Signs of hope: confirmation of the first act of IRA decommissioning; may forestall imminent colapse of power-sharing between Sinn Fein and the Unionists in Northern Ireland. So what happens next? BBC

Meanwhile, Israel rebuffs US on call to leave newly occupied Palestinian territory and stop West Bank Raids, despite conferences by both Dubya and Sec’y of State Colin Powell with Israeli foreign minister Shimon Peres in Washington today. Reportedly, the Americans imposed upon Peres for the sake of the fragility of Arab participation in the ‘coalition against terrorism.’ NY Times [“FMHreader”, “FMHreader”]