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European nations have pledged to cut off oil imports from Iran beginning Sunday, tightening the sanctions that target Iran's nuclear program. Iran is expected to feel the squeeze — but the move could also push up world oil prices.

It was just a year ago that the House rejected a deal with President Obama and threatened to allow the U.S. to default on debt obligations coming due. The Tea Party refusal to raise the debt ceiling led to a downgrade in U.S. credit and a selloff in the markets. NPR's David Welna reports on what's changed since then and what hasn't.

The vote marks the first time a U.S. attorney general has been found in contempt.

Scientists have discovered that the gene that makes tomatoes uniformly ripe and red also makes them less tasty. But it's going to take consumer education and a willingness to pay more before the industry makes a change.

It's become a pattern: On the first Friday of the month, the Labor Department issues a disappointing economic report. Republicans cite it as proof of President Obama's failed policies. The White House urges everyone to focus on the glass half full. And both sides miss the broader picture.

As North Korea prepares for an unusual parliamentary meeting Tuesday, farmers have told the Western media that new agricultural rules will give them more control over their crops — which would mark a significant change for the state-run economy. It raises hopes that the country is on the verge of a major shift.

http://66.225.205.104/LM20120504.mp3Republicans have had their eye on Larry Kissell's congressional seat since he took office in 2008. This year…

http://66.225.205.104/JR20100422.mp3 The National Republican Party has been after freshman Democrat Larry Kissell since the day he took office in 2008.…

NPR's Ari Shapiro joins host Scott Simon to preview a pair of pieces he's reported for next week on the political ad wars. He talks about the unprecedented number of ads, the money and how it feels in one community: Colorado Springs.

In South Africa, thousands of mineworkers have embarked on industrial action that began with a deadly pay strike by platinum workers. They've agreed a wage deal with their management, this week, but the labor unrest is spreading to other platinum and gold mines in an industry that's the engine of South Africa's economy. NPR's Ofeibea Quist-Arcton discusses the repercussions with host Scott Simon.

Drug- and gang-related shootouts have killed 20 people so far this year in France's second largest city. The crime wave has prompted one Marseille politician to call for the army to be sent in. The city's isolated housing projects breed despair and are home to a parallel economy based on drugs.

It can be lonely being a Democrat in the Deep South. In the reliably Republican region, even recruiting viable Democratic candidates can be a challenge. But strategists are looking to nearby states to learn how the party might start to make inroads in such red territory.

The nonprofit in charge of distributing organs wants to revamp the system for distributing kidneys for the first time in 25 years. But some transplant specialists and bioethicists fear the changes could end up discriminating against some patients.

Ohio is in the political spotlight Wednesday. President Obama will be stopping at college towns, courting the young voters who helped him win Ohio four years ago. GOP challenger Mitt Romney is finishing a bus tour that kicked off earlier this week by his running mate Paul Ryan.

Since Republican Rep. Todd Akin first said the words "legitimate rape" last weekend, just about everyone in the Republican Party has condemned those comments. That includes vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan. But it's also put a spotlight on Ryan's anti-abortion legislation and voting record.

After spending most of last week in separate states, the Republican ticket reassembled today in New Hampshire. Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan appeared together at a town hall in New Hampshire. NPR's Ari Shapiro was there and has this report.

Climate change is exaggerating the normal swings in weather. For the American Southwest, that means more intense waves of heat, drought and fire that could wipe out trees that have stood for centuries. It's already revamping the ecology of the landscape.

Dancer-actor Gene Kelly would have been 100 this year, and his legacy of unparalleled athleticism and joyous, comic performance still looms large in popular culture. His versatility and his physical beauty were both part of his appeal.

In the United Arab Emirates, a new ecology is emerging at a lake formed by desalinated water that's been pumped in from the Persian Gulf.

Find out what Taylor Swift's new album means for the worlds of pop and country, the industry at large, and the singer herself — and meet a cigar-chomping, meat-loving German jazzman.