundated cars.
At least two people died in the flooding, including a woman who was swept away in her car by rushing water and became trapped against a bridge. In addition, a 76-year-old woman drowned in floodwaters.
By Monday evening, floodwaters were threatening up to 100 homes in suburban Mesa after retention basins and channels along the U.S. 60 freeway reached or exceeded capacity, allowing water to flow into some neighborhoods, city officials said.
Crews were working to disconnect power to submerged transformers, provide sandbags to threatened homes and pump water from affected areas. A temporary shelter was being set up at a recreation center for those choosing to voluntarily evacuate.
The flooding was caused by heavy thunderstorms and showers associated with Norbert after it was downgraded to a tropical depression.
Storms also hit Nevada, where 190 people from an Indian reservation were evacuated Monday and officials feared riverbanks could overflow after 4 inches of rain fell in a two-hour period in the small town of Moapa, northeast of Las Vegas.
Obama eyes broader mission to fight militants
WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama will go on the offensive against the Islamic State group with a broader counterterror mission than he previously has been willing to embrace, U.S. officials said Monday. The new plan, however, still won't commit U.S. troops to a ground war against the brutal insurgency and will rely heavily for now on allies to pitch in for what could be an extended campaign.
Obama's more aggressive posture - which officials say will target Islamic State militants comprehensively and not just to protect U.S. interests or help resolve humanitarian disasters - reflects a new direction for a president who campaigned to end the war in Iraq and has generally been deeply reluctant to use U.S. military might since he took office in 2009.
"Almost every single country on Earth has a role to play in eliminating the ISIL threat and the evil that it represents," Secretary of State John Kerry told reporters Monday night, using an acronym for the Islamic State. He said nations around the world are seeking to defeat the militancy with a coalition "built to endure for the months, and perhaps years, to come."
The U.S. has already launched more than 100 airstrikes against militant targets in Iraq, including a new series that the military said killed an unusually large number of Islamic State fighters. A Central Command statement Monday said the strikes hit targets near the Haditha Dam, and a spokesman, Maj. Curtis Kellogg, said 50 to 70 fighters were targeted and most were believed to have been killed.
Now, after the beheadings of two American freelance journalists, Obama is considering expanding the airstrikes campaign into Syria, where the Islamic State has a safe haven. Obama has long avoided taking military action in Syria, concerned about indirectly assisting President Bashar Assad and his government in Damascus. But White House spokesman Josh Earnest suggested Monday that the U.S. could be moving in that direction, saying Obama was willing "to go wherever is necessary to strike those who are threatening Americans."
EU adopts new sanctions against Russia
BRUSSELS - The European Union on Monday shied away from slapping new economic sanctions on Russia right away over its actions in eastern Ukraine. Instead, the 28-nation bloc said the punitive measures will come into force "in the next few days" depending on how well the cease-fire agreement in eastern Ukraine will be upheld.
European Council President Herman Van Rompuy said in a statement delaying the sanctions would leave time for "an assessment of the implementation of the cease-fire agreement and the peace plan."
"Depending on the situation on the ground, the EU stands ready to review the agreed sanctions in whole or in part," Van Rompuy said.
Ukraine, Russia and the Kremlin-backed separatists agreed Friday to an immediate cease-fire and an exchange of prisoners. While the truce appeared to hold on Monday, the agreement seemed fragile over the weekend when occasional fighting occurred.
- The Associated Press