NPR 2010-02-15

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From NPR News in Washington, I’m Barbara Klein.

In southern Afghanistan, NATO troops are slowly clearing streets of home-made bombs and mines in the second day of a major offensive in the town of Marjah. U.S. marines are spearheading the effort to take control of the last big Taliban stronghold in Helmand province. They're finding IEDs buried underground on the streets and hidden in walls. NPR's Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson is with the 3rd Battalion², 6th Marine¹ Regiment³ and reports pockets of militants⁴ have dug in and are shooting.

General Larry Nicholson, the head of, of the marine operations here in the southern part of Afghanistan, he'd come for a quick visit and... in trying to counter this threat, told me they had started receiving tip-offs from local residents about where the bombs were hidden. Many of those residents are believed to be cautious about welcoming government forces for fear they will soon depart again. Today, tribal⁵ councils known as shuras are being held in both districts with the aim of persuading the population to back their government and not the Taliban. The BBC’s Frank Gardner reporting from Kandahar.

Tens of thousands of people took to the streets of Beirut today to mark the five-year anniversary of the assassination⁶ of Lebanon's former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. Don Duncan has more from the Lebanese capital.

Hariri's murder five years ago led to massive public demonstrations⁷ supported about the withdrawal⁸ of Syria from Lebanon after 29 years of occupation. Today's rally is an affirmation of Lebanon’s sovereignty and a protest to lingering Syrian influence. Many Hariri’s supporters point the finger at Syria for having a hand in his assassination, although a UN special tribunal on the matter has yet to name the killers⁹. Hariri’s death spawned¹⁰ a political division dominated by a pro-Western alliance called the March 14 and the Syrian-backed opposition¹¹ led by Hezbollah. But Syria has begun to improve diplomatic relations with Lebanon and the U.S., and this is causing the gulf¹² between Lebanon’s opposing alliances to narrow. If this trend continues, the pro-Western alliance could further weaken, spelling trouble for Western interests in Lebanon. For NPR News, I’m Don Duncan in Beirut.

Vice¹³ President Joe Biden and former Vice President Dick Cheney are engaged in a war of words of the Obama administration’s handling of terrorists. Speaking on ABC today, Cheney accused the administration of being slow to recognize the U.S. is at war with terrorists.

“There are key members in the administration, like Eric Holder¹⁴, for example, the Attorney General who still insists on thinking of terror attacks against the United States as criminal acts, as opposed to acts of war.”

But Vice President Biden said his predecessor¹⁵ isn’t paying attention.

“I don’t think the former Vice President Dick Cheney listens. The president of the United States said in his State of the Union we're at war with al-Qaeda. He said this, and by the way, we’re pursuing that war with a vigor¹⁶ like it’s never been seen before, we’ve eliminated twelve of their top twenty people.”

Biden spoke¹⁷ on NBC.

This is NPR.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says evidence is mounting that Iran is pursuing a nuclear weapon. Speaking at the US-Islamic World Forum¹⁸ in Doha, Qatar, Clinton urged Persian Gulf states to take a tougher stand against Iran.

The newest addition to the International Space Station now has plumbing¹⁹ and power thanks to space walking astronauts, but an ammonia leak during the hook-up forced them to end the space walk early as precaution. Last night, NASA resolved a problem with a critical insulation²⁰ cover. The new module²¹ called ‘Tranquility’ provides living space for the station’s crew.

Best-selling British crime writer and former jockey Dick Francis has died. Horse racing²² was a backdrop in his more than 40 novels. The 89-year-old was the only three time recipient²³ of the Mystery Writers of America’s award for best novel. From London, Larry Miller²⁴ has this look at the writer’s career.

Dick Francis retired²⁵ as a jockey after riding a horse owned by Britain’s Queen Mother in the 1956 Grand National steeplechase. Francis sold more than 80 million copies of his horse racing novels, stories populated by murder, gambling²⁶ and race fixing. "Racing isn't nearly as bad as what happens in my novels." The Queen Mother became one of his biggest fans and that actually shaped what he wrote. "I’ve always sent her a new book as soon as it was out and I didn’t want her reading these scenes, sex scenes." Francis literally²⁷ admitted he co-wrote the books with his wife Mary who died a few years ago. Since then, he wrote jointly²⁸ with his son Felix. For NPR News, I’m Larry Miller in London.

And I’m Barbara Klein, NPR News in Washington.