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Palestinians are reveling Friday, following the U.N. General Assembly's elevation of their status from nonmember "entity" to nonmember "state." But what that change means depends on whom you ask.

A U.N. commission accuses Russian-backed Syrian forces and rebel factions of war crimes in Aleppo. Civilians "were increasingly left vulnerable to repeated violations by all sides," the report says.

A U.S.-sponsored resolution on Iraq is postponed at the United Nations, despite a flurry of compromises. The resolution sets Dec. 15 as the deadline for submitting an outline of the country's future. The draft also calls for a multi-national military force to help secure the nation. Hear NPR's Michele Kelemen.

NPR's Noah Adams talks to NPR's Don Gonyea about reaction to President Bush's address to the United Nations General Assembly in New York City on Tuesday, where the president defended the U.S.-led invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq as key to promoting democracy across the globe.

At the United Nations, President Bush defends his decision to go to war in Iraq and calls on the international community to help in reconstruction. But some member countries and Secretary-General Kofi Annan still question the legitimacy of the U.S.-led war. NPR's Vicky O'Hara reports.

Thousands of medical workers have left the country. Those who remain at public institutions earn very low wages — and often have to moonlight to make ends meet.

President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair conclude a summit in Northern Ireland. The two say the United Nations will have a "vital role" in postwar Iraq. Bush suggests the role primarily would be humanitarian. But Blair is under pressure from his public and European neighbors to permit a leading U.N. role in governing and rebuilding Iraq. NPR's Sylvia Poggioli 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.

Salon.com publishes previously unreleased photos of abuse at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison in 2003. Separately, a U.N. report urges the United States to close its military detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

A recent biodiversity meeting acknowledged the serious problem of deforestation while a new report on global environmental threats to trees offered a startling estimate.