Obama speaking to 75,000 in kickoff

DENVER — Barack Obama launched his historic fall campaign for the White House on Thursday with an outdoor Democratic National Convention extravaganza that blended old-fashioned speechmaking, Hollywood-quality stagecraft and innovative, Internet age politics.

One day after becoming the first black man to win a major party presidential nomination, Obama readied the most important speech of his improbable candidacy, a prime-time address to an estimated 75,000 inside Denver’s NFL stadium and uncounted millions watching on television.

Marine squad leader found not guilty

RIVERSIDE, Calif. — A former Marine accused of killing unarmed Iraqi detainees was acquitted of voluntary manslaughter Thursday in a first-of-its-kind federal trial.

The jury took six hours to find Jose Luis Nazario Jr. not guilty of charges that he killed or caused others to kill four unarmed detainees on Nov. 9, 2004, in Fallujah, Iraq, during some of the fiercest fighting of the war.

Officials say US raid followed misleading tip

KABUL, Afghanistan — Afghan officials said Thursday that a deadly U.S.-led special forces raid on a remote western village last week was based on misleading information provided by a rival clan.

It was the latest twist in a tangled debate over what happened. U.N. officials say the raid killed up to 90 civilians, most of them children.

Sculpture of crucified frog remains on display

ROME — An art museum in northern Italy said Thursday it will continue displaying a sculpture portraying a green frog nailed to a cross that has angered Pope Benedict XVI and local officials.

The board of the foundation of the Museion in the city of Bolzano voted to keep the work by the late German artist Martin Kippenberger, the museum said in a statement.