National and International News-Thursday, Oct. 5th

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - The U-S military is throwing cold water on reports by Arab satellite channels that al-Qaida-in-Iraq leader Abu Ayyub al-Masri has been killed in a U-S raid. The U-S calls it "highly unlikely." He took over command in Iraq after its first leader was killed in a U-S airstrike.

NICKEL MINES, Pa. (AP) - Amish families in Nickel Mines, Pennsylvania, are planning simple funeral services today for four of the five girls killed in Monday's school shooting. They're pleading with reporters to respect their privacy.

CAPITOL HILL (AP) - Despite mounting pressure, Illinois Republican Dennis Hastert says he's not quitting as speaker of the House. His leadership's being challenged for not moving sooner against a congressman who resigned over salacious messages to teen-age pages. Hastert is blaming reporters for breaking the story and Democrats for milking it.

WHITE HOUSE (AP) - President Bush is back at the White House after a trip West on behalf of G-O-P congressional candidates. He's visiting the Department of Education today to push for renewal of one of his chief domestic accomplishments, the No Child Left Behind Act.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has declared a state of emergency for California's prison system. With 172-thousand inmates, the system is badly overcrowded. The emergency declaration lets the governor invoke the authority to transfer inmates to prisons elsewhere.