The US Army will conduct an internal investigation to examine whether it missed warning signs about Major Nidal Malik Hasan, the man accused of killing 13 people in the November 5 shooting spree at Fort Hood, Texas, two newspapers reported.

Congress approved new laws to step up anti-terror efforts in the US, shifting money to high-risk states and cities and expanding screening of air and sea cargo.

America’s former disaster chief Michael Brown, who became the personification of the government’s listless response to Hurricane Katrina, said he told top officials of massive flooding in New Orleans on the day the storm howled ashore.

Ken Guggenheim, Washington

Former top officials from Saddam Hussein’s government told US congressional investigators they provided millions of dollars worth of oil allocations as a form of pay-off to Russian leaders in hopes of ending UN sanctions against Iraq, a congressional panel said.