News In Brief
THE US
Rallies, tree-planting ceremonies, cleanups, and speeches will mark the 26th annual Earth Day celebrations today. Above, Harpers Ferry National Historic Park Ranger Eric Sheetz and Mark Delullo roll a giant earth ball during weekend festivities in West Virginia. Also, experts warn in a book released by the UN Environmental Program that the world's environmental quality is declining in virtually all categories.
Clinton promised to sign the antiterrorism bill into law early this week. The bill was passed by Congress in time for the Oklahoma City bombing anniversary. And CBS News obtained an amateur videotape that shows bombing suspect Timothy McVeigh at the Branch Davidian compound near Waco, Texas, shortly before it went up in flames. McVeigh is shown handing out anti-ATF bumper stickers.
Federal agents stepped up surveillance of the antigovernment "freemen" by positioning a high-powered video camera on the farm. About 100 agents have surrounded the Montana compound, where they have been at a standoff with the group for nearly a month.
The political gender gap is widening, according to a New York Times-CBS poll. When asked how they would vote in congressional elections today, women supported Democrats by a 16-point margin, and men supported Republicans by a 10-point margin. That compares with a preelection poll in 1994 where women supported Democrats by only a 3 percent margin, men Republicans by a 7 percent margin. And economic security dominates women's concerns: Half rated the economy "fairly bad" or "bad." Some 62 percent of men rated it "fairly good."
The Senate Whitewater Committee announced it issued 13 subpoenas. Some of the subpoenas are seeking Clinton's campaign records and documents at Hillary Rodham Clinton's former law firm. Whitewater hearings resume Wednesday.
A Montana federal judge rejected a defense motion to halt the prosecution of Unabomber suspect Theodore Kaczynski. The defense claims that news leaks have made it impossible for him to received a fair shake.
Senator Dole is about $2 million away from the $37 million limit imposed by federal election laws for campaign spending between now and the August GOP convention, his campaign committee announced. By comparison, Clinton has a campaign war chest of about $20 million for spending between now and August. Dole can't have access to new funds before the convention.
The Senate rejected Dole's amendment to allow medical savings accounts in health reform legislation when five Republicans sided with the Democrats. Clinton had threatened to veto the bill if the amendment was attached.
A government study of 15-month-old children found day care doesn't hurt or help youngsters' attachment to their mothers. That contradicts earlier studies that found children are more attached to stay-at-home moms than moms that use day care.
Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan believes his ancestors may have been Jewish, according to an interview by Henry Louis Gates Jr. in The New Yorker, released today. His assertion is "highly probable, given what we know about migration to the West Indies," said Gates, who heads Harvard's Afro-American Studies Department. Farrakhan has been repeatedly denounced as anti-Semitic because of comments he has made about Jews.
High-profile lawyer F. Lee Bailey was released from prison in Florida after spending 44 days behind bars. He was released when he complied with a government order that he turn over $16 million in stock from a former drug-dealing client.
A federal appeals court temporarily set aside its anti-affirmative action ruling, clearing the way for Texas universities to resume considering race in admissions and scholarship decisions. The decision gives the state more time to appeal the case to the US Supreme Court, Judge Jerry Smith said. The decision reportedly also applies to Mississippi and Louisiana because they are under the court's jurisdiction.
THE WORLD
Israel and pro-Iranian Hizbullah guerrillas continued attacking each other on the 11th day of fighting as US, European, and Russian diplomats attempted to broker a cease-fire. Meanwhile, EU foreign ministers were to meet in Luxembourg today to review EU policy and step up pressure on Israel to end the fighting. And the UN General Assembly plans to hold an emergency meeting tomorrow on the attacks, the Lebanese foreign minister said.
The Group of Seven leaders and Russia agreed to seek a comprehensive ban of all nuclear explosions by September. They also signed declarations combating nuclear smuggling and called for a convention on banning production of weapons-grade nuclear material. Also, Russia said it will go ahead with plans to complete a nuclear plant in Iran. And little progress was made toward closing the Chernobyl nuclear plant. Ukraine's President Kuchma reiterated that without prompt financing, Kiev cannot keep its promise to close the plant by 2000. Above, President Clinton stands in Red Square.
Egypt's Islamic Group claimed responsibility for the Cairo shootings that killed 18 Greek tourists. The group said it had planned to kill Israelis to avenge Israel's blitz on Lebanon.
As Friday's truce continues to hold, a US diplomatic team headed for Liberia to help broker a cease-fire agreement among rival warlords. Meanwhile, 1,500 US Marines arrived in Monrovia to secure the US Embassy and evacuate foreigners.
The US and North Korea met in Berlin for two days to discuss Washington's concerns about Pyongyang's development and export of ballistic missiles. Separately, South Korea said two North Korean patrol boats briefly crossed the "Northern Limit Line" before returning to their territorial waters.
The Palestine National Council was to convene today to discuss changing clauses in Palestine's Charter that call for Israel's destruction. Also, the Palestinian Authority discovered a Hamas arms cache and arrested two men involved, Palestinian police said. And the World Bank said it will loan the West Bank and Gaza $20 million to help improve roads and extend water supplies.
Sri Lankan forces killed about 80 Tamil Tiger rebels in a major assault against the rebels' Jaffna peninsula stronghold.
Some 400 Central African Republic Army mutineers still controlled the capital of Bangui, despite the presence of French troops. About 13 people have been killed, looting erupted, and soldiers reportedly released hundreds of criminals. The mutineers want their paychecks and back pay from 1992 and 1994. Some soldiers received back pay after an order from President Patasse, officials said, and other pay would be forthcoming today.
Turkish forces killed 36 Kurdish rebels in two days of clashes in southeastern Turkey, an official said. Some 18,700 people have died in the Kurds' 12-year fight for autonomy.
A bomb exploded in a New Delhi hotel, killing at least 13 people and injuring 30. The bomb was claimed by two rebel separatist groups. The explosion was aimed at disrupting India's general election this weekend.
The UN flew nine Bosnian Muslim refugees who had been held in Belgrade as suspected war criminals to Sarajevo. Four more are still in custody.
ETCETERAS
Today we took yet another step back from the nuclear precipice. We must not rest until these dangers have been reduced, until the cloud of fear has been lifted."
- President Clinton, at the G-7 meeting in Moscow on Saturday, on the decision to ban all nuclear explosions by fall.
"Sorry if we inconvenienced you," President Clinton wrote to an Irishman whose suitcase was given a "great tour of Moscow," an aide said. The suitcase, now returned, was mistakenly picked up in the lobby of the hotel where Clinton stayed in St. Petersburg and included in the White House baggage.
Former President Carter received a standing ovation when he caught a foul ball bare-handed during a Braves-Padres game in Atlanta. But actor Charlie Sheen came up empty-gloved after purchasing all of the seats behind the left field fence at California's Anaheim Stadium to snag a homer. Nobody hit a home run near him.
A Patek Philippe wristwatch sold for a record $1.7 million to an unnamed private museum by auctioneers in Geneva. The previous record for a wristwatch was $800,000. The catalog described the 1939 watch as a unique platinum wristwatch with perpetual calendar and moon phases.
Endangered Rivers
Here are the top 10 endangered US rivers and why they are threatened according to American Rivers, the US's leading river conservation group.
Elk: Increased logging threatening fisheries in Oregon.
Upper Hudson: Newly found "hot spot" of PCB contamination in New York.
American: Huge dam proposal in central California.
Pinto: Mining development near Phoenix, Ariz.
Clark Fork of the Yellowstone: Mining development in Wyoming and Montana.
John Day and White Salmon Tributaries of Oregon's Columbia: Proposals in Congress that would increase logging, inhibit salmon protection, and weaken endangered species protection.
Animas: Plan to construct reservoirs, dams, and canals in Colorado and New Mexico to enhance irrigation.
Penobscot: Proposal for hydroelectric dam in Maine.
Missouri: Extensive damming and channeling by the US Army Corps of Engineers.
- American Rivers/AP
