U.S. calls on a silent China to use its sway over Russia and North Korea The U.S. says 8,000 North Korean soldiers are in Russia preparing to fight against Ukrainian troops in the coming days. Read more on NPR

Boeing cleaned up on Air Force parts, including soap dispensers marked up 8,000% Boeing overcharged the Air Force nearly $1 million for spare parts on C-17 cargo planes, including an 8,000% markup for simple lavatory soap dispensers, according to the Pentagon’s inspector general. Read more on NPR

Israel strikes Lebanon’s ancient city of Baalbek, as tens of thousands of people flee As Israel intensified attacks in the Lebanese city of Baalbek, residents fled to an ancient Roman temple, hoping the site’s UNESCO status might save them. Read more on NPR

An Ecological Disaster in the Past and One in the Making We go to the borders between Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Afghanistan to see the dried up shores of what was once one of the largest lakes in the world, the Aral Sea. Mismanagement of the rivers that fed the sea because of demand for irrigation…