The head of Colorado's state prison system was shot and killed this week when he answered the front door at his home in Monument. The incident happened just hours before Colorado's governor signed strict new gun-control measures into law.

Dunya Mikhail fled her homeland in the wake of the first Gulf War, after her writing was labeled subversive by Saddam Hussein's government. She has never physically returned to Iraq, but she remembers it in her poetry.

There are some 19,000 sexual assaults in the military each year, the Pentagon estimates. But many victims say they have nowhere to turn and risk ruining their careers by reporting attacks.

The Supreme Court hears two gay marriage cases next week. These will be the next major steps on a path the country has traveled for decades. Those who have been affected by the gay marriage battle reflect on the changes so far.

When you add up all the country's banks, they don't even match the 30th largest bank in the U.S. But people all over the world have good reason to be freaked out over what's happened there this week.

What Cyprus means for the rest of us.

The company's long-term position in the smartphone market is complicated because of its historical association with hardware. One analyst says that what really matters to consumers are the software and new experiences.

The first tweet was posted seven years ago. Since then, the social media site has been used as a free speech platform to spread information, report on the Arab Spring and stay connected with millions worldwide. But critics say that as Twitter has grown, it has sometimes compromised its principles.

Moments after touching down Wednesday, he toured an anti-missile battery, symbolizing the U.S.-backed Iron Dome system that's helped Israel repel hundreds of rocket attacks. Before his meeting with Palestinian leaders Thursday, Obama was to make another symbolic visit, to an Israeli museum.

Steve Inskeep talks to Richard McGregor of the Financial Times about Treasury Secretary Jack Lew's trip to China. He bought a long list of economic agenda items to his meetings with top officials, ranging from cyberwarfare to China's currency controls.

With help from Disney, Sparky got a makeover but the students hated it. Now the school's mascot will be re-designed.

The Chinese bowl was bought at a tag sale in New York. It sat for several years on a mantel before the owner sold it at auction for $2.25 million.

President Obama's past relations with Israel's government have not always gone well. The two nations insist they've reached new levels of security cooperation. They have publicly debated issues ranging from Iran to the Mideast peace process.

Twinkies, Ho Hos and Ding Dongs will go to a pair of private equity firms. Wonder Bread will be sold to snack food maker Flowers Food. The Beefsteak brand of bread will go to a Mexican company.

The genocide trial of former U.S.-backed Guatemalan General Ephraim Rios Montt began Tuesday. The charges stem from the bloody civil war which lasted for more than three decades. More than 200,000 people died or went missing.

The Dominican Republic team, which had a perfect run in the series, beat Puerto Rico in the championship game 3-0 Tuesday night in San Francisco.

For more on the housing industry, Steve Inskeep talks to David Wessel, economics editor of The Wall Street Journal.

A fragile peace process between the Turkish government and the PKK, the militant Kurdistan Worker's Party, got a boost with the release of several Turks who had been captured by PKK fighters and held in northern Iraq. It's the latest sign of goodwill in a rapprochement effort that many in Turkey hope will lead to a PKK cease-fire, and a halt to Turkish military operations.

In New York, expected rules on hydro-fracking for natural gas are overdue, and leaders in Albany seem poised to slow the rule-making process further. The delays are not going over well with some people who hope to cash in on the gas boom.

As part of Morning Edition's coverage of the 10th anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, Renee Montagne talks to Richard Perle, former chairman of the Defense Department's Defense Policy Board. Perle was one of the most outspoken champions of invading Iraq, He explains his early support for the war and elaborates on the miscalculations of the last decade.