| | April 29, 2012 | | THE HUNT A year after bin Laden’s death, senior al Qaeda operatives tell Newsweek they’re straining to keep his successor safe as pressure mounts to pull off a fresh act of terror. Sami Yousafzai, Ron Moreau, and Daniel Klaidman report. YUK YUK The Gingriches, Sofía Vergara, and Gov. Chris Christie alike were at last night’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner. As was Rick Santorum, who took a photo of Lindsay Lohan, proving once again that politics are America’s highest form of entertainment. A star-studded crowd of 2,000 gathered to hear Jimmy Kimmel and President Obama trade comedic barbs, with the commander in chief at one time remarking, “I have the nuclear codes. What am I doing telling knock-knock jokes to Kim Kardashian?” The president took aim at Mitt Romney, at one point saying that Romney would call the Hilton ballroom a “fixer-upper.” Last year at the annual event, Obama delivered his speech after giving the go-ahead to eliminate al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden. PEACE PLAN Members of an advance team of United Nations observers on Sunday toured Homs, Syria, a city that saw some of the heaviest violence as regime forces clashed with a popular opposition. The observers are in the country to maintain a tenuous peace brokered by the U.N. that was supposed to take hold April 12, though fighting has continued. Thirty-two people were killed Saturday, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Neeraj Singh, a spokesman for the U.N. mission, told reporters that observers are now permanently stationed in Homs and other hotspots. “I think things have been moving as fast as possible,” Singh said. PROTECTED
While the U.S. has not confirmed that blind Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng is under American protection, sources close to the situation said Saturday that he is in the U.S. Embassy in Beijing. That report was seconded by ChinaAid, a rights group based in Texas that said it had been told by sources that talks were ongoing between the U.S. and China about Chen, who escaped after 19 months under house arrest. President Obama will have to find a quick response to the political standoff or risk facing charges from GOP candidate Mitt Romney that he’s soft on China. Three months ago, Chinese official Wang Lijun fled to a U.S. Consulate, causing political embarrassment for the ruling party. 20 YEARS LATER A funny thing happened during the chaos of the days following the Rodney King verdict—rival gangs struck a truce, looting and partying together. Two ex-members tell their stories. By Matthew DeLuca. | |
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