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From NPR news in Washington, I'm Korva Coleman.

A senior aide to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has quitted. Monica Goodling was involved in the firings of 8 US attorneys. Two weeks ago she invoked her right against self-incrimination and refused to testify to Congress about the sackings, but lawmakers say they will continue to investigate whether the firings were improper. The Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman has sent another letter to the White House counsel asking for further information. NPR's Ari Shapiro reports.
This is the latest in a series of letters from Senator Patrick Leahy to White House counsel Fred Fielding. This one asks about the basis for the President assertions that quote there has been no credible evidence of any wrong doing in the US attorney scandal. Leahy requires information about whatever reviews and investigations the administration has done to reach the conclusion that there has been no evidence of wrong doing. He also asks for documents of the White House earlier, said it would provide to Congress. The White House has offered Congress a limited range of documents and private interviews with presidential aides. Congressional Democrats want more documents and public hearings. The White House says giving the Democrats what they want would compromise executive privilege. Ari Shapiro NPR news, Washington.


Weather forecasters are predicating cooler weather this weekend. The upper mid-west will get more snow. The town of Phoenix farm on Michigan's Upper Peninsula has already gotten more than 40 inches of snow this week. Snow showers are expected to take more often in the central and southern plain states. But the cooler temperatures will stay in place. Some areas will see the thermometer deep as much as 10 to 30 degrees cooler than usual surprising people as far south as the Carolinas.


The British government has put on compassion at leave the 15 sailors and marines recently released from Iranian custody. Yesterday some of the troops described their treatment by Iran. They said they were blindfolded and isolated and told to confess to trespassing in Iran. Larry Miller reports from London. Teheran dismissed the British news conference as the article propaganda, almost exactly how British Prime Minister Tony Blair descried the Iranian news conference, said which was announced the crew would free as a gift to the British people. In an interview with the Financial Times, the Iranian ambassador to London said while there is no linkage between the crew’s release and other issues. He said Tehran would appreciate Britain’s help in securing the release of 5 Iranians being held by the US in Iraq. It also wants less international pressure over its nuclear enrichment program. The ambassador said we played our part and we showed our goodwill, but it's up to the British government to proceed in a positive way. He called the release of the crew a triumph for the Iranian-British relationship. For NPR news, I'm Larry Miller in London.

News reports from Iraq say fighting between US and Iraqi troop and insurgence has killed at least one person. US forces have launched air strikes in the town of Diwaniyah. This is NPR.

Officials in the greater Phoenix area have found at least 80 suspected illegal immigrants clustered in the house. Police fired tear gas into the House and forced the immigrant smuggler out. A second smuggler was found hiding in an attic. Police say no one was hurt and the suspected illegal immigrants are now in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement Officials.


Texas leaders have reached a settlement in a 14-year-old Medicaid lawsuit. The agreement should make health care more available and affordable for more than 1 million Texas children. From member station KERA in Dallas, Bill Zeeble reports. The initial suit brought in 1993 accused the State of skimping on vital medical and dental care for children. The new agreement reached day before a traditional hearing is expected to significantly increase reimbursement payment to doctors and dentists who treated poor children in the State. It also increased the financial burden on Taxes by at lease half a billion dollars over its two-year budget period according to reports. The settlement could also resolve in better rural care among other improvements. The tentative agreement must still be okayed by US district judge William Wayne Justice. At least one in a half million Texas children currently rely on the government for health care. For NPR news, I'm Bill Zeeble in Dallas.


The Sri Lanka army reports at least 7 people dead when a bomb exploded close to a passing bus filled with civilians. The army says at least 26 people were hurt. The explosion came near a Sri Lanka government controlled town close to rebel held territory. The government and the rebels blamed each other for the attack. Yesterday the human rights group Amnesty International says both the Sri Lanka military and the rebels are attacking civilians.

I'm Korva Coleman, NPR news in Washington.

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