NPR News 2011-03-31 加文本

NPR News 2011-03-31

From NPR News in Washington, I'm Lakshmi Singh.

Ivory Coast appears even closer to what could be a major battle for power between long-time leader Laurent Gbagbo and the man widely recognized as the true winner in the last presidential race. Today, fighters loyal to Alassane Ouattara seized control of Ivory Coast's administrative capital, the gateway to Abidjan. NPR's Ofeibea Quist-Arcton tells us Ouattara's forces gained significant ground this week.

The fall of Yamoussoukro, with apparently no resistance, is a major symbolic blow from Laurent Gbagbo. Yamoussoukro is less than three hours drive from Abidjan barring obstacles, which is presidential rival Alassane Ouattara's forces are likely to encounter. Gbagbo's camp has vowed to defend his stronghold Abidjan, but Gbagbo is rapidly losing his grip on other parts of Ivory Coast. Ouattara's loyalist forces are advancing on Abidjan from three fronts. In just 48 hours, they have captured strategic towns in the west and in the east, and they're now said to be heading southwest toward San Pedro, the world's top cocoa-exporting seaport. Ofeibea Quist-Arcton, NPR News, Accra.

Syrians are outraged their President Bashar al-Assad will not lift a decades-old emergency law. Assad refused to meet the opposition's demands. Instead, he blamed the last two weeks of unrest in the country on conspirators. Across Yemen, a familiar sound today. In Sana'a and other cities, organizers estimate a turnout of hundreds of thousands all demanding the president of Yemen quit. Unrest in North Africa and the Middle East is keeping oil prices above $100 a barrel and spurring more debate over US dependence on foreign oil. NPR's Ari Shapiro reports President Obama delivered a major energy policy speech at Georgetown University today, promising investment in new sources of energy.

The president says crises in the Middle East and Japan demonstrate why the US needs its own reliable sources of energy. He wants to increase domestic oil drilling and explore newer technologies such as biofuels, natural gas, wind and solar. He's also pushing for more efficient vehicles that will reduce America's demand for energy.

"There are no quick fixes. Anybody who tells you otherwise isn't telling you the truth. And we will keep on being a victim to shifts in the oil market until we finally get serious about a long-term policy for a secure, affordable energy future." 

His goal is to reduce American oil imports by a third over the next decade. Ari Shapiro, NPR News, Washington.

In Libya, rebels are struggling to keep the town of Brega from being overrun by Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's troops. The opposition is appealing to NATO to launch more air strikes against Gaddafi's forces. And in Japan, officials are detecting even higher levels of radioactive material in seawater near nuclear plant damaged in the quake-triggered tsunami this month.

The Dow was up more than 70 points.

This is NPR.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's deputy is resigning to take an academic post. As NPR's Michele Kelemen reports, Clinton has tapped a career diplomat to take James Steinberg's place.

Clinton told State Department employees that Deputy Secretary Steinberg is taking a job at Syracuse University as the dean of the Maxwell School of Public Administration. Steinberg has long been rumored to be unhappy as the No.2 in the State Department, so his departure came as no surprise, but it was announced just a day before he is to testify on Capitol Hill about Libya. Secretary Clinton has tapped William Burns to take his place. Burns is currently the highest-ranking foreign service officer and accompanied Clinton to London this week to an international conference on Libya. Michele Kelemen, NPR News, Washington.

Federal and state authorities in Alabama find that infections link to contaminated intravenous feeding bags may have started two months before officials realized there was a problem at Alabama hospitals. Nine people died; ten were sickened. But today, Doctor Alex Kallen of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the CDC does not expect any further cases of bacteria infection.

"These infections usually have a very rapid onset, within a matter of hours or days, so we think we've captured all the cases that have been related to contamination from this particular pharmacy."

Officials say all potentially contaminated material has been recalled.

At last check on Wall Street before the close, the Dow was up more than 70 points, more than 0.5% at 12,350, the NASDAQ Composite Index had risen 20 or more than 0.5% again at 2,777, and the S&P 500 up nine points at 1,328.

I'm Lakshmi Singh, NPR News.