The candidate favored to win Russia's presidential race also happens to be the hand-picked favorite of current president Vladimir Putin. Meanwhile opposition candidate Mikhail Kasyanov may be blocked from putting his name onto the election ballot. Anchor Lisa Mullins gets the latest on Russia's presidential election from Fred Weir, Moscow correspondent for the Christian Science Monitor.

A group of former Sunni insurgents in Iraq joined forces to form, "The Awakening Council." The American-backed group has grown to about 70,000 members and has helped quell the violence. But The World's Katy Clark reports that the group is now under attack by the current insurgents in Iraq.

Iraq's capital, Baghdad, has seen relative calm in the last few months, but the same cannot be said for the city of Mosul. Violence has been on the rise. Today insurgents bombed security forces who were clearing the wreckage from another blast set off yesterday. Anchor Lisa Mullins get the latest from Guardian reporter Michael Howard.

Entire program - Jan 24, 2008

Next week a new CD will come out by an Italy-based singer named Saba. Saba taps into the music of the horn of Africa. But as The World's Marco Werman explains, one geographic location doesn't fully reflect Saba's own story.

For our Geo Quiz -- we wanted you to tell us where the Pueblo is anchored. It's been 40 years since the spy ship was boarded and its crew captured. Today's answer is Taedong River where the USS Pueblo is now anchored.

Republican presidential candidates head to Florida next week for that state's primary. And they are already working on courting influential voters there Cuban-Americans. Anchor Lisa Mullins speaks with Lisandro Perez founder of the Cuban Research Institute at Florida International University in Miami.

The US, the UN, and Germany have agreed to tighten sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program. But China and Russia are not joining up. The World's Europe Correspondent Gerry Hadden reports.

Our daily geography puzzler.

Correspondent Laura Lynch continues our series of reports from Zimbabwe. The country once known as "Africa's bread basket" is now on the verge of economic collapse. Today, Laura Lynch reports that many people in Zimbabwe are looking for a better future by crossing illegally into South Africa.