CNN news 2007-06-27 加文本

cnn 2007-06-27



【电信1】 Realvideo / MP3

Hello, I'm Melissa Long at the cnn center in Atlanta with a look at what's happening NOW IN THE NEWS.

As he wrapped up his duties as British prime minister, there is a word of a new position for Tony Blair. He'll be named an envoy for the international group known as the Mideast Quartet. This is according to officials with the State Department and the Quartet, his new duties will include helping support the development of institutions for the Palestinian Authority. An official announcement is expected tomorrow as Mr. Blair leaves office.

Inspectors with the International Atomic Energy Agency, the IAEA, are in North Korea for the first visit in five years. They're there to find ways to verify the closure of a nuclear facility. Pyongyang agreed to shut down the reactor in exchange for energy and security guarantees in an agreement reached at Six-Party talks back in February.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said he will release 250 Fatah members from Israeli prisons. He says it is a gesture of goodwill towards the Palestinians and a means of strengthening Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas after Hamas's victory in Gaza. Olmert says he'll also work to restore trade ties with the West Bank and improve Palestinian access within the area.

A GOP lawmaker is criticizing President Bush's Iraq war strategy. Senator Richard Lugar is urging the president to change course very soon because the senator says, the current strategy is not working. The White House says it's not surprised by Lugar's comments. Press Secretary Tony Snow told reporters this afternoon that the Republican senator has had reservations about the administration's Iraq policy for some time.

The Associated Press is reporting that police believe pro wrestling star Chris Benoit murdered his wife and son before committing suicide. Police say he strangled his wife, smothered his seven-year-old son and then hung himself in the weight room. cnn has not independently confirmed this disturbing report. Autopsies are expected to be complete today.

And free at last, but not free to do anything she wants. Smiling Paris Hilton exiting the Los Angeles County Jail very early this morning, she passed scores of cameras to reach her mother's open arms. The 26-year-old spent 23 days at an all-women's facility mostly confined to a solitary cell in the special needs unit. She's on probation until March of 2009.

And those are the headlines. You are up-to-date. Don't forget you can count on cnn to bring you the latest news any time, day or night.