Milestones

Died. Compay Segundo, 95, troubadour and godfather of traditional Cuban music who achieved late-life fame for his appearance on the Grammy Award-winning 1997 album Buena Vista Social Club and in a starring role in the subsequent documentary; in Havana. The album reintroduced the world to Segundo and other aging, all-but-forgotten masters of son, a style that layers Spanish melodies over African rhythms. Segundo, with his ever present cigar and Panama hat, played around the world and recorded two more albums. "The flowers of life come to everyone," he said. "Mine arrived after I was 90."

Died. Elisabeth Welch, 99, American-born cabaret singer who found acclaim in Europe for stage performances of such hits as Cole Porter's Love for Sale; in London. American audiences discovered Welch's warm style after she returned to the U.S. to perform in 1980.

Died. Celia Cruz, 78, flamboyant singer known as the "Queen of Salsa," who recorded more than 70 albums; in Fort Lee, New Jersey. Cruz fled her native Cuba after the 1959 revolution and became a star in a traditionally male genre with her operatic voice, sequined costumes, outrageous wigs and trademark shout of "Azúcar!" (Spanish for sugar.) She won three Latin Grammys and two Grammys, including best salsa album this year for La Negra Tiene Tumbao.

Charged. Yang Jianli, 39, scholar and pro-democracy activist arrested last April while allegedly trying to use someone else's passport to board a plane in Kunming, China; with espionage and entering the country illegally; in Beijing. Yang, a Chinese citizen with permanent U.S. residency, entered China to research labor unrest in the northeast.

Charged. Zardad Faryadi Sarwar, also known as Zardad Khan, 40, a former Afghan military commander now living in England; with torture and kidnapping offenses alleged to have occurred on a road between Pakistan and Kabul during the early 1990s; in London. Zardad was charged under legislation that allows British courts to prosecute offenses committed abroad.

Sentenced. Benjamin Sarmento and Romeiro Tilman, militia leaders who opposed independence for East Timor; to jail terms of 12 and eight years, respectively, for murdering independence activists and forcibly moving civilians in 1999; by a local court in Dili.

Sentenced. Yang Bin, 40, Chinese-born Dutch citizen who once ranked as China's second-richest man; to 18 years in prison for crimes including bribery and fraud; in Shenyang, China. Yang became wealthy raising flowers, before expanding into real estate. In 2002, he was selected to head a North Korean Special Administrative Region in the city of Sinuiju, apparently without Beijing's prior consent. He was arrested shortly afterward.

Retired. Cathy Freeman, 30, Australian runner and one of the nation's greatest athletes, who became the first Aboriginal Olympic champion in an individual event after she won gold in the 400-meter race before an exhilarated home crowd at the 2000 Sydney Games; announced in London. "I've lost that want, that desire, that passion, that drive," she said.