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Obama warns N. Korea, Iran about nukes

SEOUL, Nov. 19 (UPI) -- U.S. envoy Stephen Bosworth will go to North Korea next month for talks on dismantling the country's nuclear program, U.S. President Barack Obama said.

During a news conference in Seoul with South Korean President Lee Myung-Back, Obama also said the United States and its allies were working on a response to Iran's apparent rejection of a nuclear deal, CNN reported.

Obama wrapped up his eight-day visit to Asia Thursday in South Korea, meeting with Lee and with U.S. troops at Osan Air Base before returning to Washington.

"If North Korea is prepared to take concrete and irreversible steps to fulfill its obligations and eliminate its nuclear weapons program, the United States will support economic assistance and help promote its full integration into the community of nations," Obama said. "That opportunity and respect will not come with threats. North Korea must live up to its obligations."

Concerning Iran's apparent recalcitrance on uranium enrichment, Obama said U.S. and other Western officials have started discussions "about the importance of having consequences." Iran rejected a key part of a deal Wednesday designed to ease international concerns about the country's nuclear aspirations.

"Our expectation is that, over the next several weeks, we will be developing a package of potential steps we could take that will indicate our seriousness to Iran," Obama said. "I continue to hold out the prospect that they may decide to walk through this door. I hope they do."

During their news conference, Obama and Lee also expressed support for a stalled U.S.-South Korea free trade agreement, held up because of disagreement on automobile trade. Washington and Seoul negotiated the pact in 2007, but lawmakers in both capitals have yet to ratify it.

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FAA fixes flight-altering computer glitch

ATLANTA, Nov. 19 (UPI) -- The computer system glitch that caused flight delays across the United States has been corrected, the Federal Aviation Administration said Thursday.

FAA spokesman Laura Brown said the failure in the computer system housed in Atlanta meant air traffic controllers had to enter flight plans manually, CNN reported.

The FAA said the network's data was required to launch planes expeditiously.

The computer issue did not affect safety or communications, FAA officials said.

AirTran Airways spokesman Christopher White said the airline canceled 22 flights and delayed dozens of other flights because of the flight-plan filing problem, CNN said.

White said most of the canceled flights were at AirTran's hub in Atlanta.

The airline spokesman said the problem would have "a pretty major impact on operations," noting the cancellations in Atlanta would ripple across the country.

"We will be a mess all day," he said.

Delta Air Lines spokeswoman Susan Elliott said the airline wasn't providing information on the number of flights affected, but would offer travelers some flexibility in rescheduling.

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Afghan forces capture militants, weapons

KABUL, Afghanistan, Nov. 19 (UPI) -- Ten civilians were killed and 13 wounded when a suicide bomber targeted a police vehicle in southern Afghanistan Thursday, the Afghan Interior Ministry said.

A ministry official said the bomber detonated his explosives as police tried to stop him before he reached the vehicle, CNN said. The attack occurred in Oruzgan province.

Meanwhile, NATO's International Security Assistance Force confirmed two U.S. troops were killed by a roadside bomb in Zabul province.

The ISAF also reported detaining several suspected Taliban militants and destroying weapons in several Afghan provinces Wednesday.

In one operation, an Afghan-international security force detained a Taliban explosives facilitator and another militant while searching a compound in Kandahar province. The facilitator had direct contact with local Taliban leaders and maintained supply lines to other militants in the area, the ISAF said.

Security forces also confiscated and destroyed a rocket-propelled grenade launcher, a machine gun and ammunition found in two vehicles near Sahabey in the Kandahar province's Ghorak district. Security forces detained several people traveling with the vehicles.

In another operation. ISAF reported security forces killed several militants and detained an al-Qaida explosives facilitator and one other person in Ghazni province.

A British soldier died Wednesday when his patrol was attacked by insurgents in southern Afghanistan, ISAF said.

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EU to elect 1st European Council president

BRUSSELS, Nov. 19 (UPI) -- Members of the European Union traveled to Brussels Thursday to determine who will occupy new leadership posts under the recently ratified Lisbon Treaty.

Positions to be determined include a new permanent European Council president and a foreign affairs representative, both designed to increase the European Union's visibility in global matters, EUobserver.com reported.

Jubilation at the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty -- which changes how the EU operates -- yielded to concerns about fielding appealing presidential candidates and sending the Swedish EU presidency scrambling to find consensus prospects, observers told the publication.

Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt said telephone discussions with EU leaders have not produced names before Thursday's meeting.

Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair was one of the first names circulated as a possible president, but current Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy has emerged as the front-runner more recently, observers said.

Other presidential contenders include Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker and his Dutch Prime Minister Jan-Peter Balkenende.

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$1M youth anti-violence program in Chicago

CHICAGO, Nov. 19 (UPI) -- The University of Chicago opened a $1 million anti-violence program for Chicago's public schools that it will methodically assess to see if it's cost effective.

The Becoming a Man-Sports Edition program seeks to help 550 teenage boys curb their impulse to fight and shoot each other to settle disagreements, University of Chicago Crime Lab Director Jens Ludwig said.

"Gun violence makes life nearly unlivable in some communities in Chicago," Ludwig told the Christian Science Monitor.

More than 500 Chicago Public Schools students have been shot since 1997.

The program, run with two community groups, addresses the problem using character education and counseling along with training in Olympic sports such as wrestling, archery, judo and boxing, organizers said.

The character education is run by Youth Guidance, a non-profit group that provides counseling to troubled teens. The sports component is run by World Sports Chicago, originally formed to support Chicago's bid for the 2016 Olympic Games and now bringing Olympic sports to Chicago's youth.

University evaluators will use a research model akin to clinical medical trials to determine if the 27-week program is effective in reducing violent behavior and helping boys stay in school, Ludwig said.

Researchers don't expect it to be a "silver bullet," Ludwig told the Monitor, but they hope it will prove to be a model for cities dealing with growing violence among young men.