NPR News 2012-09-30 加文本

NPR News 2012-09-30

From NPR News in Washington, I'm Nora Raum

The civil war in Syria is now threatening to destroy an historic marketplace in the old city of Aleppo, where merchants have been selling goods for hundreds of years. Activists say the fighting between government troops and rebels has started fires that already burned more than 1,000 shops. Meanwhile, the BBC's Jim Muir reports the battle for the country's largest city shows no sign of abating.

Some rebel commanders have heralded a big offensive to secure control of the whole of Aleppo. Both sides reported clashes in different parts of the city. But the signs are that the rebels simply lack the firepower and the manpower to score a significant breakthrough. The government side has made full use of its heavy weapons, tanks, and monopoly of airpower. By the same token, the government forces, despite all their disadvantages, have clearly not been able to dislodge the tenacious rebel fighters from many parts of the city.

The BBC's Jim Muir reporting.

In Portugal, tens of thousands of opponents of austerity rallied in the capital Lisbon to call for an about-turn in government policy. They say austerity measures imposed as part of the country's eurozone bailout are crushing the economy. Alison Roberts reports from Lisbon.

The Union Federation that staged today's demonstration is now calling for a general strike. Its members packed out Lisbon's giant riverside square to protest against austerity. Union members bused in from across the country were joined at the protest by other citizens who expressed outrage at government's insistence on policies they say are choking off economic growth, yet failing to narrow the deficits.

"We are worse now than we were a year before. We have to stop this."

Recent polls do show most voters still back the three political parties that had committed to Portugal's eurozone bailout deal. But even one of those, the opposition Socialist Party, says blind spending cuts and tax hikes are killing growth, so the government must ease up on austerity. For NPR News, I'm Alison Roberts in Lisbon.

Hundreds of people gathered in a main square in Benghazi, Libya today not to protest, but to turn in their weapons. The military is attempting to disarm the militias.

The first debate of the presidential election will be held Wednesday night in Denver. Both major candidates are spending time behind closed doors this weekend getting ready. But their running mates are out campaigning. In Deering, New Hampshire, Paul Ryan said the choice is clear: Mitt Romney is the right person.

"Very rarely, do we see a situation where the man in the moment meets so well? This is a man who threw all of his accomplishments has shown one thing: decisive, principled leadership."

Vice President Joe Biden in Fort Myers, Florida said the Republican Party isn't what it used to be.

"This is not your father's Republican Party. This is not even Mitt Romney's father's Republican Party. This is nothing like it."

Biden also blamed the Republicans for the nation's budget troubles by cutting taxes for the wealthy.

This is NPR News from Washington.

It wasn't a good week on Wall Street, but Steve Beckner of Market News International reports it did end a positive third quarter.

It was rough going for the stock market during a week of fresh turmoil in heavily indebted European nations and often disappointing US economic news that created uncertainty in investors' minds. At Friday's close, the three major stock gauges are all down substantially, led by the technology-heavy NASDAQ Composite's loss of two thirds of a percent. And for a second straight week, the indices are down by at least one percent. But recent losses aren't bad enough to erase previous gains. So for the third quarter as a whole, the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 4.3%, the S&P 500 5.8%, and the NASDAQ 6.2%. For NPR News, I'm Steve Beckner.

A curfew is in effect in the Iraqi city of Tikrit after a prison break this week. Authorities say they are searching for dozens of escapees, including some death row inmates linked to al-Qaeda. The Interior Ministry says they were able to break out of prison, using weapons that have been smuggled into them during family visits. And some of the guards may have helped by leaving some doors unlocked. At least twenty people were killed. Tikrit was the hometown of the Saddam Hussein. It's located about 80 miles north of Baghdad.

The Pope's butler went on trial today on charges of stealing of papal documents and leaking them to a reporter. According to court records, the former servant confessed, saying he wanted to expose the evil and corruption in the Roman Catholic Church. He told investigators he felt inspired by the Holy Spirit to inform the Pope about the church's problems.

I'm Nora Raum, NPR News in Washington.