Confirms

French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Monday confirmed the death of a French hostage killed by Al Qaeda's wing in North Africa, saying in a speech that the slaying of 78-year-old humanitarian volunteer Michel Germaneau "will not go unpunished." Militants said Germaneau was killed in retaliation for an attempted rescue raid in Mali last week that resulted in the deaths of six members of the growing Al Qaeda wing, known as Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. Sarkozy defended the failed mission, which he said was ordered after the kidnappers' apparent refusal to negotiate.

HOUSTON - A paramedic who responded to the devastating fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas, last month was arrested Friday after federal investigators said they discovered he had the makings of a pipe bomb. It was not clear whether the arrest was connected to the April 17 explosion, which killed 14 people and injured more than 160 others in the small McLennan County town about 70 miles south of Dallas. The explosion had been investigated as an industrial accident, but officials said Friday they had started a criminal investigation.

A partner at Creative Artists Agency publicly acknowledged Tuesday that the entertainment and sports powerhouse has been in discussions with private equity funds about an investment in the firm. In remarks made during the Financial Times' Business of Luxury Summit in Beverly Hills, one of CAA's managing partners, Bryan Lourd, confirmed published reports that the agency was meeting with outside firms, which he declined to identify. According to the New York Times, the agency is in discussions with private-equity and buyout giant Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. and investment firm TPG Capital.

The overseers of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum concealed from the public independent reports of lax financial controls and widespread spending abuses at the taxpayer-owned stadium that included sloppy accounting of hot dog sales and excessive perks for managers, records show. Problems detailed in the reports by two independent audit and consulting firms compounded money woes that leaders of the Coliseum Commission cited as a chief reason they decided to turn over stewardship of the two-time Olympic venue to USC. The Times obtained the reports through the court as part of a pending lawsuit the news organization filed against the commission, alleging that the panel has violated the California Public Records Act and open-meetings law. The commission refused to release the reports when The Times first inquired about them in 2011.

When Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger announced Friday that eviction notices sent to about 20 developmentally and physically disabled residents of a Monrovia apartment complex were "terminated," some tenants and advocates were cautiously optimistic. But on Monday, a letter from the attorney representing the owners and property management of Regency Court made believers of those who were notified last month that the complex was always meant to be a senior citizens' apartment community and that anyone younger than 62 would have to leave.

Mexico's Senate today confirmed Arturo Chavez Chavez as the nation's attorney general, despite objections by human rights activists who assailed his role as prosecutor in the northern state of Chihuahua during the 1990s. Chavez, 49, who was quickly sworn in, becomes Mexico's top law enforcement official at a crucial moment. The government of President Felipe Calderon is at war with drug-trafficking groups that have unleashed waves of violence across the country. Chavez, a lawyer from Calderon's conservative National Action Party, or PAN, picked up needed opposition support to win confirmation by a hefty margin, 75 to 27. He takes over for Eduardo Medina Mora, who resigned this month amid criticisms by political opponents that the government's anti-crime offensive is foundering.

Confirming speculation about her political plans, state Assembly Speaker Karen Bass (D-Los Angeles) said she would seek the seat of retiring Democratic Rep. Diane Watson, who appeared with Bass at a Los Angeles news conference Wednesday to give the speaker her endorsement. "This is a very, very humbling moment," Bass told community leaders and supporters who joined her outside her Mid-Wilshire-area office. "I am so proud to announce I'm going to throw my hat into the ring." If elected, Bass said, she'll have "very big shoes to fill."

You can't get the swine flu virus by pigging out on barbecue, even if the pigs you used for chow had the disease, the federal government has confirmed. A new study conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture provided "additional confirmation" that meat from pigs exposed to the H1N 1 virus did not have the virus in it. "This research provides additional reassurance for consumers about the safety of pork," Edward B. Knipling, research service administrator with the department, said in a statement this week.

The City Council's Public Safety Committee on Monday unanimously confirmed Charlie Beck's nomination to be the next Los Angeles police chief. The vote came after a hearing in which community leaders and council members praised Beck's work at the Los Angeles Police Department and called him the right man to take over the department right now. Beck made his own presentation, saying his top goal was to extend the reforms begun by former Police...

Michelle Wie's performance in the PGA Tour's Sony Open in Hawaii last week confirms my theory about golf: "These kids don't realize just how difficult the game of golf is." Bob Brach Desert Hot Springs

Adrian Gonzalez is still bothered by a strained neck muscle but said Monday that he intends to play through the discomfort. Gonzalez, who was out of the lineup in the Dodgers' three previous games, started at first base in the series opener against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Dodger Stadium. The former All-Star first baseman underwent an MRI exam that confirmed the source of Gonzalez's pain was muscular rather than disk related. "Basically, it's how much pain you can tolerate," Gonzalez said.

Switching from cold, snowy vistas to the backdrop of a Pacific sunset, the NHL on Monday confirmed the Kings and the Ducks will face off in an outdoor game Jan. 25 at 7 p.m. Dodger Stadium. The contest, the first regular-season NHL game scheduled for an outdoor venue in a warm-weather city, will be played on a portable rink laid out from first base to third base. Contingency plans will be made for rain or other issues. "I think that's a perfect setting for a hockey game," said Kelly Cheeseman, chief operating officer of the Kings' parent company, AEG. "With the mountains and the palm trees in the background, you couldn't ask for a more magical setting.

WASHINGTON - President Obama nominated Democratic Rep. Mel Watt to be the top regulator for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, moving to replace a career bureaucrat who has been sharply criticized by liberals for not doing more to help troubled homeowners. But confirmation of Watt, a 20-year congressman from North Carolina, to be director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency is expected to be blocked by Senate Republicans. And the fight over the nomination could make it even more difficult for Republicans and Democrats to come together on legislation to overhaul the housing finance system and replace taxpayer-owned Fannie and Freddie.

The barnacle-covered boat with Japanese lettering spent 758 days at sea before it drifted onto a Northern California beach. Nearly three weeks after the 20-foot boat washed ashore in Crescent City, about 20 miles south of the Oregon border, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration determined it was from the 2011 tsunami, the first confirmed debris to reach California. Though official word didn't come until Thursday, a Humboldt State University professor used Facebook to connect the dots shortly after beachgoers discovered the boat April 7. Lori Dengler, who helped examine the craft, recognized the lettering after some of the barnacles were scraped away, the Del Norte Triplicate reported.

Officials have dropped charges against the Elvis impersonator accused of mailing ricin-laced letters to President Obama, a U.S. senator and a Mississippi judge, according to a court filing Tuesday. Poisoning suspect Paul Kevin Curtis of Corinth, Miss., was suddenly released on bond Tuesday in the middle of a series of preliminary evidentiary hearings that was put on hold. By afternoon, federal prosecutors had filed to drop the charges against him without prejudice. The filing stated "the ongoing investigation has revealed new information.

So long, "Dexter" - it's been nice watching you dispatch the bad guys. Showtime confirmed Thursday that the upcoming season of its vigilante serial-killer drama will be the last. The premiere of Season 8 is scheduled for June 30. The series stars Michael C. Hall as the title character, a troubled forensics investigator who goes to elaborate lengths to torture and kill people he thinks deserve it. PHOTOS: Memorable TV series finales The show helped establish Showtime as a serious contender in original programming after years of laboring in the shadows of HBO.  "When it debuted in 2006, 'Dexter' redefined the genre by taking the anti-hero to new heights and pushing the boundaries of the television landscape," Matthew C. Blank, chairman and CEO of Showtime Networks, wrote in a statement.

The Column One (March 1) article "Doomsday for War Forecasts" by Doyle McManus was a joy to read. It confirms the definition of an expert as "one who knows more and more about less and less until he knows all there is to know about nothing." NORMAN N. ALPERIN Rancho Palos Verdes

I don't know which is more offensive, Mike Downey's ignorance or his racism. Today's (Oct. 20) piece on Canada confirms that Downey revels in both. FRANK OTTO GATELL, Santa Monica

Rumors recently swirled that Miranda Kerr wasn't going to continue under contract with Victoria's Secret. Kerr now confirms it is true, but says she has agreed to walk in this year's Victoria's Secret Fashion Show. She just didn't want to remain under a contract that took so much of her time, because she has other priorities now, she told the Sydney Morning Herald. [SMH] Actor Ian Ziering, who came to fame playing Steve Sanders on the original "Beverly Hills 90120" in the 1990s, plans to spend the month of June dancing with the Chippendales  -- the famed male strippers -- at the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.

The Galaxy and Real Madrid will be among eight teams participating in a new international soccer tournament this summer that mostly will take place in six U.S. cities, including Los Angeles, it was announced Wednesday. Confirming earlier media reports, Relevent Sports, a division of RSE Ventures, said the Guinness International Champions Cup also would include Juventus and Inter Milan of Italy. The other four teams will be announced May 7. Most of the games will be televised on Fox Soccer and seen in 151 countries, officials said.