HAITI . . . JUNTA SHOOTS DISSIDENT, SILENCES MEDIA
Haiti's military leadership is growing less tolerant of dissent as the threat of U.S. invasion looms. Last night, hours after the regime had declared a state of siege, a truckful of soldiers and armed civilians opened fire on a former member of the Haitain Senate, Reynald Georges, an outspoken political opponent who appeared on international television and in foreign newspapers in recent days criticizing the junta. Georges was in hiding this evening after a private clinic removed three bullets from his back and arm. Haiti's de facto authorities, meanwhile, ordered local news outlets to stop issuing "foreign propaganda" or face closure or take-over. One local radio station fudged the issue by vowing to keep delivering the news -- without labeling the military-backed authorities "de facto."