Blast hits Egypt's gas pipeline to Israel, Jordan (AP)

EL-ARISH, Egypt – Unidentified assailants blew up the Egyptian pipeline that carries gas to Israel and Jordan early on Monday, starting a fire and disrupting the flow of the gas, security officials said.

The blast took place in the northern part of the Sinai Peninsula, near the Mediterranean coastal city of El-Arish, which is 30 miles (50 kilometers) from Israel's border.

The Egyptian officials had no further details and there were no immediate reports of casualties. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

The blast is the third to hit the strategic pipeline since an uprising overthrew Egypt's longtime leader Hosni Mubarak in February.

No one claimed responsibility for Monday's explosion. Disgruntled Bedouin tribesmen in the area have been blamed for attacking the pipeline in the past.

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Blast hits U.N. compound in Gaza

UN says no one is hurtPalestinian security officials say one person is injuredNo one has claimed responsibility for the explosion

(CNN) -- Conflicting reports about injuries emerged Sunday after an explosion outside a United Nations compound in Gaza.

The blast damaged the wall of the compound, the UN said, adding that it caused no injuries.

However, Palestinian security officials said one person was hurt.

No one has taken responsibility for the blast, nor was it immediately known what caused it.

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Blast reported at Boston College chemistry lab

Student left the scene of the blast, fire department saysProfessor is talking to emergency workers about chemistry experiment

(CNN) -- Emergency workers are evaluating a Boston College student who was at the scene of a chemistry lab explosion Saturday morning, authorities said.

The Boston Fire Department arrived at the Merkert Chemistry Center at 10:47 a.m. A Twitter post from Boston Fire said the student left the basement lab after the blast, but was found off campus at an apartment. No other injuries were reported.

Meanwhile, the chemistry building was evacuated and authorities were talking to a professor about a chemistry experiment.

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Two children killed in Pakistan blast

A paramilitary spokesman says a bomb was planted on a motorbike He says five security personnel and two women are among the injured

(CNN) -- An explosion in Pakistan's southwestern Balochistan province killed two children and injured 21 people, a paramilitary spokesman said.

Murtaza Beg, spokesman for the Frontier Corps of Balochistan province, said a remote control bomb planted on a motorbike in the city of Panjgur exploded when a security vehicle came across it in a crowded market area.

Beg said five security personnel and two women are among the injured.

Frontier Corps is Pakistan's paramilitary force whose primary job is to protect the borders. It operates under the interior ministry. But on the request of all four provinces, many of its soldiers have been assigned to maintain law and order in many cities across the country.

Security forces in Balochistan province are simultaneously fighting against militants who support the Taliban and tribal elders who are fighting for greater provincial autonomy and an increased share of mineral resources from the gas- and oil- rich province.

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Somali minister killed in suicide blast

Abdishakur Sheikh Hassan was killed in his home by a suicide bomber.Somali Interior Minister Abdishakur Sheikh Hassan has been killed by a suicide bomberHassan was killed in his own home by the bomber, who was a womanHassan was treated for wounds to the head and one leg before he died

(CNN) -- Somalia's interior minister was killed Friday in a suicide bomb attack carried out in his own home by a female bomber, Somali government officials said.

The death of Abdishakur Sheikh Hassan was announced on state run radio by Somalia's deputy information minister.

Hassan was briefly treated for wounds to the head and one leg at Mogadishu's Benedir Hospital before dying, according to a government security official who declined to be named because he is not authorized to speak to the media.

The official confirmed that the suicide bomber had been staying at Hassan's house.

The jihadist group al-Shabaab has been waging a war against Somalia's government in an effort to implement a stricter form of Islamic law, or sharia law. Somalia has not had a stable government since 1991, and fighting between the rebels and government troops has added to the humanitarian crisis in the Horn of Africa nation.

It was not immediately clear if the suicide bomber had ties to al-Shabaab.

Journalist Mohamed Amiin contributed to this report

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Deadly blast at Pakistan bus stand

Senior police official: A militant placed a bag containing an explosive in a van Three women, two men and one child are killed, a police official says The blast takes place in the village of Matni, south of Peshawar

(CNN) -- Six people were killed and 15 were injured from an explosion at a bus stand the northern Pakistani village of Matni, a police official said.

Kalam Khan, a Peshawar police official, told CNN that the dead included three women, two men and one child. The blast also destroyed three vehicles, Khan said.

Matni is about 22 kilometers (13.6 miles) south of Peshawar.

Muhammad Ejaz Khan, a senior Peshawar police official, said a militant placed a bag with an explosive in a passenger van set to leave for another city. He said the militant then ran away and detonated the bag with a remote control.

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Blast hits hotel in Libya's rebel-held Benghazi: report (Reuters)

BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) – A large explosion damaged a hotel on Wednesday in the eastern rebel-held city of Benghazi, Arab satellite television channels reported.

Al Jazeera reported that a "huge" blast had gone off outside the city's Tibesti hotel. Arabiya television said the explosion appeared to have come from a car parked beside the building. Footage showed cars on fire beside the hotel.

Reuters witnesses said they saw no blood at the scene and that no casualties had been reported. The witnesses said they saw five burned cars.

The hotel, which overlooks the sea in central Benghazi, has been used for rebel news conference and the National Transitional Council, which is fighting to topple Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, has had offices there.

There was no immediate word on what caused the explosion. Given the location of the incident there will be suspicions that it was caused by a bomb.

(Writing by William Maclean)

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Storms blast southern Michigan, leave many without power

(CNN) -- Severe storms pounded south-central Michigan Sunday, knocking out power to more than 100,000 customers and cutting a path of destruction through the city of Battle Creek, officials said.

"The storms hit our business corridor and residential area the hardest," said Mike McKenzie, Battle Creek's emergency services director. "There are numerous trees on houses and cars, widespread power outages and a lot of businesses damaged."

The severe weather hit Battle Creek late Sunday afternoon, kicking up winds in excess of 80 mph, according to McKenzie, who said no major injuries had been reported.

In Calhoun County, where Battle Creek is located, some 29,000 customers of Consumers Power were without electricity late Sunday, company spokesman Jay Jacobs said. Throughout the states, 104,000 customers of the utility were without power.

Severe weather also raked the Chicago area, forcing the cancellation of 450 flights, according to a media official at O'Hare International Airport.

CNN's Rick Martin and Greg Morrison contributed to this report

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Blast at barracks kills 12 in Nigeria (Reuters)

BAUCHI, Nigeria (Reuters) – A bomb blast rocked a popular drinking spot inside an army barracks in northern Nigeria on Sunday, killing a dozen people hours after President Goodluck Jonathan was sworn in for his first full term.

A rescue worker who asked not to be identified told Reuters his colleagues had counted 12 dead bodies and that around 25 people had been wounded by the blast. A hospital spokesman said 10 corpses had been brought in, four of them women.

The explosion hit the Mamy market in the barracks on the edge of the city of Bauchi at around 8 p.m. (3 p.m. ET), police commissioner Muhammed Indabawa said. He said it was not clear who was responsible and that no arrests had yet been made.

"It was a very strong and powerful explosion," said Yushua Shuaib, spokesman for the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), adding members of the agency were evacuating the wounded. He declined to comment on the death toll.

Military barracks in Nigeria sometimes contain small market areas where traders are allowed to sell food, drink and other goods to both soldiers and members of the public. Mamy market is a popular evening drinking spot for Bauchi residents.

A second, smaller explosion hit a beer parlour in Zuba on the outskirts of the capital Abuja, although the cause was unknown and there were only three minor injuries, Shuaib said.

The blasts underline the challenges Jonathan faces uniting Africa's most populous nation after elections last month which, while deemed the most credible in decades, also exposed the country's religious and ethnic fault lines.

Hundreds of people were killed in northern towns last month in riots and reprisal killings after Jonathan, a Christian from the south, was declared winner of the election, beating northern Muslim and former army ruler Muhammadu Buhari.

"We will not allow anyone to exploit differences in creed or tongue to set us one against another," Jonathan said in a speech at his inauguration ceremony.

RADICAL GROUPS

Bauchi neighbors Plateau state in Nigeria's "Middle Belt" where the mostly Muslim north meets the predominantly Christian south, a region beset by years of sectarian violence.

The worst of the post-election unrest was in the southern part of Kaduna state, which shares the ethnic and religious diversity of the rest of the Middle Belt, with Christian and Muslim towns and villages set side by side.

Security sources have said they fear radical groups such as Boko Haram, an Islamist sect based in the remote northeast, could increasingly try to strike beyond their home turf.

Boko Haram has carried out frequent fire bombings of police stations and government buildings around the northeastern city of Maiduguri and also claimed responsibility for Christmas Eve bombings in the Middle Belt city of Jos.

Security in Abuja was tight for Jonathan's inauguration earlier on Sunday with joint police and army checkpoints on all roads into the city, bomb squad officers on the streets and helicopters buzzing overhead.

There were several bomb blasts at campaign rallies in the run-up to the April elections, most of them using home-made improvised devices and carried out by unknown assailants.

Militants from the southern Niger Delta oil region claimed car bombs which killed 10 people near a parade in Abuja last October but the movement responsible, MEND, has since been largely inactive.

The perpetrators of a second car bombing in Abuja on New Year's Eve, also at a popular market close to an army barracks, have still not been identified.

(Writing by Nick Tattersall; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)

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Lebanon blast wounds peacekeepers

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the U.N. will work with Lebanon to investigate an explosion on a UNIFIL convoy.NEW: The U.N. Security Council condemns "this terrorist attack," its president saysSix peacekeepers and two civilians are injuredThe attack comes on the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers1,780 Italian soldiers have been deployed in Lebanon since 2006

(CNN) -- At least six Italian peacekeepers and two civilians were wounded on Friday after an explosion targeted a convoy of the U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon, a U.N. spokesman said.

A UNIFIL logistics convoy had been headed along the main highway near Saida when the explosion occurred. Italy's Defense Ministry said the peacekeepers are among the 1,780 Italian soldiers who have been deployed in Lebanon since 2006.

Of the six, one was seriously injured, U.N. peacekeeping spokesman Nick Birnback said.

Birnback called the act "despicable" and announced the bolstering of security measures. The attack was meant to undermine U.N. efforts to foster stability in southern Lebanon, he said.

"It is important that the perpetrators of this attack are identified and brought to justice. UNIFIL's forensics and investigation teams are at the location and are working in close cooperation with their counterparts in the Lebanese army to determine all the facts and circumstances surrounding the incident," Birnback said.

Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said he hoped the injured would recover quickly.

"I have learned the dramatic news from Lebanon, which cause me great grief and feelings of deepest condolences," he said.

Gerard Araud, France's ambassador to the United Nations and the presiding security council president, said on Friday night: "The members of the U.N. Security Council condemn in the strongest terms this terrorist attack (and) condemn all attempts to threaten the stability and security of Lebanon."

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon noted that the attack came on the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers. He said the United Nations will work with Lebanon to investigate.

UNIFIL was created by the U.N. Security Council in March 1978 "to confirm Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon, restore international peace and security, and assist the Lebanese government in restoring its effective authority in the area."

After the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon, the council "enhanced the force" and decided to "monitor the cessation of hostilities (and) accompany and support the Lebanese armed forces as they deploy throughout the south of Lebanon."

It also helps ensure "humanitarian access to civilian populations and the voluntary and safe return of displaced persons."

Ban cited the dangers and difficulties of peacekeeping.

"I pay tribute to the 120,000 United Nations military, police, civilians who are working under the blue flag around the world for the cause of peace."

CNN's Richard Roth, Hada Messia, and Nada Husseini contributed to this report

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China urges factory safety after iPad plant blast (AP)

BEIJING – Beijing urged Foxconn Technology Group and other Taiwanese companies on Wednesday to ensure safety in their mainland China factories after a fatal blast at a facility that makes Apple iPads.

Last Friday's explosion at the facility owned by Foxconn, Apple's main manufacturing contractor, killed three employees. Foxconn blamed combustible dust in a workshop that polishes products and suspended production at the factory in the western city of Chengdu, prompting questions about whether supplies of the popular iPad 2 might be disrupted.

"We hope Foxconn and other Taiwan-invested enterprises can learn from this, carry out their safety responsibilities, strengthen internal inspection and management, root out hidden dangers in a timely way and ensure safe production," said Fan Liqing, a spokesman for Beijing's Taiwan Affairs Office.

Taiwanese companies have invested billions of dollars in the mainland despite their government's lack of formal ties with Beijing, which claims the self-ruled island as part of its territory.

Fan said the Chengdu explosion was believed to be a "production safety incident" but gave no details.

Foxconn, a unit of Taiwan's Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., manufactures mobile phones, computers and other products under contract for Apple Inc. and other global brands such as Hewlett Packard Inc. The company employs an estimated 1 million to 1.1 million people in China at a series of huge factory campuses.

Other Taiwanese-owned factories in China producing clothing, toys and other goods employ millions more. They are moving into higher-value electronics, computer chips and other products.

Foxconn produces the iPad 2 in Chengdu and at its flagship China manufacturing campus in Shenzhen, near Hong Kong.

The company has not said how iPad 2 production might be affected, but research firm IHS iSuppli said lost output might total 500,000 units at a time when Apple says it is struggling to keep up with strong demand.

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Foxconn Technology Group: http://www.foxconn.com

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Apple probes blast at Chinese plant (Reuters)

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Apple Inc (AAPL.O) is investigating an explosion that killed two people, injured 16 and forced a production halt at a Foxconn Technology Group factory in China said to produce the popular iPad 2.

Foxconn, whose flagship unit is Taiwan's Hon Hai Precision Industries (2317.TW) group and Apple's main manufacturing partner, said in a statement the explosion happened at about 7 pm local time (1100 GMT) on May 20.

"Production has been suspended at the site of the explosion until the completion of the investigation," Foxconn said in a statement.

"The safety of our employees is our highest priority and we will do whatever is required to determine and address the cause of this tragic accident."

It did not name the affected plant or say what it made, but China's official Xinhua News Agency said it was the Hongfujin Precision Electronics plant in a high-tech industrial zone west of Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province.

Hon Hai spokesman Edmund Ding said the company is still evaluating losses. He could not say whether group founder and chairman Terry Gou had gone to the site.

IPAD AFFECTED

Apple shares closed down 1.56 percent at $335.22 on the Nasdaq, which saw a broad sell-off on euro-zone debt worries.

The explosion could affect the supply of iPads and investors were watching closely. Apple spokesman Steve Dowling said the company was assessing the situation.

"We are deeply saddened by the tragedy at the Foxconn plant in Chengdu and our hearts go out to the victims and their families," he said. "We are working closely with Foxconn to understand what caused this terrible event."

Ticonderoga Securities analyst Brian White said the factory makes a lot of iPads because some production had been shifted to the facility from factories in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen.

Apple's iPad 2 commands 80 percent of the burgeoning tablet market in which Motorola Inc (MMI.N) and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS) also compete.

Apple sold 4.69 million iPads last quarter and is scrambling to meet staggering demand for the mobile device, but is heavily backlogged. Executives had expected production to ramp up during the present quarter to meet demand.

The plant explosion is the latest setback for Foxconn, the world's largest contract manufacturer.

The company made headlines last year after reports emerged about poor working conditions at factories in southern China, which critics say may have helped drive several employees to suicide.

The company pledged to improve employee welfare.

Facing higher wages in the southern China manufacturing belt, the scene of labor disputes last year, some Taiwanese manufacturers have opted to shift some operations to the country's interior, where costs are lower.

Foxconn also has plants in North America and Mexico, as well as in European countries, including Slovakia and Poland.

(Additional reporting by Clare Jim in Taipei; Editing by Edwin Chan, Lisa Von Ahn, Richard Chang and Andre Grenon; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani)

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Sixteen killed in NATO fuel truck blast in Pakistan (Reuters)

LANDIKOTAL, Pakistan (Reuters) – At least 16 people were killed in northwest Pakistan on Saturday after a bomb attack claimed by a militant group hit a truck carrying fuel supplies for NATO forces in Afghanistan, the latest attack in an upsurge in violence since Osama bin Laden was killed.

It took place near the Torkham border crossing in the Khyber region, the main route for moving supplies to NATO and American forces in Afghanistan.

"The tanker was on fire because of a blast late in t

he night. There was another blast early in the morning in the same tanker and 16 people who gathered near it to collect oil were killed," a senior local administration official in Khyber told Reuters.

Police officials said the first blast was caused by a bomb.

In another attack in the same region, a bomb struck 16 NATO fuel trucks late on Friday, setting them on fire. No one was hurt.

Militants have stepped up attacks in Pakistan, an unstable U.S. ally, since U.S. special forces killed al Qaeda leader bin Laden in the garrison town of Abbottabad this month.

Abdullah Azzam Brigade, a militant group affiliated with Pakistani Taliban, claimed responsibility for both attacks on the NATO trucks.

"It is our jihad against Americans. We want to stop supplies for NATO from our territory," Abu Musa'ab, a spokesman for the group, told Reuters by telephone from an undisclosed location.

Residents of Landikotal stood looking at 15 wooden coffins holding the victims. Nearby a truck that was hit by the bomb was burned out and gutted.

The attacks on the NATO trucks in Khyber came hours after the Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for a bomb attack on a U.S. consulate convoy in the city of Peshawar.

One Pakistani was killed and 12 people were injured, including two lightly wounded U.S. nationals.

Routes through Pakistan bring in 40 percent of supplies for NATO forces in Afghanistan, according to the United States Transportation Command. Of the remainder, 40 percent come through Afghanistan's neighbors in the north and 20 percent by air.

The Pakistani Taliban are pressing ahead with their campaign of suicide bombings designed to de-stabilize the unpopular government, despite several army offensives against their strongholds along the lawless border region with Afghanistan.

Eight suspected militants were killed on Saturday when army gunship helicopters attacked their hideouts in Orakzai region, adjoining Khyber, local officials said.

(Additional reporting by Izaz Mohmand and Fayaz Aziz; Writing by Zeeshan Haider; Editing by Michael Georgy and Alex Richardson)

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Blast in Somalia kills 5 pro-gov't troops (AP)

MOGADISHU, Somalia – A new military offensive in Somalia has gained ground against al-Shabab insurgents despite a bomb explosion Monday that killed five pro-government troops at a base militants fled last week, officials said.

Maj. Paddy Ankunda, a spokesman for African Union troops in Somalia, said his forces began an operation last Thursday that has gained 500 yards (meters) of territory from insurgents.

"The territory that we continue to cover is giving us hope that, yes, we are making progress," he said.

Some of the territory gained included a former Sufi shrine that al-Shabab used as a military base. An explosion ripped through the shrine on Monday, killing five troops with a pro-government militia, said Abdi Muhummad, a commander.

Muhummad said he believes al-Shabab, the country's most dangerous insurgent group, buried the explosive before fleeing.

Three AU troops have died so far in the operation, in addition to Monday's five deaths. Al-Shabab displayed one of the AU bodies in Mogadishu last week.

Ankunda said the AU's ultimate target is Mogadishu's main market, Bakara, which al-Shabab currently controls. He said the operation also aims to get more roads open for public use.

He said the AU has seen al-Shabab forcing local business men to pay higher taxes, a possible indication that the militants' finances are under pressure. He also called on Somalia's government to solve their political problems so they don't derail the military gains. Somalia's president and parliament are arguing over elections scheduled for this summer.

Ankunda said that the AU force would kill an American fighting with al-Shabab if it could.

Omar Hammami, known as Abu Mansur al-Amriki, or "the American," held a news conference in the open last week, where he said that militants would seek revenge for the death of Osama bin Laden. Hammami, who sipped coconut milk from a straw as he spoke, gave the open-air news conference about 40 miles (60 kilometers) southwest of Mogadishu.

"We have the interest but unfortunately we don't have the capabilities to deliver such an attack," Ankunda said. "But honestly we do have the interest."

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Associated Press reporter Jason Straziuso in Nairobi, Kenya contributed to this report.

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6 killed in Pakistan after bus blast

Eight of the wounded are in critical conditionThe blast occurred in Punjab provinceThe nature of the blast is not yet known

Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Six people died in Pakistan on Saturday when a blast tore through a passenger bus, a government official said.

The incident occurred in a village in the Gujrat district of Punjab province.

Three women and a child were among the dead, said Nawazish Ali, a senior government official.

At least 19 others were injured, with eight of them in critical condition, Ali said.

The nature of the explosion is not yet known. Ali said it could have been caused by a planted bomb or a gas cylinder explosion.

It comes a day after twin suicide bombings killed at least 80 people at a military training facility in near the country's tribal region.

The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility, saying the bombings were carried out in retaliation for the May 2 killing of terrorist leader Osama bin Laden by the U.S. military in the Pakistani city of Abbottabad.

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Pressure on Morocco spikes over blast

Moroccan media report the identity of the bomber, citing French news reportsThousands march in Marrakech to protest the bombing and oppose calls for violenceThe death toll from the April 28 bombing in a popular tourist destination rises to 17A North African al Qaeda group denies responsibility

Casablanca, Morocco (CNN) -- Moroccan authorities continued Monday with their investigation into last month's bombing in Marrakech after a weekend protest rally in there heightened tension over the attack.

Further details -- including the identity of the bomber -- have been doled out to Moroccan media in what is perceived as an initiative by the government to calm the atmosphere following the demonstration, which was followed by a 24-hour sit-in by youths in front of Marrakech's courthouse.

Over the weekend, reports indicated that the death toll from the attack had risen from 16 to 17.

Thousands of Moroccans took to the streets of central Marrakech on Sunday to show their defiance toward the bombers and toward a call for mayhem by the North African cell of al Qaeda. The peaceful march was organized by the youth movement Fevrier 20. Protesters paraded their banners -- many of which of denounced the killings and supported political reform -- through Morocco's most liberal tourist hot spot.

Morocco is currently in the midst of a radical reform process brought about by King Mohammed VI, who is concerned about the stability of this North African country.

On Saturday, al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, the North African wing of al Qaeda, issued a statement officially denying involvement in the April 28 bombing in Marrakech. But the group -- which is currently holding French hostages and demanding that French President Nicolas Sarkozy remove troops from Afghanistan -- has used the bombing in an attempt to rally extremist factions against the Moroccan monarch.

However, its call for the Moroccan regime to be "toppled" appears to have fallen on deaf ears, at least for most Moroccans. About 8,000 protested in a rally in Jamaa el-Fnaa Square, in front of the cafeteria where the bomb went off. Many drank orange juice in a symbolic protest against terrorism, since that's what the bomber ordered just before leaving the scene to detonate two bombs that he left there in a bag.

"We're here to denounce terrorism and the killings in Marrakech," explained one young Fevrier 20 supporter, who wished to be known only as Yassir. "But we don't want to say that this should stop the process of the struggle for reforms," he added.

Moroccan media Monday reported the identity of the bomber, attributing the information to reports in French newspapers, as no official confirmation has been offered by the Ministry of the Interior. They reported that the man is a Moroccan national and is being held by police, along with two alleged accomplices. He is said to be a young man from the coastal town of Safi who was working at the town's port.

The death toll increased to 17 when a Swiss victim passed away on Saturday, according to Swiss authorities. On Sunday, one British victim, a travel writer named Peter Moss, 59, was buried in a cemetery in North London in a service attended by the Moroccan ambassador to the United Kingdom.

Earlier speculation from the government suggested the bombing was the work of al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, a regional wing of the infamous terrorist organization that has sent fighters to Iraq and been accused of several Algerian bombings. Last week, Morocco's interior minister stated that he believed the bomber to be "loyal" to the North African terror cell.

On Saturday, an official Mauritanian state news agency reported that al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb denied responsibility for the killings, but urged Moroccans "to liberate their oppressed, jailed brothers and to topple the criminal regime," in what is widely interpreted as a reference to the king and his government. "We deny involvement in the bombing and assure that we have nothing to do with it, neither up close nor from afar," said the statement, carried by the Nouakchott Information Agency in Mauritania.

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14 bodies recovered from Mexican mine blast

SAN JUAN DE SABINAS, Mexico (AP) — Rescue crews recovered the last of 14 bodies early Sunday from a coal mine wracked by a gas explosion last week, while Labor Secretary Javier Lozano called for an overhaul of mine safety in Mexico.

Mexican officials said the blast Tuesday was caused by a buildup of gas. The national mine workers union said the mine's work force was not unionized and accused the government of allowing mines to operate with unsafe conditions.

The explosion was so powerful it also seriously injured a teenager who reportedly lost an arm as he was worked on the surface outside the mine. Lozano said earlier that the boy's employment at the mine was an apparent violation of labor laws.

In announcing that the last body had been recovered, Lozano said his ministry would embark on a project to make sure all mining companies follow the law and provide safe conditions for their workers.

"We want clean coal, coal without blood," he said.

A similar blast caused by a methane gas buildup killed 65 miners in February 2006 at Mexico's Pasta de Conchos coal mine in nearby San Juan de Sabinas.

Ramiro Flores Morales, a state legislator who says he is the city's local record keeper, said there have been dozens of explosions and deaths for various reasons in the area's coal mines over more than two decades, though there was no independent confirmation of his statistics.

Since the Pasta de Conchos tragedy, Flores said, the government "has promised to increase the number of inspectors ? to increase safety measures and to provide training for miners, and none of this has happened."

Instead, Flores said, two things remain constant: "The cry and demand from loved ones to recover the bodies for proper burial and the fact that mining continues to be the only local source of employment."

President Felipe Calderon was expected to travel on Monday to the mine, which is about 85 miles (135 kilometers) southwest of Eagle Pass, Texas, to offer condolences and government support to the families.

Several top officials in his government were expected to visit as well, including the secretary of energy and the federal prosecutor for labor violations.

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Morocca: al-Qaida suspect in cafe blast

MARRAKECH, Morocco (AP) — The style of the bomb that killed 16 people in a crowded tourist cafe matches al-Qaida's, Morocco's interior minister said Friday.

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Moroccan protesters rally in front of Argana Cafe, the site of Thursday's bomb attack.

By Abdelhak Senna, AFP/Getty Images

Moroccan protesters rally in front of Argana Cafe, the site of Thursday's bomb attack.

Taib Cherqaoui raised the death toll in Thursday's attack on a cafe sitting on a famed square in Marrakech to 16 ? 14 of them foreigners, mostly Europeans and at least half of them French.

He said 25 people were injured, 14 of them hospitalized.

The bomb was triggered remotely and packed with nails. Some were found at the scene of the blast, others in the bodies of victims, Cherqaoui said.

"The manner reminds us of the style used generally by al-Qaida," Cherqaoui said. "And this leads us to think that there is a possibility of more dangers to come."

No one has claimed responsibility for Morocco's deadliest attack since 2003.

Morocco has regularly dismantled al-Qaida cells and at times said it had stopped plots in the making. Thousands of Islamists, either suspects or convicted in terror-linked affairs, are in Moroccan jails.

In the first official breakdown of victims, the minister said that 16 people had died ? the latest a French woman who died late afternoon Friday in a hospital.

Two Moroccans were killed in the blast that tore the facade off the second-story of the Argana cafe in the historic Djemma el-Fna square, one of the top attractions in a country that depends heavily on tourism.

At least seven of the 14 foreigners were French, two were Canadian, one Dutch and one British, the minister said. Experts were still trying to identify the other three through DNA, he said. However, he included them among the foreigners killed.

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17 states urge halt to Blast drink

Rapper Snoop Dog promotes Blast, which has an alcohol content of 12%. STORY HIGHLIGHTS17 state attorneys general send a letter to Pabst Brewing Co., maker of "Blast"The malt beverage is a 'binge-in-a-can" that targets youth, letter saysThe drink has an alcohol content of 12%, comes in colorful, 23.5-ounce cans"Message of drinking responsibly" is focus of marketing, Pabst says RELATED TOPICSPabst Brewing CompanySnoop Dogg (CNN) -- Seventeen state attorneys general are urging Pabst Brewing Co. to stop marketing to young drinkers and halt production of a new malt beverage promoted by rapper Snoop Dogg.

In a letter sent to the Pabst Brewing Co., Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler says "Blast" by Colt 45 is a 'binge-in-a-can" that targets youth. Gansler was joined by attorneys general from Arizona, California, Connecticut, Guam, Idaho, Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah, and Washington.

San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera also joined the petition, according to a written statement.

The makers of the new fruity blend came under fire after advocacy groups and politicians raised questions about its marketing campaign.

The drink, in a colorful 23.5-ounce can that resembles soda pop but has an alcohol content of 12%, more potent than a typical can of beer.

"They're marketing it as a single serving when in reality it's five servings in a can," said Raquel Guillory, spokeswoman for the Maryland attorney general. "We hope they would be a good corporate citizen."

Paul Porter of Industry Ears, a media watchdog group, says "Colt 45 makers are raising the alcohol level from the already high 6% to the even higher 12%, and enticing young people with hip hop themes and lollipop flavors."

He added the company is "expanding its market with our children."

Asked about the letter, Pabst Brewing Co. chief marketing officer Jon Sayer responded in a written statement: "Blast is only meant to be consumed by those above legal drinking age."

"As with all Pabst products, our marketing efforts for Blast are focused on conveying the message of drinking responsibly," the statement said. "To that end, the alcohol content of Blast is clearly marked on its packaging."

Rapper Snoop Dogg is considered a face of the product who "has the ability to take Colt 45 to a whole new level," according to a company marketing video.

As of Thursday night, Snoop Dogg had not responded to a request for comment from CNN.

In 2008, Gansler worked out a deal with MillerCoors and Anheuser-Busch to halt the sale and production of select high-alcohol-content drinks.

"Both of those voluntarily pulled those off the market after we sent them a letter" that requested the drinks' removal, said Guillory.

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Top Republicans blast Obama debt speech as 'inadequate'

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., told reporters after the White House briefing that there remains "bipartisan opposition" in the Senate to raising the nation's debt limit unless there are "significant" steps to reduce the debt.

"The definition of significant is what we do is viewed as credible by the markets, by the American people, and by foreign countries. No blue smoke and mirrors, no gamesmanship," McConnell said.

Earlier in the day, Boehner and Cantor ripped Obama for being a latecomer on the debt issue. Cantor said Obama's speech was a "budget do-over," coming two months after the president submitted his 2012 proposal on federal spending and deficit reduction.

See photos of: Barack ObamaTags:Barack ObamaJohn BoehnerEric Cantor .div-wrapper

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