Mississippi legislature reconvenes to take up Katrina relief bills News
Mississippi legislature reconvenes to take up Katrina relief bills

[JURIST] The Mississippi Legislature [official website] convened for a special session Tuesday to begin work in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina [JURIST news archive]. Gov. Haley Barbour [official profile] addressed lawmakers [AP report; full transcript] at the session and challenged them to help rebuild coastal areas devastated by Katrina. One of the most contentious aspects of the rebuilding effort is the legal question of whether formerly river-based casinos should be allowed to move to land in the state. Under the Mississippi Gaming Control Act [text], the state's 13 casinos are restricted to the Mississippi or the Gulf of Mexico, which left the lucrative barges helpless under winds and surges caused by the storm. Barbour proposed allowing casinos to build inland up to 1,500 feet, if facilities remained touching the water. Barbour also proposed other legislation to provide relief for schools and small businesses hit by the hurricane. The State of Mississippi has more on recovery efforts [relief website]. From Jackson, the Clarion Ledger has local coverage. AP has more.

THIS DAY @ LAW

UN General Assembly approves Palestine partition plan

The UN General Assembly approved UN Resolution Resolution 181 (II) on November 29, 1947, recommending that the British Mandate for Palestine be split into a Jewish state, an Arab state, and an international zone for Jerusalem. The vote in the assembly was 33 for to 13 against, with 10 abstentions. The resolution sparked a war between Palestinian Arabs and Jews in 1947 and a wider war after Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Iraq, and Lebanon invaded the new State of Israel in 1948. Read Resolution 181 (II).

UN divided Palestine between Arabs and Jews

On November 29, 1947, the UN General Assembly voted to partition Palestine into Jewish and Arab territories, leading to the establishment of a Jewish state the following year. Read UN General Assembly Resolution 181.

Defense Secretary Robert McNamara resigns during Vietnam Conflict

On November 29, 1967, Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara announced that he was resigning from his office to accept an appointment as head of the World Bank. The announcement came as the Vietnam Conflict was becoming increasingly unpopular in the United States and abroad.