Tuesday,  April 23, 2013 • Vol. 14--No. 278 • 28 of 34 •  Other Editions

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yan capital early on Tuesday, wounding two French guards in an attack that President Francois Hollande denounced as an assault not only against France but all countries engaged in the fight against terrorism.
• The explosives-laden car was detonated just outside the embassy building in Tripoli's upscale al-Andalus neighborhood very early in the morning, before any of the embassy staff had arrived inside the diplomatic mission, two Libyan security officials said.
• The blast wounded two French guards and set off a fire at the embassy entrance that engulfed some of the offices inside, the officials said. Two cars parked outside also caught fire and two other nearby buildings were also damaged, said the officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media. Firefighters rushed to the scene of the attack.
• The officials said the motives for the attack -- the first such assault on an embassy in the Libyan capital -- were not immediately clear.
• In Paris, President Hollande denounced the attack, saying in a statement that it targeted not only France but "all countries in the international community engaged in fighting terrorism."
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AP IMPACT: Military's efforts to cut programs, save billions, are thwarted by Congress

• WASHINGTON (AP) -- Parked around the airstrip at Lackland Air Force Base are more than a dozen massive C-5A Galaxy transport planes. There is no money to fly them, repair them or put pilots in the cockpits, but Congress rejected the Air Force's bid to retire them.
• So every now and then, crews will tow the planes around the Texas tarmac a bit to make sure the tires don't rot, then send them back into exile until they can finally get permission to commit the aging aircraft to the boneyard.
• It's not an unfamiliar story.
• Idle aircraft and pricey ship deployments underscore the contradictions and conflicts as Congress orders the Pentagon to slash $487 billion in spending over the next 10 years and another $41 billion in the next six months. Yet, at the same time, lawmakers are forcing the services to keep ships, aircraft, military bases, retiree benefits and other programs that defense leaders insist they don't want, can't afford or simply won't be able to use. The Associated Press interviewed senior military leaders involved in the ongoing analysis of the budget

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