World/Nation

• Obama authorizes 1,500 more troops to Iraq

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama authorized on Friday a broad expansion of the U.S. military mission in Iraq which could boost the total number of American troops there to 3,100 and spread advisory teams and trainers across the country, including into Anbar province where fighting with Islamic State militants has been fierce.

The president's decision to escalate the U.S. effort in Iraq comes just three days after midterm elections that were bruising for Democrats, and amid persistent arguments that more U.S. troops are needed to bolster the struggling Iraqi forces. In particular, the Iraqi government, members of Congress and others have called for troops in Anbar in western Iraq, where extremists have been slaughtering men, women and children.

Obama authorized the Pentagon to send 1,500 more troops to Iraq, adding to the 1,600 previously allowed. There are currently about 1,400 there.

The plans are all contingent on Congress approving his nearly $5.6 billion request to fund the expanded mission. The troops will not be able to deploy until legislation passes and the president signs it.

• Loretta Lynch nominated for attorney general

WASHINGTON - In a second trail-blazing pick for the nation's top law enforcement officer, President Barack Obama intends to nominate a federal prosecutor in New York to become the next attorney general and the first black woman to lead the Justice Department.

Obama's spokesman said Friday that he will announce his selection of Loretta Lynch from the White House on Saturday. If confirmed by the Senate, she would replace Eric Holder, who announced his resignation in September after serving as the nation's first black attorney general.

Lynch, 55, is the U.S. attorney for Eastern New York, which covers Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island and Long Island, a position she also held under President Bill Clinton.

"Ms. Lynch is a strong, independent prosecutor who has twice led one of the most important U.S. attorney's offices in the country," Obama press secretary Josh Earnest said in a statement.

• Merritt charged in killing of California family

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. - A business associate of a Southern California man who vanished with his wife and two young sons in 2010 was charged with four counts of murder, and authorities said Friday they believe the family was bludgeoned to death before their bodies were buried in the desert.

Charles "Chase" Merritt, 57, of Homeland made a brief court appearance on four counts of murder in the deaths of Joseph McStay, 40, his wife, Summer, 43, and their sons, 4-year-old Gianni and 3-year-old Joseph.

Merritt, who has served prison time for burglary and receiving stolen property, did not enter a plea and was due back in court next week.

His attorney, Robert Ponce, did not immediately return a call or email.

Investigators believe the family members were killed in their home in the San Diego County community of Fallbrook on Feb. 4, 2010, and were victims of blunt-force trauma, said San Bernardino County Sheriff John McMahon.

• Saudi women may get to drive during the day

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia - It's only for women older than 30, who must be off the road by 8 p.m. and cannot wear makeup behind the wheel. But it's still a startling shift.

The Saudi king's advisory council has recommended that the government lift its ban on female drivers, a member of the council told The Associated Press Friday.

The Shura Council's recommendations are not obligatory on the government, but simply making the recommendation was a major step after years of the kingdom staunchly rejecting any review of the ban.

There have been small but increasingly bold protests by women who took to their cars over the past year. The driving ban, which is unique in the world, is imposed because the kingdom's ultraconservative Muslim clerics say "licentiousness" will spread if women drive.

• Mexico: Evidence shows missing students killed

MEXICO CITY - Suspects in the disappearance of 43 college students have confessed to loading the youths onto dump trucks, murdering them at a landfill, then burning the bodies and dumping the ashen remains into a river, Mexican authorities said Friday.

In a somber, lengthy explanation of the investigation, Attorney General Jesus Murillo Karam played video showing hundreds of charred fragments of bone and teeth fished from the river and its banks. He said it will be very difficult to extract DNA to confirm that they are the students missing since Sept. 26 after an attack by police in the southern state of Guerrero.

- The Associated Press