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A massive truck bomb rips through a Baghdad hotel that served as the headquarters of the U.N. mission to Iraq. At least 20 people are killed, including U.N. special representative to Iraq Sergio Vieira de Mello. More than 100 people are wounded. NPR's Ivan Watson reports.

Secretary of State Colin Powell says the United States will seek a new U.N. Security Council resolution that might convince more countries to contribute troops to stabilization efforts in Iraq. But Powell stresses that the United States has no plans to give up its authority over security operations, as some governments have suggested. Hear NPR's Vicky O'Hara.

Thousands of Shiite Muslims protest peacefully at the headquarters of U.S.-led forces in Baghdad, accusing them of doing little to stop a weekend of ethnic bloodshed and a recent attack on a Shiite cleric. In Washington, U.S. civil administrator Paul Bremer says troops face a "growing threat" of terrorism, but that security is "not as bad as people think it is." Hear NPR's Anne Garrels and Bremer.

Secretary of State Colin Powell will meet with U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan to discuss improving security within Iraq. The meeting comes two days after an explosion at the U.N. headquarters in Baghdad killed more than 20 people, including the top U.N. envoy in Iraq. Hear retired Gen. William Nash and Nancy Soderberg, former U.S. ambassador to the U.N.

A powerful explosion rips apart a mosque during Friday prayer services in Najaf, Iraq, killing Shiite leader Ayatollah Mohammed Baqer al-Hakim. The attack on one of the holiest sites for Shia Muslims took a high death toll. Hear NPR's Ivan Watson.

U.S. Iraq administrator Paul Bremer says that despite Tuesday's bombing of the U.N. headquarters in Baghdad, the country is not in chaos. Investigators theorize the attackers were either Saddam loyalists or outside militants who infiltrated Iraq. The FBI says it has found evidence suggesting the attack was a suicide bombing. Hear NPR's Anne Garrels.

U.S. forces capture the former senior Iraqi official known as "Chemical Ali." U.S. officials initially said Ali Hassan al-Majid had died in an April airstrike, but later learned he was still alive. Al-Majid, No. 5 on the U.S. list of most-wanted Iraqis, received his nickname for his alleged role in 1988 poison gas attacks on Iraqi civilians. Hear Ambassador Peter Galbraith.

A car bomb explodes near the Baghdad police station, wounding at least 14 people and damaging the offices of the U.S.-appointed police chief. The blast comes four days after an explosion at a Najaf mosque killed a top Shiite cleric and at least 80 others. Hear NPR's Ivan Watson and Fawaz Gerges of Sarah Lawrence College.

A car bomb explodes at the headquarters of the U.S.-trained police force in Baghdad, killing one person. The attack comes as mourners in Najaf bury Ayatollah Mohammad Baqir al-Hakim, the Shiite cleric killed in last week's mosque bombing. Hear NPR's Ivan Watson and NPR's Emily Harris.

In an effort to attract more foreign contributions, the Bush administration circulates a draft resolution within the U.N. Security Council that authorizes the creation of a multinational force in Iraq under U.S. command. The cost of the U.S. operation in Iraq continues to mount, and reports suggest the White House will ask Congress for about $60 billion in aid. Hear NPR's Vicky O'Hara.