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Secretary of State Colin Powell wraps up his trip to Iraq with a visit to the northern town of Halabja, where as many as 5,000 Kurds died in a 1988 chemical attack by Saddam Hussein's regime. Powell says he looks forward to a report expected soon from a U.S. team searching Iraq for banned weapons, which have yet to be found. Hear NPR's Emily Harris.

Vera Mikulkova runs a small flag-making business from her home in northern Moravia, and thanks to the European Union's enlargement, orders for EU flags have been pouring in. She's happy for the business -- but is hoping for more than just economic benefits now that the Czech Republic has joined the EU. NPR's Emily Harris reports.

More than 60 people are killed and several hundred others injured in a wave of explosions in the southern Iraqi city of Basra. Three almost simultaneous blasts, believed to be car bombs, target Iraqi police stations at rush hour. Victims include school children aboard a minibus passing by at the time. Another bomb targets an Iraqi police training facility. Hear NPR's Emily Harris.

In the worst attack in Iraq since August, 56 people died Sunday and more than 200 wounded in twin suicide bombings. The near simultaneous explosions took place in the northern city of Irbil, inside the separate headquarters of Iraq's two leading Kurdish political parties. The offices were crowded with guests invited to celebrate a Muslim holy day. NPR's Emily Harris reports.

A truce between the U.S. military and supporters of a radical Shiite cleric in the shrine cities of Najaf and Kufa appears to be holding. In other parts of Iraq, violence has continued over the weekend. According to the U.S. military, six people were killed when a car bomb exploded near a base north of Baghdad. NPR's Emily Harris reports.

One of Iraq's top foreign ministry officials, Bassam Kubba, died Saturday after being shot by unknown gunmen in Baghdad. He is the first member of Iraq's two-week-old interim government to be killed. Kubba worked through the ranks of the foreign ministry under Saddam Hussein and became ambassador to China. NPR's Emily Harris reports.

In the wake of the prisoner abuse scandal at the now-notorious Abu Ghraib prison outside Baghdad, U.S. military authorities make some significant changes. The number of detainees at the sprawling complex has been sharply decreased, and living conditions appear to be improving. NPR's Emily Harris reports.

Iraq's new interim government is announced, with Sunni leader Ghazi al-Yawer named as the country's president. Al-Yawer was previously a member of the U.S.-appointed Governing Council, which dissolved itself after the choices were made final. The new leadership, to take power on June 30, was chosen by U.N. envoy Lakhdar Brahimi in consultation with the council. NPR's Emily Harris reports.

At least 35 Iraqis die and more than 100 others are wounded in a pair of car bombings: a suicide attack at the gate of a Baghdad military base where new Iraqi army recruits were being processed, and a second bombing in the town of Balad, north of the capital, that killed members of Iraq's Civil Defense Corps. NPR's Emily Harris reports.

A commission in Georgia says the state has failed to provide legal defense for the poor, violating both the U.S. and state constitution. The 26-member panel calls the system badly organized, with poor people sitting in jail for weeks without seeing a lawyer, even for minor offenses. Emily Kopp of Georgia Public Radio reports.