Today's Story Line

US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright once vowed she'd never return to the Middle East just to "tread water." Today she plunges back into the peace talks. Dr. Albright arrives two weeks after the Israeli turnover of southern Lebanon has changed the dynamics of the process - and brought many families together for the first time in decades.

Eleven years after Tiananmen Square, dissidents turn to the Internet and international courts for help (page 7).

Whither the lawn? Growing numbers of Canadian communities are banning the use of "cosmetic" pesticides.

A visit to the world's best laboratory for wireless technology: Scandinavia.

David Clark Scott World editor

REPORTERS ON THE JOB..

*PEACE IN SOUTHERN LEBANON: Reporter Edward Yeranian has been to the border between Israel and Lebanon half a dozen times in the past two weeks. Just after the Israeli Army pulled out, the situation was tense. "There were abandoned tanks, smoldering cars, and people waving yellow and black Hizbullah flags," says Edward. But reached by cellphone Sunday afternoon at a cafe in southern Lebanon, Edward says there's a sense of gratitude and joy. "People were expecting a spree of revenge killings. It hasn't happened. I've been coming here since 1988, and I'm surprised at how quickly things have returned to normal."

*WORSE THAN TELEMARKETERS: Doing a story on China's pro-democracy movement isn't easy. In Beijing, the Monitor's Kevin Platt got to one person before the line was cut off. Another was reached via cellphone, after the land line was put out of commission. And getting in touch with Frank Lu, a human rights monitor in Honk Kong, was also a challenge. His phone line was always busy. "Frank says that Chinese police jam his phone line and pager with prank calls, making it hard for his contacts to reach him," says Kevin.

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