As the case against former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak came to a close today, the trial judge announced he expects to deliver a verdict on June 2.

According to al-Jazeera:

If you haven't noticed, gardens are popping up in some unconventional places – from prison yards to retirement and veteran homes to programs for troubled youth.

Most are handy sources of fresh and local food, but increasingly they're also an extension of therapy for people with mental health issues, such as post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD; depression; and anxiety.

After first coming together as a trio at Cardiff University in 2006, Los Campesinos! has blossomed into a septet with a reputation for lively indie-rock, in the spirit of everyone from Modest Mouse to Broken Social Scene to Belle and Sebastian. The generous joy in the Los Campesinos!

The Syrian government's crackdown against dissenters continues, and Western journalists were killed on Wednesday as forces shelled the city of Homs. Meanwhile in Libya, reports of torture are surfacing, and the interim government is struggling to control armed militias. Host Michel Martin talks with Al-Jazeera Washington Bureau Chief Abderrahim Foukara.

There's yet another difference between the sexes.

There were 4.3 percent more existing homes sold in January than in December, and the 4.57 million annual rate was the highest since May 2010, the National Association of Realtors reports.

Sales have gone up three of the past four months.

(NPR's Lourdes Garcia-Navarro remembers journalist Marie Colvin, who died today in Syria.)

We were exhausted after a long hot day of reporting. Tripoli had just fallen and it was almost sunset. We pulled up to the house of Muatassim Gadhafi, one of Moammar Gadhafi's most feared and loathed sons.

Transcript

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

We have an update now on a story NPR's been investigating for almost two years. This morning, federal prosecutors filed criminal charges in a 2010 coal mine explosion in West Virginia. Twenty-nine mine workers died in the blast at the Upper Big Branch mine. The charges reach into the management ranks of Massey Energy, the company that operated the mine. NPR's Howard Berkes joins us now for details.

Good morning, Howard.

HOWARD BERKES, BYLINE: Good morning, Renee.

Good morning.

Our early headlines:

-- Killing Continues In Syria, Two Western Journalists Among Victims.

-- Protests Continue In Afghanistan Over Quran Burnings; Some Killed.