. >> reporter: more than a dozen taliban rockets today exploded near centers in southern afghanistan. as a man was being interviewed more rockets fell. see, another one just landed, he said. the attacks and three small bombings in kabul this morning had a chilling effect. in kabul, voters just trickled in to schools and mosques to cast ballots and dip their fingers in ink. men on one side and women in segregated areas. threats of violence from the taliban seemed to have kept many people away. today the taliban vowed to hunt down those that voted. if we find anyone with ink on their fingers we will cut it off, said this taliban commander. as they cast ballots today the leading presidential candidate, abdullah abdul a a president hamid karzai, called on afghans to defy the threat. >> come out and vote. so that through their vote afghanistan can be a most secure

and british soldiers and marines have been killed in southern afghanistan. >> general mcaffrey, does all of this say to you that, you know, there's a front page story in "the new york times" today about the obama administration trying

, american marines and afghan forces are battling for control over a taliban stronghold in southern afghanistan. operation eastern resolve 2 is designed to secure helmand province before next week's presidential election. some 400 marines are involved. the assault included helicopters and snipers. the marines are facing heavy small arms fire and mortar and rocket attacks. >>> bernard madoff's reported man pleaded guilty to conspiracy, security fraud and other charges. he appeared in federal court in new york yesterday. madoff customers describe him as the man they dealt with. he worked secretly with the fbi for months. despite his plea bargain, he faces up to 125 years in prison. >> british police are on the hunt for two armed rob who are got away with $65 million in loot from a high-end london jewelry store. newly released video shows the climax from last week's robbery as thieves fled, guns blazing. a security camera inside the store shows the two well-dressed thieves entering. they escaped with dozens of rings, bracelets, earrings, necklaces and watches. luckily no one was hurt. >>> on the m

marines are on the move in southern afghanistan staging an offensive in a taliban held area. the marines had to rescue families who were trapped in a compound near a village where they were fighting. they treated the wounded and moved the families to a safe area. the marines, alternate troops and afghan army forces are trying to reverse the taliban resurgence in southern afghanistan and make it safe for the civilians. >>> an iphone owner in france says his iphone exploded while he was using it. this is the second report of such an incident in france. the man says he suffered an eye injury when his phone popped and the glass face plate shattered. there's no word from apple about this report. >>> football goes in to high- tech in the name of good health. several pro and college teams, including virginia tech, are having players swallow vitamin sized pills that contain a battery, thermometer and radio transmitter. the core temp capsule was developed by nasa for astronauts and now coaches are using it to monitor players. if a players core temperature is too high he can be pulled

there was all low turnout in southern afghanistan, as a result of taliban intimidation. in a mosque in kabul, early vote counts have been posted for the public tuesday. it is still too soon to enter the key questions -- will there be another round? and how high or low the turnout? here, president karzai came second. all the same, a spokesman says the president won the first round. >> we cannot be sure because the results have to be declared by the election commission, but we expect is not going to go to a second round, and we expect we will hopefully when the election. >> but dr. abdullah abdullah insists he has won. >> the preliminary results are in my favor. yes, these are preliminary results, but these are the indications. >> there does not seem to be any doubt at all that there has been plenty of election fraud. we have come to the compound of another presidential candidate. he is not a likely winner, but he has a name which is famous throughout the country. he got his name when he fought the russians. he was the first commander to be given as standard missile by the

the attacks happened as the new nato secretary general was making his first trip to southern afghanistanassess conditions there. he has made cutting the civilian deaths aboard. joining us is our correspondent, martin. these civilian deaths, can we assume that this is a product of the terrorists changing the way they are targeting? due to this latest incident in southern afghanistan is not exactly clear how how these 21 civilians were killed. there was a tractor and trailer and it could have gone over to improvise implosive devices. it is not sure whether they were the intended targets. >> if they were the targets, there is still going to be a lot of consternation about civilian deaths. it makes it much more important, doesn't it, for rasmussen to say that he will do something about it? >> yes, but the problem is the senior western officials in the nato secretary general have been saying this for years. civilian casualties keep going up. some of those at the hands of international forces and others are at the hands of insurgents, but the pattern is clear. since operations began in 2001, t

marines fight taliban militants in a key town in southern afghanistan. the offensive is part of an effort to increase security ahead of next week's afghan presidential elections. the marines say taliban fighters were well-prepared for the assault, making them believe someone may have found out that they were coming. no marine casualties have been reported so far. >>> secretary of state clinton in liberia today, during a speech in nigeria yesterday secretary clinton was talking about that country's problems with corruption and rigged elections. then she made a comparison to a certain election he in the u.s. >> our democracy is still evolving. we had all kinds of problems in some of our past elections, as you might remember. in 2000, our presidential election came down to one state where the brother of the man running for president was the governor of state, so we have our problems, too. >> aides say she was simply making a point about how candidates should accept election results even if the vote is flawed. >>> second clinton's husband, the former preside

marines have been trying to take back southern afghanistan, a town at a time. >> by liberating the town, we freed the local populus from the influence of the taliban. but nearly half of afghanistan remains at high risk of a taliban attack. >> the taliban is fighting for two things they very much need -- access to the public and control of the public. and access to the drug industry where they get a significant part of their funding. and in the east and south. we're challenging both of those things. >> reporter: the afghan government stepped up its training of roughly 200,000 soldiers and police. here in kabul, afghan security are setting up extra check points and removing street vendors from busy intersections. the taliban have promised to disrupt next week's election and distributed leaflets threatening to slit the throats of any one who votes. despite the threats, walls, shops in kabul are plastered for campaign posters for men and women. two women are among the more than 35 presidential candidates. and every day the leading candidate, president hamid karzai, and former foreign minist

the victim of a militant attack in southern afghanistan this morning. the death pushing august closer to being the deadliest month ever for u.s. troops there. atia abawi live from kabul, afghanistan. good morning to you, atia. >> reporter: good morning, heidi, it has been a very, very bloody summer for both u.s. and coalition forces here in afghanistan. but it was expected when we saw thousands pouring in to help secure and hold areas. and we are seeing the number reaching up to what it reached last month. last month being the deadliest month for u.s. troops, four days is left in august right now, we're waiting to see if it's going to get deadlier. the taliban and insurgents having a successful summer when it comes to roadside bombs. though coalition troops are feeling a strong blow. but when i spoke to a top international force in afghanistan, he told me that the taliban have lost hundreds of their soldiers this summer. and although they will not release it, the taliban also dealing with a very, very heavy blow this summer. heidi? >> no question about t

servicemen with the nato-led force was killed by a roadside bomb in southern afghanistan on tuesday.that makes 2009 the deadliest year for foreign troops since the overthrow of the taliban in 2001. the deaths bring a number of foreign forces killed in 2009 to two -- 295. breaking news there. latest environmental pollution in china brought swift action. police and local government officials are swamping a village in the center of lead poisoning near a city in -- quentin summer bell tried to reach the contaminated area but was stopped by the local police. >> trying to determine the plight of their villages, poisoning of them and their children. we are free to do so under chinese law. we were prevented by local authorities. 12 police officers stopped our cars, they detained a subject papers and then insisted we leave with them. we were not able to get to the village. but what we spoke to some villages they expressed a great deal of anger. they are worried about the long term health of facts of the lead poisoning. ifill the government has not given satisfactory answers. they say, why is

casualties in southern afghanistan have been heavy in recent weeks as the extra u.s. troops have moved in. president obama, of course, sending the 21,000 additional troops to afghanistan. over the next several days very intense to make sure those elections do come off and free and fair as much as possible in afghanistan and that the taliban don't disrupt them. kiran. >> we heard from general mcchrystal about the challenges there, the taliban having the upper hand. we hear about the battles. will we see more u.s. troops heading over there soon. >> that's the question on the table. general mcchrystal finishing up that assessment about what else is needed for defense secretary robert gates and president obama. this is the question everybody is asking. there are indications that general mccrystal will ask for additional capabilities to try to get a han doll on the ied threat that's facing the troops. more combat troops? it's up to 68,000. many people are skeptical saying you can't have too heavy a u.s. combat footprint in that country. the people there will resent it. ther

especially in militant stronghold in eastern and southern afghanistan. in helmand, 11 rockets exploded near polling stations and militants attacked a police station outside kabul. nearby, some afghans said they feared the taliban would slit their throats if they voted. low turnout in southern afghanistan and kabul could hurt the front-runner, president hamid karzai. they're his base of support. karzai is relying on voters like nebi, a 35-year-old day laborer. in his one room home in kabul he said he is willing to defy the threats for his children. >> translator: i'm voting for the peace and stability of my country he said. >> reporter: but when nebi arrived at the center he was the only one voting. turnout was high in the relatively safe north and west of afghanistan. here many back karzai's main rival, foreign minister abdullah, abdullah. high turnout improves chances of forcing karzai into a run-off election this fall. as ballots were being counted tonight it seems violence and intimidation didn't stop the vote but may have inadvertently guaranteed ano

troops in southern afghanistan. >> reporter: more than 10,000 u.s. marines, they're now spread across the taliban heartland of helmand province. with thousands more u.s. soldiers to follow. but how successful has this surge, now in its sixth week, actually test. test. of going in big is working. >> when we arrived it was a ghost town. two, maybe three stores open on a given day. >> reporter: now the people are flowing back. taliban fighters mostly slashed their weapons and fled. >> what about taliban here? no? >> no taliban? finished? is. >> reporter: with supreme court ba -- >> to help the government of afghanistan to re-establish control to be able to deliver governance, to be able to provide justice to the people. >> reporter: but not without a heavy toll. the taliban has stepped up attacks in other provinces beyond the surge. 75 u.s. and coalition troops died in july. a record number, but one which could be broken this month. already at least 20 u.s. and nato troops have been killed, mostly by ieds. leaving many asking is the surge worth it? is a

marines are both battling the taliban in southern afghanistan. here it's the british who are under attack, deep in helmand province, hemed in by taliban fighting. >> the fire was come being 400 meters northwest. >> in areas like this where the taliban is so strong, there's no possibility of voting in this week's presidential election. militants have used intimidation and threats to scare afghans away from the polls. saying they will cut off their ink stained finger, the mark that voters will carry to prevent fraud. in other parts of helmand, u.s. marines have been fighting to clear the taliban out in the hope that some people here will be able to vote. while the fight in the south is against the taliban, in the northeast of afghanistan the u.s. is battling an old ally. heck national yar, backed by the u.s. he helped defeat the russians in afghanistan. now he is trying to defeat the u.s. cbs news was table to interview hekmatyar through an intermediary who took our questions to him at a secret location. we found him as defiant as he was a year ago

troops have been killed in southern afghanistan kandahar province. ad side bombs hit their patrol last month it was the deadliest for coalition forces in afghanistan since the war began. >>> all right, you've been hearing a

there's word an american service member was killed in an attack in southern afghanistan.r details right now. three british soldiers were also killed today by a bomb in southern afghanistan, and there are dramatic pictures as u.s. marines and afghan troops battle for a second day to drive taliban forces from a town in southern afghanistan that they've held for years. some 400 -- look at this video -- marines and 100 afghan troops launched an assault on the town yesterday and the taliban has been putting fierce resistance. meantime, marines have bravely rescued a family from the town. they have been trapped in their home caught in the cross fire between the u.s.-led troops and taliban fighters. even a baby there. but the head of the family seemed reluctant apparently to even leave. >> tell him that right now it is not safe for them to walk over there. they have to come with us. tell them the taliban has guns all over there. >> all this is going on ahead of afghanistan's second ever presidential election set for a week from today, august 20th. the taliban has vowed to disrup

it serves all of southern afghanistan including the war- torn helmand province.agir has reported for independent television news among other organizations. a warning: some viewers may find the images in this story disturbing. >> it's thursday and the morning rush has started, already several cars have pulled up outside mirwais hospitals emergency unit here in kandahar. this one brought haseena and her sister, they were playing outside their home when they were hit by a driver swerving to avoid a coalition convoy. the convoy never stopped. passers-by brought them here. in the week we've spent here there's been a constant flood of civilian casualties, and not just here but throughout afghanistan, this summer is shaping up as the deadliest since the conflict began. while operation panthers claw has been trying to push the taliban out of their strongholds in southern afghanistan the injured civilians have been flooding here. >> we came to mirwais in the last week of july, a month into the offensive, to see what life has been like for the people caught in the cross fi

. >> it's about 4:15 in the morning in afghanistan's southern kandahar province. the clean touchdown. and quickly nine american agents are out of the helicopter. and across the dusty fields. >> all right, everybody take -- >> with them are 20 afghan police. >> putting out the broadcast, just hold what you've got. >> the team leader, frank tarentino turns to his interpreter. >> okay, this is a police action, put your weapons down. move across, let's go. in your elements, let's go. tell all the people right there to move out of there. [ speaking a foreign language ] >> they are hoping to seize evidence from the compound in which they have been tipped off is corrupt. >> all right, hey, up against the wall. >> this the dea, the american drug enforcement administration. >> all right. get in, get in. >> but when they get inside the men have already fled. leaving their weeping women and children behind. >> relax. relax. [ speaking a foreign language ] >> the tea they were drinking is still warm. >> look into the next place and then clear it and we'll come back and do --

military said six americans were killed in southern afghanistan. it is a crucial test for the obama administration would increase forces, 30,000 soldiers to counter the taliban and counter insurgents. >> those who attacked america on 9/11 are planning to do so again. it let -- if left unchecked, the taliban will continue to plot to kill more americans. >> the taliban has threatened to suppress turnout. many voters are undeterred as they turn out to cast votes for the candidates. one person is up for reelection. >> it is democracy in action. what matters is the result. >> one man has been in power since the 2001 invasion. exhaust -- results are expected saturday but could take longer. wbal. >> the man who was sentenced to life in prison for the pan am bombing will be released. he is terminally ill with cancer. he is being sent back to libya on compassionate grounds. that brings us to our watercooler question of the day. do you think a scottish court shouldrelease the man convicted of the 1988 pan-am bombing, so he can die surrounded by his family? e

the pentagon said this happened in southern afghanistan. the video, by the way, comes from a camera mounted on the helicopter, on the skid of the helicopter. a top u.s. commander says taliban militants are an aggressive enemy winning the war in afghanistan. in an interview with the "wall street journal" mccrystal warns u.s. casualties running at record levels will remain high for months to come. general mccrystal said they're going to threaten relatively stable areas in the north and west. a record 68,000 troops are fethed to be in afghanistan by the end of the year. >>> a might marnightmare, that'y describe a flight that was supposed to be 2 1/2 hour flight from houston the the twin cities in minnesota. they were trap owed an small plane for nine hours overnight with clogged bathrooms, crying kids, and little or no food. bad weather caused the plane to land in rochester, minnesota. officials blame airline regulations for keeping everyone on board. the passengers were finally allowed inside the terminal at daybreak, only to reboard the exact

marines were going after taliban militants in southern afghanistan. raided a compound used by the taliban to attack u.s. troops. they found marijuana plants and materials used to build roadside bombs. this part of afghanistan has been held by the taliban for years. >>> secretary of state hillary clinton was pressing iran to e wave americans beingho orrobert levson has been missing since 2007 and three hikers were detained on july 31 after they crossed into iran from iraq. a scholar was arrested last month for provoking unrest. >>> police say the thieves made off with $65 million worth of stolen jewelry might have actually tried to rob the store before. scotland yard investigators believe the suspects were caught by cameras two days before the robbery. police do not know why. a reward has been offered for the capture of suspects. >>> it was 40 years ago that hundreds of thousands of people gathered at a farm in upstate new york for a music festival that became the symbol for a whole generation. those who attended the woodstock festival in august, 1969,

. >>> we're going to turn next oversaechs to southern aft afghanistan, where u.s. and afghan tloops have launched a massive attack. the goal, to restore control of that region so that residents can vote in upcoming elections. but the taliban were not caught by surprise. our senior foreign correspondent jim sciutto is in afghanistan tonight. >>> reporter: it was a bold, pre-dawn raid right into the heart of taliban territory. 400 marines, 100 afghan troops, dropped behind enemy lines by helicopter. they met such fierce resistance, an eight-hour firefight, some were convinced taliban fighters had been tipped off. >> a lot of our missions have been on the defensive on our own turf, so it's good to get out here on the offensive. >> reporter: today's operation is part of a weeks-long, u.s. led effort to retake large swaths of southern afghanistan in time for next week's presidential election. the lack of security has threatened to close as many as one in ten polling stations across the country. >> we free the local populace from the influence of the taliban. they are ab

. >> reporter: more than a dozen taliban rockets today exploded near polling centers in southern afghanistan. as a man was being interviewed more rockets fell. another one just landed, he said. the attacks and three small bombings in kabul this morning had a chilling effect. in kabul voters trickled in to schools mosques to cast ballots and dip their fingers in ink. men on one side and women in segregated areas. threats of violence from the taliban seemed to have kept many people away. today the taliban vowed to hunt down those who voted. if we find anyone with ink on their fingers we will cut it off said this taliban commander. as they cast ballots today the leading presidential candidates, abdullah abdullah and hamid karzai. >> come out and vote. so that through their vote afghanistan can be a most secure and more peaceful and better country. >> reporter: and also millions did. with long lines in the relatively peaceful north and west preliminary results are expected on saturday. there have been some complaints of voter irregularities. problems with equipment and the ink but so far the maj

in southern afghanistan where the taliban has a stronghold, turnout was low. the votes are still being counted. >>> if you're planning on cashing in your clunker, you better get moving. the fund has run out, so the government is putting the brakes on the plan monday night. since the program began, 450,000 cars have been sold. >>> a tropical storm warning is in effect right now for bermuda. this has hurricane bill steaming closer to the island. the the storm lost a little power, but you can still see the eye. bob is tracking the storm from the weather center. >> i have a brand new picture that just came in of the eye. clearly showing there moving off to the northwest right now. there you see the eye. there's puerto rico to the south. there's been very little change in the track. it's been kept the last four or five days. the winds are around 120 with higher gusts. by saturday afternoon and evening, it will be off the east coast about 500 miles. for the atlantic coast areas, 7 to 15 foot waves and swells along the shore and dangerous rip currents can be dangerou

marines launch an assault on southern afghanistan under the grip of the taliban for years. so far there's no word of casualties, but u.s. force versus met heavy resistance in the assault which comes just days before the country's presidential election. >>> tomko lom bee yann drug boss who appeared on the fbi 10 most wanted list next to osama bin laden. prosecutors will recommend the man who was once said to be providing over half the colombian cocaine in the united states spend 45 years in prison. >>> it sounds like a cheesy movie plot but the host of a tv crime show is ordering killings to boost ratings. the host, right wing politician and former policeman faces drug trafficking and gang involvement. >>> in paris, a russian visitor described as unhinged tossed a mug at the mona lisa painting. she is reportedly frustrated in her attempts to become a french citiz citizen. >>> now here's an early look how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens 9,241 after dropping 96 points on tuesday. the s&p was down 12. and the nasdaq lost 22 points. taking a look at overseas tra

she has done a lot of great work in southern afghanistan but in terms of these rumors of the cia's involvement in the drug trade, this is something i heard all the time, over and over again, was it one of the reasons the u.s. wasn't stopping the drug trade, because our agents were secretly involved in it? i even had a governor, no less than the governor of the southern afghan province, he wasn't even a bozo, a fairly serious individual, tell me that he thought there was a deal between the been lavin family and the bush family to move drugs out of the region because the u.s. is not only doing so little to stop it but actually resisting efforts to stop the drug trade. that is one of those great conspiracy theories from the region, like who shot kennedy. i try to avoid getting sucked into these conspiracy theories but it is fascinating, when you start hearing afghans and pakistanis in senior positions who are convinced there is a grand conspiracy going on between the cia and the drug smugglers. i never found anything to prove it but you hear a lot of stories. >> sounds like you're finding of the

the violence was centered in southern afghanistan in a more peaceful area. millions of people lined up to. preliminary results are expected saturday. >>> there is a new push to extend metro rail further in a northern virginia. virginia delegate paul nichols hopes to extend the blue line to potomac mills in woodbridge. congressman jerry connelly wants to extend the orange line to centreville. connelly is hoping to get funding for feasibility study from a transportation bill that's making its way through congress. >>> coming up in this hour of "news4 at 6:00," we will tell you about a counterfeit bust at a mall in virginia. there is a new development in the case of a same-sex couple who claimed they were kicked out of a diner because of their sexual preference. and we will tell you which schools in the d.c. area made the list of the best colleges in the country. >>> anne arundel county police are investigating a wild party trown last wke q igpeapin hd nehe t happened in nr pase wowtyinrt thr ie p aty was thrown in a varanc ananrg oizers broke into. chris gordo

inri iraq and then southern afghanistan. he leaves behi a pregnant wife, renee brown, an associate with the washington legal firm of hogan and hartsman. beyoknow, she's ee, they're twreknow, she's pnaregnt in girls. >>orwith twin girls. >> reporter: care started out as a journalist, a washington correspondent and expressed -- time paper in pennsylvania then owned by the newhouse newspapers, debra howell was bureau chief. >> he loved being a d anmarine. >> reportete and marine. >> reporter: she thought at 34 he was old to enlist in the marines but it was after 9/11 and no one could talk him out of it. >> i said bill, you could get killed. he said i know that. but i really feel, he felt called, you know, like felt called to do it, like a religious calling. >> reporter: gold star family lost a loved one in the military are showing their support. the neighbors are trying to remember the fun times. nning d like i said him, you ru --icalis thennics in the front yard. >> reporter: he was a native of pennsylvania and returned to ran

are facing some of the fiercest combat of the were trying to break the taliban stronghold in southern afghanistan. >>> hurricane season took a big leap forward over the weekend. the first named hurricane of the season got active this weekend. >> the 2009 hurricane season started on june 1. it did not make its presence known until this weekend. three storms developed in 48 hours. tropical storm claudette is the first to hit the u.s. mainland this year. normally the last segment -- >> the concern for this hurricane season is that we t storm systems that form close to the mainland. then we go from not having a storm to having a hurricane that can make land fall in less than 48 hours. >> claudette pushed across the florida panhandle with dangerous winds and heavy downpours. this reporter had to bear the brunt of it in panama city beach. >> it is very uncomfortable to stand up. >> rainfall accumulations ranged from three to 10 inches. officials in dade county, fla., said that one man drowned after ignoring warnings to stay out of the water. another man went missing. claudette has weakened to a tropica

maris have carried ou anoffensive in southern afghanistan, aiming to take town hel by the taliban before next we's predential election last month also sought a majo operaon by american forces and an increase in the numr deployed. we havthis report now from the afghan capital. >> amecan forces trying to find their tget. but the emy is proving toug and resilient. the taliban is spread, and thousands of extra american troops have beeneployed. the job -- tohange the moment of this war. >> part of ourissions have beenn the defen's. >> moving into taliban stroholds in the south of the country. >> we are trying to libete the to fm the taban,who have been controlling it for at ast several year it is one of the keyowns in the area. th is where the bazaar is, so by liberating them, we free t local populac from the influence of the taliban. >> se afghans will s it differeny. while the west may hav put eir hopes in the government and upcominglections, the taban continues to have strong suppt. > f the past two weeks, the spanish islandof my oak has been targeted. bombs went off in a barnd restrant. t

. >> the current president karzai has the most support in southern afghanistan, where there have been the most attacks. abdullah abdullah, his no. 1 competitor, is expected to do well in the northern region. if courtney robinson reporting. >> the investigation into eight arson cases in damascus intensify. two pictures of a gas can found that one of the fire scenes. tuesday's early morning fire has burned trash cans and mailboxes. the smoke was really think so when rd was shut down. damages at more than $100,000. no arrests so far. looking at the medical records released of the virginia tech shooter cho. he was involuntarily committed for threatening suicide. he met with the three counselors. he claimed it had been a joke after a girl told them to stop contacting our. the reports say he was depressed and had trouble connecting with people, but no threats of violence. a year-and-a-half before he killed 32 people and then himself. a small electrical explosion cleared out the health and human services building in southwest this morning. a transformer on the top floor blew out. there was n

marines are racing against the clock to secure parts of southern afghanistan. the military says three troops were killed in fighting on wednesday. the united nations sees thursday's vote in afghanistan as one of the most complex anywhere in the world this year. just one kay before the vote, 20% of the polling materials haven't even reached the voting sites yet. officials are doing what they can. >> all the highways are open, all the roads are open. >> reporter: 15 million afghans registered to vote, but with so many living in remote areas, the taliban could suppress turnout by blocking a single road. fewer voters may hurt the chances of hamid karzai. he faces three dozen challengers, the biggest, abdullah abdullah, a doctor who once served as the country's foreign minister. though karzai is favored to win, if he doesn't get 50% of the vote there will be a runoff in october. drew 11 son, cbs news, new york. >> and the election does have a close connection to maryland. current president hamid karzai has family who live here in baltimore. >>> in one month's times o

>> two things, when you win the hearts and minds of the people, particularly in southern afghanistane area particularly controlled by the taliban -- and developing that. and the second is the developing of the government and the electoral process. this, i think, will not help in the process, particularly in canada arkandahar and could proe support for the taliban. >> many thanks indeed. famous brands of and allow cameras like polaroid have recently put analog film away in favor of digital cameras. one small group is now trying to bring analog back to life. >> there was a time if you wanted a camera you had to have polaroid. the iconic instant camera still has a certain magic. >> it has a certain look. >> after polaroid went bankrupt in 2001, the company decided to do digital photography and stop production of key film parts. when the supply ran out last year, this factory in the netherlands close, despite being profitable. now, in one corner of the factory, a small team of xm employees are trying to produce film again. -- next employees are trying to produce film again. >> where are

where international d organizions and a japaneseconstruction coany are located. >>> also in southern afghanistan, four u.s. soldiers were kled today when their vehicle hit an improvid explosive dece. e loss of the americanset a grim mileen. >> afghanistan. this became e for innaea for inernational forces since the war began in 01. with 295 killed since january of the 172 were americans making this also the deadliest year in afghanista for e united states st over 800 amicans had been killed since the war began. >>> although just a fraction of the ves have been counted so far in last week's presidential contest in afghistan, the country's elecon commissioner released some preliminary results today. and th show a prettytight race with psident hamid karzai and his to challger, abdullah abllah, both with roughly40% of the vote if neither m gets more tn 50%,hey will face a runoff this fall. >>> one of the legacies of the wars in afgnistan and iraq, of course, ishe dention terror suscts at guaanamo bay, cuba. th afgn man, mohammedjawad was one the youngest peopl evereld at the ison. now, abo mohammed j

the fighting goes on in southern afghanistan, where u.s. marines are battling the taliban.ut nato forces are pulling back now to protect voters in thursday's presidential election. >>> and here at home, growing concern that not enough swine flu vaccine can be made in time to head off an expected fall resurgence of the deadly h1n1 virus. >>> now to healthcare reform. much of the debate so far has focused on the so-called public option, establishing a government-run health insurance program. but if that's a nonstarter politically, the obama administration may well choose a middle road. nancy cordes reports. >> i can't think of a single program that the government does and does it well, and this scares the hell out of me. >> reporter: it's no wonder many americans are perplexed about a public option or confused by co-ops, when even lawmakers struggle to explain them. >> if it were a plan, it wouldn't be an option. >> reporter: the public option, as proposed, would be run by the department of health and human services, which also oversees medicare. with lower administrative cos

. >> in homeland province and -- homeland province in southern afghanistan, a raf helicopter delivers ballots from the outlying areas. the results will be closely scrutinized. there was a low turnout as a result of taliban intimidation. in a mosque in kabul, early results are posted for the public tuesday. it is to -- too soon to answer the key questions -- will there be another round? how high or low was the turnout? hear, president karzai came in second to his main challenger. all the same, it is said the president won the first round. >> we cannot be sure because the results have to be declared by the election commission. we expect it will not go to a second round and hopefully we will win in the first round. >> but dr. abdullah abdullah insists he has one. >> it is early. no doubt about it. the initial results are in my favor. in most provinces. yes, these are preliminary results. but these are indications. >> it is not seem that there is any doubt at all that there has been plenty of election fraud. we have come to the compound of another presidential candidates. he is not a like

troops were killed in another bombing in southern afghanistan. this would be the second deadliest month since the invasion back in 2001. >>> nasa has scrubbed another launch for the space shuttle discovery. the liftoff that was scheduled for 1:36 this morning has been put off again. this time the problem is a bad fuel valve. lightning in the area was a difficulty. springfield, virginia native is part of the crew. >>> and topper is here with that 9forecast first. hope it sticks around. >> it's going to stick around through tonight. it was pleasantly warm tonight. for tonight, here's your forecast f cl. cloudy, not quite as cool as last night, but not bad. last night everyone got into the 60s. i think low 70s downtown, mid to uptonight. winds t.lighnigh winds light. cewive. ni low to mid d 80 s.at s.downtown. 82edfrk.ic fo frederick. forget about leesburg. 82 in manassas. ico.a ic few clouds offshore and they will stay offshore. we'll come back and talk about what could be a tropical system that could be offshore and what that means for our friday

. >> as two more americans were killed in southern afghanistan today, the top coalition commander there delivered a long-awaited assessment of the war effort to u.s.'s nato military leaders. although the report has not been released publicly, general stanley mcchrystal says the afghanistan situation is serious but that success is achievable. naval officials said the united states is likely to request even more troops for afghanistan. and that is likely to be the case as well for british forces who have visited in afghanistan this weekend by prime minister gordon brown. in many ways, the british and americans face similar challenges. as we hear from chris shipp of itn. >> since gordon brown was last in afghanistan in april, 54 british soldiers have been killed trying to secure this country. the prime minister returned to the camp this weekend at a time when the election result is still unclear. giving the strongest hint yet he's about to send more british troops here at a critical time for the afghan campaign. it's been a bloody and very costly summer for the taliban, after which the uni

afghanistan tonight. it happened in the southern city of kandahar, that's the spiritual center of the taliban. officials said at least 41 people were killed when five vehicles filled with explosives detonated at same time. it happened in an area where international aid organizations and a japanese construction company are located. >>> also in southern afghanistan, four u.s. soldiers were killed today when their vehicle hit an improvised explosive device. the loss of the americans set a grim mileen. >> afghanistan. this became the deadliest year for international forces since the war began in 2001. with 295 killed since january. of them, 172 were americans making this also the deadliest year in afghanistan for the united states. just over 800 americans had been killed since the war began. >>> although just a fraction of the votes have been counted so far in last week's presidential contest in afghanistan, the country's election commissioner released some preliminary results today. and they show a pretty tight race with president hamid karzai and his top challenger, abdullah abdullah, both with

. >>> and american troops launch a major offensive in southern afghanistan. they are infiltrating a a taliban stronghold ahead of next week's afghan election. we will speak with the president of the council on foreign relations, richard hough, coming up. >>> first, good day, i'm andrea mitchell, live in washington. democratic senator ben cardson about to kick off his second town hall meeting of the week, brave man, ben cardin this one in hagerstown, maryland, by no means obama country. nbc's mike vicara live in hagerstown. mike, first of all, not an area that went for president obama. in fact, overwe will.ingly, the president won maryland 62-36, washington county, northwestern part of maryland, where hagerstown is mccain won, 66-43. that is the backdrop for what the town hall is going to address today. you talked to some people, scott wilson, health care. >> aim not for totally remark the current system. i just don't think the government has proved that they can spend my money wisely and, frankly, i have got a grant, i have got a grandparent. my dad is still