Failure to prevent atrocity leads Dutch government to resign
The entire Dutch cabinet has resigned in the aftermath of a report published last week implicating the Dutch government and senior military officials for failing to prevent the 1995 massacre of up to 8,000 Muslim men and boys by Bosnian Serb forces, according to the BBC. A force of 110 lightly armed Dutch soldiers, serving as UN peacekeepers in the area, could not prevent the massacre. The Dutch government, headed by Prime Minister Wim Kok, met for crisis talks on Tuesday morning before deciding to resign en masse. Survivors of the massacre seemed unmoved by the decision, which they saw as an empty gesture. "I want justice and it's not done by the resignation of ministers," said one survivor to the BBC. Holland's next general election will be held on May 15. Kok's cabinet will serve as an interim administration with no power to initiate legislation until a new government is formed. The report also criticized the UN, which it said should share responsibility with the Dutch government for failing to prevent the tragedy.
Lewisville, Texas
Texas siblings charged with murder of 6-year-old brother
A 15-year-old girl confessed yesterday to killing her six-year-old brother Jackson Carr in Lewisville, Texas, according to CNN.com. The girl's 10-year-old brother has also been implicated in the death. The two children have been charged with murder, but until it is decided whether they will be tried as adults their names cannot be released. Carr's parents called the police Monday after searching for nearly two hours and being unable to find their youngest son. Nearly six hours later, the teenage girl led investigators to the boy's body in a muddy pit about 100 yards from the family's rural home. "She confessed to the murder and then it was learned that the 10-year-old brother held down his brother while he died," police said to CNN. The boy had a puncture wound on his neck when his body was found, but investigators said they did not know the official cause of death. Police had not spoken with the parents at length after the confession but said they were "very traumatized and upset. Especially if you consider that, as of 10 last night, they had three children and, as of 11:40 this morning, they have lost one, and two others are in juvenile detention."
Northampton, Massachusetts
State unveils details of federally-mandated anti-terrorism plan
Following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Massachusetts public safety officials began preparing for possible future attacks with a state-wide anti-terrorist plan. Details of the planned network were released by State Senator Stanley C. Rosenberg to more than 150 local officials and state legislators Saturday in Northampton, according to The Daily Hampshire Gazette. SATURN-Statewide Anti-Terrorism Unified Response Network-is Massachusetts' version of an anti-terrorist plan that every state is required by the federal government to put into place in order to qualify for federal funding. The goal of the plan is to create "red, white and blue" teams involving fire, public health and police personnel from every community in order to carry out a rapid, coordinated response in the event of an attack or other emergency. In May, local team members will undergo two days of training at UMass, after which the public will be introduced to the program in a series of regional "town meetings" in the fall. This plan should qualify Massachusetts for more than $75 million in federal aid, 75 percent of which will go to local governments, according to The Gazette.