After spending 372 days as a hostage in the Philippines, Gracia Burnham would run for cover at the sound of July Fourth fireworks. Her struggles are common among people who spend time in captivity, psychologists say. The 15 hostages rescued this week from Colombian rebels now face their own challenges.

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The woman known as "Sister Green" to her fellow church members was remembered Thursday as a "beautiful person" with "a good heart." But a friend said Esmin Green was struggling with personal issues before she was taken to King County Hospital in Brooklyn. There she collapsed and died on the floor, seemingly ignored by hospital staff.

The State Department inspector general Thursday blasted the security of U.S. passport files, saying the repeated access of over 100 celebrities' files had gone undetected and unpunished.

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With the U.S. economy mired in a slump, Americans still believe saving the environment is more important than fixing the economy, according to a new poll released Thursday. But consumers are more closely divided on the issue than they have been in the past.

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Barack Obama called a second news conference in a single day in North Dakota Thursday to reiterate that he is not changing his position on withdrawing all combat troops from Iraq.

Two French biochemistry students who were found stabbed to death in a burned-out London apartment were the victims of a "frenzied, brutal, horrific attack," say police who have appealed for information about the case.