Caitlin Hayden

• US National Security Council Aware of Reports That Second American Killed in Syria

  The US National Security Council on Wednesday said it was aware of media reports that a second American associated with Islamic State militant fighters had been killed in Syria, but it could not confirm the death.

• Bill to Overhaul NSA Data Collection Clears Hurdle in US Congress

  A U.S. House of Representatives committee voted unanimously on Wednesday to advance a bill that would end the National Security Agency's bulk collection of Americans' telephone records, one of the most controversial spy programs revealed a year ago by former contractor Edward Snowden.

• Barack Obama played dumb with Dalai Lama: Chinese daily

  US President Barack Obama played dumb during his meeting with the Dalai Lama at the White House on Friday, a leading Chinese daily said today.

• US insists talks with Germany on spy complaints are still on

  The United States said on Tuesday it would keep talking to Germany about its complaints about American spying, despite German press reports that the high-level consultations are doomed to fail.

• Former US Defense Secretary Robert Gates criticizes president in memoir

  U.S. President Barack Obama lacked belief in his administration's policy toward the war in Afghanistan and was skeptical it would even succeed, his former defense secretary, Robert Gates, writes in a memoir to be published next week.

• Barack Obama orders curbs on NSA spying on UN headquarters: reports

  US President Barack Obama recently ordered the National Security Agency to curtail eavesdropping on the United Nations headquarters in New York as part of a review of US electronic surveillance, according to a US official familiar with the decision.

• White House sees need for 'constraints' on NSA spying

  The White House moved on Monday to reassure US allies and Americans concerned about the sweeping nature of the National Security Agency's surveillance practices by acknowledging that more constraints are needed to ensure that privacy rights are protected.

• Obama administration seeks pause in new Iran sanctions push

  The Obama administration is asking Congress to hold off on enacting new sanctions against Iran. It says a pause in the push to impose new penalties would give negotiators flexibility in talks now under way to get Iran to comply with demands it prove its nuclear program is peaceful.

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  US condemns terror attack on Kenyan mall

  The US government Saturday condemned the terrorist attack on a shopping mall in Nairobi while offering its condolences to Kenyans over the death of 39 people in the incident.

• Return Edward Snowden to US: Washington urges Russia

  The United States expects cooperation from Russia on returning fugitive intelligence leaker Edward Snowden back to the country to face espionage charges.

• Nelson Mandela is in critical condition, says South Africa's presidency

  Nelson Mandela is in a critical condition in hospital, South Africa's presidency said late on Sunday, marking a sudden and significant deterioration in the health of the former leader and anti-apartheid hero.

• US says it takes North Korea threats seriously as Pyongyang enters 'state of war' with South

  The White House said on Saturday that it takes North Korea's latest saber-rattling threats seriously while cautioning that Pyongyang has a long history of bellicose rhetoric.