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Johnny Cash, country music's "Man in Black," dies due to complications from diabetes at 71. Cash, whose hits include "I Walk the Line," and "A Boy Named Sue," earned 11 Grammys in his six-decade career and was inducted into the Country Music, the Rock and Roll and the Songwriters halls of fame. Cash's death comes four months after the death of his wife, June Carter Cash. Hear NPR's Bob Edwards.

An apparent car bomb explodes outside of a mosque in the Muslim holy city of Najaf, killing at least 75 people, including prominent Shiite cleric Ayatollah Mohammed Baqer al-Hakim. Al-Hakim led a political party that operated in exile for years in Iran during Saddam Hussein's regime, and had cooperated to a degree with occupying U.S. forces. Hear NPR's Ivan Watson.

The Bush administration will begin circulating a draft resolution within the U.N. Security Council that would authorize the creation of a multinational force in Iraq under U.S. command, U.S. officials say. The decision, an effort to attract more foreign contributions, comes as the cost of the U.S. operation in Iraq continues to mount. Hear Guillaume Parmentier of the French Center on the United States.

Pentagon officials acknowledge that extending the combat tours of some U.S. soldiers in Iraq will cost several hundred million extra dollars. The White House's 2005 budget curently includes no funding request for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Concerns are growing among members of Congress from both parties about the overall cost of military operations in Iraq. NPR'S Eric Westervelt reports.

National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice briefs House and Senate Republicans on the situation in Iraq. The closed-door briefing comes near the end of a series of Congressional hearings examining troop deployment extensions, military costs and the planned June 30 transfer of power to an Iraqi government. Rice also met with some Senate Democrats in a meeting that was arranged at the last minute. NPR's Andrea Seabrook reports.

Residents of Basra are cleaning up and treating the wounded following the bloodiest day in the southern Iraqi city since the start of the war a year ago. Five suicide bombings left more than 70 people dead and at least 200 wounded. There's no word who carried out these attacks, but U.S officials suspect al Qaeda. Hear NPR's Emily Harris.

Nighttime battles are waged between U.S. forces and militiamen loyal to a radical Shiite cleric outside the holy city of Najaf. U.S. forces used tanks and warplanes in the battle, which left more than 60 militiamen dead, according to a military spokesman. Later, U.S. forces attacked parts of Fallujah from the air. Hear NPR's Michele Norris and NPR's Anne Garrels.

The American intelligence community was sharply criticized at recent hearings of the commission investigating the Sept. 11 attacks. CIA Director George Tenet conceded his agency failed to translate knowledge of the dangers posed by al Qaeda to an effective defense of the nation. He also said it will take five years to develop a clandestine service capable of fully dealing with terrorist threats. NPR's Brian Naylor speaks with Daniel Benjamin, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Foreign aid workers, contractors and journalists are increasingly becoming targets of kidnappings across Iraq. The Al-Jazeera news network broadcast a video of a captured American soldier who identifies himself as 20-year-old Pfc. Keith Maupin. An American and a Danish citizen were seized Friday in separate incidents, and dozens have been kidnapped over the past two weeks. Many have been released fairly quickly -- but one, an Italian, was murdered by his captors. NPR's Philip Reeves reports.

The Sept. 11 panel hears testimony from current and former FBI directors, as the agency's actions prior to the 2001 attacks come under growing criticism. Former FBI Director Louis Freeh has said he lacked proper funding for anti-terror efforts. Previous witnesses have suggested FBI policies prevented inter-agency sharing of key information. Hear NPR's Bob Edwards and NPR's Mary Louise Kelly.