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Japan's prime minister says Tokyo would respond harshly if North Korea tests a long-range missile. U.S. officials have said North Korea appears to have completed fuelling for a test of a long-range ballistic missile that could possibly reach Alaska. Steve Inskeep talks to reporter Lucy Craft in Tokyo about the situation.

A constitutional amendment to ban flag burning fell one vote short of the two-thirds majority necessary to pass Tuesday. The Senate vote was 66 to 34 in favor of the amendment. The amendment has already passed in the House.

Voters in the oil-rich Gulf Emirate of Kuwait go to the polls. Candidates are vying for 50 seats in Parliament. For the first time, women are allowed to vote and run for office. Female candidates have struggled to gain recognition but their efforts, and an anti-corruption movement, have shaken up the quiet country.

Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) announces that he will seek treatment at a rehabilitation center for addiction to prescription drugs. Kennedy, who ran his car into a barrier near the Capitol early Thursday morning, admits that he took the popular sleeping drug Ambien. No one was injured in the incident.

On Monday, eight months after Hurricane Katrina, the city of New Orleans may give some residents of devastated Ninth Ward the go-ahead to return to their homes. The long-awaited decision will depend on the results of water-purity tests. Also Monday, displaced residents can begin casting ballots at satellite polling stations around Louisiana in the run-off mayor election.

The federal government reports that far more underwater pipelines in the Gulf of Mexico were damaged by hurricanes last year than they realized. Weather and the pressure to find divers and oil-rig workers have overtaxed available resources.

Iraq's Prime Minister has called for an independent Iraqi investigation into the alleged rape and murder of a teenage girl and the murder her family, reportedly at the hands of U.S. troops in the town of Mahmoudiya. The call for the investigation comes as it was revealed that the girl is a minor -- 14 or 15 years old.

Despite the box office success of Pirates of the Caribbean, and last year's Chronicles of Narnia, Walt Disney Studios is cutting back on its production schedule, and staffing. The company is also planning to return much of its focus to family friendly films.

Kenneth Lay, founder and vilified former chairman of scandal-ridden Enron Corp., died of a heart attack Wednesday morning. He was 64.

The Israel Army steps up its offensive against Palestinian militants in Northern Gaza, pressing for the release of an abducted soldier. At least 16 Palestinians have been killed, including militant fighters and some civilians. One Israeli soldier has been killed, with two others injured.