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Despite large-scale anti-American violence in Baghdad, President Bush and top American generals assert that the United States is making steady progress in rebuilding Iraq. Citing gains in the nation's economy and overall security, administration and military officials say that Monday's attacks show Hussein loyalists' desperation. NPR's Eric Westervelt reports.

Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, the top military commander in Iraq, says the U.S.-led authority is "way ahead of schedule." And U.S. civilian administrator Paul Bremer says U.S. forces are making progress against guerrilla-type resistance from remnants of Saddam Hussein's regime. But some Baghdadis express dissatisfaction with developments in Iraq. Hear NPR's Guy Raz.

R&B singer Luther Vandross is continuing to recover from the stroke he suffered earlier this year. His latest CD, Dance With My Father, debuted at number one earlier this summer, and remains in the top 10. Writer Sara Bardeen has a review of the CD.

NPR's Christopher Joyce in Baghdad reports the U.S. civil administration in Iraq has again postponed plans to establish an interim Iraqi authority to help govern the country. A conference to create the authority had been expected in June, but the top U.S. official in Baghdad, Paul Bremer, told reporters it will not be held before mid-July at the earliest.

Top U.S. military officials warn that the war has not ended in Iraq, especially in the north, despite successes in Baghdad and other key cities. The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Richard Myers, says only after hostilities have ended can the military turn to matters such as policing against looters. Myers talks to NPR's Robert Siegel.

Lt. General David McKiernan, the top commander of U.S. ground forces in Iraq, pledges to "aggressively target" crime in Baghdad and restore order to the city. Military officials deny a New York Times report suggesting U.S. forces now have permission to shoot looters, including children, on sight. NPR's Guy Raz reports.

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan says the United Nations will remain in Iraq, despite an attack on its headquarters in Baghdad that killed its top envoy and at least 20 others. Analysts say the bombing may signal a shift in tactics by groups opposed to the American occupation of Iraq, with attackers now targeting civilians. Hear NPR's Ivan Watson and NPR's Eric Westervelt.

Last week, a team trying to reach the top of Mount Everest passed a dying Englishman who collapsed on his way down. But is there a code of ethics when it comes to assisting fellow climbers?

Italy's top officials attend a funeral in Rome for a security agent killed in Iraq Friday. He died trying to shield a freed Italian hostage, when U.S. forces fired on their vehicle. The United States says its troops gave warning signals, but the hostage contests the U.S. version of events. An investigation is under way.

The former top U.S. administrator in Iraq says the United States deployed too few troops there. L. Paul Bremer said the U.S. military also failed to contain violence and looting. Hear NPR's Robert Siegel and retired Maj. Gen. William Nash of the Council on Foreign Relations.