Friendly Fire: Five American Special Operations soldiers and one Afghan were killed by a “friendly” airstrike on their position. The team was conducting security operations prior to Saturday’s scheduled presidential runoff election when they came under attack by the Taliban. The Americans called in close air support and were hit by their own airstrike. It’s the worst incident of friendly fire for Americans in 10 years of war in Afghanistan.

Nation: More than 57,000 veterans have waited 90 days or more for their first medical appointment, according to an internal Veterans Administration audit. Another 64,000 appear to have been ignored, never getting an appointment after registering. Not only that, but 13 percent of the schedulers at the nation’s 731 VA hospitals said they were ordered to falsify records to make waiting times look shorter.

The audit was sparked by reports that veterans died waiting to see a doctor at the VA hospital in Phoenix. The report said that given current staffing and demand for care, the targeted 14-day waiting period is “not attainable.”

> Six-time Olympic gold medal swimmer Amy Van Dyken severed her spine in an all terrain vehicle accident in Arizona. She was described as cheerful after surgery. Van Dyken, 41, was driving home from dinner at a restaurant when she struck a curb in a parking lot and went over a five-foot drop. In 1996 in Atlanta, Van Dyken became the first American woman to win four gold medals in a single Olympics. She won two more in Sydney in 2000.

> The truck driver in the Tracy Morgan highway crash Friday had not slept in 24 hours, according to charging documents filed in court. Kevin Roper, 35, from Georgia, was driving a Wal-Mart tractor trailer. Reports say he swerved at the last moment but hit the rear of the limousine bus that was carrying Morgan back from a comedy show in Maryland. A Wal-Mart spokesman said the company would accept full responsibility if their driver and truck is to blame.

World: Al Qaeda-linked militants have taken over most of Iraq’s northern city of Mosul, showing the weakness of the central government and Iraqi military. Soldiers retreated, dropped their weapons, and shed their uniforms to blend in with civilians as the militants advanced.

Gotta Have Art: The Big three automakers have pledged $26 million to help save the collection at the Detroit Institute of Arts. The bankrupt city has considered selling some of the art, which includes works by van Gogh, Bruegel, and Matisse, to help pay off its $18 billion debt. Detroit had some selected masterpieces evaluated at $867 million for possible sale.

The Playoffs: The Los Angeles Kings have the NY Rangers on the run, shutting them out 3-0 last night in New York to take a 3-0 lead in the Stanley Cup finals. Game four is tomorrow night in New York. In basketball, the San Diego Spurs and Miami Heat are split 1-1. Game 3 is tonight in Miami.

Heavy Love: Part of the railing of the Pont des Arts foot bridge over the Seine collapsed under the weight of thousands of padlocks left by lovers over the years. The tradition that started in 2008 is for lovers to inscribe their names on a lock, fix it to the railing, and throw the key in the river. The number of locks lost in the collapse is much less than the divorce rate.

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