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A customer shows his tickets for the multi-state Powerball lottery jackpot, the largest in U.S. history, at a convenience store in Madison, Ga., on Jan. 8, 2016.(Photo: EPA)
No Powerball winner; record lottery<span style="color: Red;">*</span>jackpot may grow to $1.3 billion
How high can it go?<span style="color: Red;">*</span>No winning ticket was drawn in Saturday night's record Powerball jackpot of nearly $950 million, which pushes the giant pot even<span style="color: Red;">*</span>higher —<span style="color: Red;">*</span>to an estimated $1.3 billion, according to lottery officials.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>The next Powerball drawing is Wednesday.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Saturday's<span style="color: Red;">*</span>winning numbers were 16-19-32-34-57 and the Powerball number 13.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>All six numbers must be correct to win, although the first five can be in any order. The odds to win the largest lottery prize in U.S. history were one in 292.2 million.
Mexico says Sean Penn interview helped nab 'El Chapo'
The recapture of Mexican drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman took a bizarre<span style="color: Red;">*</span>twist on Saturday when an interview between Guzman and actor Sean Penn<span style="color: Red;">*</span>appeared on the website of Rolling Stone magazine.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Later Saturday, a<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Mexican official said the secret interview was the key to<span style="color: Red;">*</span>security forces locating<span style="color: Red;">*</span>the world's most-wanted trafficker. The interview<span style="color: Red;">*</span>purportedly was held at an undisclosed hideout in Mexico in late 2015, several months before Guzman's recapture Friday<span style="color: Red;">*</span>after six months on the run. In the interview,<span style="color: Red;">*</span>when asked about high addiction rates, he responds: "No, that is false, because the day I don't exist, it's not going to decrease in any way at all. Drug trafficking? That's false."
Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman faces the press as he is escorted to a helicopter in handcuffs by Mexican soldiers and marines at a federal hangar in Mexico City, Mexico, on Jan. 8, 2016.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>(Photo: Eduardo Verdugo, AP)
U.S. B-52 flight ups ante in nuclear weapons dispute with North Korea
The U.S. military responded to North Korea's claimed test of a hydrogen bomb on Sunday with a menacing demonstration of its own: a low-level flight by a B-52 bomber over neighboring South Korea. The long-range bomber made a low pass near Osan Air Base, about 40 miles south of Seoul, at about noon local time. It was accompanied by U.S. and South Korean fighter planes, according to a statement from U.S. Pacific Command, in Hawaii. <span style="color: Red;">*</span>"This was a demonstration of the ironclad U.S. commitment to our allies in South Korea, in Japan<span style="color: Red;">*</span>and to the defense of the American homeland," Adm. Harry Harris Jr., commander of<span style="color: Red;">*</span>U.S. Pacific Command, said in the statement released Sunday.
An American B-52 bomber flies over South Korea on January 10, 2016.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>(Photo: Handout, U.S. Pacific Command)
Out-of-control Bengals blow chance to end playoff drought
The Bengals erased a 15-point fourth-quarter deficit against the Steelers on Saturday night, only to lose the AFC Wildcard 18-16 in a brutal, personal foul-filled contest. USA TODAY columnist Paul Daugherty<span style="color: Red;">*</span>calls it the worst loss of the Marvin Lewis era. Leading 16-15 with less than two minutes remaining, the Bengals turned the ball over on a fumble. On the Steelers' final drive, Bengals linebacker Vontaze Burfict was flagged for a personal foul on an incomplete pass from injured Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. Another personal foul by cornerback Adam Jones set up the game-winning field goal for the Steelers with 14 seconds left.
Cincinnati Bengals' Vontaze Burfict (55) runs into Pittsburgh Steelers' Antonio Brown during the second half Sunday. Burfict was called for a penalty on the play.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>(Photo: AP)
Obamas invite Syrian refugee to State of the Union Address
President Obama is taking a dramatic step to show he opposes Republican efforts to slow or halt the admission of refugees over terrorist concerns: He has invited a Syrian refugee to attend his State of the Union Address. Refaai Hamo, 55, a native of Syria now living in Detroit, will sit in first lady Michelle Obama's box in the House of Representatives gallery for Tuesday night's speech. Hamo drew international attention last month after he was featured in the popular blog "Humans of New York." Meanwhile, the United Nations is calling for "unimpeded humanitarian access" to hard-to-reach sections of Syria besieged by conflict after dramatic photos of starving Syrians went global.
This undated photo posted on the Local Revolutionary Council in Madaya, which has been verified and is consistent with other AP reporting, shows a starving boy in Madaya, Syria.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>(Photo: AP)
Texas armed standoff ends after 15 years
After almost 15 years, what is believed to be the longest armed standoff in American history<span style="color: Red;">*</span>quietly came to a peaceful close earlier this week.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>John Joe Gray was arrested in 1999 for assaulting a state trooper during a traffic stop. Gray said it was his God-given right to carry the pistol he had that day, without a concealed handgun license. Gray was eventually charged with assaulting a public servant, but he refused to return to court, and instead, armed himself at home. The felony charge of assaulting a peace officer was dismissed in December 2014, when the district attorney left office. But for some reason, no one notified the Henderson County Sheriff's Office or even the Gray family, until now.
Handmade signs on John Joe Gray's property near Trinidad, Texas.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>(Photo: AP Photo/Brandon Wade)
'Star Wars' runs record box office to $812M
Not even Leonardo DiCaprio can stop the Star Wars phenomenon. Star Wars: The Force Awakens, the newly minted record holder for all-time domestic box office, pulled in another $41.6 million this weekend, according to studio estimates. The movie finished in first place for a fourth weekend and narrowly defeated DiCaprio's wilderness thriller The Revenant, which made its debut with $38 million in nationwide release ($39.6 million total since opening Christmas Day in limited release).
Rey (Daisy Ridley) and BB-8 are two of the stars of new all-time box-office champ 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens.'<span style="color: Red;">*</span>(Photo: Lucasfilm)
Contributing: Associated Press
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