A weakened Hurricane Earl brushed North Carolina's Outer Banks overnight as residents along the Eastern Seaboard braced for a stormy Friday.

Protesters gathered in Iran on Friday for a demonstration to observe an annual holiday that marks the country's solidarity with Palestinians and calls for the end of Israel occupation.

MANTEO, North Carolina (Reuters) - Hurricane Earl battered North Carolina's coast with rain, winds and waves on Friday and swirled up the U.S. eastern seaboard toward New England and Canada as a weakened but still dangerous storm.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An estimated five million uninsured children in the United States were eligible for Medicaid or the Childrens Health Insurance Program (CHIP) but were not enrolled in either plan, according to a new report.

LONDON (Reuters) - BP Plc said on Friday the cost of dealing with its oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico had risen to $8 billion and that it was two weeks away from sealing the well for good.

A volcano erupted again in Indonesia early Friday in northern Sumatra, sending hundreds of villagers fleeing as it unleashed tremors and spewed powerful bursts of hot ash and debris.

NASA experts will present options and recommendations Friday evening after assessing the needs of 33 Chilean miners trapped underground.

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