The massacre of at least 32 students at Virginia Tech university April 16—apparently by a South Korea-born English major, Cho Seung-Hui—is the worst such incident in US history. Many commentators point out, of course, that it came a few days short of the anniversary of the 1999 Columbine massacre. Few are pointing out that Columbine's "Trench-Coat Mafia" chose April 20 as their day to act because it was Hitler's birthday. Even fewer have noted why the days around April 20 have taken on an eerie significance in America in the past generation...

An investigation that has already exposed links between government officials and illegal paramilitary groups in six of Colombia's coastal departments has now reached the home department of President Álvaro Uribe, focusing on his administration's politically powerful allies. Colombia's Supreme Court, responsible for investigating corruption in Congress, has opened a probe into three lawmakers from Antioquia department—including Sen. Rubén Darío Quintero, Uribe's private secretary when he was governor there from 1995 to 1997. Investigators are also said to be probing Sen. Mario Uribe, the president's cousin. Quintero and Sen. Uribe both deny involvement with the paramilitaries.

The national human rights group CODHES [Council on Human Rights and Displacement] reports that more than 15,000 Colombians were displaced from their homes during the first one hundred days of 2007. The primary cause of this forced exodus has been the fighting between security forces and leftist guerrillas, while a US-led initiative of spraying narcotics crops with herbicides has also been a contributory factor. "Fumigation," notes CODHES director Jorge Rojas, "causes the expansion of coca growth into new areas," with both left-wing guerrillas and right-wing paramilitaries forcibly ejecting farmers from these lands. Cocaine production comprises a major resource for both leftist and rightist combatants, while its capitalization is often thought to have exacerbated and entrenched this four-decade-old civil war. [Reuters, April 17]

From the Iraq Freedom Congress (IFC), April 15:

IFC Launches an International Campaign to Free the Iraqi Detainees Being Held In the U.S. Camps in Iraq
As a result of the new Bush security plan in Iraq, hundreds of people have been randomly detained. In fact, the plan meant to spread fear among people to preclude them from any opposition to the occupation.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Antonio Guterres, has appealed to the international community for "genuine solidarity and unstinting aid to displaced Iraqis and to the states housing them." Nearly 4 million Iraqis have been forced from their homes during the conflict. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies have appealed for 18.2 million Swiss francs (almost £7.5 million [or $15 million]) to assist some 100,000 displaced Iraqi families. [Reuters, April 17] UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has asked neighbouring countries to continue to provide sanctuary to Iraqi refugees. [AlJazeera, April 17]

Omar al-Baghdadi, leader of the group the Islamic State of Iraq, has described Iraq as "the university of terrorism." According to al-Baghdadi, his al-Qaeda-associated group has used the war in Iraq as a training ground for jihadists, commenting that the "largest batch of soldiers for jihad in the path of God in the history of Iraq are graduating, and they have the highest level of competence in the world." He also expressed confidence in the future success of the insurgency. The statement was released as an audio clip on the Internet on Tuesday to mark the fourth anniversary of the US-led invasion of Iraq. [AlJazeera, April 17]

A US soldier has today been put on trial in absentia, accused of shooting dead the Italian intelligence operative Nicola Calipari. Mario Lozano [of the 69th infantry regiment] opened fire on a vehicle carrying Calipari and Italian journalist Giuliana Sgrena [of the communist Il Manifesto], at a checkpoint near Baghdad Airport, Iraq, in March 2005. The US military officially exonerated Lozano of the killing. [London Times, April 17]

A UN vehicle has been hit by a remote-controlled bomb blast in the southern city of Kandahar, Afghanistan [April 17]. Four Nepalese contractors working with the UN Office for Project Services were killed, along with their Afghan driver. The vehicle was part of a UN convoy. Taliban forces have claimed responsibility for the act. It comprises one attack among many in a campaign which has targeted those seen to be supporting foreign forces. "We'll target all individuals or organisations that are either cooperating with coalition forces or working under their supervision," remarked the Taliban commander responsible for the act. [Reuters, April 17]