- An unhappy homecoming: Former Panamanian military leader Manuel Noriega, as we mentioned yesterday, has returned to his native country, this time as a prisoner. He is expected to stand trial over human rights violations and the murder of his political opponents during his six-year rule; due to Noriega’s advanced age (77), however, he would qualify for house arrest rather than a prison term. This only occurs if he accepts the verdict from a previous trial conducted in absentia, though, which would halt any effort by him to mount a further legal defense. source
