NPR 2011-07-04

Thailand will soon have its first woman prime minister. Yingluck Shinawatra addressed her supporters after her party won in a landslide 1. Her brother Thaksin was prime minister until he was deposed 2 in a military coup 4 in 2006.

The Swiss government confirms it has frozen the bank accounts of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad and 22 other members of his government. From Geneva, Lisa Schlein reports the Swiss have blocked nearly 32 million dollars.

Swiss authorities put Syria's president on notice in May that they were planning to freeze his assets and those of other officials. At that time, they ordered banks to make a search and report all the money located. Now, the government is taking the step to prevent Syrian President Assad and 22 other officials from accessing these accounts. The freeze is part of other financial sanctions Switzerland imposed on the Syrian regime in May. The sanctions also included travel ban on the Syrian president, who was forbidden to stay in the Alpine 5 country. In May, Washington imposed similar sanctions against Assad and several Syrian officials. For NPR News, I'm Lisa Schlein in Geneva.

Environmental workers are trying to determine the extent of the damage done to the Yellowstone River in Montana after a crude oil pipeline 6 under the riverbed sprang a leak. Exxon Mobile Pipeline President Gary Pruessing told reporters on a conference call the company doesn't know yet what happened.

"This is a very unusual event. Obviously, we had a large amount of oil enter the water very quickly. Whatever it is, it's something that is very unusual to us, something that we do not have an answer on yet, but the investigating team certainly will work hard to determine that."

Officials estimate the spill at 42,000 gallons.

This 4th of July weekend finds communities along the Gulf 7 Coast in much better shape than last year. NPR's Debbie Elliot reports the business is back a year after the worst oil spill in US history.

Beaches are busy again, and in most places, the only evidence of the last year's BP oil spill are tiny tar 3 balls that wash ashore 8 from the Gulf of Mexico. US Attorney General Eric Holder 9 returned to the Alabama Gulf Coast for the first time in a year.

"I'm looking at a place that’s really kind of fundamentally different. It is in the process of recovery, and I think it's very heartening, but I have to say I am concerned about the way the claims process is being handled."

Holder wants quicker payouts and better transparency from the 20-billion-dollar fund set up to compensate 10 oil spill victims. Administrator 11 Kenneth Feinberg has paid out more than 4.5 billion dollars to 195,000 people. More than 500,000 claims were filed. Debbie Elliot, NPR News, Orange Beach, Alabama.

Residents of Los Alamos, New Mexico are beginning to return to their homes. Authorities lifted an evacuation imposed because of the largest wildfire in state history.

This is NPR News.

Minnesota state government shutdown is now in its third day. State parks are closed this holiday weekend, and most state offices will remain closed on Tuesday, but Minnesota Public Radio's Matt Sepic reports that the Minnesota Zoo got a last-minute reprieve 12.

When the shutdown began, courts ruled that essential services including prisons and the state police must continue operating. Now, a judge is hearing from nonprofits and other groups that rely on state money. This weekend, Judge Kathleen Gearin let the Minnesota Zoo reopen since it raises most of its own cash and the state money it does get has already been appropriated. But she also ruled the two horse-racing tracks may not reopen. Democratic Governor Mark Dayton wants to raise taxes on top earners to help close a five-billion-dollar budget gap, but Republican lawmakers detest 13 that idea. There was no agreement by Friday's deadline, and the state constitution prohibits spending public money without a budget. For NPR News, I'm Matt Sepic in St. Paul.

A heat wave has hit parts of the US with temperatures in the triple digits 14 in some places. It was 118 degrees in Phoenix 15 yesterday, breaking a 10-year record. But in some areas, people are enjoying the snow. Ski resorts are open for business thanks to snow left over from late-season storms in the Sierra Nevada. Because of a warm air coming in from the east, people are hitting the slopes in shorts and tank tops.

Representatives from 35 countries are gathering 16 in Berlin to discuss climate change. The two-day meeting which began today is designed to lay the groundwork for a formal international climate conference, one scheduled to take place in Durban, South Africa in November.

I'm Nora Raum, NPR News in Washington.