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Gunmen pretending to seek emergency medical care kill an American soldier in western Iraq. The death marks the 29th U.S. military fatality in Iraq since President Bush declared an end to hostilities on May 1. U.S. officials report an increase in coordinated attacks carried out by men they describe as trained military professionals. NPR's Ivan Watson reports.

NPR's Christopher Joyce in Baghdad reports the U.S. civil administration in Iraq has again postponed plans to establish an interim Iraqi authority to help govern the country. A conference to create the authority had been expected in June, but the top U.S. official in Baghdad, Paul Bremer, told reporters it will not be held before mid-July at the earliest.

Lt. General David McKiernan, the top commander of U.S. ground forces in Iraq, pledges to "aggressively target" crime in Baghdad and restore order to the city. Military officials deny a New York Times report suggesting U.S. forces now have permission to shoot looters, including children, on sight. NPR's Guy Raz reports.

The Senate Armed Services Committee holds hearings on prison abuse at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison, leveling sharp criticism at the CIA. Army reports that the CIA brought dozens of "ghost" detainees to the prison led senators from both parties to call the practice "unacceptable." NPR's Mary Louise Kelly reports.

U.S. officials closely monitor what they call worrisome new data on North Korea's nuclear activities after a large unexplained explosion was reported over North Korea Thursday. Experts seek to determine whether North Korea is preparing to test a nuclear weapon. NPR's Vicky O'Hara reports.

Rocket-propelled grenades fired at a hotel and nearby store in downtown Baghdad cause structural damage but no reported injuries. Earlier, in the southern Iraqi city of Basra, a car bomb outside a popular hotel killed at least four people and left several others wounded. The blast came less than 24 hours after a massive car bomb attack in Baghdad. NPR's Ivan Watson reports.

Students at charter schools are faring worse academically than students at public schools, according to the American Federation of Teachers. An AFT report based on Education Department data says charter schools fall short of solving many problems in educating lower-income children. Hear report co-author Bella Rosenberg, Chester Finn of the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation and NPR's Michele Norris.

Melissa Block talks with New York Times reporter Lydia Polgreen. Polgreen, who is based in Dakar, has reported extensively on the conflict and the humanitarian crisis in Darfur. The rainy season has just ended in northern Sudan, reinvigorating the fighting there. Polgreen recently traveled to the border with Chad.

Israel is preventing reporters from entering the Gaza Strip to cover the offensive against Hamas. Ayman Mohyeldin, a television reporter for Al-Jazeera English, has been in Gaza since the Israeli air strikes began. He says that the Israeli offensive has been punishing and that "there is no safe zone in Gaza."

The California Democrat says she want to focus on empowering women and boosting the economy. She says she also wants to concentrate on reducing the amount of money that's needed to be elected.