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A Senate newly controlled by Republicans means key changes at the top of powerful committees. And with a brand-new GOP leader, committee chairmen may wield additonal influence. Alaska's Sen. Ted Stevens takes over as head of the Appropriations Committee. NPR's Elizabeth Arnold offers a profile.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrives in China, the final stop of her first Asian tour as America's top diplomat. Rice visited Japan and South Korea in the last two days; the focus of many of her discussions has been North Korea and its nuclear research.

The top U.S. commander in northern Iraq says that this week's deadly attack on a U.S. base near the city of Mosul may have been the work of a suicide bomber wearing an Iraqi military uniform. Brig. Gen. Carter Ham says he is concerned the attack's success may encourage similar attempts. NPR's Vicky O'Hara reports.

The war on terror has forced al Qaida to decentralize its global structure. A former FBI counterterrorism agent says al Qaida is an especially flexible organization that has changed its tactics but has the same goal: an attack in the United States. Although no attacks have occurred since Sept. 11, al Qaida is still viewed as the top threat to U.S. national security.

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.

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.

Warming temperatures mean that many glaciers are shrinking. A ski company using the Gemstock glacier above Andermatt, Switzerland, has answered this trend by wrapping a critical ski ramp near the top of the glacier in synthetic material. The company hopes that the blanket will slow the glacier's melting over the summer.