African Union dodges issue of Gadhafi's role (AP)

MALABO, Equatorial Guinea – Africa's heads of state signed off on a road map designed to help Libya emerge from civil war, but carefully dodged the issue of what role the country's entrenched dictator Moammar Gadhafi should play in its future government.

The proposal adopted by the 53-nation body comes after a delegation from the African Union traveled to Libya, meeting both with Gadhafi and the rebels attempting to overthrow him in an effort to mediate a solution. The rebels had said that a precondition was that Gadhafi must leave power before any negotiations can take place.

The road map agreed upon by the African leaders at this week's African Union summit states that Gadhafi has agreed to "an inclusive dialogue process" that will include the rebels. He had furthermore agreed not to take part in these negotiations.

However, the AU proposal does not say that Gadhafi should step down, and it does not make clear whether he would be allowed to play a part in the proposed transitional government, whose shape is to be determined during the talks.

Among the only guidance it provides is that the transitional period "will be underpinned by ... inclusivity in order to bring on board all stakeholders" and "consensus as a way to providing broad based support to all decisions that will be undertaken during the transition."

AU leaders refused to answer whether or not that language opens the door for Gadhafi to be a member of the new government, even if he did not take part in the negotiations to create it.

Gadhafi's chief of staff Bashir Saleh and the other representatives of the Libyan government called it a step forward. "I think it's a good thing as it will allow all the parties to come together and find a solution." The spokesman for the rebel delegation could not immediately be reached for comment.

Saleh denied that support for Gadhafi among his African peers is waning, even though several diplomats said that a majority of AU leaders are now in favor of him stepping down, even if they are not willing to say so publicly.

Several Western observers including one that was inside the closed-door session during the debate said that the AU was divided between those wanting the body to issue a statement calling for Gadhafi's departure and those arguing that Gadhafi is an elected head of state and cannot be forced out.

"The idea of his departure is illogical," said Saleh. "He's the head of state," said Saleh. "How can you ask someone to leave his own house?"

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Anthony trial delayed over legal issue

Orlando (CNN) -- What had been planned as an extended weekend work day in the Casey Anthony murder trial abruptly ended Saturday morning as the judge overseeing the case ordered a recess over the sudden emergence of what one analyst said must be a major issue.

"Obviously it's big, and obviously it's troublesome and obviously it's something that can't be disclosed," HLN legal analyst Linda Kenney Baden said.

Judge Belvin Perry emerged from his chambers Saturday morning after nearly an hour of discussions with attorneys both in and out of the courtroom to announce the day's planned testimony would be canceled.

He said only that the delay was due to a legal issue unrelated to complaints prosecutors raised first thing Saturday morning about expected testimony from Kenneth Furton, a chemistry expert the defense had planned to call Saturday.

Anthony's lawyers are trying to discredit the prosecution theory that the Orlando woman rendered her 2-year-old daughter Caylee unconscious with chloroform, duct-taped her mouth and nose and stored the body in her trunk for a few days before dumping it in the woods. Anthony, 25, is charged with seven counts, including first-degree murder.

The defense says Caylee accidentally drowned in the family pool and that Anthony and her father panicked and covered it up.

In what has become a familiar strain during the trial, prosecutor Jeff Ashton complained to Perry that defense attorneys didn't disclose Furton's plans to testify about things that weren't contained in his initial report provided to prosecutors or mentioned in his formal interview with them.

Perry has previously admonished Baez for failing to disclose planned testimony to prosecutors, going so far as to say he will consider contempt proceedings against him once the trial is over.

Furton was to testify about explanations for vile odors and the presence of chloroform in the trunk of Casey Anthony's car, where prosecutors claim Anthony stored the body of 2-year-old Casey Anthony before dumping the remains in a wooded field.

Chloroform can be given off by a decomposing body, and one prosecution expert described the levels of the substance in the trunk of Anthony's white Pontiac Sunfire as "shockingly high." Several witnesses also testified for the state about odors that they said smelled like the unmistakable scent of human decomposition.

Furton did not provide specific alternative explanations for the presence of odors or chloroform in his initial report or in his interview with prosecutors, Ashton complained.

"Once again we are in the position of experts having supplemented their opinions without notifying the state," Ashton said.

Defense attorney Jose Baez disagreed, saying nothing in Furton's planned testimony differed from his previous opinions.

"Mr. Ashton can continue to make these allegations and make these allegations and then suddenly they become true in his world," Baez said. "But I do not believe they are true."

Perry indicated that he would not allow Furton to testify on Saturday, but didn't rule on the controversy before ordering the trial to recess until 8:30 a.m. Monday morning. But he did hint at his frustration.

"You would think this would have grown old by now but I guess some things never change," he said.

Saturday marked the end of the fifth week of testimony in the trial, which began with opening statements on May 24.

Perry lengthened Saturday's work day from the usual half-day in an effort to speed the trial's conclusion. He originally told jurors, who are being housed in an Orlando hotel shielded from media coverage of the trial, that the trial could last six to eight weeks.

On Friday -- before Saturday's delay -- Baez said he expected the defense to rest on Wednesday or possibly Thursday. That would leave room for a rebuttal case from the prosecution and closing statements before the Independence Day holiday.

It is unclear how Saturday's delay will affect those plans.

Anthony could face the death penalty if convicted of the most serious charge, first degree murder. The charges against her also include misleading authorities and aggravated child abuse.

Caylee was not reported missing to police until July 15, 2008, when Anthony's mother, Cindy Anthony, tracked down her daughter and demanded answers regarding Caylee's whereabouts. Prosecution witnesses described Anthony's behavior in the month after Caylee was last seen as nonchalant, testifying how she spent time with her boyfriend, went shopping and to nightclubs.

Baez said in his opening statement that Anthony behaved as she did because years of sexual abuse by her father and had conditioned her to conceal the truth and hide her pain.

George Anthony has denied the claims that he abused his daughter or helped conceal his granddaughter's death.

CNN's Michael Christian contributed to this report.

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Sen. Reid: Abortion issue is preventing a budget deal

Reid: All comes down to 'women's health'STORY HIGHLIGHTSHarry Reid says the abortion issue is preventing a deal; John Boehner disagrees President Obama hopes for an agreement on Friday morningReid says he's not optimistic a deal will be reachedThursday night's White House meeting ended with no deal Washington (CNN) -- Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, said Friday morning that the abortion issue is the lone remaining stumbling block for negotiators trying to reach a budget agreement that would prevent a government shutdown.

"This all deals with women's health. Everything (else) has been resolved. Everything," Reid said. "It's an ideological battle. It has nothing to do with fiscal integrity in this country."

Republicans have been pushing to strip federal funding from Planned Parenthood during the budget talks. They are also trying to get federal dollars now set aside for family planning and women's health turned into block grants for states, according to a Democratic source.

Such a move -- opposed by Democrats, according to the source -- would give governors and state legislatures more ability to cut funding for services opposed by conservatives.

Live blog: Latest developments on a possible shutdown

A spokesman for Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, immediately disputed Reid's assertion that abortion is the key sticking point.

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FAA to issue directive on inspections

Southwest planes being inspectedSTORY HIGHLIGHTSThe FAA says it plans to mandate inspections of certain 737sAbout 175 planes will be subject to inspectionBy Monday afternoon, Southwest had inspected 67 of its 79 grounded jetsThe joint where the breach opened had been visually, not electromagnetically, inspected (CNN) -- The Federal Aviation Administration plans to issue a directive Tuesday mandating operators of about 175 older Boeing 737s to conduct inspections for wear and tear.

The "emergency directive" comes just days after a Boeing 737 flown by Southwest Airlines made an emergency landing with a hole in its fuselage.

The FAA mandate would affect about 80 U.S.-registered 737-300s, 737-400s and 737-500s, mostly operated by Southwest. The remaining 95 or so aircraft are registered outside the United States.

Each of the 175 or so planes in question have taken off and landed more than 30,000 times and will receive repetitive electromagnetic inspections at regular intervals for fatigue damage.

In a separate statement, Boeing said it was working with the FAA, the National Transportation Safety Board and Southwest, and it was preparing a service bulletin to recommend lap joint inspections on certain 737 models.

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