Washington - US President George W Bush in his farewell address Thursday said there can be "little debate" that the controversial decisions he's made during his presidency have kept the United States safe.

Bush took up many of the themes that defined his eight years in office as he made his final speech to the nation as president. He warned that terrorism remains the "gravest threat to our people," more than seven years after the September 11, 2001, attacks on New York and Washington.

Managua, Nicaragua - Members of the Central American Integration System (SICA) , pledged Thursday at the intergovernmental organization's 34th summit to speed up regional integration in the view of the global economic downturn.

At the summit held in the Nicaraguan capital Managua, the country's president, Daniel Ortega, took over SICA's chairmanship for the next six months.

Washington  - Just days before inauguration, president-elect Barack Obama and the new Congress have taken their first steps on the long road to restoring the struggling US economy.

Democratic legislators, who hold majorities in both houses of Congress, offered the first detailed look Thursday into an 825- billion-dollar economic stimulus package, a key plank of Obama's plan to save or create as many as 3 million jobs.

Washington  - President-elect Barack Obama's early handling of the conflict in the Gaza Strip will serve as his first opportunity to set a fresh tone for US foreign policy in the Middle East.

Unless Egyptian brokered negotations - which are progressing - produce a ceasefire by the time Obama takes office on Tuesday, he will inherit more than three weeks of fighting between Israel and Hamas militants in a conflict that has threatened to undo the already shaky peace process.

Los Angeles  - The list of celebrities appearing in president-elect Barack Obama's inauguration festivities in Washington keeps getting longer.

The Presidential Inauguration Committee on Thursday announced a list of more than 20 performers such as Jack Johnson, Sheryl Crow, Marc Anthony and Maroon 5 who will appear at some of the 10 official balls on the evening after the noon-time swearing in.

Washington  - US President George W Bush said in his farewell address Thursday that there can be "little debate" that the tough or controversial decisions he's made during his presidency have kept the United States safe.

"There is legitimate debate about many of these decisions. But there can be little debate about the results," Bush says in excerpts released by the White House in advance of his speech. "America has gone more than seven years without another terrorist attack on our soil."