AP - Sen. Barack Obama dropped in on his own party at the Democratic convention a day early Wednesday to praise his wife, his former rival, and former President Bill Clinton for going to bat for him.

AP - Barack Obama stands before delegates and the nation Thursday — the 45th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.'s historic "I Have a Dream" speech — to accept the Democratic presidential nomination, the first black man to claim such a prize.

AP - The interior minister of the separatist-held region of South Ossetia says his forces have shot down an unmanned Georgian spy plane.

AP - National Guard troops stand ready, batteries and water bottles sold briskly, and one small-town mayor spent a sleepless night worrying. The New Orleans area watched as a storm marched across the Caribbean on the eve of Hurricane Katrina's third anniversary.

AP - Thousands of demonstrators, some armed with golf clubs, batons and bamboo sticks, defied a court order to end their occupation of the prime minister's office compound on Thursday, vowing to remain until the country's leaders resign.