USA

President Bush was addressing the nation about Saddam Hussein's capture as the Monitor went to press. In brief remarks earlier in the day, White House spokesman Scott McClellan said the president greeted it as "very good news" for the Iraqi people. But aides cautioned that the dramatic military operation that netted Hussein probably would not end the guerrilla insurgency against the US occupation. However, "the Iraqi people can finally be assured that Saddam Hussein will not be coming back," McClellan said.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average will open above 10,000 Monday on the New York Stock Exchange, signaling one of the strongest turnarounds for the economy in recent years. The index closed above10,000 Thursday for the first time in 18 months and continued above that mark for a second day Friday. Other market gauges such as the Nasdaq and Standard & Poor's 500 index also closed last week modestly higher.

Federal health officials pledged to obtain and ship additional doses of vaccine across the nation to head off a possible mass outbreak of influenza. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the number of states with widespread infections almost doubled to 24 over the past week and that the season has not peaked nationally. Throughout the weekend, doctors' offices and health clinics reportedly were swamped with people wanting shots, even after the nation's two producers of the vaccine reported they had already shipped their entire supply of about 80 million doses.

The Alabama State Supreme Court overturned an $82 million verdict against General Motors Friday, saying the jury in last year's product-defect case was improperly selected. A judge should have excluded five jurors who were relatives of an attorney associated with a plaintiff's law firm, the justices said. They ordered a new trial because of the error. But they also rejected GM's appeal that the plaintiffs didn't adequately prove a defect in a six-year-old Oldsmobile, which collapsed around Jeffrey Jernigan in 1999, leaving him with severe head injuries.

University of Oklahoma quarterback Jason White won the Heisman Trophy, college football's most prestigious award, in ceremonies Saturday night. The honor came a year after a knee injury almost ended his career. White threw 40 touchdown passes and led the third-ranked Sooners to 12 straight wins this season. He also led the nation in passing efficiency, completing 64 percent for 3,644 yards.