Search results for

The distribution of humanitarian aid is just now getting started in the port town of Umm Qasr, the first Iraqi town taken by U.S. and British forces. The U.S. hope for establishing a provisional civil administration in Iraq is starting there as well. NPR's Mike Shuster has the story.

The Bush administration is warning Syria not to offer a haven to any fleeing members of the Iraqi regime. Speculation that Syria might be the next nation to attract U.S. military attention is debated on Capitol Hill. But the Pentagon and some analysts downplay the possibility. NPR's Jennifer Ludden reports.

U.S. Marines will begin enforcing a dusk-to-dawn curfew in eastern Baghdad starting Friday. It's an attempt to control widespread looting in a city lacking all signs of Saddam Hussein's authoritarian regime. Hear NPR's Anne Garrels.

The northern city of Mosul, Iraq, falls peacefully after being abandoned by Iraqi forces early today. Kurdish militiamen and small numbers of U.S. troops entered Mosul following the Iraqi withdrawal. But the city, like others in the country, has been overtaken by a wave of looting and near-anarchy. NPR's Ivan Watson reports.

In Sri Lanka, remittances sent from abroad constitute the number one source of foreign capital, due in large part to hundreds of thousands of poor rural women who migrate to the Middle East to work as housemaids. The mass migration of women is taking a heavy toll on Sri Lankan family traditions. Sandy Tolan reports.

The bodies of two American military guards who were missing since Wednesday are found 25 miles northwest of Baghdad. Another U.S. soldier died in a grenade attack on a military convoy Friday night. Hear NPR's Steve Inskeep and NPR's Kate Seelye.

Appearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee, President Bush's nominee to replace Gen. Tommy Franks as head of the U.S. Central Command defends the pre-war intelligence the administration presented on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. Lt. Gen. John Abizaid says he expects U.S. forces to remain in Iraq "a long time" but declines to offer specifics. NPR's David Welna reports.

Former Iraqi information Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf has surfaced on Arab television, claiming he turned himself into U.S. troops but was let go. Sahhaf's wildly implausible claims of victory during the war earned him a cult following of sorts online. Hear D.J. Lachapelle, co-creator of WeLovetheIRaqiInformationMinister.com.

A crowd of Iraqis is killed in an explosion at a mosque in Fallujah. Iraqi civilians say the blast was caused by a U.S. bomb or missile, but American military officials deny involvement and say it was likely caused when explosives stored near the mosque went off. In Baghdad, at least four U.S. troops are wounded when their vehicles explode. Hear NPR's Deborah Amos.

Otis Taylor plays a style of music he calls "drone blues," a hypnotic, loosely-structured form of guitar meandering. A former antiques dealer, he writes lyrics based on themes of injustice informed by his love of history. Guest host John Ydstie speaks with Taylor about his new CD, Truth Is Not Fiction (Telarc Records, catalog # 83587).