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Obama to outline economic plan

FAIRFAX, Va., Jan. 8 (UPI) -- A proposal to save or create more than 3 million jobs while investing in major priorities is the focus of U.S. President-elect Barack Obama's speech Thursday.

Obama is expected to make the case for quick action on an American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan, a proposal he said would jump start economic growth by preserving or creating millions of jobs while investing in priorities such as healthcare, energy and education, information on Obama's transition Web site, change.gov. said.

Obama will deliver his speech at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va.

Obama has been encouraging Congress to pass an economic stimulus plan, which experts estimate could range from $800 billion to more than $1 trillion. During a news conference Wednesday, Obama said any stimulus plan must not only have an immediate impact, it must also lay the groundwork for future growth.

"If we can get this done quickly, I have confidence not only will we be creating jobs, we will make downpayments ... on long-term savings and long-term investments," Obama said.

Obama also said taming entitlements will go a long way to bringing the federal budget back in line. He noted he will inherit a $1.2 trillion deficit, which will only be made worse by efforts to stem the recession. Entitlements are estimated to make up 62 percent of the federal budget.

Rockets fired from Lebanon land in Israel

JERUSALEM, Jan. 8 (UPI) -- At least three rockets were fired from Lebanon into northern Israel, one hitting a nursing home in Nahariya, injuring two people, military officials said.

The Israeli army said in a statement it "responded with fire against the source of the rockets," The New York times reported.

In Gaza, meanwhile, fighting continued for the 13th day Thursday. Israel suspended its operations in Gaza for three hours Wednesday afternoon to allow humanitarian aid and fuel to reach Gazans, who used the lull to shop and care for their wounded and dead.

So far, no one has claimed responsibility for the rocket fire on northern Israel, but an army spokesman said Israel holds the Lebanese government and its army "responsible for thwarting any fire on Israel," Ynetnews.com reported.

A spokeswoman for Hezbollah, which tripped a war with Israel in 2006 by firing rockets into northern Israel from Lebanon, said an investigation was under way.

"We are still looking for information about it," the woman said.

Hezbollah television station al-Manar reported the attack, but did not attribute it to the militant group, Ynetnews.com said.

A Lebanese government spokesman said the country is trying to determine who fired the rockets. The official said Lebanon is committed to a U.N.-brokered truce that ended the 2006 war.

Northeast, Northwest endure storms

NEW YORK, Jan. 8 (UPI) -- Twin storms are making it miserable in the United States' Northwest and Northeast.

AccuWeather.com reported a nasty mix of snow, ice and rain over much of the Northeast Wednesday night. The storm was delaying travelers both on the ground and in the air from the Great Lakes to the mid-Atlantic, New England and north into Canada, AccuWeather meteorologists said.

Up to one-half inch of ice coated trees and power lines in parts of Pennsylvania, New York and New England.

The Thursday morning commute potentially could be brutal with slush and black ice possible from Washington and Baltimore to Philadelphia and New York up to Boston.

The wintry mess is expected to continue into Friday.

Meanwhile, snow was expected to spread eastward across the northern Plains and more precipitation could trigger flooding in the Northwest.

"This is a particularly dangerous situation from the Cascades on west and also in extreme eastern Washington, northeastern Oregon and northern Idaho," AccuWeather.com meteorologist Ken Clark said.

Four to 8 inches of rain is forecast for the western slopes of the Cascades, with even more possible in spots.

The heavy rain, combined with runoff from melting snow, could push streams and rivers out of their banks. Several waterways west of the Cascades were already flooded as of Wednesday afternoon.

Coloradoans braced against extreme winds Wednesday. Gusts up to 107 mph were reported at Audobon Mountain near Ward, KUSA-TV in Denver reported. The winds toppled power lines near For Collins, knocked down trees at Arvada, kicked up dust storms at Westminster and whipped the flames of wildfires near Boulder.

Two arrested in Budapest school shooting

BUDAPEST, Hungary, Jan. 8 (UPI) -- Two suspects have been arrested in a Budapest, Hungary, school shooting that left a principal and a teacher dead, police said Thursday.

One suspect is a security guard who was injured in Wednesday's shooting at the private elementary school, CNN reported. He sustained a gunshot wound to the hand which police said could have been self-inflicted.

Police said the other suspect is the school's finance director.

Police indicated both suspects had been laid off about a week before the attack and indicated revenge may have been a motive, CNN said.

No children were in the school when a masked gunman entered and began shooting , police said.

Deal struck in misprinted lottery tickets

TORONTO, Jan. 8 (UPI) -- A financial settlement has been struck between a Toronto-area man and the Ontario lottery regulator over misprinted tickets that looked like $135,000 winners.

Thomas Noftall, 27, and his lawyer met with Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. officials in Toronto Wednesday for two hours over the issue that made international headlines, the Toronto Sun reported.

When they emerged, it was announced a confidential financial settlement had been reached, but only because a call center employee had told Noftall on the telephone his prizes would be paid, the Toronto Star said.

Lottery chief Kelly McDougald said Noftall was paid only "in recognition of the grief caused to him."

Lottery officials said about 1,100 false winning tickets were printed, and most had been recalled from vendors since Friday. They said provincial law states the corporation is not liable for misprinted tickets.

Meanwhile, Maria Ilios told the Sun she has five tickets that show she won $257,000. She said if she's denied the prizes, she'll take the case to the provincial ombudsman, who serves as a third-party arbitrator for citizens.