Search results for

Jacky Rowland reports from Belgrade that Yugoslav opposition leaders have launched a civil disobedience campaign to persuade President Slobodan Milosevic to recognize Sunday's election victory of Vojislav Kostunica and to cede power. Thousands of Serbs demonstrated again today in downtown Belgrade, and crowds were out in provincial cities, as well. She says although state-run television is showing pictures of Milosevic, still in charge, government officials are not answering phones, and it seems they do not know how to handle the situation. And, though top officers in the army and police are loyal to Milosevic, army soldiers, as well as rank and file policemen, do not support the regime.

NPR's Mike Shuster reports that US officials say a single Iraqi MIG-25 penetrated Saudi Arabian airspace on Labor Day, the first such incident since the Persian Gulf War. Officials say the incursion took place when several Iraqi warplanes flew into the "no-fly zone" in southern Iraq, a region the US has declared off limits to Iraqi overflights. According to one official, the US chose NOT to retaliate because the administration at the time did not consider the single Iraqi plane to be a threat. The US also suspected Iraq of trying to provoke a confrontation just before the UN millennium summit. Since the December 1998 bombing of Iraq, the administration has resisted engaging in military confrontations with Iraq.

NPR's Michael Sullivan reports from Katmandu that an undeclared war in the south Asian mountain kingdom of Nepal has killed at least two-thousand people since it began four years ago. People there have become disillusioned by the country's transition to a constitutional monarchy, a change they had thought would result in a higher living standard in one of the world's poorest countries. Maoist rebels have found growing support among disgruntled civilians, although the government says civilians are coerced into helping the rebels. The government has earmarked millions of dollars for a paramilitary police force to take on the rebels. But analysts say what's really needed is good government and a serious plan to address economic problems.

National Correspondent for The New York Times, NICHOLAS KRISTOF. He's written a series of biographical articles on George W. Bush, focusing on his early years. KRISTOF is former Tokyo Bureau Chief for The Times, and was co-recipient of the Pulitzer Prize for international reporting for his coverage of Tianamen Square. (THIS INTERVIEW CONTINUES INTO THE SECOND HALF OF THE SHOW)12:28:30 FORWARD PROMO (:29)12:29:00 I.D. BREAK (:59)12:

NPR's Julie McCarthy reports from London on the tributes to Sir Alec Guinness, one of the greats of the British stage, screen and television who died over the weekend at the age of 86. He was an exceptionally versatile actor, whose roles ranged from Hamlet, to upper-class eccentrics in Kind Hearts and Coronets to George Smiley in the televised versions of John le Carre's spy thrillers, to Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars. (4:00) Music played at 1 minute before the hour was the theme from "Lawrence of Arabia" as performed by the Ventures, from the CD "Now Playing", copyright 1975, EMI Records.

Steven Dudley reports from Bogota that Colombia's President Andres Pastrana has ordered an investigation of the military's involvement in an attack that resulted in the deaths of six schoolchildren. It took place 40-miles from Medellin. The children, aged 6-to-12, were on a school hike when gunfire erupted. The regional army commander initially said the children had been caught in crossfire between military forces and guerrillas. But survivors said that there were no guerrillas in the area and the children were pinned down for 45 minutes by military fire. The killings occurred just two months after the U-S Congress approved one-point-three billion dollars of mostly military aid to help Colombia fight the drug trade and guerrilla movements.

NPR's Barbara Bradley reports on a federal appeals court ruling that rejects some new rules for tracking phone calls and other digital communications. The judges say that the Federal Communications Commission needs to rewrite regulations to address privacy issues. The court is concerned about revealing numbers a subject dials after a phone call is connected, such as credit card numbers. The judges also note that trapping some online communications would capture content as well as routing information, so the FBI should meet a high standard of need. In addition, the court upholds rules that require phone companies to help law enforcement determine the location of a cellular phone caller.

NPR's Martin Kaste reports Brazil is in shock, following an unexpected 3 - 0 loss to Chile in a qualifying match for the 2002 World Cup soccer championship. Brazil for many years dominated international soccer, holding more World Cup championships than any other country. The Brazilian team has been in trouble since losing to France in the 1998 championship match. After last night's loss, Brazil falls to fourth place in South American World Cup qualifying competition. It's expected that Brazil eventually WILL qualify, but just barely, something Brazilians find hard to accept.

NPR's Ted Clark reports that a diplomatic row between the United States and North Korea is likely to undermine efforts to normalize relations between the two countries. North Korean diplomats headed for the U.N. Millennium summit were searched by American Airlines security personnel in Frankfurt, Germany. The angry North Koreans turned around and went home, after loudly denouncing the United States as a "rogue" nation. The diplomatic delegation included the North Korean number two official, who had been scheduled to hold first time, face-to-face meetings with the leaders of Japan and Russia in New York.

NPR's Eric Weiner reports that anti-globalization demonstrators in Melbourne, Australia have declared their three-day effort a success, even though they failed to shut down a conference of the World Economic Forum, a gathering of international business leaders. Organizers of the protests say globalization, as exemplified by the World Economic Forum, benefits only a few of the wealthiest corporations, while harming the environment, destroying local cultures and increasing poverty. The protesters in Melbourne were well-prepared and well-equipped. They used walkie-talkies to monitor police movements, loudspeakers to direct protesters and they'd even set up first aid and legal aid stations.