Aaron's Daily WWW Newspaper

HOBART, Australia - A group of whales rescued from an Australian beach have joined a larger pod in deep waters — a sign they are doing fine after their ordeal, an official said Monday.

NEW YORK - With e-book sales exploding in an otherwise sleepy market, Random House Inc. announced Monday that it was making thousands of additional books available in digital form, including novels by John Updike and Harlan Coben, as well as several volumes of the "Magic Treehouse" children's series.

BEIJING - A newspaper published by China's ruling Communist Party is blasting the latest Guns N' Roses album as an attack on the Chinese nation.

NEW YORK - What a relief! The free public restrooms operated by the Charmin toilet paper company in Times Square during the holidays are being rolled out for another year.

Brett Favre and the New York Jets made their statement to the league by toppling the NFL's last undefeated team.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. government has bailed out Citigroup Inc, agreeing to shoulder most of the potential losses on $306 billion of high risk assets and inject $20 billion of new capital, in its biggest rescue of a bank yet.

(Reuters) - Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is considering tapping the second half of the government's $700 billion financial-industry rescue fund, and rolling out new programs in response to worsening market conditions, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock index futures rose on Monday after the U.S. government agreed to pump $20 billion of new capital into Citigroup, averting a bank collapse that could have crippled the world's financial system.

CHICAGO (Reuters) - President-elect Barack Obama takes his first major step toward addressing the U.S. financial crisis on Monday, presenting the team that will steer his economic policies and navigate a potentially deep recession.

(Reuters) - Some wealthy clients of UBS AG are coming forward to make amends with U.S. tax authorities after a former UBS private banker was indicted, a sign that U.S. efforts to battle offshore tax evasion are having the desired effect, the Wall Street Journal reported on its website.

MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Somali pirates holding a Saudi supertanker after the largest hijacking in maritime history have reduced their ransom demand to $15 million, an Islamist leader and regional maritime group both said on Monday.

ST PETERSBURG, Russia (Reuters) - Russia has evidence that citizens from NATO member states including the United States and Turkey fought for Georgia in the five-day August war, Russia's top investigator said on Monday.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - California's gay marriage ban could open the door to legal discrimination against unpopular groups if the state Supreme Court allows the voter-approved measure to stand, blacks, Latinos, Asians and other minorities said.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The US government announced Monday a new 20-billion-dollar lifeline for banking giant Citigroup ahead of the unveiling of president-elect Barack Obama's economic team.

BANGKOK (AFP) - Thousands of Thai protesters marched on parliament and other key buildings Monday in what they called a final battle against the government, forcing lawmakers to cancel an important sitting.

BAGHDAD, (AFP) - Three explosions rocked Baghdad on Monday, killing 19 people two days before parliament was to vote on a divisive military pact that would have all US troops leave the country by the end of 2011.

CARACAS (AFP) - Leftist Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Monday hailed his party's majority victories in key local polls but recognized opposition gains, in five states and the capital Caracas.

PARIS (AFP) - An experimental drug tested on lab animals has shown remarkable success in tackling two viruses, including a close cousin to a feared bioterror pathogen, a study said.

LONDON (AFP) - The government is expected to hit the rich to pay for tax cuts aimed at getting consumers spending again in an economic stimulus package set to be unveiled Monday.

SINGAPORE (AFP) - British-based Standard Chartered bank said Monday it plans to raise 1.78 billion pounds (2.66 billion US dollars) in a rights issue to better position itself during the global financial turmoil.