Here are some headlines from The Economist.
1. Fighting between forces loyal to Libya’s leader, Muammar Qaddafi, and his opponents in the east grew fiercer. He remains in control of Tripoli, the capital, and is battling to seize back towns under rebel control. Western and Arab leaders discussed whether a no-fly zone should be imposed. For details, please CLICK HERE.
2. Demonstrations got angrier in Yemen’s capital, Sana’a, and in other towns across the country. At least 27 people are reported to have been killed since the protests began a few weeks ago. President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s offer to form a unity government failed to quell the unrest. For more on this story, please CLICK HERE.
3. Six men were killed in an apparent assassination or coup attempt in Congo. Shooting broke out in Kinshasa, the capital, after unidentified men armed with guns, rocket-propelled grenades and machetes attacked the home of Joseph Kabila, the president.
4. The recently retired head of Bolivia’s drug police was arrested in Panama and sent to the United States to face charges of trafficking cocaine. Three other senior police officers were arrested in Bolivia. In its annual report this week the International Narcotics Control Board, a UN body, complained about the failure of the government of Evo Morales, Bolivia’s president, to curb cocaine production. Please CLICK HERE.
5. Two American air force servicemen were shot dead and two were wounded when a gunman opened fire on a military bus at Frankfurt Airport. A suspect, apparently from Kosovo, was arrested.
6. The Supreme Court ruled that the constitution protected the right of a fundamentalist church from Kansas to picket the funerals of troops killed in the Afghanistan and Iraq wars, overturning the decision of a lower court that had sided with the family of a marine who had served in Iraq. The Westboro church believes the wars are God’s punishment for America’s tolerance of homosexuality. It airs its views near memorial services for the troops, usually under police protection. [SG: The vote was 8-1 with Sam Alito dissenting.]
