Ten Words from Today's NY Times - July 18, 2012

Refugees from such places as Timbuktu, Goundam, Gao and Kidal described witnessing repeated whippings, beatings and other punishments in the streets, ostensibly for having violated strict Islamic law, and some of those who fled said they had been subjected to this harsh justice themselves.

American counterterrorism experts express concerns that Mali could turn into a magnet for international terrorists, but they say that such reports have not yet been corroborated.

The Islamists in Timbuktu have destroyed at least a half-dozen venerable above-ground tombs of holy men revered in the ancient city, proclaiming them contrary to Shariah, a legal code based on Islam.

Many Malians follow a line of belief that posits a more mystical, personal relation with the deity.

In late March, army officers angry over the government’s handling of a rebellion by nomadic Tuareg rebels in the north rose up in a coup d’état, installing a military junta under an American-trained officer after two decades of elected governments.

Aides have begun discussing how to deploy Mr. Romney’s running mate on the trail and at fund-raisers.

The campaign’s questionnaire delves deeply into the personal and professional lives of the potential candidate, his or her spouse, any previous spouses and immediate family members.

Determined to avoid the frustrations and tensions of the past, Mr. Romney’s team is taking steps to ensure that the eventual running mate — and his or her staff — functions as a true extension of the campaign, not as an autonomous political operation.

A personal connection to the candidate, people close to the campaign said, is likely to be pivotal.

Father Ryan slipped his white alb over his black suit and placed his red stole, embroidered with trees and animals, over his shoulders.