Congo, rebels appear set to sign peace pact
DAKAR, Senegal — Congo’s government reached an agreement Monday with a renegade general to end an insurgency that has forced more than 400,000 people from their homes and threatened to undermine the new democratically elected government, according to Congolese officials and Western diplomats involved in the negotiations.
Under the agreement, expected to be signed today, the government and the rebel troops will withdraw from some positions and U.N. peacekeepers will establish a buffer zone.
The conflict was part of the deadly legacy of the Rwandan genocide, which ensnared Congo in a vast regional conflict that began in 1996 and has continued despite a peace agreement formally ending the war in Congo in 2003.
Liberia’s naked insurgent to confess
MONROVIA, Liberia — One of Liberia’s most notorious rebel commanders, called Gen. Butt Naked for charging into battle wearing only boots, has returned to confess his role in terrorizing the nation, taking the blame for 20,000 deaths.
Joshua Milton Blahyi, who now lives in Ghana, returned last week to face his homeland’s truth and reconciliation commission. His nom de guerre is derived from his platoon’s practice of charging naked into battle, a technique meant to terrify the enemy.
Ruling party backs woman for president
BUENOS AIRES — Paraguay’s long-dominant ruling party confirmed Monday that a former Cabinet minister would be its candidate in the presidential election, although her nomination faced a court challenge.
If elected in April, Blanca Ovelar would become the country’s first woman head of state and the third woman elected president in South America in recent years. Women lead Argentina and Chile.
However, her chief rival for the nomination, former Vice President Luis Castiglione, vowed to pursue his legal challenge, alleging fraud in last month’s primary. Their Colorado Party has dominated Paraguayan politics for more than six decades.
Pompeii tannery will be restored
ROME — A tannery in the archaeological complex of Pompeii, a city destroyed by a volcanic eruption in the first century, will be restored, officials said Monday. The tannery includes water pipes, 15 round tubs and the tannery manager’s house, archaeological officials said.
