Mexico's military recently dismantled phone networks that drug cartels were using in northern Mexico to assist with their smuggling operations. A number of telecommunications workers have been kidnapped in the past couple of years and were presumably forced to build these networks.

Passengers on the Trans-Siberian Railway gather to make tea, coffee, oatmeal, soup, pasta or anything instant whose preparation demands hot water.

This week Tell Me More's 'In Limbo' series has explored four personal stories of immigrants in the middle space between legal and illegal. To better understand the complex laws that have affected their lives, host Michel Martin speaks with Mark Krikorian of the Center for Immigration Studies.

The U.S. trade deficit narrowed in October to its lowest point of the year as Americans bought fewer foreign cars and imported less oil. Exports of American-made autos also fell.

European Union leaders wrapped up a 10-hour-long meeting in Brussels agreeing on a fiscal pact that will require stricter budget discipline. But Britain is among countries not signing on to the deal. The head of the European Central Bank is calling the pact positive. It's not clear, though, whether the move is enough to relieve Europe's debt crisis in the near future. NPR's Philip Reeves wraps up the meeting.