NPR News

When apartheid ended in 1994, the new South African government laid out plans to achieve economic and social equality. A key goal was land reform. The government hoped to transfer 30 percent of white-owned farms to black ownership by 2014, but, as Anders Kelto reports, it's clear the government is nowhere near that goal.

The supercommittee, charged with cutting federal deficits by at least $1.2 trillion over the next decade, is down to the final days before its Nov. 23 deadline, and the group appears to be at an impasse. NPR's Tamara Keith and Mara Liasson talk with host Audie Cornish to explain both the economic and political consequences of supercommittee success or failure.

A chance for a Rhodes Scholarship, or the chance to battle your arch-rival football team? Yale quarterback Patrick Witt faced this agonizing choice; Audie Cornish has more.

A night of intense clashes between protesters and police in Cairo has left hundreds injured and two dead. This comes just eight days before Egypt's first parliamentary election since former President Hosni Mubarak stepped down in February. Merrit Kennedy in Cairo reports that protesters are angry about the way the ruling military council has handled the transition period.

President Obama returns to Washington Sunday after an unusually long, 10-day trip to Asia. The president is keen to spread the word that the U.S. is shifting its focus to the region, which he sees as a major source for economic growth and new U.S. jobs in the coming century. Host Audie Cornish talks to NPR's Anthony Kuhn in Bali, Indonesia, about what the trip achieved.

This weekend, the Southeastern chapter of the Pearl Harbor Survivors held its final meeting. Seventy years have passed since the attack on Pearl Harbor and surviving membership is dwindling, so the worldwide organization has finally decided to disband. Kate Sweeney of member station WABE reports.

Afghan leaders have wrapped up their latest grand assembly, known as a loya jirga, where delegates from all over Afghanistan discussed topics key to the country's future. Among the issues they discussed was the level of U.S. involvement after the 2014 drawdown. Host Audie Cornish talks with Alissa Rubin of The New York Times for more.

The U.S. Army is working to use smartphones on the battlefield as a way to keep soldiers connected and give them better tools. Specialist Nicholas Johnson has designed a group of applications meant to help troops on the ground. Host Audie Cornish has more.

Six Republican presidential hopefuls gathered in Des Moines, Iowa, Saturday, and each made a pitch for the state's very important Christian conservative vote.

The event was not a debate, but a roundtable discussion. The candidates sat side-by-side at what was described as a Thanksgiving table, complete with pumpkins and autumn leaves. Not present at the table was former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, who chose not to attend.