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A group claiming ties to al Qaeda beheads U.S. hostage Paul Johnson in Saudi Arabia. The 49-year-old engineer, an employee of Lockheed Martin working on Apache attack helicopter systems in the Saudi capital city of Riyadh, was taken hostage last weekend. His captors warned they would kill him unless al Qaeda suspects were released from jail. Hear NPR's Melissa Block and Knight Ridder correspondent Dave Montgomery.

The war crimes trial of former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic is thrown in doubt over reports of Milosevic's worsening health. The trial, already two years old, has faced many delays, as Milosevic, acting as his own lawyer, has required many concessions over his health. NPR's Sylvia Poggioli reports.

Confusion and miscommunication reigned on the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, as civilian and military air controllers tried to cope with four airliners hijacked by terrorists. Today, the memories were all too vivid as the bipartisan commission investigating those terror attacks replayed the events minute by minute, with chilling conclusions. Hear NPR's Larry Abramson.

American support for the war in Iraq is stronger now than it was a month ago, according to a new Pew Research Center poll. The poll's findings also show an improvement in President Bush's standing over the past month. Hear NPR's Michele Norris and Andrew Kohut of the Pew Research Center.

A staff report delivered to the bipartisan commission investigating the Sept. 11 terror attacks finds "no credible evidence" that Saddam Hussein cooperated with al Qaeda in those attacks. The staff report said Osama bin Laden contacted the Iraqi government about gaining support from that country but had been rebuffed. NPR's Larry Abramson reports.

House lawmakers approve a corporate tax-cut bill worth $150 billion. Some conservative Republicans voted against the plan, fearing it could increase the federal deficit. But it passed with the help of some Democrats, who received a wide variety of unrelated provisions for their support. Hear NPR's David Welna.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon survives a no-confidence vote Monday, the same day he sought to form a unity government with opposition leader Shimon Peres. Sharon's coalition government barely survived the no-confidence attempt, which fell just six votes short in the Israeli parliament. Hear NPR's Peter Kenyon.

U.S. forces suspend offensive operations in Najaf and radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr promises to pull his armed supporters out of the city in the latest sign of a potential end to the standoff there. U.S.-led military and militia loyal to the Shiite leader have been engaged in skirmishes in the area for nearly two months. NPR's Peter Kenyon reports.

U.S. officials confirm the FBI is investigating whether Ahmad Chalabi told Iranian agents that the United States had broken their country's communications code. Chalabi, a formerly exiled Iraqi leader now back in Baghdad, provided the United States with details, now discredited, about Saddam Hussein's weapons program. NPR's Mary Louise Kelly reports.

Former President Bill Clinton signed his new book at a Harlem bookstore Tuesday, and was greeted like a rock star. NPR's Allison Keyes reports.