Chad soldiers in Mali kill al Qaeda commander Belmokhtar: army

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Florida, March 1 (Reuters) - Tiger Woods, who has endured his share of controversy and media scrutiny, said world number one Rory McIlroy should choose his words more carefully after withdrawing from the Honda Classic with what was initially a mysterious explanation. Before driving away from the PGA National course on Friday after a nightmare start to his round, McIlroy told reporters: "I'm not in a great place mentally. I can't really say much, guys. I'm just in a bad place mentally. ...

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Jen & Justin: Why They Can't Wait to Wed!

By Michelle Tauber

03/02/2013 at 03:00 PM EST

Here's the thing about being Jennifer Aniston and being in love: The universe is invested. On Feb. 24 the star hit the red carpet in scarlet Valentino, her fiancé, Justin Theroux, by her side.

Flashes shimmered, fans roared, and the pair ducked into Hollywood's Dolby Theatre to take in the show. But there, the girl everyone presumes lives next door (who knew we all owned mansions?) was confronted by a friendly but curious employee who boldly asked That Question: Are you pregnant?

"No, I'm not!" replied Aniston, laughing politely. But, "I feel great," she told PEOPLE later that evening. "Wonderful!"

And on the outside? Forget about it. "She looks the greatest she possibly could," says Chris McMillan, her old pal and partner in her new hair-care line Living Proof. "Look at where she is in her life."

There's the man. There's that ring. There's a slate of films and new beauty ventures, renovating a $21 million L.A. estate in hopes of soon "normalizing and nesting," as she recently told PEOPLE, and, yes, planning a wedding.

With her film, based on an Elmore Leonard novel, set to wrap in Connecticut on March 8, "Jen and Justin have a date" set for soon after, says a source close to the actress, noting that the twosome have designed their wedding bands and Aniston has a dress in mind. "It will be a small affair with their closest friends." Likely among them: Aniston BFFs Courteney Cox, Chelsea Handler and Mandy Ingber, all of whom headed to New York to celebrate the actress's 44th birthday at the Greenwich Hotel on Feb. 11.

The bride-to-be "is crazy about Justin and can't wait to be his wife," says the source. "She plans on privately changing her name to
Theroux. She likes the way it sounds and jokes that [Jennifer Theroux] sounds very posh."

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WHO: Slight cancer risk after Japan nuke accident

LONDON (AP) — Two years after Japan's nuclear plant disaster, an international team of experts said Thursday that residents of areas hit by the highest doses of radiation face an increased cancer risk so small it probably won't be detectable.

In fact, experts calculated that increase at about 1 extra percentage point added to a Japanese infant's lifetime cancer risk.

"The additional risk is quite small and will probably be hidden by the noise of other (cancer) risks like people's lifestyle choices and statistical fluctuations," said Richard Wakeford of the University of Manchester, one of the authors of the report. "It's more important not to start smoking than having been in Fukushima."

The report was issued by the World Health Organization, which asked scientists to study the health effects of the disaster in Fukushima, a rural farming region.

On March 11, 2011, an earthquake and tsunami knocked out the Fukushima plant's power and cooling systems, causing meltdowns in three reactors and spewing radiation into the surrounding air, soil and water. The most exposed populations were directly under the plumes of radiation in the most affected communities in Fukushima, which is about 150 miles (240 kilometers) north of Tokyo.

In the report, the highest increases in risk are for people exposed as babies to radiation in the most heavily affected areas. Normally in Japan, the lifetime risk of developing cancer of an organ is about 41 percent for men and 29 percent for women. The new report said that for infants in the most heavily exposed areas, the radiation from Fukushima would add about 1 percentage point to those numbers.

Experts had been particularly worried about a spike in thyroid cancer, since radioactive iodine released in nuclear accidents is absorbed by the thyroid, especially in children. After the Chernobyl disaster, about 6,000 children exposed to radiation later developed thyroid cancer because many drank contaminated milk after the accident.

In Japan, dairy radiation levels were closely monitored, but children are not big milk drinkers there.

The WHO report estimated that women exposed as infants to the most radiation after the Fukushima accident would have a 70 percent higher chance of getting thyroid cancer in their lifetimes. But thyroid cancer is extremely rare and one of the most treatable cancers when caught early. A woman's normal lifetime risk of developing it is about 0.75 percent. That number would rise by 0.5 under the calculated increase for women who got the highest radiation doses as infants.

Wakeford said the increase may be so small it will probably not be observable.

For people beyond the most directly affected areas of Fukushima, Wakeford said the projected cancer risk from the radiation dropped dramatically. "The risks to everyone else were just infinitesimal."

David Brenner of Columbia University in New York, an expert on radiation-induced cancers, said that although the risk to individuals is tiny outside the most contaminated areas, some cancers might still result, at least in theory. But they'd be too rare to be detectable in overall cancer rates, he said.

Brenner said the numerical risk estimates in the WHO report were not surprising. He also said they should be considered imprecise because of the difficulty in determining risk from low doses of radiation. He was not connected with the WHO report.

Some experts said it was surprising that any increase in cancer was even predicted.

"On the basis of the radiation doses people have received, there is no reason to think there would be an increase in cancer in the next 50 years," said Wade Allison, an emeritus professor of physics at Oxford University, who also had no role in developing the new report. "The very small increase in cancers means that it's even less than the risk of crossing the road," he said.

WHO acknowledged in its report that it relied on some assumptions that may have resulted in an overestimate of the radiation dose in the general population.

Gerry Thomas, a professor of molecular pathology at Imperial College London, accused the United Nations health agency of hyping the cancer risk.

"It's understandable that WHO wants to err on the side of caution, but telling the Japanese about a barely significant personal risk may not be helpful," she said.

Thomas said the WHO report used inflated estimates of radiation doses and didn't properly take into account Japan's quick evacuation of people from Fukushima.

"This will fuel fears in Japan that could be more dangerous than the physical effects of radiation," she said, noting that people living under stress have higher rates of heart problems, suicide and mental illness.

In Japan, Norio Kanno, the chief of Iitate village, in one of the regions hardest hit by the disaster, harshly criticized the WHO report on Japanese public television channel NHK, describing it as "totally hypothetical."

Many people who remain in Fukushima still fear long-term health risks from the radiation, and some refuse to let their children play outside or eat locally grown food.

Some restrictions have been lifted on a 12-mile (20-kilometer) zone around the nuclear plant. But large sections of land in the area remain off-limits. Many residents aren't expected to be able to return to their homes for years.

Kanno accused the report's authors of exaggerating the cancer risk and stoking fear among residents.

"I'm enraged," he said.

___

Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo and AP Science Writer Malcolm Ritter in New York contributed to this report.

__

Online:

WHO report: http://bit.ly/YDCXcb

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With record highs in sight, stocks face roadblocks

NEW YORK (Reuters) - If Wall Street needs to climb a wall of worry, it will have plenty of opportunity next week.

Major U.S. stock indexes will make another attempt at reaching all-time records, but the fitful pace that has dominated trading is likely to continue. Next Friday's unemployment report and the hefty spending cuts that look like they about to take effect will be at the forefront.

The importance of whether equities can reach and sustain those highs is more than Wall Street's usual fixation on numbers with psychological significance. Breaking through to uncharted territory is seen as a test of investors' faith in the rally.

"It's very significant," said Bucky Hellwig, senior vice president at BB&T Wealth Management in Birmingham, Alabama.

"The thinking is, there's just not enough there for an extended bull run," he said. "If we do break through (record highs), then maybe the charts and price action are telling us there's something better ahead."

Flare-ups in the euro zone's sovereign debt crisis and next Friday's report on the U.S. labor market could jostle the market, though U.S. job indicators have generally been trending in a positive direction.

Small- and mid-cap stocks hit lifetime highs in February. Now the Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> and the S&P 500 <.spx> are racing each other to the top. The Dow, made up of 30 stocks, is about 75 points - less than 1 percent - away from its record close of 14,164.53, which it hit on October 9, 2007. The broader S&P is still 3 percent away from its closing high of 1,565.15, also reached on October 9, 2007.

The advantage may be in the Dow's court. So far in 2013, it has gained 7.5 percent, beating the S&P 500 by about 1 percent.

THE RALLY AND THE REALITY CHECK

The Dow's relative strength owes much to its unique make-up and calculation, as well as to investors' recent preference for buying value stocks likely to generate steady reliable gains, rather than growth stocks.

But the more defensive stance illustrates how stock buyers are getting concerned about this year's rally. While investors don't want to miss out on gains, they're picking up companies that are less likely to decline as much as high-flying names - if a market correction comes.

The Russell Value Index <.rav> is up 7.6 percent for the year so far, outpacing the Russell Growth Index's <.rag> 5.7 percent rise. Within the realm of the S&P 500, the consumer staples sector led the market in February, gaining 3.1 percent.

There is some concern that growth-oriented names are being eclipsed by defensive bets, said Ryan Detrick, senior technical strategist at Schaeffer's Investment Research in Cincinnati.

"This isn't a be-all and end-all sell signal by any means, but we would feel much more comfortable if some of the more aggressive areas, like technology and small caps, would start to gain some leadership here," Detrick said.

Signs that investors are becoming concerned about the rally's pace is evident in the options market, where the ratio of put activity to call activity has recently shifted in favor of puts, which represent expectations for a stock to fall.

"We are seeing some put hedging in the financials, building up for the past month," said Henry Schwartz, president of options analytics firm Trade Alert in New York.

The put-to-call ratio representing an aggregate of about 562 financial stocks is 1:1, when normally, calls should be outnumbering puts.

Investors have no shortage of reasons to crave the relative safety of blue chips and defensive stocks. Although markets have mostly looked past uncertainty over Washington's plans to cut the deficit, fiscal policy negotiations still pose a risk to equities.

The $85 billion in spending cuts set to begin on Friday is expected to slow economic growth this year if policymakers do not reach a new deal. Markets so far have held firm despite the wrangling in Washington, but tangible economic effects could pinch stock prices going forward.

The International Monetary Fund warned that full implementation of the cuts would probably take at least 0.5 percentage point off U.S. growth this year.

EASY MONEY AND TEPID HIRING

Investors will also take in a round of economic data at a time when concerns are percolating that the market is being pushed up less by fundamentals and more by loose monetary policy around the world.

The main economic event will be Friday's non-farm payrolls report for February. The U.S. economy is expected to have added 160,000 jobs last month, only a tad higher than in January, in a sign the labor market is healing at a slow pace. The U.S. unemployment rate is forecast to hold steady at 7.9 percent.

While lackluster data has been a catalyst in the past for stock market gains as investors bet it would ensure continued stimulus from the Federal Reserve, that sentiment may be wearing thin.

Markets stumbled last week following worries that the Fed might wind down its quantitative easing program sooner than expected.

"It shows the underpinning of the market is being driven at this point by monetary policy," Hellwig said.

With investors questioning what is behind the rally, it will make a run to record highs even more significant, Hellwig added.

"There's smart people that are in the bull camp and the bear camp and the muddle-through camp," Hellwig said. "The fact that you can statistically, using historical evidence, make a case for going higher, lower, or staying the same makes this number very important this time around."

(Wall St Week Ahead runs every Friday. Comments or questions on this column can be emailed to: leah.schnurr(at)thomsonreuters.com)

(Reporting by Leah Schnurr; Additional reporting by Doris Frankel in Chicago; Editing by Jan Paschal)

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Valerie Bertinelli Pays Special Tribute to Bonnie Franklin

03/01/2013 at 02:55 PM EST

Bonnie Franklin, who died of pancreatic cancer Friday, and Valerie Bertinelli go back nearly 40 years, to the sitcom One Day at a TIme, on which Franklin played her mother, Ann Romano.

Two years ago the actresses reunited professionally, on Bertinelii's series Hot in Cleveland.

Bertinelli said in a statement Friday: "My heart is breaking. Bonnie has always been one of the most important women in my life and was a second mother to me.

"The years on One Day at a Time were some of the happiest of my life, and along with Pat [Harrington Jr.] and Mackenzie [Phillips] we were a family in every way.

"She taught me how to navigate this business and life itself with grace and humor, and to always be true to yourself. I will miss her terribly."

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Wall Street edges up as data outweighs sequester

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks rose modestly on Friday as strong economic data outweighed growth concerns in China and Europe and let investors brush off worries about the impact of expected across-the-board government spending cuts.

Stocks opened sharply lower as Asian factories slowed and European output fell, but most of the losses dissipated after a report showed U.S. manufacturing activity expanded last month at its fastest clip in 20 months and put the S&P 500 index on track for a slight weekly gain.

U.S. consumer confidence also rose in February as Americans turned more optimistic about the job market.

With government budget cuts set to begin on Friday, President Barack Obama blamed Republicans for failure to reach a compromise to avert the cuts, known as sequester. But the stock market appeared to have already priced in the failure by legislators to reach an agreement.

"The positive manufacturing data, better than expected, sends a signal the economy itself, and manufacturing in particular, is showing signs of strength - trumping any concern that people seem to have with the sequester cuts," said Terry Sandven, chief equity strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth Management in Minneapolis.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> gained 40.43 points, or 0.29 percent, to 14,094.92. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> added 4.01 points, or 0.26 percent, to 1,518.69. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> rose 9.56 points, or 0.30 percent, to 3,169.75.

For the week so far, the Dow is up 0.7 percent, the S&P 500 is up 0.2 percent and the Nasdaq is up 0.3 percent.

The low interest rates due to the Federal Reserve's accommodative monetary policy have helped equities continue to attract investors. The Dow is less than 1 percent away from its all-time intraday high of 14,198.10. Declines have been shallow and short-lived, with investors jumping in to buy on dips.

Intuitive Surgical jumped 8.7 percent to $554.43 after Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Jeremy Feffer upgraded the stock, saying the stock's more than 11 percent slide on Thursday was a gross overreaction to a news report.

Groupon Inc surged 12.2 percent to $5.08 a day after the online coupon company fired its chief executive officer in the wake of weak quarterly results.

Gap Inc rose 3 percent to $33.87 after reporting fourth-quarter earnings that beat expectations and boosting its dividend by 20 percent, while Salesforce.com Inc posted sales that beat forecasts, driving its stock up 7.1 percent to $181.28.

Chesapeake Energy Corp fell 2.2 percent to $19.71 after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission escalated its investigation into the company and its Chief Executive Aubrey McClendon for a controversial perk that granted him a share in each of the natural gas producer's wells.

(Additional reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Editing by Jan Paschal)

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Natalie and Derrica Wilson Help Find the Missing

Heroes Among Us

By Nicole Weisensee Egan

02/28/2013 at 02:45 PM EST

Natalie Wilson (left) and Derrica Wilson

Shaul Schwarz

One spring day in 2004 a young African-American woman named Tamika Huston vanished from her Spartanburg, S.C., apartment.

Her family did everything they could to get the media to pay attention to the 24-year-old's disappearance, sending out emails, calling newspapers and TV stations – to no avail.

"It was painful watching them struggle for any kind of media coverage-local or national," says Derrica Wilson, who was born and raised in Spartanburg. "This could have been one of my family members."

One year almost to the day later, high school senior Natalee Holloway disappeared in Aruba. And that story, of course, was everywhere. "It made me angry but angry in a positive way," says Derrica. "I wanted to do something to help families like Tamika's."

So she turned to her own family to make that happen. In 2008, Derrica and her sister-in-law, Natalie Wilson, started the Black and Missing Foundation, a non-profit geared toward helping minority families find missing loved ones. By working closely with police, the media and the families themselves, they have helped locate more than 113 missing people – 71 of them alive.

It's a daunting task: Thousands of African-Americans go missing each year (one-third of all missing-persons cases). The problem has caught Hollywood's eye: Tyler Perry recently offered a $100,000 reward for tips leading to the discovery of two missing Florida men.

The Wilsons fund the foundation out of their own pockets and make themselves available day and night to grieving families – even though they both have full-time jobs and families of their own. "Let's just say it's a calling," says Derrica, 34. They have more than 2,000 cases in their database (they only take on cases in which police reports were filed).

"I believe in what they do," says Washington, D.C. assistant police chief Diane Groomes, who was so impressed with their work she joined their board of directors.

The sisters in law divvy up their duties based on what they do best. Derrica, a cop for years who currently works as an investigator for a D.C. agency, coaches families on how to deal with law enforcement and the media. Natalie, 43, a public relations expert, works on getting the cases coverage on radio, newspapers, the web and television.

They've also partnered with TV One and national radio host Michael Baisden to get ongoing coverage of different cases. "It's one of the most fulfilling experiences I've ever had," says Baisden, whose show has helped find 14 children. "There is nothing more traumatizing than losing your child and not knowing if they are alive or dead."

On Feb. 13, the sisters-in-law started a support group for families that meets weekly in Washington, D.C. "Coping with a missing loved one is traumatic and overwhelming," says Natalie. "We want families to know that they are not alone." On May 25, they will host a 5K run in Ft. Washington, Md. to raise awareness of the issue.

No one is more appreciative of these efforts than the families they are helping. "If I had the next hundred years I couldn't thank them enough," says Unique Harris, 45, who says Derrica and Natalie got the Washington, D.C. media to give some much-needed attention to the still-unsolved disappearance of her daughter Valencia, 24.

"When I talk to Natalie and Derrica I let them know I love them, "she says, "and they're like family now."

Know a hero? Send suggestions to heroesamongus@peoplemag.com. For more inspiring stories, read the latest issue of PEOPLE magazine

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PHOTOS: Jennifer Lawrence Works the Camera for Dior

Stylewatch
Style News Now

02/26/2013 at 11:30 AM ET

You’ve seen the gorgeous ads — now see Jennifer Lawrence make them! In this just-released clip, the Oscar winner works the cameras for the Miss Dior handbag line.

“Dior represents beauty and strength in women and that’s how I feel when I’m wearing his clothes,” Lawrence tells the cameras. “It just makes you feel so confident.”

Lauding the iconic handbags, the actress also reiterates how excited she is to front the brand. “Being part of something with such incredible history is an honor.”

Hear more from Lawrence in the clip above.

PHOTOS: SEE MORE CELEBRITIES STARRING IN AD CAMPAIGNS

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Meet the New Stars of DWTS

Dancing with the Stars: Meet the Season 16 ContestantsLisa Vanderpump, Kellie Pickler, Aly Raisman and more celebrities will hit the ballroom on March 18

Credit: Jen Lowery/Splash News Online

Updated: Tuesday Feb 26, 2013 | 10:00 AM EST

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FDA halts Amgen study after teen patient death

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal health regulators say they have halted Amgen's studies of its thyroid drug Sensipar after the death of a 14-year-old patient in a company trial.

The Food and Drug Administration says it is gathering information about the death, but has shut down all studies of the drug in children.

Sensipar is approved for adults to treat over-activity of the parathyroid gland. Amgen Inc. had been studying the drug to see whether it works in children.

The FDA says in a statement it is unclear whether Amgen's drug had a role in the patient's death, but it is reminding doctors to prescribe it carefully.

The agency says doctors should monitor patients' calcium levels to make sure they don't fall to dangerous levels.

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