their lives. On 30 August 1999, in a UN-supervised
popular referendum, an overwhelming majority of the people of East
Timor voted for independence from Indonesia. Between the referendum
and the arrival of a multinational peacekeeping force in late
September 1999, anti-independence Timorese militias - organized and
supported by the Indonesian military - commenced a large-scale,
scorched-earth campaign of retribution. The militias killed
approximately 1,400 Timorese and forcibly pushed 300,000 people into
West Timor as refugees. The majority of the country's
infrastructure, including homes, irrigation systems, water supply
systems, and schools, and nearly 100% of the country's electrical
grid were destroyed. On 20 September 1999 the Australian-led
peacekeeping troops of the International Force for East Timor
(INTERFET) deployed to the country and brought the violence to an
end. On 20 May 2002, East Timor was internationally recognized as an
independent state. In March of 2006, a military strike led to
violence and a near breakdown of law and order. Over 2,000
Australian, New Zealand, and Portuguese police and peacekeepers
deployed to East Timor in late May. Although many of the
peacekeepers were replaced by UN police officers, 850 Australian
soldiers remained as of 1 January 2007.

Ecuador
What is now Ecuador formed part of the northern Inca Empire
until the Spanish conquest in 1533. Quito became a seat of Spanish
colonial government in 1563 and part of the Viceroyalty of New
Granada in 1717. The territories of the Viceroyalty - New Granada
(Colombia), Venezuela, and Quito - gained their independence by 1819
and formed a federation known as Gran Colombia. When Quito withdrew
in 1830, the traditional name was changed in favor of the "Republic
of the Equator." Between 1904 and 1942, Ecuador lost territories in
a series of conflicts with its neighbors. A border war with Peru
that flared in 1995 was resolved in 1999. Although Ecuador marked 25
years of civilian governance in 2004, the period has been marred by
political instability. Protests in Quito have contributed to the
mid-term ouster of Ecuador's last three democratically elected
Presidents.

Egypt
The regularity and richness of the annual Nile River flood,
coupled with semi-isolation provided by deserts to the east and
west, allowed for the development of one of the world's great
civiliza