NASA has said capsules similar to those used in the Apollo program are among the options considered as replacements to the Space Shuttle. [1]
A gunman, claiming to be a member of al Qaida (although authorities discount that) has taken a classroom of junior college students hostage in a college in Dyersburg, Tennessee. [2]
Richard Grasso, chairman of the New York Stock Exchange, resigns amidst criticism of his $140 million compensation package and the fact that the compensation was approved without input from the exchange's board of directors. [3]
The Arab League submits a draft resolution to the annual General Conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency which calls on Israel to sign the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and to open up its nuclear program to inspections by the United Nations. Israel is believed by some to be in possession of 100 to 200 nuclear warheads, but officially maintains a policy of "nuclear ambiguity" with support from the United States. The move by Arab nations comes in response to a Friday IAEA resolution submitted by Australia, Canada and Japan and lobbied for by the United States which asked Iran for "accelerated cooperation" and set an October 31 deadline for the country to disclose any attempts to acquire nuclear weapons. [4]