WORLD BRIEFS

AFGHANISTAN: Anti-U.S. cries after raid

NATO and Afghan forces raided a lawmaker's home and fatally shot the woman's brother-in-law in eastern Afghanistan overnight, sending hundreds of people into the streets shouting "Death to America!" in protest, parliament member Safiya Sidiqi said. She said family members told her that about 100 NATO soldiers stormed her home, near the city of Jalalabad. She was not home at the time. The crowd gathered on streets near Jalalabad on Thursday, burning tires and shouting anti-U.S. slogans. NATO said a joint operation killed "one armed individual while pursuing a Taliban facilitator." Sidiqi said the soldiers broke the windows of her home and pulled out 15 members of her family in a raid she called "barbaric."

CHINA: Kindergarten kids slashed

The screams of 4-year-olds inside the kindergarten could be heard out in the street. When people ran in to investigate, one said they found a scene "too horrible to imagine" - blood everywhere as a knife-wielding man slashed 28 children, two teachers and a security guard Thursday in the second such school attack in China in two days. Experts called it a copycat rampage triggered by similar incidents Wednesday and last month. Thursday's attack at the Zhongxin Kindergarten left five students hospitalized in critical condition in the eastern city of Taixing. Two teachers and the security guard were also hurt.

BRITAIN Brown struggles in debate

Prime Minister Gordon Brown scrapped for his political future in the country's final TV election debate on the economy, the most combative showdown yet in which he traded gibes with rivals a day after an embarrassing gaffe. After forgetting to remove a microphone on a campaign stop, Brown was heard calling a retired Labour voter a "bigoted woman" after she questioned him on immigration. The debate Thursday offered Brown a chance to shine; the former Treasury chief is most comfortable talking about numbers. But his delivery fell flat as he looked tired. Months ago, the Conservatives' David Cameron was favored as the clear winner but he was surprisingly eclipsed after the first debate when Nick Clegg, leader of the Liberal Democrats, stole the show. It now seemed likely that no party would win a clear parliamentary majority in the May 6 vote.