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7 | Abu Dhabi A Royal Detained A brother of Abu Dhabi's ruler is being held after footage purportedly showing him torturing an Afghan merchant was leaked to ABC News. Sheik Issa bin Zayed al-Nahyan, a real estate developer, is the first member of the emirate's ruling family to face a criminal investigation. The videotape prompted outrage among U.S. legislators and threatens to scuttle a civilian nuclear deal with the United Arab Emirates.
8 | London Taxpayers to Parliament: We Are Not Amused Dozens of British lawmakers are facing scrutiny over leaked expense-report claims ranging from home mortgages to moat (yes, moat) maintenance. While most claims are within legal limits, their dizzying scale has sparked an outcry. Among the offenders:
GORDON BROWN The Prime Minister was reimbursed after paying his brother about $10,000 for arranging cleaning services for his flat but says he will pay it back.
TONY BLAIR The former Prime Minister remortgaged his constituency home for more than $450,000 and claimed almost a third of the interest as an expense at about the time he was buying another property in London.
GERRY ADAMS He and four other Sinn Fein MPs claimed more than $750,000 over five years, even though they refuse to attend Parliament.
DOUGLAS HOGG As Agriculture Secretary, Hogg put in for $3,000 for a moat at his estate and $22,000 for home services. He says he didn't want taxpayers to foot the moat bill.
9 | Washington Entitlements Feel the Squeeze The weak economy and surging health-care costs are taking a toll on Medicare and Social Security. A troubling government report projects that hospital funding for Medicare, which provides health care for 45 million Americans, will run dry by 2017--two years sooner than predicted just a year ago. Social Security's trust fund will go broke in 2037, four years ahead of schedule. Analysts warn that the picture may grow bleaker as mounting unemployment slashes tax revenues that fund the entitlements, which already eat up a third of federal spending.
10 | Baghdad Friendly Fire An American soldier who had recently been referred for counseling allegedly gunned down five fellow service members at a combat-stress clinic on a U.S. military base. A communications specialist from Texas on his third tour in Iraq, the suspect, Sergeant John M. Russell, 44 (pictured), was charged with five counts of murder and one of aggravated assault in the U.S.'s deadliest soldier-on-soldier attack of the Iraq war.
RECESSION WATCH
Even if you're homeless, New York City wants that rent money. Under a newly enforced policy, working families that live in public shelters will have to turn over a portion of their earnings, in some cases as much as 50%, to cover costs. About 2,000 of the 9,000 families living in homeless shelters will be affected as the city grapples with a major budget crunch.