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Jon Miller reports from Lima that leftist rebels refused to attend today's scheduled round of talks with the government on the hostage standoff at the Japanese ambassador's residence. The rebels accuse the government of secretly digging a tunnel under the building in preparation for a military attack. Peru's defense minister has denied the charge, but local media quote security sources as saying police are digging a tunnel.

Daniel speaks with reporter Laurie Neff about the meeting of European, Arab, American and Japanese diplomats in Gaza today to discuss the faltering Middle East peace process. Neff says Palestinian leader Yasir Arafat called the meeting to vent his anger over Israeli plans to build more Jewish settlement in East Jerusalem, but its unclear whether the gathering achieved anything.

There's growing anger at the U.S. Postal Services for closing hundreds of downtown post offices every year and building modern ones in strip malls or industrial parks. Community activists say that's a death sentence for downtowns.

Russian troops are slowly leaving, while the locals have started thinking about re-building their shattered homes only to discover they depend on Moscow for much of the construction effort.

Jonathan Ahl of member station WCBU in Peoria, Illinois reports on a joint effort between Caterpillar and Daimler Chrysler to build cleaner burning engines for the work trucks and other heavy machines both companies produce. Tough emission standards in the U.S. and Europe were an incentive for the two companies: allowing them to split the cost of development.

Host Bob Edwards talks to John Pitney, professor of government at Claremont McKenna College, about how the new President might build a mandate to govern with such a thin margin of victory in the election. They'll also discuss how the House and Senate are likely to operate and consider what the relationship between Congress and the new president is likely to be.

In a small town outside of Boston, the latest trend is building oversized houses in old subdivisions. Some call the structures McMansions. Many people see them as trophy houses, and neighbors don't like how they dwarf the other homes.

Officials in Chechnya now say at least 55 people died Friday when a pair of trucks loaded with explosives were driven into a government building in Grozny. Chechnya's prime minister denies the bombing was the start of a full-scale assault by rebels seeking Chechnya's independence from Russia. NPR News reports.

NPR's Rob Gifford reports that an International Olympic Committee delegation has arrived in Beijing, first stop on a tour of cities bidding to host the 2028 Olympic Games. In preparation for the visit, China has launched a cleanup that includes painting winter grass green, painting buildings a monochromatic gray and trying to get citizens to stop spitting in public.

A swarm of tornadoes killed at least 10 people across the Midwest over the weekend. At the University of Kansas, officials called off classes Monday after 60 percent of the buildings were damaged by a storm. Missouri was the worst hit state with nine storm-related deaths.