World/nation briefs

Extreme heat bakes Midwest, East Coast Highways buckled, crops withered and even a minor train derailment outside Washington was blamed on the relentless heat wave. Temperatures of more than 100 degrees were forecast in Philadelphia and excessive heat warnings were issued for several Midwest states. At least 36 deaths have been blamed on the heat or storms.

Lawmakers give green light to high-speed rail Lawmakers gave the green light to start building the nation's first dedicated high-speed rail line, a $68 billion dollar project that will link Los Angeles and San Francisco. It marked victories for Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown and the Obama administration, which have promoted bullet trains as job generators and clean transportation alternatives. The bill authorizes the state to begin selling $4.5 billion in voter-approved bonds.

Violence from Syria spills across border Violence spilled across Syria's tense border with northern Lebanon, where at least two people were reported killed, one in a shelling attack from Syria and another in an explosion on the Lebanese side, said government and media accounts. Lebanese army troops were dispatched to the border district of Wadi Khaled and put on "high alert," said the official Lebanese National News Agency. Across the border from northern Lebanon lies Syria's strife-ridden Homs Province, one of the epicenters of the uprising against President Bashar Assad. The border zone also is a major transit route for smuggled weapons destined for Syrian insurgents.

Youth coalition officially disbands Egypt's Revolutionary Youth Coalition, which included groups from across the political spectrum and drew thousands to Cairo's Tahrir Square last year until former President Hosni Mubarak stepped down, announced its dissolution, raising questions over whether hopes of revolutionary change here are over.

Tens of thousands protest election Tens of thousands of protesters marched in Mexico's capital to protest Enrique Pena Nieto's apparent win in the July 1 presidential election, accusing his long ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party of buying votes.