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NPR's Joe Neel reports that scientists have identified a gene that appears to protect people against HIV. The gene appears to prevent the AIDS virus from infecting critical immune system cells known as T-cells. Studies suggest that 1 percent of people of Caucasian descent carry the protective variation of the gene. The findings are being reported in the journals Cell and Nature.

NPR's Mike Shuster reports on one of the crucial questions for the future of Bosnia--whether former enemies can live next to one another again. The Dayton peace accords stopped the shooting war, but not the hatred among the Bosnians, Croats and Serbs. Shuster reports on a re-integration project where Muslims are trying to re-build homes in a town now occupied by Croats.

Ted Clark reports that after a meeting between Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and President Clinton today both leaders expressed the hope that Israel would not abandon the peace process begun with the historic Oslo accords. But they also voiced concern about the impact on that peace process of reported plans by Israel to build two new highways into the occupied West Bank.

James P. Hoffa Jr. is asking for a congressional investigation into the Teamsters election that he has apparently lost. At a news conference today, the son of labor leader Jimmy Hoffa challenged a discrepancy between an estimate of ballots returned, and the number of votes actually counted. The U.S. Postal Service reported that it had received thousands of ballots more than were counted. NPR's Don Gonyea reports.

NPR's Jim Zarroli reports that Texaco is still reeling from reports that executives at the company were tape recorded using racial slurs and talking about destroying evidence in a racial discrimination suit. Texaco has suspended two of the four managers involved; the other two no longer work for the company. Today the company faces mounting calls for stockholder divestment and a potential boycott by consumers.

NPR's Richard Harris reports on new research suggesting that plants communicate with one another using chemicals that float through the air. A report in the journal Nature suggests that plants infected with a virus produce a chemical that can waft to uninfected plants and help them guard against infection. Scientists don't know to what extent this happens in gardens, fields and meadows.

NPR's Don Gonyea reports that General Motors is expected to announce the winner of a month-long bidding contest for the defense operations of its Hughes Electronics Corporation today. Published reports suggest that Massachusetts-based Raytheon has the inside track, but Northrup-Grumman is said to be still in the running. General Motors is expected to get more than $9 billion for the aircraft division of Hughes.

Ben Gilbert reports on a controversy in Massachusetts over one woman's plan to build a rehabilitation community for recovering substance abuse patients on a 50-acre plot that used to be a farm. But opponents see it less as a farm, and more as "their backyard." This report is part of NPR's year-long "Housing First" series.

A report from the joint House-Senate intelligence panel recommends overhauling the U.S. intelligence system. Sources familiar with the congressional report say it blames the FBI and the CIA in general, but no individuals specifically, for mishandling intelligence about possible terrorist attacks. Hear NPR's Larry Abramson.

Many of the neediest in rural America face a crisis: Funding has dropped sharply for a federal program that creates affordable rental housing. In the latest report in the Housing First series, NPR's Madeleine Brand reports that some landlords want out of the program -- leaving the tenants with nowhere to go.