EVENTS
UN TRIES TO COOL BOSNIA FIGHTING Serb forces reportedly attacked villages in eastern and north-central Bosnia on June 21, as UN officials tried to arrange a meeting of government and Serb military commanders. Bosnian radio reported that Serbs fired antiaircraft rounds into the besieged eastern town of Gorazde and unleashed artillery fire on villages around Zavidovici and Tesanj in north-central Bosnia. The UN reported increased cease-fire violations around the capital Sarajevo. Earlier this month, UN officials won agreement to a four-week cease-fire that began June 10, hoping they could use the time to negotiate a political settlement to more than two years of war. A negotiating team of US, Russian, and Western European diplomats is working on a proposal to give the Serbs, who now control about 70 percent of Bosnia, 49 percent. The Muslim-led government and its Croat allies would get 51 percent. Fighting flares in Yemen
As Yemen truce talks collapsed, government forces and troops from the secessionist south exchanged artillery and air strikes around the besieged southern stronghold of Aden June 21. Western diplomats in Sana, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they had received reports from Aden that about 40 missiles had hit residential areas. US trade deficit worsens
The monthly United States trade deficit worsened dramatically in April, soaring to $8.40 billion, the US government said June 21. The Commerce Department said the April deficit in goods and services was up 22.1 percent from the March imbalance of $6.87 billion as imports of merchandise climbed to an all-time high while American exports were off sharply. US goods exports fell by $1.77 billion, reflecting large declines in the sale of gold, telecommunications equipment, and computers. Love Canal suit settled
Occidental Chemical Corporation on June 21 agreed to pay $98 million toward the cleanup of Love Canal to end a lawsuit with New York State over the toxic disaster that forced hundreds of families to leave their homes. Attorneys for Occidental and New York presented the settlement to US District Court Judge John Curtin, who was expected to approve the plan. The US government's case against Occidental is still pending, as are a number of others. Lashed teen released
Michael Fay, the American teen-ager whose flogging for vandalism dragged Americans and Asians into a rancorous cultural clash, walked out of prison June 21 saying he was eager to go home. He was given four strokes of a rattan cane on top of a four-month prison term and a fine equivalent to $2,244 after pleading guilty to spray-painting cars.
