NPR News 2013-08-26 加文本

NPR News 2013-08-26

From NPR News in Washington, I'm Windsor Johnston.

The UN says Syria has agreed to allow inspectors access to suburban areas of Damascus where alleged chemical attack occurred. A senior Obama administration official says there is “very little doubt” that the Syrian regime used a chemical weapon against civilians. But Democratic state Senator Jack Reed, a member of the Senate Army Services Committee, says it's crucial for the inspectors to verify that such weapons were used in last week's deadly attack.

“That will allow us to build an international coalition, which is actually necessary to take any further steps, you know, in Syria, and also help defuse some of the countries like Iran and Russia, who are trying to pawn this off upon them, the rebels, the opposition.”

The US Navy has sent a fourth warship armed with missiles into the eastern Mediterranean Sea while President Obama considers a response.

Firefighters in California are bracing for a day of high winds while they continue to battle a giant wildfire burning along the northwest edge of Yosemite National Park. NPR's Nathan Rott reports the high winds could push the fire further into the park, threatening thousands of homes.

The so-called Rim Fire has already charred more than 200 square miles of land, an area roughly the size of Chicago. It has steadily grown since tripling in size late last week and has shown no signs of slowing. For nearly 3,000 firefighters pitted against it, the predicted winds Sunday only make matters worse. The fire has already forced 4,500 evacuations and is now threatening two separate groves of giant sequoias. It's also burning towards a reservoir that provides 85% of San Francisco's water. Due to those threats and the fire’s relentless push, California Governor Jerry Brown has declared a state of emergency. Nathan Rott, NPR News.

Egypt's former President Hosni Mubarak is back in court today, facing charges stemming from protester deaths in 2011. But as NPR's Peter Kenyon reports, three Muslim Brotherhood leaders did not appear at their own court session.

Just days after being freed from prison pending trial, Hosni Mubarak was back in a Cairo courtroom for a previously scheduled hearing. Mubarak is being retried on charges relating to the more than 800 deaths of protesters seeking his ouster in 2011. Mubarak's original conviction was overturned on appeal. He remains under house arrest ordered by the military-backed interim government. Another case was adjourned until later October when three senior Muslim Brotherhood officials, including General Guide Mohammed Badie, were not brought to the court to face charges of inciting violence. State media said the defendants did not appear because of unspecified security concerns. Peter Kenyon, NPR News, Cairo.

At least 22 people were killed in a string of attacks in Iraq today, including an eight-year-old child. Police say the attack took place near the northern city of Mosul where militants set up a fixed security checkpoint.

This is NPR News.

In India police have taken into custody the fifth and final suspect in the gang rape of a young photo journalist in Mumbai last week. NPR's Julie McCarthy reports from New Delhi the case has reignited debate over how to make women in the India safe from sexual violence.

Under intense pressure to act quickly, police nabbed the fifth suspect said to be most brutal on the border of Delhi and the neighboring state of Haryana. Authorities say he was planning to escape to Bangladesh. He’ll be transported back to Mumbai, where the accused are likely to face prosecution under a new law that provides a minimum prison term for gang rape of 20 years. Meanwhile, the young woman at the center of this latest sexual assault that sparked public outrage told Indian media that she wants to return to work, and it's quoted by the Times of India saying that “Rape is not the end of life.” The young photo journalist was allegedly repeatedly raped in the abandoned mill where she had been shooting pictures. Julie McCarthy, NPR News, New Delhi.

The average US price for a gallon of gasoline has gone down four cents over the past two weeks, and fuel price analyst Trovie Lumburg says prices are significantly lower this time last year.

“Gasoline prices have continued to drop. They're down four cents on average to $3.56 in the past two weeks, and they're down 12 cents in a month. Also this current price is 20 cents below its a-year-ago point.”

A gallon of premium costs $3.88 a gallon. In other cities surveyed, South Carolina had the lowest average price at $3.22 a gallon, and Long Island, New York had the highest at $3.82.

This is NPR News.