Rallies to draw attention to Darfur
Massive “Stop Genocide” rallies are planned on the Mall and across the nation today to urge the Bush administration to take stronger action to end the violence in Sudan’s Darfur region.
Thousands of people are expected to converge on Washington, including 240 busloads of activists from 41 states; local and national politicians; and such celebrity speakers as actor George Clooney, Holocaust survivor and author Elie Wiesel, and Olympic speed skater Joey Cheek.
The rallies, scheduled to take place in 18 cities, would be the largest public outcry for Darfur since the conflict began three years ago. There, Sudanese troops and pro-government Arab militias called the Janjaweed launched a campaign of killings and rapes, prompting the Bush administration to label the atrocities as genocide. At least 200,000 have died in the conflict, and 2.5 million have been forced from their homes.
Public support to end the bloodshed is growing. In recent months, after a student-led protest campaign, several universities, including Harvard and Stanford, have divested some assets from companies doing business with Sudan.
Gainesville, Texas
Storm ravages northeast Texas
Storms battered eastern Texas with winds up to 100 mph and hail the size of baseballs, damaging buildings and slamming parked airplanes into one another at an airport.
No major injuries were reported in the storms late Friday and early Saturday, authorities said.
Hundreds of homes and businesses were damaged, and some areas still lacked power Saturday afternoon, said Kay Lunnon, spokeswoman for the city of Gainesville, near the Oklahoma border.
Hangars were damaged at the Gainesville Municipal Airport, and the high wind shoved airplanes parked outside. About 15 planes were damaged.
Arlington, Va.
Bus driver killed in grisly accident
A charter bus driver who apparently blacked out behind the wheel and slumped out his window Saturday died as the vehicle traveled past a bridge column and smashed the man’s head, officials said.
Witnesses reported seeing the man hanging out the driver’s side window when his empty bus veered onto the shoulder of Interstate 395 and his head hit a concrete barrier and the column, said state police Sgt. Terry Licklider.
The bus continued down the road for more than a half mile, traveling about 5 mph, before two emergency workers running alongside could jump in to apply the brakes.
Investigators suspect that David A. Audet, 49, of Laurel, Md., had a medical emergency that caused him to pass out.
The president of Gunther Charters of Hanover, Md., said that Audet was on his way to pick up passengers in Alexandria after a brief stop at the dispatch office.