JIM LEHRER: The new prime minister of Britain vowed support today in the war on terror and in Iraq. Gordon Brown met with President Bush at Camp David, Maryland. He told a news conference Britain has "duties to discharge" in Iraq, with 5,500 British troops still deployed. We'll have more on the story right after this news summary.
The U.S. commander in Iraq predicted today large numbers of troops will need to stay there until mid-2009. Army General David Petraeus told ABC News, "It's in our campaign plan." He said, "Sustainable security is, in fact, what we hope to achieve. We do think it will take about that amount of time."
Later at his news conference, President Bush would not say if he now expects to pass the war onto his successor. He did say this.
GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States: I believe that the decisions on the way forward in Iraq must be made with a military recommendation as an integral part of it. I have said this is going to take a long time. Just like this ideological -- in Iraq, just like the ideological struggle is going to take a long time.
JIM LEHRER: In Iraq today, the U.S. military reported three more Americans killed; that made 72 this month.
And in Baghdad, a minibus exploded at a busy market, killing at least six Iraqis, wounding more than 30 others. The attack came hours after thousands celebrated the Iraqi soccer team's win Sunday in the Asian Cup. The rallies were largely peaceful.
The Iraqi parliament recessed today until September. It had failed to consider key legislation on sharing oil revenues or amending the constitution. Lawmakers blamed Prime Minister al-Maliki for not working out compromises. One Kurdish member said, "Even if we meet next month, that's no guarantee that the important business will be done."
Relief agencies appealed today for immediate emergency aid in Iraq. They warned some eight million Iraqis are in dire need of water, sanitation, food and shelter. That's nearly one third of Iraq's population. In London, Adam Leach of the group Oxfam called for Iraqi leaders to step up their efforts, as well.
ADAM LEACH, Middle East Director, Oxfam: We think that the government of Iraq could do a lot more and needs assistance to do so, but it could make payments to widows through the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs. It could expand the food distribution scheme. It could decentralize government services to the governors so that food could get out to people.
JIM LEHRER: The agency's report found 28 percent of Iraqi children are malnourished; that's up from 19 percent before the Iraq war started in 2003.
The Taliban claimed today it killed a second South Korean hostage in Afghanistan. A spokesman said it's because Afghan leaders have not released Taliban prisoners. The hard-line militia seized 23 members of a South Korean Christian group two weeks ago; one was killed last week. Al-Jazeera television showed video today of several of the female hostages; it said it acquired the footage outside Afghanistan.
The Bush administration laid out a new arms package for Arab nations today. Secretary of State Rice announced it before traveling to the Middle East. The package would total an estimated $20 billion; $13 billion of that would go in military aid for Egypt; the rest would go to Saudi Arabia and other Arab states in the Persian Gulf.
Separately, the U.S. is increasing military aid to Israel by more than 25 percent, totaling $30 billion over 10 years. All the arms sales would need congressional approval.
The stock market rebounded today after taking a beating last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average recouped some of the 500 points it had lost. Today, it gained more than 92 points to close at 13,358. The Nasdaq rose 21 points to close at 2,583.
Federal health experts recommended today letting the diabetes drug Avandia stay on the market. The advisers to the Food and Drug Administration did call for new warning labels about increased risk of heart attacks. An FDA scientist, Dr. David Graham, summed up the case against the drug, known by its scientific name as rosiglitazone.
DR. DAVID GRAHAM, Food and Drug Administration: We believe that rosiglitazone increases cardiovascular risk compared to its nonuse. And given these conclusions, we ask the question: Are there definitively documented population health-related benefits of rosiglitazone to justify its continued marketing? And for that we conclude the answer is no and that rosiglitazone should be removed from the market.
JIM LEHRER: About one million Americans with Type II diabetes use the drug. But its maker, GlaxoSmithKline, argued for keeping it on the market. The company's chief medical officer, Dr. Ronald Krall, disputed the negative findings.
DR. RONALD KRALL, GlaxoSmithKline: It's very important to know that rosiglitazone does not increase mortality compared to the most commonly used oral anti-diabetic drugs. Rosiglitazone does not increase the risk of cardiovascular mortality or all-cause mortality in diabetes patients.
JIM LEHRER: The FDA usually follows the recommendations of its advisory committees. It's expected to make a decision soon.
Filmmaker Ingmar Bergman died today at his home in Sweden. His career spanned more than half a century and produced more than 50 films. He won acclaim for "The Seventh Seal" in 1957, a tale of the black plague in Europe in the Middle Ages. His other well-known works included "Cries and Whispers" in 1972, "Fanny and Alexander" in 1982. Ingmar Bergman was 89 years old, and we'll have more about him at the end of our program tonight.
There were two other passings of note today. Broadcaster Tom Snyder died Sunday in San Francisco. He had leukemia. Snyder pioneered late-late TV talk in 1973, hosting "The Tomorrow Show." It ran until 1982. Tom Snyder was 71 years old.
And Hall of Fame pro football coach Bill Walsh died early today of leukemia at his home near San Francisco. He won three Super Bowls with the San Francisco 49ers in the 1980s, and he reshaped the professional game. Bill Walsh was 75 years old.
