Iraq: The government is using helicopter gunships to hit Sunni Islamic militants in Tikrit, the hometown of the late dictator Saddam Hussein. A major advance involving tanks and thousands of troops may be underway. Meanwhile the US is flying drones over Iraq to protect American military advisors who have arrived to give the Iraqi army some backbone.

Ukraine: The government and some pro-Russian separatists agreed to extend their ceasefire through Monday. It was to expire at 10 pm tonight, but at least two separatist leaders rejected the extended ceasefire. Several government positions were attacked last night, but peace talks continue. The two sides have been meeting with a mediator.

Careful Step: The US government announced it intends to join the worldwide ban on anti-personnel landmines and will no longer make or acquire them. Those are the things that blow up children five years later. But the US has 10 million mines and doesn’t plan to stop using them right away. A White House statement said the intent is to “end the use of all non-detectable mines and all persistent mines, which can remain active for years after the end of a conflict.”

Troubled Waters: The long tradition of suicide off the Golden Gate Bridge may come to an end. Bridge officials voted to string anti-suicide nets under the bridge where at least 1400 people are known to have jumped to their deaths since the bridge opened in 1937. Last year a record 46 people jumped, and bridge workers stopped 100. Installing nets was an issue for years. Bridge lovers say it will ruin the lines of one of the world’s most beautiful bridges.

The Obit Page: Singer-songwriter Bobby Womack, nicknamed The Preacher because he was trained to sing in church, has died at age 70. He was considered one of the greats of the soul era, but never had the popularity of Wilson Pickett, Marvin Gaye, Al Green, and Otis Redding. Womack wrote the song “It’s All Over Now,” which was struggling for airplay with his band’s version, but The Rolling Stones recorded it, and it became their first international hit.

Smart Talk: The Washington Post reports that former President Bill Clinton has made $105 million on speeches since he left office 13 years ago. Clinton has delivered 542 speeches. About half the money was for foreign speeches, and 20 percent came from financial service industries.

Small Screen: Short-termer Jenny McCarthy and long-termer Sherri Shepard appear to have gotten the boot from ABC’s morning talk show “The View.” Both said goodbye yesterday, McCarthy after just one year. She tweeted, “My view will be changing too.” That leaves Whoopi Goldberg as the last woman sitting. In the past year the show has lost Elizabeth Hasselbeck, Joy Behar, and Barbara Walters, who retired from television.

The Gloved One: The California legislature repealed its new law requiring all food handlers to wear rubber gloves when touching food in restaurants and bars. The food industry went into an uproar over the law that even required a bartender to wear rubber gloves when putting a lime in your gin and tonic. The law was passed to fight food-borne illness, but California legislators didn’t understand it’s the gin not the lime that makes you sick.

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