NPR News 2013-08-23 加文本

NPR News 2013-08-23

From NPR News Washington, I'm Lakshmi Singh.

The Army staff sergeant who massacred 16 Afghan villagers during a nighttime raid last year says what he did was an act of cowardice behind a mask of fear and bravado. NPR's Martin Kaste describes Robert Bales' demeanor today.

When Sgt. Bales took the stand in the small courtroom here, he was visibly nervous. He his puffed out his cheeks, had to control his breathing. It was clearly taking him a lot of effort just to keep himself calm and collected as his lawyer asked him questions about his mood (on) the day of the massacre.

NPR's Martin Kaste. Bales will serve life in prison, but a jury will decide whether he gets a shot at freedom some day.

Jurors are now deliberating in Major Nidal Hasan's trial for the 2009 Fort Hood shooting that claimed 13 lives and left more than 30 people wounded. Kate McGee with member station KUT reports Nidal Hasan representing himself had nothing to say, but it was just the opposite for the prosecution.

Government lawyers boiled down 11 days of testimony into an hour-and-a-half closing argument. They replayed tape from a 911 phone call, video of the shooting’s aftermath and a dashboard camera from the police who responded to the shooting. Hasan did not give any closing arguments. Nine of the 13 members of the military panel must agree for Hasan to be found guilty. They must unanimously agree for him to receive the death penalty. For NPR News, I'm Kate McGee at Fort Hood.

The Obama administration says so far it's unable to conclusively determine if chemical weapons were used in an attack near the Syrian capital yesterday. UN monitors are on the ground, but so far they are blocked from verifying rebels' allegations that the military conducted the attack.

Several rockets are fired from southern Lebanon toward Israel today and one did not reach its target. Tim Fitzsimons reports from Beirut the attack raises tensions on a border that has been mostly calm for years.

According to the Israel Defense Forces, none of the four rockets fell on Israeli territory. One was shot out of the sky by the country's Iron Dome missile defense system and there were no casualties. The incident raises tensions on an increasingly uneasy border. On August 7th, a bomb exploded near the blue line and wounded four Israeli soldiers. The Lebanese Armed Forces said Israelis had entered Lebanese territory. In 2006 Israel fought a month-long war with the Lebanese militant organization Hezbollah, during which rockets and bombs were exchanged between the two sides. However, Israel did not accuse Hezbollah of involvement in the rocket incident. An IDF statement blamed the strike on global jihad terrorists, and a spokesman told Israeli TV the IDF is regarding this as a one-time incident. There is no change in regulations or orders. For NPR News, I'm Tim Fitzsimons in Beirut.

The NASDAQ Stock Exchange is back in business. NPR's Steve Henn says it was a technical glitch.

Major stocks like Apple and Microsoft were unable to be traded for three hours today.

Dow was up 66, NASDAQ up now 39 more than 1% at 3,639. This is NPR News.

Deposed Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak's out of prison and under house arrest at a military hospital in Cairo. He is expected to be retried, starting next week on charges he was complicit in the deaths of hundreds of protesters during a 2011 uprising that overthrew him.

Egypt is now dealing with a new round of unrest this time over former President Mohammed Morsi who was overthrown last month. A man convicted of murder and rape has become the first person in Britain to challenge his sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. Larry Miller reports the move comes after European judges ruled such sentences amounted to human rights violations.

In 1983 Arthur Hutchinson broke into a home, stabbing to death three members of the same family and raping a teenage guest. The trial judge rule that “life will mean life.” Hutchinson and three other killers appealed to the European Court of Human Rights, which says life behind bars is inhuman and degrading, and prisoners should have their cases reviewed after 25 years. If no longer dangerous, they should be freed. Britain has six months to respond. If a court rejects his challenge, Hutchinson could be given a parole hearing. He is one of around 50 lifers. Many other have sentences exceeding the 25 years. Britain's justice secretary says his sympathies are with the victims and he'll resist the ruling. For NPR News, I'm Larry Miller in London.

Rates for fixed mortgages in the US are at the highest levels in two years. Mortgage giant Freddie Mac says the average rate on the 30-year loan has risen a 4.58% this week. The average on the 15-year loan has increased to 3.6%.

Before the closing bell, Dow was up 66 at 14,964. This is NPR News.