Enlarge Jasper Juinen/Getty Images Iker Casillas (center) of Spain lifts the trophy as he celebrates following victory in the UEFA EURO 2012 final match between Spain and Italy at the Olympic Stadium on July 1, 2012 in Kiev, Ukraine. Jasper Juinen/Getty Images Iker Casillas (center) of Spain lifts the trophy as he celebrates following victory

An international conference accepted a U.N.-brokered peace plan for Syria, but left open whether the country’s president could be part of a transitional government. The U.S. backed away from demands that President Bashar Assad be excluded, hoping the concession would encourage Russia to put greater pressure on its longtime ally to end the violent crackdown

Enlarge Nati Harnick/AP Former Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir, shown here in 1991, died Saturday. The staunch opponent of land-for-peace agreements with the Arabs was 96. Nati Harnick/AP Former Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir, shown here in 1991, died Saturday. The staunch opponent of land-for-peace agreements with the Arabs was 96. Former Israeli Prime Minister

Enlarge Brian Peterson /Minneapolis Star Tribune Use of synthetic “bath salts,” compounds sold legally but used as a controlled substance, has been on the rise since 2010. Brian Peterson /Minneapolis Star Tribune Use of synthetic “bath salts,” compounds sold legally but used as a controlled substance, has been on the rise since 2010. One night

By a vote of 373-52, the House passed a massive bill that among other things keeps the interest rate on student loans from doubling on July 1. “The U.S. House of Representatives passed a massive bill on Friday combining funding for transportation programs, low-interest student loans, and the National Flood Insurance Program,” the Reuters reports.

Angie Quan/NPR Artist and filmmaker Zhang Bingjian sits in his Beijing studio in front of his Hall of Fame — portraits of corrupt Chinese officials. He has commissioned portraits of 1,600 officials convicted of corruption. Corruption is usually thought to be a bad thing. But in China, the answer is no longer crystal clear. For

Ye Aung Thu/AFP/Getty Images Buddhists donate food and other necessities to monks as a way of earning merit for future lives. Monks have refused donations of alms from the military as a political protest in 1990 and 2007, a boycott that some monks insist is still in effect. In response to political reforms in Myanmar

The Supreme Court upheld President Obama’s signature health care law, the Affordable Care Act. Guest host Viviana Hurtado takes a closer look at the court’s historic decision with NPR’s Senior Washington Editor Ron Elving, Dr. Kavita Patel of the Brookings Institution, and Michael Cannon of the Cato Institute. Article source: http://www.npr.org/2012/06/28/155913651/does-courts-rule-put-end-to-health-care-battle?ft=1&f=1001

The Yugoslav war crimes tribunal acquitted former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic of one charge of genocide Thursday but upheld 10 other war crimes counts related to atrocities in Bosnia’s bloody war. While the decision was a setback for prosecutors and angered survivors in Bosnia, the 10 pending charges against Karadzic include another genocide count

Enlarge J. Scott Applewhite/AP President Obama signs the health care bill into law at the White House on March 23, 2010. J. Scott Applewhite/AP President Obama signs the health care bill into law at the White House on March 23, 2010. Even in Washington, a city where hyperbole rules, it still seems difficult to overstate

Enlarge iStockphoto Buds of marijuana are seen in this stock image. In Chicago, nearly 9 out of 10 low-level marijuana busts result in a dismissal — something that has prompted a review of the city’s policy. iStockphoto Buds of marijuana are seen in this stock image. In Chicago, nearly 9 out of 10 low-level marijuana

As Allison Aubrey and Dan Charles reported today on Morning Edition, meat has more of an impact on the environment than any other food we eat. That’s because livestock require so much more food, water, land, and energy than plants to raise and transport. (Listen to the audio above for their conversation with Morning Edition’s