Syria’s opposition told the conference nothing is more important than getting rid of President al-Assad but for the Syrian government that is non-negotiable. At one point the Syrian Information Minister declared that al-Assad would never go. Both sides traded accusations that the other was to blame for torture, rape and executions in Syria’s civil war. But despite the acrimony both delegations said they will not prepare to start more detail negotiations that in itself is progress.

 

UN mediator will meet with the opposing negotiator separately tomorrow to see face-to-face talks can be held on Friday.

 

Speaking to the members of its council on women and girls at the White House, the president said sexual assault in the US is an affront to basic human decency. President Obama’s remark comes on the day in the new White House report has been released that looked at assault including assaults on college campuses. Mr. Obama told members of the group that sexual assault is not just crime against individuals but tears apart families and communities. 

 

This is not an abstract problem that goes on in other families or other communities. Even now, it is not always talked about enough. It can still go on in the shadows. But it affects every one of us.  It is about all of us, our moms, our wives, our sisters, our daughters, our sons.

 

Obama noticed his administration has already taken steps to crack down on sexual abuse including sexual abuse in military.

 

Activist investor Carl Icahn has begun buying up shares of the online marketplace company EBay. NPR’s James Rolly reports the move could touch off battle for control of one of company’s most profitable units.

 

EBay made the revelation in its fourth quarter earning’s report. It said Icahn had purchased less than 1% of the company and has been pressing for two of his employees to sit on the board. Icahn wants EBay to sell off PayPal, the online payment service it purchased more than a decade ago. PayPal is responsible for a good part of EBay’s profits. Some analysts believe it would make even more money as a separate company because other online retailers would be more likely to use it. But EBay said it believes PayPal should remain a part of company. Icahn had no immediate comment about this disclosure. James Rolly, NPR News, New York.

 

Ford says its plan to join a couple of top universities to work toward developing cars that drive themselves. Automaker today announces it will join with Stanford University in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on NNNN automated vehicles

 

Close on Wall Street today, the Dow was down 41 points at 16,373. The NASDAQ was up 17 points.

 

This is NPR.

 

Discount airline JetBlue says it is forming a partnership with National Airline of United Arab Emirates, Etihad airlines to fly passengers on routes operated by both carriers. So-called codeshare agreement at least initially will involve 40 JetBlue routes in the US but the number could increase as Etihad airway begins daily Los Angeles in June. Etihad already has daily non-stop flights from Abu Dhabi to New York, Washington D.C. and Chicago.

 

The Obama administration has not decided whether to move forward with the northern leg of controversial Keystone XL pipeline but the southernmost section went to operation today. Joe Wertz from The member station KGOU reports the Keystone gulf pipeline will help alleviate bottleneck has been built in the middle of the country.

 

Construction on the 2.3 billion-dollar pipeline started 18 months ago and today TransCanada started pumping crude oil from Oklahoma to customers in Texas. TransCanada’s Alex Pourbaix spokes to reporters shortly after the southern section went into service.

 

The pipeline does provide a safe and direct connection between an important oil hub, probably the most important oil hub on this continent, in Cushing, Oklahoma, and with the world's most efficient refiners in the US Gulf Coast.

 

Relieving the Cushing oil glut will likely help midcontinent producers receive better prices for their oil. But some analysts say the crude might create a new bottleneck in Texas because the Gulf Coast does not have enough refineries. For NPR News, I am Joe Wertz in Oklahoma City.

 

New tougher Regulations for child care seats officials with national highway traffic safety administration safe the first time ever say it will have to protect child from death injury in side-impact crashes.