MUTOBO, RWANDA–During the 1994 genocide, Maurice Sibomana was a soldier in Rwanda's Army, the same army that was a key perpetrator of the anti-Tutsi slaughter. For most of the past decade, he has fought against the Rwandan government that defeated his army. Late last year, though, the 34-year-old Hutu laid down his gun and returned home for the first time since fleeing Rwanda in the wake of the bloodletting.
Sometimes you don't need a cute anecdote or bon mot in posting. Sometimes the numbers speak for themselves. So here's the latest–just out this afternoon–on the long-term financial condition of Social Security and Medicare:
AP - A suicide car bomber struck a patrol base northeast of Baghdad on Monday, killing nine U.S. soldiers and wounding 20 in one of the deadliest attacks on American ground forces since the war started more than four years ago.
AP - A historic veto showdown assured, Democratic leaders agreed Monday on legislation that requires the first U.S. combat troops to be withdrawn from Iraq by Oct. 1 with a goal of a complete pullout six months later.
AP - Bolstered by a fresh show of support from President Bush, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales sought Monday to move beyond calls for his resignation and lingering questions about his credibility after the firings of federal prosecutors.
Nine American soldiers were killed Monday when a suicide car bomb struck near their patrol base in Diyala province, the U.S. military said in a statement. Twenty other U.S. troops and one Iraqi were wounded in the attack, the statement said.
Former Russian President Boris Yeltsin has died at the age of 76, a Kremlin spokesman confirmed today. He became the first democratically elected president of Russia in 1991. A funeral and day of mourning has been scheduled for Wednesday, the Kremlin said.
When a judge deemed Virginia Tech shooter Seung-Hui Cho a danger to himself due to mental illness in 2005, that ruling should have disqualified him from buying a handgun under federal law.