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Though the Bush administration has altered many laws to help its war on terrorism, the nation's gun laws remain unchanged. Some critics express concern that terrorists are finding it too easy to exploit loopholes in the system and get their hands on guns. NPR's Deborah Amos reports.

For the first time since 1979, Iraqi oil started flowing to markets legally today. It's a result of the UN oil-for-food resolution that relaxes the stringent embargo against Saddam Hussein's nation. US officials express confidence that the UN-monitored oil sales will not erode the general sanctions program and the grand coalition that opposed Saddam Hussein in Desert Storm. But analysts are not so sure. They expect nations in the region will see the deal as a green light to resume trading and smuggling with Iraq. NPR's Ted Clark reports.

Earlier this month, the United Nations voted to condemn the United States' economic embargo against Cuba for the 11th year in a row. The United States will undoubtedly ignore the resolution, citing Cuba as a sponsor of terrorism, where basic rights such as freedom of expression are not respected. Last May, island dissidents demanded such rights via a first-ever citizens petition, but Castro's government has still not responded. And now the dissidents themselves are beginning to quarrel among themselves. Gerry Hadden has the story from Havana.

A Finnish brewery is making the case with a case of beer. The brew is called OTAN, a play on a Finnish expression that means "I'll have a beer." It's also the French abbreviation for NATO.

The last of the 20,000 troops of the 1st Marine Division pull out of Baghdad and head south as the Army moves in to take charge of the Iraqi capital. The handover comes as tensions rise between the Marines and Baghdad residents, who express frustration with lawlessness and lack of electricity. Hear NPR's John Burnett.

L. Patrick Gray, who was the acting director of the FBI during the Watergate scandal, has died at 88. Gray had been back in the news recently, expressing shock that his former deputy, Mark Felt, had been "Deep Throat," the Washington Post's secret source for Watergate details.

Soldiers with the U.S. Army's 3rd Infantry Division in Kuwait are poised for a major ground combat operation in Iraq, and many believe it will come soon. A few woke up in the middle of the night to listen to President Bush's address to the nation. Some expressed relief that the waiting is almost over. But there's also anxiety, according to NPR's Eric Westervelt, who's with Charlie Company of the 315th. He reports that only three of the 150 troops in that company have combat experience.

Friday morning in Pakistan, a detention order was imposed on former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. By the end of the day, it was lifted. The United States expressed concern about her detention and urged Pakistani authorities "to quickly return to constitutional order and democratic norms."

We'll hear the speech made by New York City police officer Steven McDonald last night before the Republican National Convention. He talks about the need for politicians to address morality, and expressed his support for right-to-life delegates. A former Navy corpsman, he talked about his pride in serving his country, about the need to rekindle the pride of the nation, and the need to ground political discourse within a moral and familial framework.

of Georgia will be elected today to a second term as Speaker of the House, when the 105th Congress convenes. After a lengthy meeting of Republican House members last night, it was obvious Gingrich had the votes needed to win. Only a few Republicans have expressed their intention to vote against him because of his admitted infractions of House ethics rules.