110px|Main hall of the Xá Lợi Pagoda
The Xá Lợi Pagoda raids were a series of synchronized attacks on
Buddhist pagodas in the major cities of South Vietnam on August 21,
1963. The raids were executed by the Army of the Republic of Vietnam
Special Forces and combat police, both of which took their orders
directly from Ngo Dinh Nhu, the younger brother of the Roman Catholic
President Ngo Dinh Diem. The Xá Lợi Pagoda, the largest in the South
Vietnamese capital, Saigon, was the most prominent of the temples
raided. Over 1,400 Buddhists were arrested, and estimates of the death
toll and missing ranged up to the hundreds. At first, the Ngo family
claimed that the army had carried out the raids, something their ally
the United States initially believed. However, this was later debunked,
and the incident prompted the US to turn against the regime and begin
exploring alternative leadership options, eventually leading to Diem's
overthrow in a coup. In South Vietnam itself, the raids stoked
widespread anger. Several high-ranking public servants resigned, and
university and high school students boycotted classes and staged
riotous demonstrations, resulting in further mass incarcerations. As
most of the students were from middle-class public service and military
families, the arrests caused further upset among the Ngo family's power
base. (more...)
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<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X%C3%A1_L%E1%BB%A3i_Pagoda_raids>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1432:
The first battle of the Lithuanian Civil War between the forces of
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<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithuanian_Civil_War_%281431%E2%80%931435%29>
1854:
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<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immaculate_Conception>
1912:
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1980:
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<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_John_Lennon>
1991:
Leaders of Belarus, Russia and Ukraine signed the Belavezha Accords,
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
rescind (v):
<span class="qualifier-brac">(</span><span
class="qualifier-content">transitive</span><span
class="qualifier-brac">)</span> To repeal, annul, or declare void; to
take (something such as a rule or contract) out of effect
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/rescind>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
Better than a thousand hollow words
Is one word that brings peace.
Better than a thousand hollow verses
Is one verse that brings peace.
Better than a hundred hollow lines
Is one line of the law, bringing peace.
--Gautama Buddha
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Gautama_Buddha>
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