Mark Memmott

There was a surprising text message sent to reporters in Afghanistan today from a cell phone number that has been used by the Taliban's public relations office, NPR's Quil Lawrence reports from Kabul.

It reported the death of Taliban leader Mullah Omar.

But Taliban spokesmen claim Omar is alive and "told NPR their phones and website had been hacked," Quil says. They "accused western forces of psychological warfare."

There's a remarkable scene playing out right now in the British Parliament, where Prime Minister David Cameron has been laying out a defense of his — and his staff's — actions related to the "hacking scandal" and the leader of the opposition has accused Cameron of ignoring warnings about some of the News Corp. executives hired to work for the government.

The Justice Department has charged an American citizen with acting as an agent for Pakistan, NPR's Carrie Johnson reports. Syed Ghulam Nabi Fai of Fairfax, Va., is specifically accused of lobbying members of Congress in a bid to influence U.S. policy in the dispute with India over Kashmir, without properly registering his activities.

Fai, 62, allegedly accepted more than $4 million over the past two decades from straw donors working on behalf of Pakistani intelligence services. He was arrested this morning, the Justice Department says.

At the White House moments ago, President Obama threw his support behind the efforts of a bi-partisan group of senators known as the "Gang of Six" who are crafting their own budget-reduction plan that includes spending cuts and revenue increases.

It is "broadly consistent with the approach that I've urged," Obama said.

With more than a dozen heat-related deaths this week across the Midwest, it's sobering to think that the worst is "yet to come," but that's just what the Chicago Tribune is warning: