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Top Stories: Supreme Court Opens, Al-Qaida Bomb Maker Survives

Good morning.

The news we've already posted about:

-- Three Scientists Share Nobel Prize In Medicine

-- Rapid Response From Perry Campaign To Story About Offensive Word

-- 'Occupy Wall Street' Spreads

Meanwhile, other stories making headlines include:

-- "In New Term, Supreme Court To Tackle Divisive Issues": "If the U.S. Supreme Court term opening Monday were a Broadway show, all eyes would be on the stars waiting in the wings. The constitutional challenge to President Obama's health care overhaul almost certainly will be decided this term, but at this point it has not formally made it onto the docket. Also making their way to the court are cases involving almost every hot-button issue in America: immigration; affirmative action; gay marriage; and the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act, the federal law barring federal recognition of gay marriage even in states where it is legal." (NPR's Nina Totenberg on Morning Edition.)

-- "Yemeni Official: Al-Qaida Bomb Maker Not Killed": "Al-Qaida's top bomb maker in Yemen did not die in a drone strike on a convoy, a top Yemeni official said Sunday. ... The U.S. drone strike Friday killed U.S.-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki and an American propagandist, Samir Khan, who published a slick English-language web magazine that spouted al-Qaida's anti-Western ideology. U.S. intelligence officials had said it appeared that bomb maker Ibrahim al-Asiri was among the dead. However, on Sunday the Yemeni official released a list of two others whose bodies had been identified and noted that al-Asiri was not one of them. The Yemeni official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence matters." (The Associated Press)

-- Panetta Warns That Israel Is Becoming Isolated: "Israel is becoming increasingly isolated in the Middle East, U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has warned. He said Israel should restart peace talks with the Palestinians and restore good relations with Turkey and Egypt. Mr. Panetta spoke while travelling to the region for talks with Israeli and Palestinian leaders." (BBC News)

-- "Knox Pleads With Italian Court To Free Her": "Amanda Knox tearfully told an Italian appeals court Monday she did not kill her British roommate, pleading for the court to free her so she can return to the United States after four years behind bars. Moments later, the court began deliberations." (The Associated Press)

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Mark Memmott is NPR's supervising senior editor for Standards & Practices. In that role, he's a resource for NPR's journalists – helping them raise the right questions as they do their work and uphold the organization's standards.