A 16-year-old boy infected with the H5N1 bird flu virus has died in central China, the official Xinhua News Agency said Tuesday, the country’s third fatality from the disease this month. China, meanwhile, stepped up bird flu precautions on fears that the virus can spread more quickly in cold weather …

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – A strong earthquake rattled Alaska’s Cook Inlet but there have been no reports of damage. Alaska State Troopers spokeswoman Megan Peters says the agency’s 911 dispatch center in Soldotna received numerous calls alerting officials to the earthquake just after 9 a.m. Saturday. The U.S. Geological Survey rated …

JERUSALEM – The parents of an American man severely wounded by Israeli troops in a recent West Bank protest want the Israeli government to take responsibility for the incident. Tristan Anderson was struck in the head March 13th by a tear gas canister fired by Israeli troops in the village …

MONTPELIER, Vt. – Police in Middlebury have closed the book on the death of 19-year-old Nicholas Garza, saying he was severely intoxicated when he disappeared but that there’s no evidence of foul play or third-party involvement. The Middlebury College freshman from Albuquerque, N.M., vanished Feb. 5, 2008 during a winter …

HAVANA – President Raul Castro shook up Cuba’s top leadership on Monday, replacing key figures tied to his brother Fidel Castro with others apparently closer to him. The abrupt shakeup came a year after Fidel Castro handed the presidency to his younger brother because of poor health. It was announced …

NEW YORK – The Sun-Times Media Group, owner of the Chicago Sun-Times and dozens of suburban newspapers, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Tuesday, making it the fifth newspaper publisher to seek protection from creditors in recent months. The step, brought on by a precipitous decline in advertising revenue, means both …

AUSTIN, Texas – A guard at a Texas prison has been fired for “reckless endangerment” after a convicted sex offender escaped with a loaded pistol that had been smuggled to the inmate. Officials also say all state prisons will also go through an accelerated security review. Michelle Lyons, a spokeswoman …

BAGHDAD – A handful of Iraqi Christians and Shiite Muslims got into a dispute Friday over decorations in a northern Iraqi town during their coinciding religious observances, officials said. Iraqi troops were deployed and a curfew was imposed in the town after three guards at a Christian church were injured …

This is a RUSH transcript from “The O’Reilly Factor,” December 17, 2009. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated. Watch “The O’Reilly Factor” weeknights at 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. ET! BILL O’REILLY, HOST: In the “Factor Follow-up” segment tonight: A new Wall Street …

The NFL is partnering with Boston University brain researchers who have been critical of the league’s stance on concussions, The Associated Press has learned. The league is going to encourage current and former NFL players to agree to donate their brains to the Boston University Center for the Study of …