The World

1 | Northern Ireland For Omagh, a Kind of Closure Nearly 11 years after a massive bomb ripped through the market town of Omagh in Northern Ireland, killing 29 people, relatives of the victims have finally received some justice. On June 8, a high court in Belfast awarded $2.6 million in damages to the six families who filed a civil suit--a hefty payout by British standards and a major legal victory. Earlier criminal cases against four members of an IRA splinter group accused of the bombing had ended with only one conviction (which was later overturned). Under the looser standards of proof in civil cases, the court held the four men responsible for setting off a car bomb in the country's worst-ever terrorist attack. As the husband of one of the victims said, "It was never about the money. We can stand and say that these guys are responsible for Omagh."

2 | Beirut March 14 Madness Lebanon's ruling March 14 alliance won a surprise majority in the country's hotly contested June 7 parliamentary elections, upsetting an opposition coalition led by the Shi'ite paramilitary group Hizballah. The pro-West, anti-Syria alliance's victory was lauded by the U.S., which had threatened to withhold financial aid to Lebanon if the Iran-backed opposition triumphed. Negotiations on the creation of a national-unity government are set to begin in the coming weeks, though Hizballah's insistence on retaining legislative-veto power is expected to be a source of contention.

3 | Peru Riots in the Amazon Dozens were killed in Peru's Bagua province as police clashed with indigenous groups incensed by energy developments on their ancestral land. After months of protests, the riots erupted when policemen attempted to clear thousands of demonstrators from a highway. Peru's Congress has moved to suspend further developments.

4 | Washington Good News From Banks, For a Change In a potential sign of hope for the ailing U.S. economy, the Treasury Department agreed to let 10 large banks begin repaying $68 billion in federal aid they received under the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). Having passed "stress tests," some large firms like Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase are expected to return the bailout money ahead of the original timetable set by the White House.

1 Nicolas Sarkozy The French leader's rightist party won 27% of the Euro vote despite low turnout

2 Angela Merkel With about 38% of the vote, the German chief's conservatives were winners

3 Gordon Brown The British PM's Labour Party just barely netted 15% of the vote

Parliamentary Group Percentages

[The following text appears within a chart. Please see hardcopy or PDF for actual chart.]

EPP/ED 36.7 35.9 1 2

PES 27.6 22

ALDE 12.7 10.9

GREENS/EFA 5.5 7.1

UEN 5.6 4.8 3

GUE/NGL 5.2 4.3

IND/DEM 2.8 2.4

NI/OTHERS 3.8 12.6

CONSERVATIVE LIBERAL

Outgoing Parliament New Parliament

SOURCE: EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT