Attempting to appeal to veterans, Presidential candidates McCain and Obama spoke at the Veterans of Foreign Wars conference in Florida. A policy difference between the two candidates has resurfaced - veteran's health care. FSRN's Leigh Ann Caldwell has more.

Bees are a crucial part of the food chain because they pollinate our crops - but they're dying at an alarming rate. The National Resources Defense Council has filed a lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency, in an attempt to get more information about a pesticide that may be killing off bees. Tanya Snyder has more.

The whale shark is the biggest fish species in the ocean. Up to 18 meters long, this vegetarian is found across the world's tropical waters, from Belize to northern Australia. Their huge dorsal fins, which make for highly prized culinary delicacies, fetch high prices on South-East Asian markets, leading them to be almost fished to extinction off India's western coast a few years ago. On the other side of the Indian Ocean, whale sharks have come under threat in recent years off Kenya's southern coast. But there, they have been collateral damage: often accidentally trapped in drift nets donated by US AID to local fishers. A grassroots organization is now working to stem the damage caused by these nets which they say has been endangering not only the sharks, but the coral reef as well. Arusha Topazzini reports from Diani, Kenya.

Today marks the anniversary of Sanctuary Mom Elvira Arellano's deportation. Arellano, an undocumented immigrant, was working as a janitor at Chicago O'Hare airport in 2002 when she was arrested by Department of Homeland Security officials in an immigration sweep. Arellano took sanctuary in a church to avoid deportation. She left Adalberto United Methodist Church in Chicago to visit other sanctuaries in California – but was arrested against on August 19, 2007. On today's newscast we hear from Emma Lozano, just moments after Arellano was deported, and with Diana Mendoza, an organizer with The New Sanctuary Movement in Los Angeles.

The Justice Department is moving a step closer to prosecuting several Blackwater private security guards involved in the shooting of 17 Iraqi civilians last year. The DOJ recently sent letters to six of the contractors, providing them the opportunity to give their own version of what took place – the information will be reviewed by a grand jury, which will later decide whether to indict. Legal questions remain however on whether or not these contractors can be prosecuted at all. FSRN Karen Miller takes a look at some of the legal wrangling around this case and others like it.

With a new front of tension developing between Russia and the United States in the Caucuses, New York State Senators joined anti-war activists to announce a resolution to bring the state's National Guard home.  They join 8 other states in a resurgence of anti-war activism in a national campaign to press for the end of the occupation in Iraq and to stop future deployments by the National Guard. Free Speech Radio News correspondent Rebecca Myles reports from New York.

World Water Week began in Stockholm today, bringing together
scientists, elected officials and NGOs to tackle the growing global
water crisis and develop water policy and management initiatives. This
year, the conference is focusing on sanitation, health, and hygiene. 
More than two-and-a-half billion people lack adequate sanitation,
affecting human and environmental health, according to the World Water
Week website. And in many places, wastewater isn't being treated
properly, leaving people with dirty water to drink and use for food
crops. To examine the water crisis in detail, today FSRN takes you to
Somalia, where water's been an issue since the Central government
collapsed with the fall of Siad Barre's government in 1991. In the long

What Musharraf's Resignation May Mean for Pakistanis