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When British forces occupied and helped create Iraq after World War I, they faced insurgencies, revolts, and multiple religious factions. Gertrude Bell, a British national who helped establish the Iraqi state, wrote detailed letters describing the country and its occupation.

As the Fats Waller centennial approaches, Tom Vitale looks back at a remarkable career in both jazz and popular music. Waller — of "Ain't Misbehavin'" fame — was the first musician to be equally successful among black and white audiences.

A suicide car bombing at a checkpoint in central Baghdad kills Izzadine Saleem, also known as Abdel-Zahraa Othman, head of Iraq's governing council and a prominent Shiite leader. Saleem's death comes six weeks before the planned transfer of political power to Iraqis and is a blow to U.S. stabilization efforts. Hear NPR's Steve Inskeep and NPR's Peter Kenyon.

The Pfizer drug company agrees to pay a $430 million fine and plead guilty to illegal marketing practices, U.S. prosecutors say. The unprecedented fine comes after the company admitted that its Warner-Lambert unit promoted Neurontin, an epilepsy drug, for several unapproved uses. The drug remains a top seller for Pfizer, with 2003 sales of $2.7 billion. NPR's Snigdha Prakash reports.

Massachusetts will make history Monday, when it becomes the first state in the nation to allow gay and lesbian couples to marry. Couples formed a line Sunday night at the City Hall building in Cambridge, Mass., waiting for one minute past midnight, when clerks will begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

Brazil expels New York Times reporter Larry Rohter for suggesting in an article that Brazil President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has a drinking problem. The Brazilian government says Rohter's article was "a lie and offensive to the president." The Times says it believes the article was accurate. NPR's Martin Kaste reports.

Abuse of Iraqi prisoners by U.S.-led forces was widespread and systematic, according to a report by the International Committee of the Red Cross. The findings, published in The Wall Street Journal, include lists of injuries and harsh conditions "tantamount to torture." Hear NPR's Michele Norris and NPR's Vicky O'Hara.

The Federal Election Commission is supposed to decide Thursday whether to restrict political contributions currently made by many tax-exempt groups. The new regulation would take millions of dollars -- mostly Democratic money -- out of the presidential campaign. Now FEC lawyers tell the regulatory body that it may want to hold off on a decision. NPR's Peter Overby reports.

The U.S. Army general who wrote the report on prisoner mistreatment in Iraq says the abuse resulted from leadership failures, a "lack of discipline, no training whatsoever and no supervision." Taguba is testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee. Hear NPR's Renee Montagne and NPR's David Welna.

The family of Nicholas Berg, the U.S. civilian beheaded in Iraq, blames the U.S. government for their son's death. Berg's father, Michael Berg, cited e-mails that he said indicated that Berg was in American military custody at the time he had planned to return home. The CIA has identified the man who killed Berg as terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. NPR's Ari Shapiro reports.