Today's Story Line

The United Nation's International Women's Day celebrations today are a stock-taking and issue-awareness effort in many places. In Geneva, outside the World Trade Organization headquarters, women are starting an eight-month "march" protesting the poverty and violence suffered by their gender. In Gaza, Palestinian women are marching to push for a new law granting them more rights in marriage and divorce.

There are signs of the irrepressible nature of life on the Tisza and Danube rivers. But public confidence in government environmental agencies may take as long as the rivers to fully recover.

David Clark Scott World editor

REPORTERS ON THE JOB

*PUFF MAMAS: The Palestinian women Ilene Prusher interviewed for a story on their campaign for more liberal divorce laws were devout Muslims - and smokers. The offices where Ilene interviewed the women were full of blue cigarette smoke. "It's sad, but women here still see smoking as a status symbol, as a sign of women's liberation," says Ilene. "It's similar to the attitude of American women smoking in public a generation or two ago."

FOLLOW-UP ON A MONITOR STORY

*NIGHT VISION IN MOZAMBIQUE: The United States lent some high technology to relief efforts in Mozambique this week, scanning areas devastated by floods with infrared cameras mounted on a C-130 airplane to spot survivors and survey infrastructure damage. The cameras can photograph a person from a height of nearly 2 miles, and infrared cameras can spot life screened by foliage and at night. As reported on March 3, the US is the latest in a string of countries pumping relief and resources into Mozambique. At least 50 helicopters and planes are now flying from Maputo, and 16 Western and African governments have provided more than $100 million in aid.

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