Search results for

Thousands of Iraqis attend funeral services for more than 900 people who died Wednesday in a panicked crush on a Baghdad bridge. The rumor of a suicide bomber sparked a mad rush during a Shiite religious festival. Amid the funerals there are calls for an investigation into the cause and accusations of a fumbled response to the disaster.

Some economists warn that Hurricane Katrina will have economic impact far beyond the Gulf Coast region. David Wessel, deputy Washington bureau chief of The Wall Street Journal, says the inability to refine and distribute oil in hurricane-battered areas could negatively affect the economy nationally, including unemployment.

Soda companies today announced they will restrict the sales of their drinks in schools. Under new voluntary guidelines, the beverage industry will remove all carbonated soft drinks from elementary schools and remove all sugared drinks from middle schools during school hours. The new restrictions will apply to new contracts only and will take several years to take effect nationwide.

Polls close in Iraq after millions of people cast their ballots in a vote on whether to approve their new constitution. For the most part, the day was quiet, with only scattered reports of minor attacks. Results on the referendum won't be released until Monday.

Host Steve Inskeep talks with Majora Carter, one of the newly announced recipients of this year's MacArthur Fellowships. Carter founded a community organization that researches and develops sustainable projects for South Bronx.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon remains in the intensive care unit of a Jerusalem hospital after seven hours of surgery to stop bleeding in his brain. The 77-year-old Sharon suffered a massive stroke late Wednesday.

The House majority leader was indicted and forced to step aside. A new chief justice of the United States was confirmed, but a battle looms over a second nominee. It's a dramatic time in American politics.

General Motors and Ford are preparing to slash jobs and close plants, while foreign car makers like Toyota are continuing to build new ones in the South. Toyota's Georgetown, Ky., plant is booming -- and still non-union.

A roadside bombing outside Fallujah, about 25 miles west of Baghdad, kills 10 U.S. Marines and wounds 11 others. It is the highest one-day death toll for U.S. forces in Iraq since August.

Renee Montagne talks to Scott Silliman, executive director of the Center on Law, Ethics and National Security, at Duke University, to learn more about how the McCain amendment will affect U.S. policy on interrogation.