News

The Week In Politics: Progress On Upgrading VA Health System

1:52pm July 28, 2014

by Ron Elving

Congress has a number of big pieces of legislation to deal with before leaving on its annual summer recess. The Highway Trust Fund, border security and the VA are all on the to-do list.

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World News

Fighting In Ukraine Continues; Russia Dismisses Threat Of Sanctions

1:52pm July 28, 2014

by Corey Flintoff

Fierce fighting continued overnight in eastern Ukraine along the Russian border, and Russia's foreign minister rejected U.S. claims that his country has been supporting pro-Russia fighters there.

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World News

Israelis Broadly Support Military's Operation In Gaza

1:52pm July 28, 2014

by Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson

Recent polls show more than 8 in 10 Jewish Israelis support the military operation, even as the death tolls climb. And Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's ratings are soaring.

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World News

Human Rights Watch Researcher Reports ISIS Abuses In Iraq

10:17am July 28, 2014

Letta Tayler recently returned from Iraq, where she documented stories about the militant Islamist group ISIS and abuses by the Iraqi government. She tells Fresh Air what she learned.

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Investigators at the U.S. Department of Agriculture have discovered cases of organic fraud abroad as well as in the U.S. In 2013, 19 farmers or food companies were fined a total of $87,000 for misusing the organic label.

World News

Can You Trust That Organic Label On Imported Food?

6:12am July 28, 2014

by Dan Charles

A new book claims the organic label can't be trusted, especially on food that's imported. Yet there is a global system for verifying the authenticity of organic food, and it mostly seems to work.

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If All The Ice Melts, What Happens To Hockey?

6:20pm July 27, 2014

A report from the National Hockey League says climate change could threaten the sport's future. NPR's Scott Simon talks to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman about the league's sustainability plan.

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Smoke rises from buildings in May after shelling on the Iraqi city of Fallujah, which is currently held by anti-government fighters. Rights workers say civilians are being killed by government attacks with so-called barrel bombs.

World News

Barrel Bomb Attacks Devastate Iraqi Families

1:44pm July 26, 2014

by Leila Fadel

Rights workers say civilians are being killed by government attacks with so-called barrel bombs — the crude weapons made famous in Syria's current conflict.

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National

Bel Kaufman Took Us 'Up The Down Staircase'

1:32pm July 26, 2014

by Scott Simon

Bel Kaufman was a public school teacher who revealed what the New York public schools were really like. She died Friday, in Manhattan, at the age of 103. NPR's Scott Simon has this remembrance.

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Sports

NFL Faces Criticism Over Ray Rice Suspension From Ravens

1:32pm July 26, 2014

It was a controversial week for the National Football League. Bloomberg's Kavitha Davidson brings NPR's Scott Simon up to date.

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Conservative Rep. DesJarlais Faces Primary Challenge In Tennessee

11:40am July 26, 2014

by Blake Farmer

One of the most conservative members of Congress, U.S. Rep. Scott DesJarlais, is defending his seat against state Sen. Jim Tracy, who is making the most of the incumbent's personal scandals.

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