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Witnesses in Iraq say a U.S. military convoy has been attacked near Fallujah. The U.S. military won't confirm the reports, but says it will have a measured and overwhelming response to attacks in and near the restive town Wednesday that killed nine Americans, including four civilian contractors. Hear NPR's Ivan Watson.

Mars' longer days make for a topsy-turvy schedule for the scientists here on Earth operating the two NASA rovers exploring the planet. NPR's Joe Palca reports.

Twenty years ago the nation faced a new drug scourge: crack cocaine. With it came thousands of children born to addicted mothers and labeled "crack babies." When the drug first hit the streets of New York in the 1980s, the city had 17,000 children in foster care. A decade later, that number had soared to 50,000. Many of the children had been exposed to crack cocaine before birth. NPR's Cheryl Corley speaks with several people who were affected in some way by the crack epidemic.

U.S. Marines in Fallujah have discovered weapons, documents and tapes that suggest non-Iraqi Arabs have played a substantive role in the anti-U.S. insurgency in Fallujah. Letters suggest many of the foreign fighters are Sunni Muslims who came to fight the Shiite majority. Hear NPR's Bob Edwards and KPBS reporter Eric Niiler in Fallujah.

Last week, Michelle Witmer was killed in Baghdad, becoming the first woman in the history of the Wisconsin National Guard to die in combat. Witmer's two sisters also serve in Iraq. After the funeral, they face a decision: return to Iraq or complete their tour of duty elsewhere. Wisconsin Public Radio's Brian Bull reports.

Five U.S. soldiers are killed when a bomb explodes under their vehicle in an attack west of Baghdad. In a separate incident in Fallujah, gunmen attack two civilian vehicles, killing several foreign nationals. Fallujah was the site of intense fighting between U.S. Marines and insurgents last week. Hear NPR's Ivan Watson.

Sen. John Kerry, the presumptive Democratic nominee in the 2004 presidential race, is trying to tout his plan for U.S. economic recovery. But he's finding it difficult to get anyone interested in anything other than Iraq and the commission investigating the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. NPR's Andrea Seabrook reports from Chicago, where Sen. Kerry made a campaign speech Friday.

Next week members of the Sept. 11 commission will hear testimony from the current and former heads of federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies. Commissioners want to know what structural reforms have taken place in government since Sept. 11, 2001, that would or could prevent future attacks. Hear NPR's Linda Wertheimer, public service professor Paul Light of New York University, and John MacGaffin, the CIA's former associate deputy director for operations.

When Condoleezza Rice gave sworn testimony to the Sept. 11 panel Thursday, her job was to counter former counter-terrorism chief Richard Clarke's charges the Bush administration didn't pay enough attention to terrorism. But the bigger challenge was harder and more subtle: to counter "The Apology" -- the moment when Clarke said he was sorry to Sept. 11 victims' families and to America. Commentator James Poniewozik says that Clarke and Rice demonstrate what's wrong with apologies today -- they are both too easy and too hard.

As gas prices hit a record high, presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Sen. John Kerry attacks President Bush for failing to do enough to address the situation. Meanwhile, the Bush campaign launches ads accusing Kerry of supporting a hike in gas taxes. Hear NPR's Scott Horsley.