World/Nation

• Two boys share spelling bee title after long duel

OXON HILL, Md. (AP) - The dreaded bell that signals a misspelled word tolled for each of the last two spellers in the Scripps National Spelling Bee on Thursday night. But in an exhilarating twist, it wasn't the end for either of them.

Sriram Hathwar of Painted Post, N.Y., and Ansun Sujoe of Fort Worth, Texas, got back-to-back words wrong, each giving a reprieve to the other. Neither stumbled again, and a dozen words later, they ended up as co-champions of the bee for the first time in 52 years.

"The competition was against the dictionary, not against each other," Sriram said after both were showered with confetti onstage. "I'm happy to share this trophy with him."

Ansun said afterward that he knew the word that Sriram got wrong: "corpsbruder," a close comrade. Ditto for 14-year-old Sriram, who said he was familiar with "antigropelos," which means waterproof leggings. That word dashed 13-year-old Ansun's chance for an upset victory.

After their misses, the boys staged a riveting duel, plowing through the toughest words the bee had to offer: Skandhas. Hyblaean. Feijoada. Augenphilologie. Sdrucciola. Holluschick. Thyemelici. Paixtle. Encaenia. Terreplein.

Finally, only four of the 25 championship words remained. Two had to be kept in reserve so the bee wouldn't end with an incorrect spelling.

Sriram's last word was stichomythia, a theatrical term for dialogue representing an altercation and delivered in alternating lines.

• Calls increase for Shinseki's ouster from VA post

WASHINGTON - Support for embattled Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki eroded quickly Thursday, especially among congressional Democrats facing tough re-election campaigns, even as Shinseki continued to fight for his job amid allegations of delayed medical care and misconduct at VA facilities nationwide.

Shinseki spoke privately with lawmakers and met with nearly two dozen veterans groups, assuring them that he takes the reports seriously and is moving swiftly to fix problems. Today, he is to address the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, outlining his plans for corrections.

A federal investigation of operations in the troubled Phoenix VA Health Care System found that about 1,700 veterans in need of care were "at risk of being lost or forgotten" after being kept off an official waiting list. While initially focused on Phoenix, the investigation described Wednesday by the VA Department's inspector general found broad and deep-seated problems in the sprawling health care system, which provides medical care to about 6.5 million veterans annually.

The interim report confirmed earlier allegations of excessive waiting times for care in Phoenix, with an average 115-day wait for a first appointment for those on the waiting list - nearly five times as long as the 24-day average the hospital had reported.

• Rebels shoot down Ukraine troop helicopter

SLOVYANSK, Ukraine - In another devastating blow to Ukraine's armed forces, rebels shot down a troop helicopter Thursday, killing at least 12 soldiers.

The loss underscored the challenge Ukrainian forces face in fighting a guerrilla-style insurgency that has proven to be an agile foe.

Ukraine, meanwhile, announced that President-elect Petro Poroshenko will be sworn in June 7, less than two weeks after his overwhelming victory in special balloting that was hoped would ease tensions in the deeply divided country. Poroshenko has promised to negotiate with representatives in rebellious eastern Ukraine but also has vowed to uproot the pro-Moscow rebels who want the region to join Russia.

The Mi-8 helicopter was downed on the outskirts of Slovyansk by rebels using a portable air defense missile, according to Oleksandr Turchynov, Ukraine's acting president, in remarks to parliament in Kiev. Slovyansk, a city of 120,000 people, has become a focal point for the insurgency and has for weeks been encircled by Ukrainian troops.

Turchynov said the helicopter was rotating troops into a checkpoint when it came under rebel fire. Among the dead was Gen. Serhiy Kulchytskiy, who the Interfax news agency said had once served in the Soviet army and was in charge of training Ukraine's National Guard.

• FDA: Warning labels for indoor tanning devices

WASHINGTON - Tanning beds and sun lamps will carry new warnings that they should not be used by anyone younger than 18, part of a government action announced Thursday aimed at reducing skin cancer linked to the radiation-emitting devices.

The Food and Drug Administration has regulated tanning machines for more than 30 years, but the agency is now requiring more prominent warnings about the cancer risks of indoor tanning.

Makers of sun lamps and related devices must include a bold label, known as a black box warning stating that they should not be used by people younger than 18. Additionally, manufacturers must provide more warnings about cancer risks in pamphlets, catalogues and websites that promote their products. Those materials must warn that the devices shouldn't be used by people who have had skin cancer or have a family history of the disease.

- The Associated Press